I never work just to work. It's some combination of laziness and self-respect.
My characters aren't losers. They're rebels. They win by their refusal to play by everyone else's rules.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the value of individuality and challenging societal norms.
In this quote, Harold Ramis highlights that his characters embody a spirit of rebellion and nonconformity. Rather than being seen as failures or 'losers,' these characters are portrayed as winners because they choose to live life on their own terms, defying conventional expectations and rules. This speaks to the importance of self-expression and the strength found in being true to oneself, illustrating that success can come from embracing one's uniqueness rather than conforming to societal pressures.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about creativity, one might include this quote to encourage artists to break the mold.
More from Harold Ramis
All quotes βMy only conclusion about structure is that nothing works if you don't have interesting characters and a good story to tell.
A psychologist said to me, there are only two important questions you have to ask yourself. What do you really feel? And, what do you really want? If you can answer those two, you probably can leave your neuroses behind you.
It seems that, culturally, young people function more in groups. They know each other through digital media. All the young comedy people who work in TV are really used to working at the table with lots of writers around. They're comfortable in the group; they don't assert their own egos over everyone else.
Find the most talented person in the room and if it's not you, go stand next to him. Hang out with him. try to be helpful.
Similar quotes
Laziness is built deep into our nature.
The old saying of the two kinds of truth. To the one kind belongs statements so simple and clear that the opposite assertion obviously could not be defended. The other kind, the so-called 'deep truths', are statements in which the opposite also contains deep truth.
Some people, with a certain nostalgia, the worshippers and admirers of the colonial system, cherish and nurse its structures instead of smashing them. This is typical of a mentality in bondage to decadent values, negative values - counter-revolutionary values.
Natural selection is not gene centrist and nor is biology all about genes; our comprehending minds are a result of our fast evolving culture.
When mind exists undisturbed in the Way, nothing in the world can offend, and when a thing can no longer offend it ceases to exist in the old way. When no discriminating thoughts arise, the old mind ceases to exist.
Most everything you think you know about me is nothing more than memories.