Esperanza Spalding Quotes

I was a kitchen porter for an hour at the Bank of England when I was 18. In the cafe, someone clicked their fingers and shouted, 'Boy, come and clear my table.' I walked out.

A boss who interrupts an employee a lot is called an extrovert, whereas an employee who interrupts a boss too often is called an ex-employee.

Nobody in show business can possibly get away with making fun of their boss.

I had a respected SF writer call me 'girlie' and demand that I get him a coffee, before the panel we were on together.

I think any man in business would be foolish to fool around with his secretary. If it's somebody else's secretary, fine.

One famous movie executive, who shall remain nameless, exposed himself to me in his office. 'Mr X,' I said, 'I thought you were a producer, not an exhibitor.'

CEOs are called by their first names by young whippersnappers. That makes everybody uncomfortable. We need order and structure back in the workplace.

A woman can be harassed and then go on to have a good working relationship with the man harassing her.

When women are told that sexual harassment is 'part of the job' or when assistants of both sexes enable harassing behavior, they have bought into the culture that says such behavior is not just permissible, it is a desirable expression of power.

Once, I had a huge fight on a film set with an actor who threw tea on a spot boy's face. I refused to shoot until he apologised.

In our industry, everything is taken lightly. Guys say so many things, and if you react to them, they go, like,'We are kidding.' Things like 'You are looking hot sexy' are common.

Being successful is about professionalism, and chewing gum is unprofessional. Its also a huge pet peeve of mine.

The most important thing that the person at the White House knows when he talks to you is that you are not in there.

When you make your peace with authority you become authority.

It is certainly for the interest of the service that a cordial interchange of civilities should subsist between superior and inferior officers, and therefore, it is bad policy in superiors to behave towards their inferiors indiscriminately, as though they were of a lower species.

Our job is quite strange in that we hire a coach, and therefore, we're the boss. But coaches tell us what to do, and I think some coaches might struggle with the idea of a girl being the boss and telling them, 'I don't want to see you now. I want to have some time to myself.'

You don't criticize your employer.

I've worked opposite so many male actors whose egos have been so delicate that it was just so hard to do the work.

I come from a generation which definitely treated anyone older and more successful with reverence. But it's much more democratic nowadays.

We must have zero tolerance for sexual harassment, even if the perpetrator is somebody we like and admire.

Sometimes, in public life, people ask inappropriate, off-the-wall kinds of questions, don't they?

They don't pay me enough to take any racial abuse. If you come up to me and say something racially, I'm going to take your head off.

By definition, to work with me, you need thicker skin and must be OK with a certain amount of verbal abuse!

I can recall an instance where I was in a meeting at work giving a presentation in front of my board of directors. I was taking questions at the end and someone asks, 'Is that your hair real?' The man then reached out and started stroking my hair. It was completely bizarre to me.

When you get older, you look at who has power differently. When you're 21 years old, and you do something ridiculous at the National Art Gallery and get kicked out by the security guard, in your mind, you're speaking truth to power.