Anna Deavere Smith
Anna Deavere Smith
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionActress
Date of Birth18 September 1950
CountryUnited States of America
jobs interviews way
I don't talk a lot when I interview. My job is to get out of the way.
doors way unconscious
I never know when somebody's going to knock on the door of my own unconscious in a way that I wouldn't have anticipated.
listening three way
If I do three interviews in a day, I can be exhausted, because the process of hearing everyone requires that I empty out myself. While I'm listening, my own judgments and prejudices certainly come up. But I know I won't get anything unless I get those things out of the way.
caring thinking way
I think we need leadership that helps us remember that part of what we are about is caring about more than the person right next to us, but the folks across the way.
people body way
In my profession, I'm around a lot of people whose bodies are their instruments in one way or another.
voice giving way
My work is about giving voice to the unheard, and reiterating the voice of the heard in such a way that you question, or re-examine, what is the truth.
active doctors fact people stepping ways
We would like doctors to listen, but the fact is, we better be ready to be able to talk to them. You're going to have to be an active participant in that conversation, so I'd say the American people are going to need ways of stepping up to the conversation.
war stress thinking
People realize that we're very good at sending people to war, but we're not good at taking care of them. And people are coming back from war now; years ago, they would have been killed, now they're wounded; and they're coming back alive and with post-traumatic stress. So, I think Americans are sensible enough to know we've got to figure out a way to take care of them.
kids thinking people
I think as a kid I always liked to listen to people. I loved hearing stories.
thinking order creative
I think we can learn a lot about a person in the very moment that language fails them. In the very moment they they have to be more creative than they would have imagined in order to communicate. It's the very moment that they have to dig deeper than the surface to find words, and at the same time, it's a moment when they want to communicate very badly. They're digging deep and projecting out at the same time.
hard-work thinking doctors
I have a lot of optimism about new doctors because I think it's really clear that it's a lot of hard work and no guarantee of a lot of money.
confidence hopeful mark
Confidence is the mark of a hopeful disposition.
curiosity
I am not myself; I am the potential of myself.
discipline crucial
Discipline — both mental and physical — is crucial.