--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I had to live this long, have the…" description: "\"I had to live this long, have the experiences I've had, to create what I do. I knew I wanted to write for years, but I had to be ready so I wouldn't bl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58e/terry-goodkind-924_blow_i-had-to-live-this-long-have-the-experie_2218114.jpg" --- # I had to live this long, have the experiences I've had, to… ![“I had to live this long, have the experiences I've had, to create what I do. I knew I wanted to write for years, but I had to be ready so I wouldn't blow it. The move to Maine was the final step.” quote by Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58e/terry-goodkind-924_blow_i-had-to-live-this-long-have-the-experie_2218114.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58e/terry-goodkind-924_blow_i-had-to-live-this-long-have-the-experie_2218114.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58e/terry-goodkind-924_blow_i-had-to-live-this-long-have-the-experie_2218114.jpg) > “I had to live this long, have the experiences I've had, to create what I do. I knew I wanted to write for years, but I had to be ready so I wouldn't blow it. The move to Maine was the final step.” [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Personal growth and readiness are prerequisites for creative work; experience shapes readiness to act. **In simple terms:** Experience prepares you for creative success. Key Takeaway Cultivate experience before pursuing goals. Themes creativity readiness experience career timing Mood reflective inspirational Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - career transitions - relocation decisions - skill building Key Concepts personal development creative process career planning Questions to Reflect On - What experiences have prepared you for your goals? - How do you know when you're ready? A Different Perspective Readiness alone may not guarantee success without opportunity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Maine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maine/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I'm grateful to have been acting for as long as I have because I have so many experiences and memories, and I've gotten to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dakota-fanning/i-m-grateful-to-have-been-acting-for-as-long-as-i-have-because-i-have/) [Dakota Fanning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dakota-fanning/) > [There is nothing new on earth / For a person who lives long and experiences much. / In my years of youthful wandering /…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/there-is-nothing-new-on-earth-for-a-person-who-lives-long-and/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I used to think that: whenever I heard that someone had taken 10 years to write a novel, I'd think it must be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-rankin/i-used-to-think-that-whenever-i-heard-that-someone-had-taken-10-years/) [Ian Rankin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-rankin/) > [I loved my 17 years with R.E.M., but I'm ready to reflect, assess and move on to a different phase of my life. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-berry/i-loved-my-17-years-with-r-e-m-but-i-m-ready-to-reflect-assess-and/) Bill Berry > [In the Ghetto, I'd been trying to write for years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mac-davis/in-the-ghetto-i-d-been-trying-to-write-for-years/) [Mac Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mac-davis/) > [There are some people the gestation period is like an elephant's and it's just years and years before they're ready.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-amaechi/there-are-some-people-the-gestation-period-is-like-an-elephant-s-and/) [John Amaechi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-amaechi/) > [A story must simmer in its own juice for months or even years before it's ready to serve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-ferber/a-story-must-simmer-in-its-own-juice-for-months-or-even-years-before/) [Edna Ferber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-ferber/) > [The truth is I tried to write for years and I wasn't very good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-jo-campbell/the-truth-is-i-tried-to-write-for-years-and-i-wasn-t-very-good/) [Bonnie Jo Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-jo-campbell/) > [I've been on shows that went for years and years and years, and I was not ready for that again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-momoa/i-ve-been-on-shows-that-went-for-years-and-years-and-years-and-i-was/) [Jason Momoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-momoa/) > [I didn't feel up to writing about 9/11. If I were to write about it, it would take me years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-ford/i-didn-t-feel-up-to-writing-about-9-11-if-i-were-to-write-about-it-it/) [Richard Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-ford/) > [I felt like I'd been misplaced in the cosmos and I belonged in Maine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/i-felt-like-i-d-been-misplaced-in-the-cosmos-and-i-belonged-in-maine/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Making a logging-road in the Maine woods is called "swamping" it, and they who do the work are called "swampers." I now perceivedthe fitness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/making-a-logging-road-in-the-maine-woods-is-called-swamping-it-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The final cover for 'Heroes Are My Weakness' feels exactly right. It reflects the cold, wintry setting of an isolated island off the coast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/the-final-cover-for-heroes-are-my-weakness-feels-exactly-right-it/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [Maine out of season is unmistakably a great destination: hospitable, good-humored, plenty of elbow room, short days, dark nights of crackling ice crystals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/maine-out-of-season-is-unmistakably-a-great-destination-hospitable/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [Why doesn't the United States take over the monarchy and unite with England? England does have important assets. Naturally the longer you wait, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/why-doesn-t-the-united-states-take-over-the-monarchy-and-unite-with/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) ## More by Terry Goodkind > [Sometimes, it is necessary to step beyond what you have known and to reach for something more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/sometimes-it-is-necessary-to-step-beyond-what-you-have-known-and-to/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“It should hurt, shouldn’t it? Shouldn’t it hurt to be ripped in half? But it didn’t. It didn’t hurt the least little bit. Cold.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/it-should-hurt-shouldn-t-it-shouldn-t-it-hurt-to-be-ripped-in-half/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Dancing with death meant being committed to killing, committed with your heart and soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/dancing-with-death-meant-being-committed-to-killing-committed-with/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Only a fool walks into the future backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/only-a-fool-walks-into-the-future-backwards/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“Sometimes it's more important to seize the chance and do what you can even knowing that it won't likely account for everything, that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/sometimes-it-s-more-important-to-seize-the-chance-and-do-what-you-can/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“While it was understandable to be afraid, and no one would expect you not to be, the worst thing you could do was to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/while-it-was-understandable-to-be-afraid-and-no-one-would-expect-you/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“Leadership is a nurturing of those under your command.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/leadership-is-a-nurturing-of-those-under-your-command/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“To question me once is a simple mistake, Lieutenant. Twice is treason. We execute traitors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/to-question-me-once-is-a-simple-mistake-lieutenant-twice-is-treason/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Fate does not seek our consent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/fate-does-not-seek-our-consent/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Wizard's Third Rule Passion rules reason, For better or for worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/wizard-s-third-rule-passion-rules-reason-for-better-or-for-worse/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“Nicci looked up at Kahlan. “Knives are not my talent.” “It’s not hard,” Kahlan said as she pressed the handle into Nicci’s hand. “When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/nicci-looked-up-at-kahlan-knives-are-not-my-talent-it-s-not-hard/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“This was why he couldn’t let Richard know it was the chimes themselves that were loose. Richard would not have accepted what Zedd intended,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/this-was-why-he-couldn-t-let-richard-know-it-was-the-chimes/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“price. There is no such thing as pure good or pure evil, least of all in people. In the best of us there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/price-there-is-no-such-thing-as-pure-good-or-pure-evil-least-of-all/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [The first step to believing something is true is wanting to believe it is true... or being afraid it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/the-first-step-to-believing-something-is-true-is-wanting-to-believe/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [...you'll find that being a friend is to like a person for who they are, even the parts you don't understand. You don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/you-ll-find-that-being-a-friend-is-to-like-a-person-for-who-they-are/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) [Explore all 323 Terry Goodkind quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) ## More Blow quotes > [The wind always seems to blow against catchers when they are running.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-garagiola/the-wind-always-seems-to-blow-against-catchers-when-they-are-running/) [Joe Garagiola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-garagiola/) > [Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage! Blow! You cataracts and hurricanoes, spout Till you have drenched our teeples, drowned the cocks! You sulphurour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/blow-winds-and-crack-your-cheeks-rage-blow-you-cataracts-and/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [If he wants to blow his head off, let him. I don't give a damn about Jim Bakker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-hahn/if-he-wants-to-blow-his-head-off-let-him-i-don-t-give-a-damn-about/) [Jessica Hahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-hahn/) > [If we blow ourselves up we will do it by misapplication of science; if we manage to keep from blowing ourselves up, it will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/if-we-blow-ourselves-up-we-will-do-it-by-misapplication-of-science-if/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Not I, not I, but the wind that blows through me! A fine wind is blowing the new direction of Time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence/not-i-not-i-but-the-wind-that-blows-through-me-a-fine-wind-is-blowing/) [D. H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence/) > [The only two good words that can be said for a hurricane are that it gives sufficient warning of its approach, and that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-atherton/the-only-two-good-words-that-can-be-said-for-a-hurricane-are-that-it/) [Gertrude Atherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-atherton/) > [Music is a wind that blows away the years, memories, and fear, that crouching animal I carry inside me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/music-is-a-wind-that-blows-away-the-years-memories-and-fear-that/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [The supposedly immaterial soul, we now know, can be bisected with a knife, altered by chemicals, started or stopped by electricity, and extinguished by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/the-supposedly-immaterial-soul-we-now-know-can-be-bisected-with-a/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [One of the wonderful things about Portlandia - and I'm not just blowing smoke, although I can blow smoke, but I'm not - is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-raab/one-of-the-wonderful-things-about-portlandia-and-i-m-not-just-blowing/) [Scott Raab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-raab/) > [I would always find a way to blow the deal and I'm not sure why. I think there was part of me that wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-isaac/i-would-always-find-a-way-to-blow-the-deal-and-i-m-not-sure-why-i/) [Oscar Isaac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-isaac/) > [Letters crossing in the post, unfamiliar tunes heard three times in one day, the way that blows of fate descend upon the same bowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/letters-crossing-in-the-post-unfamiliar-tunes-heard-three-times-in/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [Truth is, right now two bombs could drop out of the sky and blow up this house and whatever building you're in and just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mackaye/truth-is-right-now-two-bombs-could-drop-out-of-the-sky-and-blow-up/) [Ian MacKaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mackaye/) > [The old saying is true: If you have only the Word, you dry up. If you have only the Spirit, you blow up. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cymbala/the-old-saying-is-true-if-you-have-only-the-word-you-dry-up-if-you/) [Jim Cymbala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cymbala/) > [I can turn an idea into a business before you know it's going to be important. My first step will blow by you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-cuban/i-can-turn-an-idea-into-a-business-before-you-know-it-s-going-to-be/) [Mark Cuban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-cuban/) > [The Brick House was one of the toughest joints I ever played in ... Guys would drink and fight one another like circle saws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-armstrong/the-brick-house-was-one-of-the-toughest-joints-i-ever-played-in-guys/) [Louis Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-armstrong/) Browse all 2,324 Blow quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I had to live this long, have the experiences I've had, to create what I do. 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