There may be people who have more talent than you, but there's no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do - and I believe that.
Derek Jeter
I love it when people doubt me. It makes me work harder to prove them wrong.
I looked up to my parents because they were very successful in what they wanted to do. I was lucky; I didn't have to look far for role models.
I'm not perfect; no one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes. I think you try to learn from those mistakes.
When you put a lot of hard work into one goal and you achieve it, that's a really good feeling.
Surround yourself with good people. People who are going to be honest with you and look out for your best interests.
Your image isn't your character. Character is what you are as a person.
If you're going to play at all, you're out to win. Baseball, board games, playing Jeopardy, I hate to lose.
I've always had an interest in business, and my interest in business has really expanded over the years.
So many people are insanely busy nowadays, and it's easy to say, 'Ah, I'll workout tomorrow.' But you have to set aside a time and stick to that schedule.
The last thing you want to do is finish playing or doing anything and wish you would have worked harder.
I like to hit the gym early in the morning. I feel better throughout the day when I get in a workout first thing in the morning.
You gotta have fun. Regardless of how you look at it, we're playing a game. It's a business, it's our job, but I don't think you can do well unless you're having fun.
I try to sign for as many kids as possible. Kids come first, and I'll always sign for a kid before an adult. It's funny, because I was never big into autographs as a kid. The only player who I ever wanted an autograph from was Dave Winfield.
You're playing a game, whether it's Little League or Game 7 of the Word Series. It's impossible to do well unless you're having a good time. People talk about pressure. Yeah, there's pressure. But I just look at it as fun.
My office is at Yankee stadium. Yes, dreams do come true.
I've found that it's easier to stay in shape than it is to get into shape.
I have the greatest job in the world. Only one person can have it. You have shortstops on other teams - I'm not knocking other teams - but there's only one shortstop on the Yankees.
During the off-season, I go to the movies almost every day.
You don't just accidentally show up in the World Series.
I've been playing baseball since I was 5 or 6 years old. I've been on a schedule, pretty much, since I was in eighth, ninth grade. I look forward to not doing that.
Obviously, you're known for what you do. But you still want to be known as a good person. You're a person a lot longer before and after you're a professional athlete.
We just want to win. That's the bottom line. I think a lot of times people may become content with one championship or a little bit of success, but we don't really reflect on what we've done in the past. We focus on the present.
What kind of influence did my parents have on my life? Well, they had the most influence. These are the people who are closest to me. My parents are very positive people. They've been supportive. They're always there.
I'm not a hermit, but I definitely stay in a lot more than I used to. There's more attention now then there ever was. You walk down the street with someone and it's a story. It becomes national news, you know what I mean? So, I still do things, but I stay home a lot more.
I wish I trusted people more. But when I meet someone, the first thing is, 'What does this person want?' And I put up a defense mechanism. But I've always been that way.
I've never been an actor on Broadway, but it feels like you're on a stage when you play at Yankee Stadium. And that's the feeling I've always had.
God, I hope I wear this jersey forever.
I think there's something wrong with me - I like to win in everything I do, regardless of what it is. You want to race down the street, I want to beat you. If we're playing checkers, I want to win. You beat me, it's going to bother me. I just enjoy competition.
Athletics keeps us healthy, gets us up and running around. It also gives you an opportunity to meet a lot of different people, which is very important.
You tell me you want to race down the street, I'm going to try to beat you. My grandmother asks me to race down the street, I'm going to try to beat her. And I'll probably enjoy it. Competitive to a fault, sometimes.
My best vacation is somewhere I could hide, somewhere warm and not a lot of people around.
Not everybody's a baseball fan.
I've always been very cautious with what I do. You know, that started at a young age. I always had the approach or the mentality I never wanted to embarrass my parents.
It's never over. You don't want to be in the position to be down four runs in the ninth inning, but it's not over until the last out.
Any player that says they don't want to go to an All-Star Game is lying to you. It's something everyone wants to be a part of.
The Yankees have strict rules. You can have a mustache but no other facial hair.
You forget about it whether it was 15-2 or 3-2. It's still a loss. It doesn't matter what the score was if we win tomorrow.
I always appreciated the ex-players. Being a Yankee, you get spoiled. Old-Timers Day, all these guys coming back, spring training, being around them, you get a chance to get to know them. So I always think you learn a lot by listening.
I'm a New Yorker now, and believe me, there's no comparison between the Big Apple and Kalamazoo, no similarity at all. New York City's hectic, always in fast-forward, and Kalamazoo's more laid-back, smaller, slower.
When I was younger, I was always taught not to make excuses.
I want to own a team one day. You know, that's my next goal.
My heroes, my dreams, and my future lay in Yankee Stadium. And they can't take that away from me.
Walking around sometimes, I would love to just be able to watch people, see how they act. Sometimes I would love to be invisible.
The draft is a crapshoot, so I've been very fortunate to be drafted by the Yankees, and to have spent my whole career here.
I remember going from rookie ball to A, to double A, then to triple A. At every level it seemed like the game was faster. The bigger the situation, the more the game speeds up. That's all mental. It messes people up.
Through time you learn from your experiences. I think I've learned to deal with people a little bit better over time. That in particular has developed a little bit.
I always used to get in trouble for talking too much. When it was time for parent-teacher conferences, I remember that I was always embarrassed about what my parents would hear about me!
I have feelings. I'm not emotionally stunted.
You're a person a lot longer before and after you're a professional athlete. People always say to me, 'Your image is this, your image is that.' Your image isn't your character. Character is what you are as a person. That's what I worry about.
