Rob A. Lott

"Your fear is 100% dependent on you for its survival."

“You fix what you can fix. You look for the helpers. And when the opportunity presents itself, become the helper.“

Down The Mountain
by Jason T. Kolb, MD
with T.L. Heyer

Don’t ever feel bad using the first half of your work to prepare for your work.
It may appear you are doing less work, but the truth is your work is better and more efficient.
No one will be able to argue with the end result.

You will thrive more—and so will others— when you promote what you love rather than bash what you hate.
Life is short; focus on the good stuff.

Excellent Advice For Living
by Kevin Kelly

Don't try to get laughs from people.

Give people an opportunity to laugh.

Multi-tasking is absolutely possible.
Multi-focus is not.

“Even if you're not strong enough to say ‘I'm sorry’, at least be big enough to say ‘Thank you.’”
-David Corris

"Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society." -Mark Twain

When speaking to an audience, it’s better to fix your gaze on a few people than to “spray“ your gaze across the room. Your eyes telegraph to others whether you really believe what you are saying.

Excellent Advice For Living
by Kevin Kelly

It's really hard to argue with audience response.

"Create your own method. Don't depend slavishly on mine. Make up something that will work for you! But keep breaking traditions, I beg you." -Stanislavski

"Success is never owned, it's rented. And the rent is due every day." -Rory Vaden

“A superpower worth cultivating is learning from people you don’t like.
It is called “humility.“
This is the courage to let dumb, stupid, hateful, crazy, mean people teach you something, because despite their character flaws, they each know something you don’t.” -Kevin Kelly

While all people are created equal, all cultures are not.

We don't get to choose whom to love, honor, and respect. But we absolutely get to choose which cultures we value and associate with.

(This is just my opinion, but it's true.)

"The mind, once stretched by a new idea, never returns to its original dimensions."
-Emerson

“If you want to impress someone with your knowledge about a work of art, tell them what’s right with it. You’ll look WAY more astute than the opposite. And probably be more enjoyable to talk to.” -Jonathan Tessero

"People in most jobs work at least eight hours a day. Why shouldn't artists? Whether it's reading a book, going to a museum, taking a class, or having a full day of auditions -- Study hard, work hard, and then work some more." -Jay A. Johnson

“Copying others is a good way to start. Copying yourself is a disappointing way to end.” -Kevin Kelly

Typically, I do not accept anonymous feedback. Honesty is hard to come by within anonymity. (Brutal honesty, maybe. But not honesty.)

Do more of what looks like work to others but is play for you.

Excellent Advice For Living
by Kevin Kelly

Share your innovative ideas! Don't worry. Your new idea, the one that's really going to shake things up, the one that challenges the process and the status quo, that idea is far more likely to be rejected, or worse yet, ignored, than it is to be stolen.

“You are as big as the things that make you angry.“

When negotiating, don’t aim for a bigger piece of the pie; aim to create a bigger pie.

Excellent Advice For Living
by Kevin Kelly

Rehearsal is not only for learning your part.

It’s for learning everyone else’s.

“You have to prepare like a maniac. Research and research and research. Know everything there is to know. And then, on that first day, be willing to throw it all away.” -Mike Nichols

“Actual great opportunities will not have ‘Great Opportunities’ in the subject line.” -Kevin Kelly

Be careful placing yourself downstage center.

Instead, perform in such a way that you’re invited there.

“Pay attention to who you are around when you feel your best. Be with them more often.”

Be a pro. Back up your backup. Have at least one physical backup and one backup in the cloud. Have more than one of each. How much would you pay to retrieve all your data, photos, notes if you lost them? Backups are cheap compared to regrets.

Excellent Advice For Living
by Kevin Kelly

“The problem with New York Theatre is that everybody forgot it needed to be fun, and the audience was filled with couples who would rather be anywhere except with each other at home.” -Mike Nichols