I'm an actor; I have made my living by acting, and I almost think I owe it to the public to express my feelings and not as a character on a screen but as myself.
Kirk DouglasRead
No matter how bad things are, they can always be worse. So what if my stroke left me with a speech impediment? Moses had one, and he did all right.
Interpretation
Challenges can always be viewed from a different perspective, and adversity can lead to resilience.
This quote emphasizes the importance of perspective in the face of adversity. Kirk Douglas reflects on his own struggles with a speech impediment, acknowledging that while his situation is difficult, it could be worse. By referencing Moses, who also had a speech issue yet accomplished great things, Douglas reminds us that challenges can be overcome and should not define our potential or worth.
In practice
During a motivational speech about resilience.
I'm an actor; I have made my living by acting, and I almost think I owe it to the public to express my feelings and not as a character on a screen but as myself.
Cancer does give you a new rejuvenation. I know what it's like to be down. I lost a couple of good friends - Larry Hagman and Nick Ashford - who had the same type of cancer that I did, and that makes you think.
Too often, I have not been what I wanted to be; I've succumbed to pressures. Yes, I have. The things I've done that I liked, I've always done against advice.
I didn't start out to be a movie star. I started out to be an actor.
People are composed of many things, and in my work, what influences me is the complexity of people - the chiaroscuro of dark and light. When I play a strong guy, I try to find, where is he weak? And, conversely, when I play a weak guy, where is he strong?
When you have a stroke, you must talk slowly to be understood, and I've discovered that when I talk slowly, people listen. They think I'm going to say something important!
Fortunately, or unforunately for me, I am always at my best when I am unhampered: when I can let myself go and have a little fun.
It is the bright day that brings forth the adder, and that craves wary walking.
since the thing perhaps is to eat flowers and not to be afraid
He who knows that all things are his mind, That all with which he meets are friendly, Is ever joyful.
Periods of tranquillity are seldom prolific of creative achievement. Mankind has to be stirred up.
But far more numerous was the herd of such, Who think too little, and who talk too much.
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