Life is a photograph where the circumstances fall short of ideal and the results are absolute. However, within the flawed photo, there is beauty in finality. It is humbling to relinquish control of the work to limitations. It is freeing to accept the outcome. There is a magic in letting chance and kismet fill the cracks where your diligence and amb... See more

Every “overnight success” is the result of years of thankless work. Success comes not from great acts of genius but from doing lots of small things consistently

Many of us spend our lives pursuing private acceptance through external success. But no matter the award or honor, our inner doubts will remain. True acceptance comes from inside us. It takes asking ourselves challenging questions like: What do I want from my work? What’s most important about it to me ? How would I create my work differently if I p... See more

Aim to be effective, but unpredictable. That is, you want to act in a way that AIs have trouble modeling or imitating. That makes you irreplaceable.

Thinly veiled insults (“Really?”/“That’s weird”/“…interesting”) are often compliments delivered by people who are at odds with themselves. Take them in stride.

The dictionary is full of recommendations. It’s pretty clear on spelling. But some words — “success,” “worth,” “value” — you get to define for yourself.

Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman on making the most of your opportunities:

"This is something a teacher told me years ago, and he's right:

If you're auditioning for something that you know you're never going to get—or maybe you read the script and didn't even like it, but you still have to go—if you get a chance to act in a room that somebody else has ... See more

the more and better access everyone has to tools, resources, etc, the clearer it becomes that the final boss bottlenecks are courage, imagination and giving a shit

There is no such thing as closeness without friction.