Henri Nouwen Quotes

I've always been looking for other people's approval.

Deep down inside, I do feel, at times, that I have to prove to people that I'm actually an artist.

I'm not the sort of person who if everyone thinks you're fabulous you thrive on it.

My identity depended on men for so long. You can be successful and still have the feeling that if you're not with a man you don't exist.

I've gone through my whole life caring deeply what people think of me.

It's cool to have critical success because it's always nice for your peers to say, 'Good job.' But who cares about them?

Our dependency makes slaves out of us, especially if this dependency is a dependency of our self-esteem. If you need encouragement, praise, pats on the back from everybody, then you make everybody your judge.

I have to prove myself to everybody.

I spent my entire childhood going 'look at me, look at me, look at me,' before realising I needed someone to look at me for more than just what I was showing off for.

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

I wish I didn't have to validate myself by reading reviews.

For such a long time in my life, I didn't trust my own voice at all. I always tried to do what other people wanted.

I'm always trying to prove myself to the rest of the world.

We are always boosting or trying to prop up the ego by fulfilling some desire or other, and always craving affirmation from the outside.

One of the occupational hazards of being an actor, the reason why so many actors are insecure, is that the only way we know we're good is when other people tell us.

It gets dangerous when you start allowing people to validate your work.

I manage to think twice about everything / Why will they like me as they do / Or not as they do / Why will they praise me as they do / Or praise me not not as they do.

I feel like you constantly have to prove why you deserve to continue to exist.

The terrifying thing in my life is that I am just an actress. And I have to keep pushing it and getting approval, approval, approval or I don’t think I’m worth two cents. And I am starting to get over it, thank God. And I’m just sad because I don’t have many years left and I wish I had a longer space of time to think that Elaine Stritch is okay.

We’re taught at an early age that we’re not good enough. That someone else has to choose us in order for us to be…what? Blessed? Rich? Certified? Legitimized? Educated? Partnership material?

Just being ourselves is the biggest fear of humans. We have learned to live our life trying to satisfy other people's demands. We have learned to live by other people's points of view because of the fear of not being accepted and of not being good enough for someone else.

I hate how I don't feel real enough unless people are watching.

This weird thing that musicians have... it's got something to do with approval, and not feeling good enough, and therefore going out and being great somehow makes your life valid.

People who want the most approval get the least and people who need approval the least get the most.

I still need to go through the process of proving myself.