Nobody wants to be a lawyer - it's hard work. But it was kind of my academic route.
In America, people buy cars, and they put very little money down. They get a car, and they go to work. The work pays them a salary; the salary allows them to pay for the car over time. The car pays for itself.
When you're nice, people like you and will want to work with you. But it can mean that they take you for granted.
I don't want to say work is who I am, but some people feel more centered and more whole when they're producing and creating.
The first person is a tradition I relate to and that I use; historically, it's been the voice I work in. But the hair on the back of my neck stands up when I'm referred to as a 'confessional' writer.
I've gotten to work with amazing people. I would say usually we get to a point before we get into the studio where there isn't that sense of anxiety or nervousness of who they are because I don't think it would be as productive in the studio if that was the case. But maybe meeting someone like Neil Young for the first time made me anxious.
There is a saying that every single person in the world has something to teach you. So the more people I get to work with, the more I can learn, and the better actor I will become.
We want to gently remind people that we don't have forever. In my work, I hear parents complain all the time that their children grow up so fast. But they don't take the time to sit down and talk to each other. The last bastion of getting together is around the table.
I wouldn't know what to do on a date. I don't have the time. To make a relationship work, I'd have to give something up, and I'm not so sure I'm willing to do that.
I don't do any corporate work.
I think 'work' is anything I'm doing with intention and purpose. There is absolutely no negative connotation to the word 'work' for me - I feel lucky that I get to wake up every day and spend my days doing things I believe in.
I'm not going to work so that Pena Nieto is the best known or most recognized in the world. I'm going to work so that Mexico has results.
The best part about stand-up is that you control everything. Period. When you work in movies, or on TV shows, there are 50 other people involved.
I'm not a crazy granola person. I like to wear beautiful clothes, and I like having a glass of wine, but it doesn't mean I don't work out every day and drink green juices.
It seems like, yeah, of course - I always think my work is important, or I wouldn't risk my life for it.
I think really what needs to happen is the people of the United States need to stand up and say, 'Oil is an energy model from the past. It doesn't work for the planet, it doesn't work for the people, it never has and it never will.'
I read a quote by James Dean when I was 17; he said, 'I'd rather starve than do a whole bunch of work that I don't care about.' The older I got, the more I understood what he was saying. If I want to do a whole lot of work that I don't care about, then I would probably be working in a law office somewhere.
I teach at Harvard, and focusing on understanding this problem on a national level is a big priority of mine right now - where evictions are going up and down, what cities are actually instituting policies that work, what housing insecurity is doing to our cities, neighbourhoods, our kids.
Producing is making films without having to work sometimes. It's still making films, but it's a different job.
Ballet is an incredibly difficult, beautiful art form that takes a lot of training, a lot of time, and a lot of hard work.
I once pitched this show that was just like 'Quantum Leap,' in terms of the set-up, and I got a pass because they said 'Quantum Leap' didn't work, even though it was on for six or seven seasons. You can't say 'Quantum Leap' didn't work!
The danger for any artist whose work is both recognizable and critically acclaimed is complacent repetition - the temptation to churn out easily identifiable, eagerly welcomed, and readily salable designs.
I seek speed, clarity, and a practical approach in people I mingle and work with. I can't see myself working in films that stretch beyond maximum four months.
Because I read so much nonfiction for work, I enjoy fiction most, especially detective novels and mysteries that keep me awake at night.
Some people don't like my fiction, because they prefer the nonfiction. But moving around keeps the work fresh for me and, hopefully, for my one or two readers who follow me from book to book!
If I had all the filmmakers that traumatized me when I was a little kid in this room, all I would say is, 'Thank you,' because they've made me who I am. As much as I say 'trauma,' it all comes from a place of love. The fact that I am feeling emotions at all based on a work is a wonderful thing, so I'm happy to be a part of that discussion.
I always try and hold to that saying, 'I want to work on things I'd want to see.' The vast majority, that's been true.
I think on some level, you do your best things when you're a little off-balance, a little scared. You've got to work from mystery, from wonder, from not knowing.
I always assume that a chick is not into me. So it's never natural for me to be like, 'Check out that girl in the corner. She's waiting for me to come up to her. I'm gonna to work my six-step process...'
Everyone asks, 'What's your goal? Do you want to win an Oscar? Do you want to work with Meryl Streep?' No! I want to buy my mum a house. I want to make her proud.
I think my clients would tell you I'm a problem solver. I'm not there to agree with people. I'm there to articulate a point of view. Am I insistent and tenacious? Absolutely. I could not get this work done if I was not.
Once you know the fundamentals of cooking, then you don't need to follow a recipe - you just know what herbs go well or what meats, or what combination of what goes together, and then you can just branch out from there. But if there's something specific that I want to make, I work on the recipe and tweak it to my own.
I don't necessarily love all the collaborations that I've done; the more I work with other people, the more I realize that I want to work with myself.
I like to work. I'm glad; I'm privileged to have work.
I always thought of my career as a body of work and not just about numbers.
Humor's always been the problem of my work, hasn't it? When working, I feel satisfied when I surprise myself. And when I surprise myself, I wind up laughing.
