George Clooney Quotes

Am I ambitious? I used to be afraid of that word but now I think ambition is a good thing.

When you fail by your own standards, it's a form of success.

I think I've matured to a great extent. I think that I want different things now. That it's not about the celebrity status that you receive because you're doing the next hot movie. It's about doing good work.

Right up until the time I retired at age 37, I felt like there were still things that I could do better.

You're going to change the world? Well, go ahead and try. You'll give it up at a certain point and change yourself instead.

I want to do really good things with my life.

When you're in your 20s, your 30s, even, you have - at least, I had - vast ambitions, and you sit around mooning about these things, and you're depressed, because you haven't done them. And it takes you a long time to come to the realization that if you can't be John Updike, well, then, you can't.

As a teenager, rather than setting myself on a course to pursue fame (quite common growing up in L.A., the entertainment capital of the world), happiness, fulfillment, and spiritual enlightenment (also quite common), I skipped right on to trying to be successful. 'Let's just get on with it,' I felt. 'Onward' became my motto.

For me, I like to push myself... I hate feeling complacent or that I'm not learning.

I haven't always done a good job, and I haven't always been successful - but I know that I have tried.

Personally, my twenties were a complete waste of time. Professionally, I hope some good came of them.

Any man who selects a goal in life which can be fully achieved has already defined his own limitations.

I can't advise any of the young ones, because I don't know what their background was, but I would suggest that anyone who wants to be famous more than anything - there's a real problem.

I'm always improving and I want to get better and never hit a plateau. I find it an amazing adventure.

I wanted to get out in the world, have a great job, make my mark, and see how far I could go. And I wanted to make good on the philosophy my mother drilled into us with all the subtlety of a Lady Gaga performance. I got it loud and clear. I would need to succeed, and then I could possibly be happy.

I have been working for over 30 years and am always wondering about where I am and where I am going. It does not stop and become a fixed event of achievement.

For a long time I wasn't happy, but that had nothing to do with Beyonce. That had to do with me trying to get my life in order and make better decisions for myself. I'm seeing all these wonderful things happen for her, and I am happy for her. But I want a path. I want things to pop off for me, too.

It's all about progression, not getting stuck and about having aspirations, which can lead you to do more and not just be satisfied. I was always that way about my dancing, and that's how I am about whatever it is I tend to pursue.

As long as your intentions are solid and about growth and progression and being productive and not being idle, then you're doing good in my book.

I want to maximize my potential. And when I talk about that, don't get me wrong - I'm not talking about just making money.

I'm never going to be in a comfort zone. I always want to be a better player, person. I want to help my team get the goals that we are aiming for.

My life is full of way more mistakes than successes.

It's not my business to think about the business; it's my business to think about the character. Sure, there have been times in my career where I wished I was more popular or more this or more that - but that's just stupid.

It's important for me to keep improving.

Growing up, your whole goal and dream is to make the NHL. Once you get there, you kind of have to expand your goals on and off the ice. It took a little bit of time for me to do that, but again, with age and maturity you understand what you want more and how to achieve those things.