Junot Diaz Quotes

I'm a dreamer, and I'm a perfectionist, and I love excellence, and that's hardwired in me. But when I was young, I lived in a space for a long time where I only felt insufficient.

It's always my biggest insecurity - disappointing myself or my partner.

Sometimes people call me a success for all the reasons that make me think I'm a failure.

I may be a successful football player, but I feel like such a failure.

So many people define themselves by what they've accomplished or not accomplished.

I always thought I was good. That's why it was so frustrating when other people didn't agree.

I think I see myself differently than most people see me.

Pressure is self-doubt when you're unprepared.

I don't like the feeling of 'I didn't do enough.'

Letting goals in doesn't look great to myself.

I can think of nothing more soul destroying in life than to persist in trying to do a thing you want desperately to do well, and to know that you are at the best second rate.

I always feel as if I'm a disappointment: that people want a grand dame in furs like Barbara Taylor Bradford.

You want good ratings, you want people to like the show, you want to be appreciated for the hard work you put in. You don't always get it. Every show is not beloved.

Oh, God, I struggle with low self-esteem all the time! I think everyone does. I have so much wrong with me, it's unbelievable!

How one handles success or failure is determined by their early childhood.

I should have done more. I did too little of everything.

When I was younger, before I was married and had children, I really was nit-picky, a perfectionist. I was very much into different people's approval. I had too much time on my hands, I think.

I should have been deliriously happy. I had my dream come true. I'm a best-selling author. So why is everything in my life, including my writing, going bad?

I was afraid I would see someone from my past who thought I was this big athlete, and then I end up being just normal.

I think that you can take things personally or get hurt feelings as a result of something not working out just because your psyche said it should or you deserve it, or whatever it is.

I believe that people who don't achieve anything in life are isolated and resent those that are successful.

I don't like failing at anything.

We're born with success. It is only others who point out our failures, and what they attribute to us as failure.

Any description of a person that comes from the outside is very hard to deal with. People don't like being summarised. It's nice to receive a compliment, but it makes me feel a bit uncomfortable.

I'll never be a good writer, and no chance of being a good actor.