The biggest problem that women have is being ambivalent about their own power, ... We should be comfortable with the idea of wielding power. We shouldn't feel that it detracts from our femininity.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
I always knew I was a writer. And I always thought to myself, 'Well, why not me?' Someone has to be on the best-seller list, 'Why not me?' Someone has to write for the 'New Yorker,' 'Why not me?' And I didn't really get much positive reinforcement as a kid, so I thought, 'Well let me show you what I can do.'
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses a strong self-belief and determination to succeed against the odds.
In this quote, Elizabeth Wurtzel highlights her unwavering self-confidence and ambition in pursuing her dreams as a writer. Despite lacking encouragement in her early life, she resolved to prove her abilities to herself and others by aiming for significant achievements, such as being on a best-seller list or writing for prestigious publications. Her mantra of 'Why not me?' serves as a powerful assertion of her right to success and recognition, embodying the idea that anyone can aspire to greatness if they believe in themselves.
Themes
WritingSelf-BeliefAmbitionSuccessMotivation
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about pursuing your dreams.
More from Elizabeth Wurtzel
All quotes →The men have piled up in my past, have fallen trenchantly through my life, like an avalanche that doesn't mean to kill but is going to bury me alive just the same.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
Whenever I talk to anyone I care about, I am always seeking approval. There is always a pleading lilt in my voice that demands love. Even the people I work with, the ones I am supposed to have a professional relationship with, all business, get pulled into my need. I can't help it. I want to be adored.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
Getting help for substance abuse can be reduced to the deceptively simple focus of ‘keeping away from the dope.’ But what does getting help with depression mean? Learning to keep away from your own mind?
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
Taking a hypersensitive approach to life had come to seem so much more pure and honest then joining the ranks of the numb masses who could let it all slide by. What I stopped realizing was that if you feel everything intensely, ultimately you feel nothing at all. Everything registers at the same decibel.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
It's being a grown up, which I never figured out how to do, scrubbing the tub, and remembering to eat and shampoo my hair. It's the basics: I can write a whole book, but I cannot handle the basics.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
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I'm always focussed on the actual work, and I think that's a much more succinct way to describe what you care about than any speech I could ever make.
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