I spent a lot of my 20s just trying to make other people happy, rather

than trying to figure out if doing that made me happy.
Reese Witherspoon

I started directing videos at the same time that Michel Gondry was starting to direct videos, and I watched what he'd do. They all seemed to be pushing some new visual effects idea, but never just for spectacle. They all captured a feeling.
Spike Jonze

The excitement of being in a rehearsal room is good for me.
Jane Krakowski

I faced a number of challenges whilst I built Biocon. Initially, I had credibility challenges where I couldn't get banks to fund me; I couldn't recruit people to work for a woman boss. Even in the businesses where I had to procure raw materials, they didn't want to deal with women.
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw

Chemistry's a funny thing. It can be instantaneous, but it helps when you know someone.
David Walton

Round, cat-eye frames, wayfarers, and aviators are my go-tos.
Georgia May Jagger

I was such a huge fan of 'The X-Files.'
Bryan Fuller

I am obsessed with story. I had a late awakening in life. In college was the first time that I understood what you could do with a story and what a good novel is - literary value and subtext and irony and everything.
Shane Carruth

I'd really love to see a business model for higher education going forward that is actually affordable, that uses modern technology to reach scale and quality and that really reimburses the services rendered in a way that's meaningful to everybody.
Sebastian Thrun

Leadership is about vision and responsibility, not power.
Seth Berkley

If a Middle Eastern sheikh comes to buy Bayern Munich, he could buy 49 per cent. Fifty-one per cent must stay in Germany with the club. That law came about because of the developments of international football.
Franz Beckenbauer

Gemeoss

When I was 17, I worked in a mentoring program in Harlem designed to improve

the community. That's when I first gained an appreciation of the Harlem Renaissance, a time when African-Americans rose to prominence in American culture. For the first time, they were taken seriously as artists, musicians, writers, athletes, and as political thinkers. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar I only make movies that are interesting to me. Brian Grazer I wouldn't say I was organised at all. I just have to prioritise. Is it more important for them to be organised, or to have their dinner, do you know what I mean? Jo Brand The courage in journalism is sticking up for the unpopular, not the popular. Geraldo Rivera A happy life must be to a great extent a quiet life, for it is only in an atmosphere of quiet that true joy dare live. Bertrand Russell I think Mick Jagger would be astounded and amazed if he realized that to many people he is not a sex symbol, but a mother image. David Bowie I enjoy my job as long as I can create a character, otherwise it's boring. Jav

That's what I think our jobs as parents are, to educate as much as possible...

I tell them to follow their bliss. The people who follow their bliss in this world tend to be the more happier people. Art Alexakis The only time I waste is time I spend doing something that, in my gut, I know I shouldn't. If I choose to spend time playing video games or sleeping in, then it's time well spent, because I chose to do it. I did it for a reason - to relax, to decompress or to feel good, and that was what I wanted to do. Simon Sinek Meat workers may have been looked down upon socially, but at least they were well-paid and were a fit and lively bunch as a result of hard, honest physical work. Michael Leunig I decided that I wanted a farm back in 1940 when I was with the Dodgers. I tried to find one within commuting distance of New York. Larry MacPhail Oh God, are you supposed to collect things? I don't collect things. I like throwing things away. Caitlin Moran My first phone was two tin cans tied together with string, and it worked pretty good. Do

It had to happen to me sometime: sooner or later, I would have to lose

sight of the cutting edge. That moment every technical person fears - the fall into knowledge exhaustion, obsolescence, techno-fuddy-duddyism - there was no reason to think I could escape it forever. Ellen Ullman Innovation and its allure can be dangerous. It can draw you away from the user, from the intended outcome, and may be the ultimate demise of otherwise great intentions. Mark Brand My voice is different, but I don't think I'm the only one with a different take on pop music. Charli XCX In South Africa, we drive on the left-hand side, and most of the cars are standard, so I learned with a full-gear transmission with a clutch and hill starts. I've never driven an automatic until I came to Canada. Jodi Balfour Mexico has 44 treaties with other countries that make it very advantageous to do international shipping from Mexico rather than from the United States. Wilbur Ross Winning HOYS set me up for the future and prepared me for riding in front of lots of

As a Midlander and a big walker, I'd always loved ridge and furrow

fields, the plough-marked land as it was when it was enclosed. It is the landscape giving you a story of lives that ended with the arrival of sheep. Jim Crace I think it's really rare to see women on television who are brilliant, selfish, vain, fallible - and I feel like I have all those capacities in myself, so it's good to see people in the media representing all of those things. Kerry Bishe I never went after fame. It fell into my lap. Caitlyn Jenner My mom and dad were actors when they were younger and had a horrible experience of it. My dad became a literary agent and my mom a casting director. Daniel Radcliffe I have this idea of trying to catalog all the genes on the planet. Craig Venter The wind from the Kingdom of Heaven has blown all over the world, and shall blow for centuries yet. George William Russell I always said if I played a drag queen, I'd want to create a template with the realness they talk about in 'Paris Is Burning.' Billy P

Given Pounds and five years, and an ordinary man can in the ordinary course, without

any undue haste or putting any pressure upon his taste, surround himself with books, all in his own language, and thence forward have at least one place in the world. Augustine Birrell Everyone should know that most cancer research is largely a fraud, and that the major cancer research organizations are derelict in their duties to the people who support them. Linus Pauling A Bush Administration will, I believe, enjoy a better relationship with the new Congress, although President-elect Bush will be faced with real challenges in getting along with the Congress. Richard V. Allen I once thought that I was the only man that persevered to be the friend of the white man, but since they have come and cleaned out our lodges, horses, and everything else, it is hard for to believe the white man any more. Black Kettle When you finish a poem, it clicks shut like the top of a jewel box, but prose is endless. I haven't experienced an awful lot of clicking shut! Kenneth Koch I thin

I did make some not-so-great relationship decisions when I was a lot younger. I do

know that not all high school boys are great and wonderful and Prince Charming, and there are a few that are going to treat you that way. Jodi Lyn O'Keefe Thus, the forces and value systems that are most threatened by this shift are becoming the most coherent and are rising to the top as minority or plurality powers. But they do not represent either the shift, the change, or the future. Paul Hawken I don't think he's permanently affected me except in the sense that I miss him. I miss being him. Or trying to be him. He is one of a gallery of characters that have had an impact on my career and therefore my life. Derek Jacobi A book is sent out into the world, and there is no way of fully anticipating the responses it will elicit. Consider the responses called forth by the Bible, Homer, Shakespeare - let alone contemporary poetry or a modern novel. Chaim Potok We have three generations at home, including my father-in-law. I keep a very low profile, and a lot of thi

They used to tease me at the 'Oprah' show, 'Are you really going to do

another white Shaker kitchen, with white subway tile and stainless steel appliances?' And my answer is, 'I can vary it a bit, but I'm never going to err from classic materials.' Nate Berkus It's not every day you get to be in a movie about Jackie Robinson, so you want to do it as right as you can. Andre Holland I've had so many things, good and bad, said about me. I'm way beyond worrying about what people say. Clare Balding I can remember on the first day on 'Chatroom,' it was just one scene for the whole day, which was a really nice luxury to have. Hannah Murray The real product at Diesel is satisfaction. My satisfaction at Diesel is being a pioneer. Renzo Rosso From the beginning of my time as Secretary-General, I have sought to advance a practical, action-oriented vision of the U.N. as the voice of the voiceless and the defender of the defenceless. Ban Ki-moon My mother grew up with each of her children - whatever your age, that&

The severity of punishments ought to be relative to the state of the nation itself.

Stronger and more easily felt impressions have to be made on a people only just out of the savage state. A lightning strike is needed to stop a fierce lion who is provoked by a gunshot. Cesare Beccaria The problem is once you've written the opening paragraph and worked out how the rest of the story will go in your head, there's nothing in it for you. I write in longhand using disposable fountain pens on the right-hand side of the notebook for the first draft, then I rewrite some of the sentences and paragraphs on the left-hand side. Colm Toibin I've seen so many excellent actors - excellent actors - who, the minute they're told they're in a comedy, turn into God knows what - creatures from another planet! I mean they just... the voice changes, they don't look the same, it's like - it has no similarity to any living human being, do you know what I mean? Bea Arthur People think my life has been tough, but I think has been a wonderful journey. The olde

My stage name has always been 'Armin van Buuren.' When I really started DJ'ing professionally,

I already had a few U.K. hits under my belt under the name 'Armin', so I couldn't really change that anymore. Armin van Buuren In fact, effective solidarity with the poor, both individual persons and entire nations, is indispensable for the construction of peace. Claudio Hummes The saxophone is an imperfect instrument, especially the tenor and soprano, as far as intonation goes. The challenge is to sing on an imperfect instrument that is outside of your body. Stan Getz I am terrible at video games and I am really competitive. And if I am not the best at something, I go absolutely crazy! Gemma Arterton For punches I never really choose, I take whatever opportunity is given to me. If it's a left, I'll take it. If it's a right I'll take it. Nonito Donaire I still really love acting. I find it really challenging. And I really love film; it's a lot of fun. Steve Zahn The best part of being on a television series for all those years is that y

It's not that I wanted to be an actor; it's that I didn't want to

be a dancer! I was trained in traditional Chinese dance, and after working so hard it seemed unfair to just disappear into a group. Ziyi Zhang History is, in its essentials, the science of change. It knows and it teaches that it is impossible to find two events that are ever exactly alike, because the conditions from which they spring are never identical. Marc Bloch I've always been interested in a lot of things, and a lot of things at the same time, and I always tried to explain them to myself. I ask a lot of questions. Jared Diamond Dignity does not float down from heaven it cannot be purchased nor manufactured. It is a reward reserved for those who labor with diligence. Bill Hybels In time we hate that which we often fear. William Shakespeare You generally hear that what a man doesn't know doesn't hurt him, but in business what a man doesn't know does hurt. Gerald Brenan Drama if I sing, drama if I don't sing. What do you do? Montserrat Caballe