I've met a lot of people with impressive skills, but the most remarkable ones were those who were well aware of their limitations. That was the case with Disraeli and this anecdote about writing jokes: Legend says that William Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli, both having played sort of a ping-pong game for years being prime ministers of the UK, were chatting late at night in Disraeli's studio. Gladstone mentioned his colleague's joke writing skills, and the other scoffed with a humble gesture. "I'm sure you could write a joke about any subject", said the first. "Yes, it is quite possible", was ... [keep reading...]

Sometimes life can throw so many things at us, at the same time, that it's easy to become overwhelmed by then. But when that happens, I think of this Michael Fassbender anecdote and it just works: The moment Michael Fassbender had this script in his hands, he became instantly mesmerized. The complexity of the character was already legendary, the stages of development were perfect for painting strong emotions and the project looked amazing. There was only one problem: Fassbender is a perfectionist. And the script in question was for the biopic "Steve Jobs", another hopeless perfectionist. Imagine such combination. Danny Boyle, ... [keep reading...]

Life has many ironies, and they can either upset or amuse you. This man, even if overwhelmed by frustration, opted for the second option: While serving in the British merchant marine during World War I, actor Herbert Marshall participated in an operation that required everyone to wear life jackets all the time. You can imagine that the conditions of the job, the sweat, the soil over days and then weeks made the vests not only uncomfortable but foul smelling as well. At some point he even seriously thought that drowning would be a better outcome than wearing the darned vest again. ... [keep reading...]

Perhaps one of the most important abilities we can develop is saying 'no'. But if you're like me, you might have some trouble with that every now and then. The crazy thing is that the answer has something to do with the way babies try to eat with a spoon for the first time: You can imagine. Half of the food will end on their bib, half on their faces, and the rest in their tummies (if they're lucky!) It would be an understatement to say that their hands are all over the place, trying to land as close as possible ... [keep reading...]