Ellie Kemper Quotes

The key to success is not purely who's the smartest, who's the best, but also who can say with conviction, "I deserve it." The entire concept is wrapped up in one phrase: "Why not me?

You almost have to step outside yourself and look at you as if you were someone else you really care about and really want to protect. Would you let someone take advantage of that person? Would you let someone use that person you really care about? Or would you speak up for them? If it was someone else you care about, you'd say something. I know you would. Okay, now put yourself back in that body. That person is you. Stand up and tell 'em, "Enough!

You have to demand things and believe you're worth more. And once you do demand them, you're usually going to get them. The players who first came in were very humble because we came from obscurity. Today's players, on the other hand, have a sense of entitlement.

Power comes from who you are, not what you have, and the transformation starts with how you allow others to treat you.

Learn to be difficult when it counts. In school as in life, having a reputation for being assertive will help you receive preferential treatment without having to beg or fight for it every time.

[On how she goes about trying to live authentically] Well really listening to my point of view and if I am on a set, say, that doesn't really value a woman's point of view, regardless of how they feel, continuing to give my point of view and try to find a way to be heard and not diminishing myself because other people are diminishing me. Because that, I think, is the worst temptation that, you know, you judge yourself by how others are judging you, and to fall into that trap is to walk into the realm of self-annihilation.

There's a lot of power in the word 'no,' and a lot of people, like myself, need to know that.

There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.

But most important of all, she explained that it was all right to say 'No. I disagree.' that was a gift. I understood it was power. The power to think my own thoughts. The power to believe in myself.

It’s not about finding your voice, it’s about giving yourself permission to use your voice.

You don't get what you don't ask for

I've always felt that if you're not on your side, why should anyone else be. So I always encourage people to be confident, and sometime even a little falsely so, just so you can give yourself an opportunity.

Don't apologize for asking for what you deserve.

I speak up for myself. I claim my power now.

The opportunity of a lifetime is to pick yourself. Quit waiting to get picked; quit waiting for someone to give you permission; quit waiting for someone to say you are officially qualified... and pick yourself.

Youre supposed to be the leading lady in your own life, for Gods sake!

I love myself that much and I will never apologize to you.

You cannot let people come up in your face and stop you.

As women, we need to remember: don't be a doormat!

What I wish for myself is that I could be the kind of person who just goes, 'This is what I need,' and doesn't feel bad about it.

I feel like I have to have a voice.

I wish I could just go tell all the young women I work with, all these fabulous women, 'Believe in yourself and negotiate for yourself. Own your own success.' I wish I could tell that to my daughter. But it's not that simple.

If I don't ask for something, I'm not going to get it.

Learn to ask for what you want. The worst people can do is not give you what you ask for which is precisely where you were before you asked.

I do think that, as an advocate for myself on set, I'm very direct.