Tag Archives: Motivation Quotes

The Best Motivational Quotes

Make Your Own Uncool – Letter by Sol to Eva | Narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch


Suffering from a creative block and self-doubt, Eva Hesse reach out to her friend Sol LeWitt on her predicament, and Sol responded with the following letter (Narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch)
Dear Eva, April 14th,
Almost a month since you wrote to me and you have possibly forgotten your state of mind, I doubt it though. You seem the same as always, and being you, hate every minute of it. Don’t!
Learn to say “Fuck You” to the world once in a while. You have every right to. Just stop thinking, worrying, looking over your shoulder, wondering, doubting, fearing, hurting, hoping for some easy way out, struggling, grasping, confusing, itching, scratching, mumbling, bumbling, grumbling, humbling, stumbling, numbling, rambling, gambling, tumbling, scumbling, scrambling, hitching, hatching, bitching, moaning, groaning, honing, boning, horse-shitting, hair-splitting, nit-picking, piss-trickling, nose sticking, ass-gouging, eyeball-poking, finger-pointing, alleyway-sneaking, long waiting, small stepping, evil-eyeing, back-scratching, searching, perching, besmirching, grinding, grinding, grinding away at yourself. Stop it and just DO!
From your description, and from what I know of your previous work and your ability; the work you are doing sounds very good “Drawing – clean – clear but crazy like machines, larger and bolder… real nonsense.” That sounds fine, wonderful – real nonsense. Do more. More nonsensical, more crazy, more machines, more breasts, penises, cunts, whatever – make them abound with nonsense. Try and tickle something inside you, your “weird humor.” You belong in the most secret part of you. Don’t worry about cool, make your own uncool. Make your own, your own world. If you fear, make it work for you – draw & paint your fear and anxiety. And stop worrying about big, deep things such as “to decide on a purpose and way of life, a consistant approach to even some impossible end or even an imagined end” You must practice being stupid, dumb, unthinking, empty. Then you will be able to DO!
I have much confidence in you and even though you are tormenting yourself, the work you do is very good. Try to do some BAD work – the worst you can think of and see what happens but mainly relax and let everything go to hell – you are not responsible for the world – you are only responsible for your work – so DO IT. And don’t think that your work has to conform to any preconceived form, idea or flavor. It can be anything you want it to be. But if life would be easier for you if you stopped working – then stop. Don’t punish yourself. However, I think that it is so deeply engrained in you that it would be easier to DO!
It seems I do understand your attitude somewhat, anyway, because I go through a similar process every so often. I have an “Agonizing Reappraisal” of my work and change everything as much as possible and hate everything I’ve done, and try to do something entirely different and better. Maybe that kind of process is necessary to me, pushing me on and on. The feeling that I can do better than that shit I just did. Maybe you need your agony to accomplish what you do. And maybe it goads you on to do better. But it is very painful I know. It would be better if you had the confidence just to do the stuff and not even think about it. Can’t you leave the “world” and “ART” alone and also quit fondling your ego. I know that you or anyone can only work so much and the rest of the time you are left with your thoughts. But when you work or before your work you have to empty you mind and concentrate on what you are doing. After you do something it is done and that’s that. After a while you can see some are better than others but also you can see what direction you are going. I’m sure you know all that. You also must know that you don’t have to justify your work – not even to yourself. Well, you know I admire your work greatly and can’t understand why you are so bothered by it. But you can see the next ones and I can’t. You also must believe in your ability. I think you do. So try the most outrageous things you can – shock yourself. You have at your power the ability to do anything.
I would like to see your work and will have to be content to wait until Aug or Sept. I have seen photos of some of Tom’s new things at Lucy’s. They are impressive – especially the ones with the more rigorous form: the simpler ones. I guess he’ll send some more later on. Let me know how the shows are going and that kind of stuff.
My work had changed since you left and it is much better. I will be having a show May 4 – 29 at the Daniels Gallery 17 E 64th St (where Emmerich was), I wish you could be there. Much love to you both.
Sol

Don't Wait – Peter Dinklage Motivational Speech

Motivational commencement speech by Peter Dinklage for Bennington College’s Class of 2012

Transcript:
When I was 29, I told myself: the next acting job I get, no matter what it pays, I will, from now on, for better or worse, be a working actor.
At 29, walking away from data processing, I was terrified.
10 years in a place without heat, 6 years at a job I felt stuck in. Maybe I was afraid of change.
I got a low-paying theatre job in a play called Imperfect Love. Which led to other roles, which led to other roles. And I’ve worked as an actor ever since.
Raise the rest of your life to meet you. Don’t search for defining moments because they will never come. The moments that define you have already happened. And they will already happen again.
You just get a bit derailed. But soon something starts to happen, trust me. A rhythm sets in. Just try not to wait until, like me, you’re 29 before you find it. And if you are, that’s fine too. Some of us never find it. But you will, I promise you.
Don’t wait until they tell you you are ready.
The world might say you are not allowed to yet. I waited a long time out in the world before I gave myself permission to fail. Please, don’t even bother asking, don’t bother telling the world you are ready. Show it. Do it.
What did Beckett say? Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter… Try Again. Fail again. Fail better.
The world is yours. Treat everyone kindly and light up the night.
Thank you so much for having me here.
View the full commencement address here

Beautiful & Amazing Oscar Speech – Viola Davis

Beautiful & amazing Oscar Acceptance Speech by Viola Davis at the 89th Academy Awards on 26th Feb 2017 | Best Supporting Actress – Fences as Rose Maxson

Transcript:
Thank you to the Academy.

You know, there’s one place that all the people with the greatest potential are gathered. One place. And that’s the graveyard.

People ask me all the time. What kind of stories do you want to tell, Viola? And I say, exhume those bodies. Exhume those stories. The stories of the people who dreamed big and never saw those dreams to fruition. People who fell in love and lost.

I became an artist, and thank God I did. Because we are the only profession that celebrates what it means to live a life. So, here’s to August Wilson, who exhumed and exalted the ordinary people. And to Bron Pictures, Paramount, Macro, Todd Black, Molly Allen, Scott Rudin for being the cheerleaders. For a movie that is about people.

And words. And Life and forgiveness and grace.

And to Michael T. Williamson, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Russell Hornsby, Jovan Adepo, Saniyya Sidney for being the most wonderful artists I’ve ever worked with. And oh captain, my captain, Denzel Washington.

Thank you for putting two entities in the driving seat: August and God. And they served you well. And to Dan and May Alice Davis, who were and are the centre of my universe, the people who taught me good or bad, how to fail, how to love, how to hold an award, how to lose.

My parents ― I’m so thankful that God chose you to bring me into this world. To my sisters, my sister Dolores, who was here, who played Jaji and Jaja with me. We were rich white women in the tea party games. Thank you for the imagination. And to my husband and my daughter. My heart, you and Genesis. You teach me every day how to live, how to love, I’m so glad that you are the foundation of my life. Thank you to the Academy. Thank you.

Top Oscar Acceptance Speeches:
Inspirational Oscar Speech – Matthew McConaughey
Beautiful & Amazing Oscar Speech – Viola Davis
Nine Rules from Chris Pratt: Generation Award Winner 2018

Do What Makes You Great – Charlie Day Motivational Video

Video Transcript:
But my lesson is this: I don’t give a shit. Okay?
You cannot let a fear of failure, or a fear of comparison, or a fear of judgement, stop you from doing what’s going to make you great. You cannot succeed without this risk of failure. You cannot have a voice without the risk of criticism, and you cannot love without the risk of loss. You must go out and you must take these risks.
And people will tell you to do what makes you happy, but a lot of this has been hard work, and I’m not always happy. And I don’t think you should do just what makes you happy. I think you should do what makes you great.
Do what’s uncomfortable, and scary, and hard, but pays off in the long run. Be willing to fail. Let yourself fail. Fail in the way and the place where you would want to fail. Fail, pick yourself up and fail again. Because without this struggle, what is your success anyway?
As best we know we have one life. In it, you have to trust your own voice, your own ideas, your honesty, your vulnerability, and through this you will find your way.
You do not have to be fearless, just don’t let fear stop you. Live like this as best you can and I guarantee you will look back on a life well lived.

Everybody dies, but not everybody lives – Motivational Video


Video Transcript:
It is not death most people are afraid of. It is getting to the end of life, only to realize that you never truly lived.Tweet: It is not death most people are afraid of. It is getting to the end of life, only to realize that you never truly lived.
There was a study done, a hospital study on 100 elderly people facing death close to their last breath. They were asked to reflect about their life’s biggest regret. Nearly all of them said they regretted not the things they did, but the things they didn’t do. The risks they never took, the dreams they didn’t pursue.
I ask you would your last words be; if only I had – hey, you, wake up! Why do you exist? Life is not meant to simply work, wait for the weekend and pay rent. No, no I don’t know much. But I know this, every person on this earth has a gift.
And I apologize to the black community, but I can no longer pretend. Martin Luther King… That man never had a dream, that dream had him.
See people don’t choose dreams, dreams choose them. So the question I’m getting to is, do you have the courage to grab the dream that picked you? That befit you and grips you; or will you let it get away and slip through?
You know I learned a fact about airplanes the other day. This was – this was so surprising see. I was talking to a pilot and he told me that many of his passengers think planes are dangerous to fly in. But he said actually… it is a lot more dangerous for a plane to stay on the ground. I say what? Like how does that sound what he said, he said because on the ground. The plane starts to rust. Malfunction and wear, much faster than it ever would if it was in the air.
As I walked away I thought, yeah, makes total sense because planes were built to live in the skies. And every person was built to live out the dream they have insideTweet: Every person was built to live out the dream they have inside. So it is perhaps the saddest loss to live a life on the ground without ever taking off.
See most of us are afraid of the thief, that comes in the night to steal all of our things. But there is a thief in your mind who is after your dreams. His name is doubt. If you see him call the cops and keep him away from the kids because he is wanted for murder. For he has killed more dreams than failure ever did. He wears many disguises and like a virus will leave you blinded, divided and turn you into a kinda.
See kinda is lethal. You know what kinda is? There is a lot of kinda people, you kinda want a career change, you kinda want to get straight A’s, you kinda want to get in shape. Simple math, no numbers to crunch. If you kinda want something, then you will kinda get the results you want.
What is your dream? What ignites that spark? You can’t kinda want that. You got to want it with every part of your whole heart. Will you struggle? Yeah… yeah you will struggle, no way around it. You will fall many times, but who’s counting? Just remember, there’s no such thing as a smooth mountain. If you want to make it to the top then, there are sharp ridges that must be stepped over. There will be times you get stressed and things you get depressed over.
But let me tell you something. Steven Spielberg was rejected from film school three times, three times but he kept going. The television execs fired Oprah, said she wasn’t fit for TV but she kept going. Critics told Beyoncé that she couldn’t sing. She went through depression. But she kept going.
Struggle and criticisms are prerequisites for greatness. That is the law of this universe and no one escapes it. Because pain is life, but you can choose what type? Either the pain on the road to success, or the pain of being haunted with regret.
You want my advice? Don’t think twice. We have been given a gift that we call life. So don’t blow it. You’re not defined by your past. Instead you were born anew in each moment. So own it now. Sometimes you’ve gotta leap. And grow your wings on the way down. You better get the shot off before the clock runs out, cos there ain’t no overtime in life, no do over. And I know I sound like I’m preaching on speaking with force but if you don’t use your gift, then you sell not only yourself, but the whole world… Short.
So what invention do you have buried in your mind? What idea? What cure? What skill did you have inside to bring out to this universe? Uni meaning one, verse meaning song, you have a part to play in this song. So grab that microphone and be brave. Sing your heart out on life’s stage. You cannot go back and make a brand new beginning. But you can start now and make a brand new ending.Tweet: You cannot go back and make a brand new beginning. But you can start now and make a brand new ending.
 
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