Angela Bassett quotes: life advice from the actress slash activist.
“We all have a gift. We all have a passion. It’s just about finding it and going into it. Being an asset to your family and community.”
“Don’t settle for average. Bring your best to the moment. Then, whether it fails or succeeds, at least you know you gave all you had. We need to live the best that’s in us.”
“Don’t be afraid to do it all. Whatever you’re interested in, just go for it. Don’t wait around for a better time.”
“Be persistent and win.”
“There will be times when you will face insurmountable obstacles, but that’s when you dig deep down within your soul for the courage and fortitude to keep going—and never forget that despite life’s detours, you are destined for greatness.”
“You know, it’s so easy to be hard on yourself. Don’t be so, so hard on yourself, because being hard on yourself is just you trying to be perfect, trying to be the best that you possibly can be. You know, take stock and remember those things that really ignite your passion—that make you happy.”
“When you’re told you’re not good enough, you tell them, ‘Not only am I good enough, I’m more than enough.'”
“When they tell you that you’re angry or nasty, you tell them that they’re mistaken. ‘This is me. This is me being resolute and standing firmly in my truth.'”
“It’s important to surround yourself with good people, interesting people, young people, young ideas. Go places, learn new stuff. Look at the world with wonder. Don’t be tired about it.”
“It’s important to have someone to express your vulnerabilities to, or be affirmed in the fact that you’re not crazy or you’re not looking at the situation incorrectly.”
“Sometimes you want to skate along or just get by or fly under the radar, but sometimes you have to stand up and let your voice be heard and give it your best and give it your all.”
“If you have a big voice, so be it. But if you do things quietly, so be it. It can be done.”
“It’s imperative that we support events that lift us up, that recognize our contributions, and that help us feel connectivity, allowing us to see one another, even when we don’t see ourselves.”
“When you show gratitude, you’re able to remember that you did not arrive at the place in your journey by yourself. You had help. You had support. You had guidance.”
“When you ask the best questions of yourself and others, you invite the best answers.”
“It’s hard not to focus all of your attention on your children because they come so helpless. They’re really designed to suck you in. They’re really persuasive, and they persuade you to focus all of your attention on them and maybe put your dreams on the back burner at times. But you have to be really adept at balancing your dreams, hopes and desires and raising them so you don’t lose yourself, or your relationship, in the process.”
“I want my children to experience as much creativity as possible. That’s what sets your mind on fire. This experience is about you. So lead with who you are, not with who your mom and your dad are.”
“I think it’s a rite of passage and I think it behooves us to have a little awareness. I’ve heard it said that motherhood, or parenthood is that job, that if you do it right, you work yourself into unemployment. You don’t have to be there every day. They’re self-sufficient, they’re great citizens. They make great choices. They’re making good choices for their lives by and large—we all make mistakes. Hello, whatever, but that’s what you want for them. You don’t want them clinging on.”
“Know that they’re going to grow up. They need to be free. They’re looking for autonomy and you just pray, pray for them. You call them up sometimes. It’ll be okay, but that’s what you did. You won’t be Sanford and Son, still livin’ in the house with your dad.”
“I think that’s really just wanting the best for your kids, knowing that it can be a cold, cruel world out here, and that you have to be prepared for opportunities.”
“Enjoy who you are, enjoy your kids, and realize they’re gonna do some good things, they’re gonna make some mistakes, but it’ll all turn out as it’s supposed to.”
“I’m the type of individual that I enjoy watching any different cultural lives, and I see the common humanity even though the hair textures are different or the skin tones are varied.”
“Loving God is like my being black. I just am. No one says, ‘You know what? I’m gonna be blacker today!’ It’s my culture. It’s not something I put on or take off or show more. You just communicate that in the way you live your life.”
“God made a way out of no way.”
“I really believe that what I do as an actress is my God-given talent. This is my calling, not my career.”
“When I decided as a teenager that acting would be my path, whether I recognized it or not, I was walking toward my purpose. As a young actress trying to make my way, survival figured into the equation, but not so much that I was ever willing to compromise my integrity.”
“I deal in a very artistic way of what interests me and marks my passion, and I try to—whether its good or not—I am in love with acting and the stage and characters and the ability to reach and to touch people. So that’s where, I guess, that’s where my heart will reside.”
“You can’t always do that which you can do in your sleep. That doesn’t fulfill an artist. You’re looking for places where you can grow, in some way, whether it’s a large way or a small way. I want to grow as an artist, as a person and as a woman. I want to enjoy myself and my life and the company that I’m keeping. I want to bring something to the table that’s different than anything else would bring, but that has its place and value, and then keep moving.”
“I am content that the work that I’ve done is wonderful.”
“I hope I just continue to be passionate about the roles and to always endeavor to bring clarity and honesty to the table, and different ideas.”
“When I was in school, my mother stressed education. I am so glad she did. I graduated from Yale College and Yale University with my Master’s and I didn’t do it by missing school.”
“I remembered that throughout my growing up and education and pursuing my dreams and desires, going into acting, and, of course, getting through Yale University and on and on and on, that being average, being mediocre was not an option that you should be proud of.”
“The three things I said when I came out of school were: I want to work consistently; I want to do good work; and I want to be paid fairly. And that’s happened. But I didn’t become an actress for the money. I do it for other reasons.”
“Maybe if you’re younger you have more energy, but that’s a big maybe. Because at this stage of life, I have more patience, understanding, wisdom, resources.”
“I’m just so blessed to be able to do what I just love and have loved since I was a teenager, since I first found it, and to be encouraged by others for it.”
