George Clooney Profile in Parade (Sept. 25, 2011)
George Clooney wrote, directed and stars in a new movie “The Ides of March.” In the movie, in theaters on Oct. 7, Clooney plays an inspirational presidential candidate. He discusses several subjects in the Parade interview. He had a great quote about dealing with failure.
Q: You’ve talked about how lucky you are. What have you learned from your failures?
A: It’s hard to get thumped. I’ve been proficient at failure. But the only thing you can do is say, “Here’s what I won’t do next time.”
… A little skill and confidence (can) change everything. I had to stop going to auditions thinking, “Oh, I hope they like me.” I had to go in thinking I was the answer to their problem. You could feel the difference in the room immediately.
The greatest lesson I learned was that sometimes you have to fake it. And you have to be willing to fail.”
What good advice from George Clooney! Whether you’re starting a new job, a new career, a new project or working on achieving one of your goals (make money or stay healthy!) begin with a high level of self confidence. Take action to learn the necessary skills and if you fail, fail forward as a stepping stone to getting that much closer to your goal.
