---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was ahead of my time."
description: "\"I was ahead of my time.\" — Wally Funk"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84e/wally-funk-13134_ahead_i-was-ahead-of-my-time-1833975_1833975.jpg"
---

#  I was ahead of my time.

![“I was ahead of my time.” quote by Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84e/wally-funk-13134_ahead_i-was-ahead-of-my-time-1833975_1833975.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84e/wally-funk-13134_ahead_i-was-ahead-of-my-time-1833975_1833975.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84e/wally-funk-13134_ahead_i-was-ahead-of-my-time-1833975_1833975.jpg)

> “I was ahead of my time.”

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

## About This Quote

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

Being ahead of one’s time means pioneering ideas before they’re widely accepted.

**In simple terms:** Innovate before others recognize it.

Key Takeaway

Embrace pioneering mindsets.

Themes

innovation pioneering timing

Mood

inspirational determined

Type

motivational philosophical

When to use this quote

- entrepreneurship
- STEM education
- policy reform
- public speaking

Key Concepts

future vision risk taking

Questions to Reflect On

- What future trends do you see before they’re mainstream?
- How do you handle skepticism?

A Different Perspective

Early ideas may face resistance.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Ahead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ahead/) [Ahead Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ahead-time/) [My time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-time/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

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> [I'm fifty years ahead of my time,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pilates/i-m-fifty-years-ahead-of-my-time/)

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> [I'm a precrastinator. Yes, that's an actual term. You know that panic you feel a few hours before a big deadline when you haven't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-grant/i-m-a-precrastinator-yes-that-s-an-actual-term-you-know-that-panic/)

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> [This thing we have is ahead of its time. Just keep on doin' what you?re doin?, never change track.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tami-chynn/this-thing-we-have-is-ahead-of-its-time-just-keep-on-doin-what-you-re/)

[Tami Chynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tami-chynn/)

> [“Nothing comes ahead of its time, and nothing has ever happened that didn't need to happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byron-katie/nothing-comes-ahead-of-its-time-and-nothing-has-ever-happened-that/)

[Byron Katie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byron-katie/)

> [“It is better to be ahead of your time than to lag behind your generation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/it-is-better-to-be-ahead-of-your-time-than-to-lag-behind-your/)

[Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/)

> [The best way to keep something bad from happening is to see it ahead of time... and you can't see it if you refuse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/the-best-way-to-keep-something-bad-from-happening-is-to-see-it-ahead/)

[William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/)

> [I like to be on time, preferably ahead of time. It's better to be one of the first at a function as opposed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-coulthard/i-like-to-be-on-time-preferably-ahead-of-time-it-s-better-to-be-one/)

[David Coulthard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-coulthard/)

> [When you watch chess, you don't see the four hours that the player spends preparing for a match ahead of time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hikaru-nakamura/when-you-watch-chess-you-don-t-see-the-four-hours-that-the-player/)

[Hikaru Nakamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hikaru-nakamura/)

> [To be successful be ahead of your time, but only a little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/to-be-successful-be-ahead-of-your-time-but-only-a-little/)

[Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/)

> [My music is a little ahead of its time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kodie-shane/my-music-is-a-little-ahead-of-its-time/)

[Kodie Shane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kodie-shane/)

> [Skepticism is not a position that you stake out ahead of time and stick to no matter what.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/skepticism-is-not-a-position-that-you-stake-out-ahead-of-time-and/)

[Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/)

> [“It's not that I'm ahead of my time, it's more that the world is running late”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-stern/it-s-not-that-i-m-ahead-of-my-time-it-s-more-that-the-world-is/)

[Josh Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-stern/)

> [... the art of politics is to be ahead of your time--about six months will do it. Any more than that, and people forget…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-art-of-politics-is-to-be-ahead-of-your-time-about-six-months-will/)

[Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/)

## More by Wally Funk

> [I like to do things that nobody has ever done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/i-like-to-do-things-that-nobody-has-ever-done/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [We hadn't been to space yet, so there was no idea what the human body would have to endure in terms of stress. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/we-hadn-t-been-to-space-yet-so-there-was-no-idea-what-the-human-body/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [You never forget the airplane you soloed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/you-never-forget-the-airplane-you-soloed/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [I went on to Oklahoma State University, who was the best flight school in the United States at that time from the mid '50s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/i-went-on-to-oklahoma-state-university-who-was-the-best-flight-school/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [I think we all know what actually happened. It was a good old boy network, and there was no such thing as a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/i-think-we-all-know-what-actually-happened-it-was-a-good-old-boy/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [I love challenges, and I like 'em hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/i-love-challenges-and-i-like-em-hard/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [I've done a lot of astronaut training through the world, Russia, America. And I could always beat the guys on what they were doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/i-ve-done-a-lot-of-astronaut-training-through-the-world-russia/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [I'm still kicking in doors to keep on going.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/i-m-still-kicking-in-doors-to-keep-on-going/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [I'm a happy kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/i-m-a-happy-kid/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [We may get a few trips but it is the coming generation of women who really will perform in outer space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/we-may-get-a-few-trips-but-it-is-the-coming-generation-of-women-who/)

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> [My feelings are 'Godspeed, John Glenn.' But I feel badly that he took a spot away from a young astronaut who had probably waited…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/my-feelings-are-godspeed-john-glenn-but-i-feel-badly-that-he-took-a/)

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> [Russia will have a woman in space before the United States calls for a crash program for women astronauts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/russia-will-have-a-woman-in-space-before-the-united-states-calls-for/)

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> [Higher, faster, longer - that is my motto.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/higher-faster-longer-that-is-my-motto/)

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> [My first ride in an airplane was at nine years of age, and it was wonderful: the freedom, the smell of the exhaust, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/my-first-ride-in-an-airplane-was-at-nine-years-of-age-and-it-was/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

> [I had to drink radioactive water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-funk/i-had-to-drink-radioactive-water/)

[Wally Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

[Explore all 51 Wally Funk quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-funk/)

## More Ahead quotes

> [Anybody who thinks that they should lead the country should go ahead and put their hat in the ring. I am not among them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-schatz/anybody-who-thinks-that-they-should-lead-the-country-should-go-ahead/)

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[Gautam Rode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautam-rode/)

> [“What lies behind us is nothing compared to what lies within us and ahead of us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-covey/what-lies-behind-us-is-nothing-compared-to-what-lies-within-us-and/)

[Stephen R. Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-covey/)

> [In Life, We May Never Get The Same Opportunity Again, But There's Always Something Better Ahead...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pacifiersucker/in-life-we-may-never-get-the-same-opportunity-again-but-there-s/)

[Pacifiersucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pacifiersucker/)

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[Victoria Coren Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-coren-mitchell/)

> [There is no such thing as disposable time if you want to stay ahead of the game](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-no-such-thing-as-disposable-time-if-you-want-to-stay-ahead/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

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[Chadwick Boseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chadwick-boseman/)

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[Andre Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gray/)

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[Catherine Mary Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-mary-stewart/)

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[Dharmendra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dharmendra/)

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[Jofra Archer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jofra-archer/)

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[Rabi Shaheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabi-shaheen/)

> [I am not interested to sing in Bollywood. I sing for only those actors whom I admire. I sing free of cost for them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yo-yo-honey-singh/i-am-not-interested-to-sing-in-bollywood-i-sing-for-only-those-actors/)

[Yo Yo Honey Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yo-yo-honey-singh/)

[Browse all 1,773 Ahead quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ahead/)

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