Ralph Waldo Emerson Quotes

Writing is challenging work because it's so easy to get consumed with how it's going, what's going to happen to it, who's going to like or not like it. You want to get all of that stuff out of your head and just let the work flow.

The fear of mistakes is the fast track to irrelevance.

Applause abates diligence.

I tend to overthink things. I'm not the guy who screams 'This is a world smash!' when I finish a song.

I mean, you always want everybody to pat you on the back and tell you you're wonderful every time you do something; I think that's human nature.

My weakness as an actor is that I think too much.

If I didn't swim my best, I'd think about it at school, at dinner, with my friends. It would drive me crazy.

In my case, the long gaps between my books have got quite a lot to do with lack of confidence. A lot of the time when I'm not writing I start thinking I can't do it.

Sometimes I get worried I'm getting too caught up in the nauseatingly oily smoothness of my own line, when all I'm trying to do is make it as clear as possible.

It's impossible to be perfect, and you won't do a good job if you're too focused on proving yourself to others.

Obstruction can be caused by so many factors - perfectionism, distraction, faltering confidence, external demands and pressures. At some point, of course, you've got to push through it all if you're to write, and if you don't, or can't, you're sunk.

Asking myself, 'Is this any good?' is pointless. It just slows down my writing, and I can't tell anyway. It's always the paragraphs I loved most, the ones I tenderly polished and re-read with pride, that my editor will suggest cutting.

To the proud, the applause of the world rings in their ears; to the humble, the applause of heaven warms their hearts.

When I'm working, I'm insufferable because I get stuck with myself, and suddenly I become obsessive, thinking about how to make something better.

I'm very detail-oriented, which is good and bad. Because I will wake up in the middle of the night thinking about something or seeing a mistake, thinking about it, and I immediately send an email - I'm very focused on details.

I think in my late 20s, I was starting to enter that realm of complacency, which is the most terrifying place I can imagine as an artist. I felt time creeping up on me.

I have a hard time sometimes watching my own work.

If you're a writer, you're constantly doubting yourself.

You get so close to your own music that you can't see the beauty in it. I had to learn to let go. It's good to be less precious.

When I do solo material I definitely tend to overthink it. I make a lot of rules for myself that are a little bit arbitrary and... it's just painful.

My dad never gave me pats on the back or congratulations. There was always more to give and more to get done.

I don't play for recognition.

I got songs; I just never release them. I don't know why. A lot of people say I need to put it out. I guess I haven't made it my focus.

If somebody gives you accolades, that's nice to hear but it's not the end-all, be-all for me.

It's not that I need everybody to be patting me on the back.