Author: Kelsey Mihachik

“I loved you for so many fucking years. But you know what? You didn’t exist. You don’t exist. You’re not there. You’re not there. You were a fucking made up thing in my head.” – Johnny Depp

“A few years ago someone asked me what lesson I learned from hopping the plane. I said the lesson I learned was that I could get what I want with a break-the-rules, everything-is-an-adventure, people-are-mostly-good mentality.” – pg. 44

“But they [partied] all summer long, all the time. […] I wasn’t willing to waste that kind of time. None of those people ended up making it.” – pg. 107

“It’s important to go to the people who love you and who want to work with you as opposed to trying to convince people who don’t. […] No matter how far you’ve come, what level of success you’ve achieved, you’re always going to have to get to the next place, so you might as well enjoy where you are. Be creative and enjoy your work. Just enjoy the process.” – pg. 121

“I was close to giving up. Maybe I didn’t have what it took. That’s when the call came, of course.” – pg. 154

“I believe so strongly that you need to build your relationships with the people you click with.” – pg. 191

“Death brings up so much. All the love and truth can pour out at the end.” – pg. 266

“There are no small parts.” – pg. 276

“It’s good to be responsible, but there’s no point in being so stressed that you can’t adjust or bend the rules a little when necessary.” – pg. 281

“You have to write, because nobody will be able to write the thing for you that you probably should be doing.” – pg. 16

“You’re the cheapest person available to write your own screenplay. Why don’t you do it?” – Cameron Crowe, pg. 37

“It’s a soup of true and made-up stuff trying to capture the essence of something.” – pg. 39

“We want to tell stories that make people want to take the risk to love better or connect more, to take a risk and improve somehow.” – Cameron Crowe, pg. 45

“I think it’d be better for everyone if they all expressed themselves through art, culture, through making things, but a lot of people just don’t want to, because they couldn’t care less and they’re happy as can be.” – pg. 67

“It’s normal to get depressed after success, because you realize that it doesn’t really make you happy in your core.” – pg. 81

“You can’t paint everybody with the same brush.” – Gayle King, pg. 100

“Yes, I think most comedians are trying to make sense of the universe. And comedy is their way of expressing their search.” – pg. 105

“People don’t have any compassion for the amount of stress creative people are under to do their work.” – pg. 127

“There’s also the option of doing nothing, and I don’t think we really embrace that enough. I think sometimes people talk when they shouldn’t. There’s an eloquence and a grace in not talking sometimes.” – Hannah Gadsby, pg. 136

“I feel like there’s a journey that so many comedians go through. You start out with an instinct to be funny – sometimes it’s driven by resentment – and then, slowly, you realize that it’s actually about personal self-discovery.” – pg. 147

“What you feel more often is I don’t know if they can convince people to see it, but I know that this is great. And at some point, a certain amount of people will recognize that. I want any movie I make to be good enough that the people who like it think that it’s amazing, even if it’s fewer people overall.” – pg. 156

“You’re trying to paint around the edges of something enough for somebody to see what’s not there. What you didn’t write.” – Jeff Tweedy, pg. 158

“It takes a lot of discipline just to clear your head enough to go into a space that has nothing to do with all the things happening in the world. To tune in to your own stuff.” – pg. 163

“One thing I appreciate about comedy is when bad things happen, I always think, I can put this to good use.“ – pg. 164

“I think that people are born creators. People are walking around creating all the time, and they don’t understand what they’re doing. […] Allow yourself to make things like you did when you were a little kid. You didn’t care if it was good or bad; it was just a fucking miracle that you did something and Mom and Dad hung it on the refrigerator.” – Jeff Tweedy, pg. 167

“Python is just saying, ‘Life is insane. This planet that we’re on, it’s ridiculous, nothing works, and nobody knows what they’re doing.’” – John Cleese, pg. 207

“There are far more people who are less talented but who are obsessed who will make it than people who are super talented but don’t have the patience to put in the time.” – Mindy Kaling, pg. 285

“They say that most filmmakers or writers write the same story every time, even if they think they’re doing something different.” – pg. 287

“My weird instinct is to feel like I planned poorly, rather than just realize that life can’t be controlled.” – Nathan Fielder, pg. 303

“You want to hear one that is actually in line with helping and with understanding what’s going on, even if that joke encompasses the lack of understanding people have.” – Ramy Youssef, pg. 330

“That is the insecurity of any artistic business where it’s not a science. We’ve just got hunches. Sometimes you’re wrong.” – Sacha Baron Cohen, pg. 372

“If you aren’t in over your head, how do you know how tall you are?” – T.S. Eliot, pg. 39

“A lot of people think they know exactly what they want. They become so adamant that it can only be one way that they end up missing out on all of the other amazing things that can happen.” – pg. 66

“If I was going to have an encounter with someone famous, I wanted it to be a hang, not some awkwardly forced fan moment.” – pg. 70

“One of the most important things I’ve learned is that it’s not about what you think you know; it’s about knowing what you don’t know. It can be the difference between living your dream or dying in someone else’s.” – pg. 102

“When I’m good, I’m good. When I’m no good, I’m better.” – pg. 141

“Empowerment has nothing to do with the way you look and has everything to do with how you feel and who you are.” – pg. 168

“I think it’s crazy that we let words have so much power over us. As a woman, the word ‘cunt’ doesn’t bother me any more than any other word because, you know what, some people are cunts. Which could be a compliment or an insult. Either way, it’s the truth.” – pg. 233

“I just think people need to lighten the fuck up. If you didn’t take yourself so seriously, those words wouldn’t give you an emotional conniption.” – pg. 236

“The beautiful thing about memories is that every single day is an opportunity to make new ones.” – pg. 242

“When you build something up that much, it can never live up to your expectations.” – pg. 252

“Nobody is who you build them up to be in your head. Nobody.” – pg. 256

“The Japanese say you have three faces. The first face, you show to the world. The second face, you show to your close friends and family. The third face, you never show to anyone. It is the truest reflection of who you are.” – pg. 262

“How the fuck do you not give a fuck and give all the fucks at the same time? It’s the key to life.” – pg. 271

“The big reveal is that truth is in the dead space, the breathing, and the pauses, not in the questions and answers.” – pg. 339

“I’m not trying to be brave. I’m just trying to be me.” – pg. 430

“Mathematics may be the more sophisticated and elegant language of the universe, but down here on planet earth, it doesn’t hold a candle to cursing, its way cuter and far more relatable, colloquial cousin (twice removed).” – pg. 433

“There is a fuck hidden deep inside of each and every one of us. It’s up to you to find it and give it!” – pg. 434

“Right now, as you read this, we are flying. We are born flying and we die flying. We’ve never not been flying.” – pg. 24

“I really identified as a Bostonian for the first time in my life. I drew strength from it. My wife wasn’t from Boston – she sucks! I’m from Boston – I’ll get through this!” – pg. 84

“I knew crying was like throwing up for your soul. You never really want to, but you know you’ll feel better if you can just get it over with.” – pg. 86

“God is the name of the blanket we throw over the mystery to give it shape.” – Barry Taylor, pg. 149

“Comedians will never feel at home in the clapping masses. We will always crave to be seated at the table of misfits in the back, cracking sarcastic jokes.” – pg. 211

“I was riding with Bill Burr in a golf cart in between takes when he said to me, ‘Look at this! Your own fucking HBO show. If this doesn’t make you happy, nothing will!’ Bill had no idea.” – pg. 243

“Go ahead, live in the world. Make mistakes, get your heart broken, lose your job, fight with your mother, eat the fucking onion dip… Just don’t forget who you are.” – pg. 253

“Look at the follies and trials and pains of your life as what they really are: good episodes. Boyfriend cheated on you? Good episode. Backstabbed by your best friend? Whoa. We have to watch the next one.” – pg. 253

“The final step in every hero’s journey is to come back. You return to the village, the same but different.” – pg. 293

Time is the most expensive luxury in the world
It’s something you spend and never get back
But you never know how much you have left

“Instead of being competitive, I wanted to be collaborative.” – pg. 1

“Failure is the thing that has transformed some of the most successful people in history.” – pg. 24

“Being in demand means I have talent, but watching others in my orbit succeed means I have a legacy.” – pg. 39

“Being grateful actually promotes psychological and emotional healing. Science! Imagine being content with what you have and not obsessed with wanting more, more, more.” – pg. 51

“As long as you’re making strides towards your goal, […] don’t get frustrated about how long it’s taking.” – pg. 63

“For the kind of career that endures, there is no shortcut.” – pg. 63

“The more success you find in any type of work, the less time you actually have to do that work.” – pg. 69

“Figuring out what success means to you is the most critical element of creating an awesome life.” – pg. 72

“There’s a difference between working hard and burning out.” – pg. 82

“What everyone craves these days is authenticity.” – pg. 101

“It’s a practice every day to stay humble and not be affected by any additional attention.” – pg. 104

“Whatever your dreams, they should be about expanding who you are rather than fitting into someone else’s vision of who you should be.” – pg. 129

“Here’s a simple fact that society doesn’t tell us nearly enough: It’s okay to change your mind.” – pg. 131

“Age twenty-seven is your return to Saturn – basically when the planet returns to where it was when you were born. It’s an internal cue that you need to grow up. To that end, your late twenties and early thirties are usually when you figure out what you want to do with your life.” – pg. 132

“One simple way to shift your thinking is to focus on gratitude. You might list five things you’re thankful for each day. Or maybe you write one daily note of appreciation to a person who did something nice for you. […] Maybe take a minute before bed to remember something good that happened to you that day.” – pg. 139

“Practice shifting your thoughts into a more positive, less fear-based place.” – pg. 140

“Get really, really good at whatever it is you do. […] And while you’re honing your skills, make it a priority to seek out a mentor.” – pg. 146

“I am all about aesthetic and liking the way you look. There’s so much power in feeling good about yourself, inside and out.” – pg. 157

“The people who manage their growing careers best are those who have valued and prioritized self-care throughout the journey, so start now.” – pg. 175

“It really feels like we’ve stopped living our own lives to watch everyone else’s.” – pg. 179

“You will not find any version of balance in your life if you don’t let people you trust take things off your plate.” – pg. 184

“Do the best you can, but don’t beat yourself up when you can’t.” – pg. 200

“Never lose sight of the power of being a good person.” – pg. 236

“I can hold a grudge like it’s a hand.” – pg. 12

“I always liked it when it’s sunny and warm. You like it cold ’cause you’re from the north.” – pg. 39

“Looks like you always seem to get what you want. Even when it goes against the natural odds.” – pg. 39

“I fall in love like every week.” – pg. 73

“I find a million dandelions blowing through my head and they are beautiful.” – pg. 80

“I’m half of everything I hate, and half of anything I create is you too. […] So I’ll start to hate my future when I hate you” – pg. 85 & 98

“How strange to write about ‘having’ when for so long I’ve drawn inspiration only from longing?” – pg. 103

“Does it arouse us, to watch the smoke? The lingering aftermath of the thing that we feign control of, but are at the mercy of?” – pg. 113

“Of all the wrongs you committed, the worst was keeping me from the beauty in anything that wasn’t you.” – pg. 131

“If you are looking to see what everyone else is doing to try to be cool, you are probably not cool.” – pg. 30

“People treat having a kid as somehow retiring from success. […] Being happy is really the definition of success, isn’t it?” – pg. 54

“I don’t want you to think I don’t love my extended family. I do. I just don’t want to be around them.” – pg. 227

“The feeling of being overwhelmed overwhelms me.” – pg. 230

“Every night before I get my one hour of sleep, I have the same thought: ‘Well, that’s a wrap on another day of acting like I know what I’m doing.’“ – pg. 266

“Why is false love so proud, and true love so fearful?” – pg. 42

“One day, if you live long enough, you’ll find that more people have forgotten you than still remember you.” – pg. 221