Quote Of The Day By Carole King: 'I Think It Takes More Courage To Do Things ...'

Born in 1942 in New York City, Carole King entered a recording booth for the first time at the age of three. It didn't take her too long to find herself as an integral part of the music industry. Before the age of 20, she achieved a monumental milestone as the Shirelles' "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" — a song that King co-wrote with Gerry Goffin — hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Carole King wrote many famous songs before her solo career took off — and did it ever. She built her own incredible legacy that stacked up the accolades like they were plates. For example, her 1971 album "Tapestry" spent an astounding 318 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart, sitting in the No. 1 position for 15 weeks. The achievement of "Tapestry" was so massive that the album found its way into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

In music, King has had the type of storied career that most artists wouldn't dream of having in 10 lifetimes, writing more No. 1 hits than the musician ever scored herself. From an early age, she entered show business and wrote her name into legend, and that's why she is today's quote of the day.

"When I was younger, I was kind of fearless. I think it takes more courage to do things when you know more."

In 2012, Carole King said this during an appearance on NPR's "Fresh Air." While discussing her career, the show's host, Terry Gross, remarked how she had a phenomenal drive at such a young age, and King revealed the secret to her approach.

The quote is a reminder of how important King's initial mindset was to achieving success and making her dreams come true, because if she didn't even try, she would have automatically failed.

When you're a child, the stars are in your eyes and every dream appears achievable. The problem is that as you age, the world hardens you, and people try to tell you that something is unrealistic or how you should temper expectations. That's why it's tougher to take a risk at an older age, since you have those nagging and doubting voices at the back of your head — including your own.

At just 17, Carole King wrote a nearly perfect song that artists jump to cover. She believed the impossible could be possible from a young age and carried that with her. As she said in the "Fresh Air" interview, "My whole attitude was someone's going to get the thing or the opportunity that I was looking for. Why not me? And the other side of that is, if you don't try, you have no chance at all."

While King explained this might be difficult to do as someone gains more life experience, maybe the lesson here is to never lose your inner child and self-belief in reaching for the stars. It's about just going for it, regardless of what the outcome might be. To quote Yoda, our favorite green Jedi, "Do. Or do not. There is no try."

• "I was never brought up to be fearful or think I couldn't do anything."
• "As creative people, the thing that we have to break through — and in music, we do — is people who are closed, people who are fearful of opening up. Because if you're open, you might feel pain."
• "To create a something where nothing existed before. No song existed before. Suddenly it exists. It's an amazing process."
• "My life is usually not in my career. My career has been a part of my life."
• "I didn't feel beautiful when I was growing up. And I found my niche. I couldn't compete with girls who were thought of as beautiful, so I found my niche in music. And that was where I found my beauty."