Cicely Tyson Quotes

I have made the choices that work best for me. I know I cannot please everyone, and that's fine.

You have to just make the choices you make in life. I made the choices I made because I believed they were right for me.

If it is something that is right for human beings, then I don't care if other people criticize. You cannot please everyone in the world.

My message to women: Do what makes you feel good, because there'll always be someone who thinks you should do it differently. Whether your choices are hits or misses, at least they're your own.

Don't live your life to please other people.

I think it's a human tendency that's been around for a while to try to be as good as possible to prove your worth.

If some actress thinks she is sexy and she can dance, it's her choice. I do what I want to do, and I set my own benchmark. I will never compare myself with anyone.

I don't make demands. I don't tell you how it should be. I'll give you options, and it's up to you to select or throw 'em away. That should be the headline: If you're insecure, don't call.

A real woman is someone who knows what she wants. If you want to stay home, that's fine, but you have to be clear-eyed.

Lack of something to feel important about is almost the greatest tragedy a man may have.

I've learned not to let people judge me in how I want to live my life. Every single woman is an individual, and there's no one path. You just have to take the path that you think is right for you.

I never pressure myself to do something I don't want to do.

Don't let other people tell you what you want.

Surround yourself with the right people, and realize your own worth. Honestly, there are enough bad people out there in the world - you don't need to be your own worst enemy.

You have a right to say no. Most of us have very weak and flaccid 'no' muscles. We feel guilty for saying no. We get ostracized and challenged for saying no, so we forget it's our choice. Your 'no' muscle has to be built up to get to a place where you can say, 'I don't care if that's what you want. I don't want that. No.'

I'm not jealous of anybody, because I'm going to live my life the way I want to live it. I'm not going to be like, 'Oh my God they have this, I want that.'

You can't allow other people to put a price on what you do, otherwise you don't consider what you do to have any value at all, and that's nonsense.

Most important, don't do anything you don't want.

All I have to do is what's right for me.

I think just being on 'One Tree Hill' has given me a lot of confidence.

I went to America on holiday when I was 17 and, before I knew it, I'd been signed up by an agency and had these obligations I didn't understand, but which I couldn't say no to. This industry chose me. But I did choose to make it fulfilling.

People better get used to the idea that I exist.

I have to believe that I know what's best for me. For instance, I choose all my songs. I never record anything I don't want to record. No one tells me what concerts to do.

I understand about the relative strengths of people, and I don't think people have to be anything. They can be nothin' if they want to be.

Really, children will support anything that is empowering to them.