Damien Chazelle Quotes

Everything I put my name to and take part in, I want to be good. That's not saying it will always happen. But I want to make bold choices.

I think you need to have people around you whose standard is high and who don't accept anything less.

If more people would try and reach up instead of going to the lowest common denominator, I think we'd be a lot better off.

I still worry that I could be better. That's where standards come from, from not wanting to settle. The fear of not being good enough propels you.

As a leader, I am tough on myself and I raise the standard for everybody; however, I am very caring because I want people to excel at what they are doing so that they can aspire to be me in the future.

I'm trying to lead by example. But I'm definitely challenging myself to be a better player, the player I want to be.

I love to strive to be good at stuff that's really hard.

The difference between an amateur and a professional is in their habits. An amateur has amateur habits. A professional has professional habits. We can never free ourselves from habit. But we can replace bad habits with good ones.

Competition is very good... as long as its healthy. It's what makes one strive to be better.

People like to be challenged. Most people that I know who are any good at life like to be challenged.

No serious-minded man should have time for the mediocre in any phase of his living.

I've always been ambitious to be very good at what I do.

It is only through raising expectations and striving for excellence that our children can reach their full potential.

I think competition is very important; it breeds many good things in a person.

I don't teach kids to be No. 1. Organizations and people that tell you you have to be No. 1; that's not it. You don't have to be No. 1. What I teach is to be as good as you can be. Use what you have and be as good as you can be. That's all you can do, anyway.

Hard work and a good education will take you further than any government program.

For me, competition is good; that is what keeps me on my toes and keeps me going. I am always trying to better my own work, do better than my earlier films... do films that are challenging and exciting for me.

I was neither good in sports nor at studies, but I always wanted to stand out and be noticed.

I have a horror of not rising above mediocrity.

I feel like I'm part of history being made. I leave Apple board meetings thinking, 'I've got to do a better job.'

Somehow, people act like I have no competition, but the thing is, the competition is so good that it forces me to be better than I even thought was possible.

Mediocrity scares me. It's the fear of not being as good as you want to be. If you give over to that fear, it will sabotage you. As much as I can, I try to use that fear to guide me.

Challenges give me a kick. The day I stop getting challenges, I would quit.

To give anything less than your best, is to sacrifice the gift.

I think it's good to have pressure on yourself. The worst crime is to get kind of really complacent.