Home > Author > Abby Wambach

Abby Wambach QUOTES

Abby Wambach QUOTES

1 " Note: When they say you're ridiculous, you know you're onto something. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

2 " With each passing day soccer carves a larger scoop of my life. I love it for what it gives me: praise, affection, and, above all, attention. When I'm on the field I don't have to plead to be noticed, either silently or aloud; it is a natural by-product of my talent. I loathe it for the same reason, terrified that soccer is the only worthwile thing about me, that stripping it from my identity might make me disappear. My future teammate and friend Mia Hamm will one day offer this advice: "Somewhere behind the athlete you've become and the hours of practice and the coaches who have pushed you is a little girl who fell in love with the game and never looked back... play for her."

I am not, and never will be, that little girl. Already I know I'm incapable of falling in love with the game itself--only with the validation that comes from mastering it, from bending it to my will. "

― Abby Wambach , Forward: A Memoir

3 " [...] insist upon remembering. Because we know that the lessons of yesterday's loss become the fuel for tomorrow's win. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

4 " Failure is not something to be ashamed of—nor is it proof of unworthiness. Failure is something to be powered by. When we live afraid to fail, we don’t take risks. We don’t bring our entire selves to the table—so we end up failing before we even begin. Let’s stop worrying: What if I fail? Instead, let’s promise ourselves: When I fail, I’ll stick around. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

5 " CALL TO THE WOLFPACK: Be grateful. But do not JUST be grateful. Be grateful AND brave. Be grateful AND ambitious. Be grateful AND righteous. Be grateful AND persistent. Be grateful AND loud. Be grateful for what you have AND demand what you deserve. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

6 " Leadership is taking care of yourself and empowering others to do the same. Leadership is not a position to earn, it’s an inherent power to claim. Leadership is the blood that runs through your veins—it’s born in you. It’s not the privilege of a few, it is the right and responsibility of all. Leader is not a title that the world gives to you—it’s an offering that you give to the world. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

7 " CALL TO THE WOLFPACK: Her victory is your victory. Celebrate with her. Your victory is her victory. Point to her. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

8 " You might find yourself holding a baby instead of a briefcase and fearing that your colleagues are “getting ahead” and leaving you behind. Here’s what’s important: You are allowed to be disappointed when it feels like life’s benched you. What you aren’t allowed to do is miss your opportunity to lead from the bench. If you’re not a leader on the bench, don’t call yourself a leader on the field. You’re either a leader everywhere or nowhere. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

9 " Strength is a full gamut. You’ve got to be strong from top to bottom, but you also have to raise your hand and say, “I’m feeling weak right now. I need some help.” There is true strength in being able to ask for help. "

― Abby Wambach , Forward: A Memoir

10 " Recently, on a call with a company hiring me to teach about leadership, a man said, "Excuse me, Abby, I just need to ensure that what you present is applicable to men, too."
I said, "Good question! But only if you've asked every male speaker you;ve hired if his message is applicable to women, too. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

11 " CALL TO THE WOLFPACK: Believe in yourselves. Stand up and say: GIVE ME THE EFFING BALL. GIVE ME THE EFFING JOB. GIVE ME THE SAME PAY THAT THE GUY NEXT TO ME GETS. GIVE ME THE PROMOTION. GIVE ME THE MICROPHONE. GIVE ME THE OVAL OFFICE. GIVE ME THE RESPECT I DESERVE— AND GIVE IT TO MY WOLFPACK, TOO. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

12 " Leadership is volunteering at the local school, speaking encouraging words to a friend, and holding the hand of a dying parent. It’s tying dirty shoelaces and going to therapy and saying to our families and friends: No. We don’t do unkindness here. It’s signing up to run for the school board and it’s driving that single mom’s kid home from practice and it’s creating boundaries that prove to the world that you value yourself. Leadership is taking care of yourself and empowering others to do the same. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

13 " You will not always be the goal scorer. When you are not, you better be rushing toward her. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

14 " A woman who doesn’t give up can never lose. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

15 " You were never Little Red Riding Hood. You were always the Wolf. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

16 " Claim your power, and bring along your full humanity. Clear the way for others to do the same. Because what our families, our companies, and the world needs is nothing more—and nothing less— than exactly who we are. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

17 " A champion never allows a short-term failure to take her out of a long-term game. "

― Abby Wambach

18 " When we live afraid to fail, we don’t take risks. We don’t bring our entire selves to the table—so we end up failing before we even begin. "

― Abby Wambach , WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game

19 " I don't care who scores the goals, I'm going to leave my human beingness on the field! "

― Abby Wambach

20 " Here are just a few of my labels: tomboy, dyke, lesbian, butch, bitch, coward, failure, control freak, rebel, fraud. And a few more, on the flip side: phenom, inspiration, captain, champion, advocate. At a young age I learned that you own labels by defying them, and defy them by owning them. I know that the final word on me will be one that I choose. Seventy-seven "

― Abby Wambach , Forward: A Memoir