---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've never had a teammate competing with…"
description: "\"I've never had a teammate competing with me my whole life.\" — Shawn Johnson"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab2/shawn-johnson-7090_competing_i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with_1354580.png"
---

#  I've never had a teammate competing with me my whole life.

![“I've never had a teammate competing with me my whole life.” quote by Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab2/shawn-johnson-7090_competing_i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with_1354580.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab2/shawn-johnson-7090_competing_i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with_1354580.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab2/shawn-johnson-7090_competing_i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with_1354580.png)

> “I've never had a teammate competing with me my whole life.”

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Having a teammate who never competes with you fosters collaboration over rivalry.

**In simple terms:** Teamwork beats competition.

Key Takeaway

Embrace cooperation.

Themes

teamwork collaboration sports

Mood

reflective positive

Type

motivational inspirational

When to use this quote

- team projects
- coaching
- workplace collaboration

Key Concepts

Psychology of competition cooperative dynamics

Questions to Reflect On

- How does non‑competition affect performance?
- When is healthy rivalry beneficial?

A Different Perspective

Competition can still motivate growth; balance is needed.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Competing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competing/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Teammate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teammate/)

## Related quotes

> [We have to remember that we're no longer competing for anything anymore. We're not competing for life and death. Now we need to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-hudson/we-have-to-remember-that-we-re-no-longer-competing-for-anything/)

[Kate Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-hudson/)

> [I've been competing my whole life. Who cares about the spotlight?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johny-hendricks/i-ve-been-competing-my-whole-life-who-cares-about-the-spotlight/)

[Johny Hendricks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johny-hendricks/)

> [We're really friendly. The cool thing about skiing is you're competing against the clock. Even though you're competing against your teammates, it's not head-to-head.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-mancuso/we-re-really-friendly-the-cool-thing-about-skiing-is-you-re-competing/)

[Julia Mancuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-mancuso/)

> [There's a term, agape, you hear used a lot with charismatic religious groups, that it's this more pure love of caring, of sharing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-jackson/there-s-a-term-agape-you-hear-used-a-lot-with-charismatic-religious/)

[Phil Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-jackson/)

> [As I and the rest of my Pittsburgh Steelers teammates prepared that week in late December 1974, we knew one thing: The road to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-greene/as-i-and-the-rest-of-my-pittsburgh-steelers-teammates-prepared-that/)

[Joe Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-greene/)

> [The thing is, I don't do these things for recognition, being a good teammate, being a positive member of the community. I do them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwyane-wade/the-thing-is-i-don-t-do-these-things-for-recognition-being-a-good/)

[Dwyane Wade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwyane-wade/)

> [If I come to work every day and do my job, work as hard as I can, be a great teammate, the rest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-durant/if-i-come-to-work-every-day-and-do-my-job-work-as-hard-as-i-can-be-a/)

[Kevin Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-durant/)

> [I think we've bounced back and really been resilient. Even after a bad period, we take over and we seem like we're on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-fisher/i-think-we-ve-bounced-back-and-really-been-resilient-even-after-a-bad/)

[Mike Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-fisher/)

> [People have to understand what my game is. It's not all about numbers. There's a bigger picture here. I don't create off the dribble.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-lobo/people-have-to-understand-what-my-game-is-it-s-not-all-about-numbers/)

[Rebecca Lobo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-lobo/)

> [I don't just try to score. The challenge is elevating my teammates to be able to win a championship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobe-bryant/i-don-t-just-try-to-score-the-challenge-is-elevating-my-teammates-to/)

[Kobe Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobe-bryant/)

> [Sourav's greatest asset is his ability to communicate. He is a naturally very confident person. He encourages his team, is a great motivator and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-shastri/sourav-s-greatest-asset-is-his-ability-to-communicate-he-is-a/)

[Ravi Shastri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-shastri/)

> [“To be honest with everyone around you, humble no matter how good things get, reliable and consistent so that everyone knows what to expect,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ross/to-be-honest-with-everyone-around-you-humble-no-matter-how-good/)

[David Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ross/)

> [Really being able to harness my mental approach has kind of taken me to the next level, and obviously maturing as a player and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-arrieta/really-being-able-to-harness-my-mental-approach-has-kind-of-taken-me/)

[Jake Arrieta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-arrieta/)

> [Or I could see Fish, Just a button up, Like a Mayor, Like a President, Just demands so much from his teammates, Has played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-durant/or-i-could-see-fish-just-a-button-up-like-a-mayor-like-a-president/)

[Kevin Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-durant/)

> [Strategy is not a solo sport, even if you're the CEO.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-mckeown/strategy-is-not-a-solo-sport-even-if-you-re-the-ceo/)

[Max McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-mckeown/)

## More by Shawn Johnson

> [My parents- they've been my biggest influences and supporters since day one. They teach me every day that happiness comes from within and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/my-parents-they-ve-been-my-biggest-influences-and-supporters-since/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [I had a constant fear, a constant little doubt in my mind: 'OK, I'm getting ready to do my standing back full on beam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-had-a-constant-fear-a-constant-little-doubt-in-my-mind-ok-i-m/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [Stay strong. Stand up. Have a voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/stay-strong-stand-up-have-a-voice/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [“I understand that nothing is easy. I say everything happens for a reason. I dream of one day the world is in peace. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-understand-that-nothing-is-easy-i-say-everything-happens-for-a/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [The body is an amazing machine... If you eat the right things your body will perform incredibly well!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/the-body-is-an-amazing-machine-if-you-eat-the-right-things-your-body/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [I set my phone with motivational quotes to go off on random days and times. Like, 'You're stronger than you think you are.' I'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-set-my-phone-with-motivational-quotes-to-go-off-on-random-days-and/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [I was always known as that stocky, muscular, powerful, short, athlete. People always wondered if I was on steroids, and it was because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-was-always-known-as-that-stocky-muscular-powerful-short-athlete/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [My coach, Liang Chow, had one rule while I was training for the 2008 Olympics: no skiing. I could do anything I wanted outside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/my-coach-liang-chow-had-one-rule-while-i-was-training-for-the-2008/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [There's always a chance. Anything can happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/there-s-always-a-chance-anything-can-happen/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [I think it's important for girls at a young age to be involved in as many things as possible. Especially safe communities of people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-think-it-s-important-for-girls-at-a-young-age-to-be-involved-in-as/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [I missed being considered an athlete and having that competitive drive, and missed having something to work for every day. I'd taken two and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-missed-being-considered-an-athlete-and-having-that-competitive/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [Gymnastics taught me everything - life lessons, responsibility and discipline and respect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/gymnastics-taught-me-everything-life-lessons-responsibility-and/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [Something my mom taught me when I was little is that everything happens for a reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/something-my-mom-taught-me-when-i-was-little-is-that-everything/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [I have a healthy lifestyle, but there's nothing you can really do to prevent from rolling an ankle or something like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-have-a-healthy-lifestyle-but-there-s-nothing-you-can-really-do-to/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

> [I was able to do Classics, the U.S. national championships and the Pan American Games and feel like I improved with each meet, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-was-able-to-do-classics-the-u-s-national-championships-and-the-pan/)

[Shawn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

[Explore all 95 Shawn Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/)

## More Competing quotes

> [When you reach that competing point, when you reach that time when the gun is about to go off, everyone's level is pretty much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/apolo-ohno/when-you-reach-that-competing-point-when-you-reach-that-time-when-the/)

[Apolo Ohno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/apolo-ohno/)

> [Popular culture as a whole is popular, but in today's fragmented market it's a jostle of competing unpopular popular cultures. As the critic Stanley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/popular-culture-as-a-whole-is-popular-but-in-today-s-fragmented/)

[Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/)

> [I have no social life. There is no time for one. Once in a while I may go to dinner with a friend but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-halliday/i-have-no-social-life-there-is-no-time-for-one-once-in-a-while-i-may/)

[Liz Halliday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-halliday/)

> [I competed every day as a professional football player... You've got to like competing. That's how your team gets better, when you have competition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herm-edwards/i-competed-every-day-as-a-professional-football-player-you-ve-got-to/)

[Herm Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herm-edwards/)

> [There are 16 year olds competing at the olympics and i still push on pull doors &amp; struggle getting through the whole day without a nap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-eastwood/there-are-16-year-olds-competing-at-the-olympics-and-i-still-push-on/)

[Scott Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-eastwood/)

> [I love nothing more than going out there and competing. And baseball's my outlet to do that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-fried/i-love-nothing-more-than-going-out-there-and-competing-and-baseball-s/)

[Max Fried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-fried/)

> [I've always worked closely with the designers and whoever's making the costumes. Comfort is the last thing you want on your mind when you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristi-yamaguchi/i-ve-always-worked-closely-with-the-designers-and-whoever-s-making/)

[Kristi Yamaguchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristi-yamaguchi/)

> [I don't think anybody who carries a rifle carries the future. Because I don't believe that you can really change the world by killing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/i-don-t-think-anybody-who-carries-a-rifle-carries-the-future-because/)

[Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/)

> [America breeds ambition and while that can be a good thing, sometimes it's not. Ambition also breeds competition and that can be a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaka-khan/america-breeds-ambition-and-while-that-can-be-a-good-thing-sometimes/)

[Chaka Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaka-khan/)

> [I'll miss the competitive side and the camaraderie of being around the players and competing each and every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scottie-pippen/i-ll-miss-the-competitive-side-and-the-camaraderie-of-being-around/)

[Scottie Pippen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scottie-pippen/)

> [Being away from the game and just remembering why I love competing and all of that, I think it helped me tremendously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-keys/being-away-from-the-game-and-just-remembering-why-i-love-competing/)

[Madison Keys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-keys/)

> [Competing is intense among humans, and within a group, selfish individuals always win. But in contests between groups, groups of altruists always beat groups…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/competing-is-intense-among-humans-and-within-a-group-selfish/)

[E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/)

> [We're competing against other great cities: Madrid, Rio de Janeiro, and Tokyo. That's why it's important that we all join together on the final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-daley/we-re-competing-against-other-great-cities-madrid-rio-de-janeiro-and/)

[Richard M. Daley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-daley/)

> [That this is not a sense of innovation and competition increasing prices because some other company is coming in and competing with Martin Shkreli.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-ann-reid/that-this-is-not-a-sense-of-innovation-and-competition-increasing/)

[Joy-Ann Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-ann-reid/)

> [Some people steal from others, or defraud them, or enslave them, seizing their product and preventing them from living as they choose, or forcibly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-nozick/some-people-steal-from-others-or-defraud-them-or-enslave-them-seizing/)

[Robert Nozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-nozick/)

[Browse all 1,003 Competing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competing/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I've never had a teammate competing with me my whole life.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Shawn Johnson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with-me-my-whole-life/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Competing"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with-me-my-whole-life/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab2/shawn-johnson-7090_competing_i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with_1354580.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab2/shawn-johnson-7090_competing_i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with_1354580.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab2/shawn-johnson-7090_competing_i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with_1354580.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I've never had a teammate competing with me my whole life.” — Shawn Johnson",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Shawn Johnson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-johnson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I've never had a teammate competing...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with-me-my-whole-life/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-johnson/i-ve-never-had-a-teammate-competing-with-me-my-whole-life/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
