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You want to be a bit compulsive in your art or craft or whatever you do.
Steve Martin
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Being compulsive in your artistic endeavors can enhance your creativity and dedication.

Steve Martin suggests that a certain degree of compulsion in one's artistic practice can drive an individual to improve and excel in their craft. This compulsion acts as a motivating force that encourages artists and creators to dig deeper into their work, ensuring that they are both passionate and committed to their pursuits.

Themes

ArtCreativityDedicationCraftPassion

In practice

Example use cases

An artist may use this quote when giving a talk about the importance of persistence in their work.

More from Steve Martin

When I first started doing my comedy act, I just desperately needed material. So I took literally everything I knew how to do on stage with me, which was juggling, magic and banjo and my little comedy routines. I always felt the audience sorta tolerated the serious musical parts while I was doing my comedy.
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I have heard it said that a complicated childhood can lead to a life in the arts. I tell you this story of my father and me to let you know I am qualified to be a comedian.
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...it is not the big events that hurt the most but rather the smallest questionable shift in tone at the end of a spoken word that can plow most deeply into the heart.
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Reviews for someone like me come in three packages. One is justifiable praise, the second is justifiable criticism, and the third is, "This is only published because he's a celebrity."
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If he thinks he would harm Mirabelle, he would back away. But he does not yet understand when and how people are hurt. He doesn't understand the subtleties of slights and pains, that it is not the big events that hurt the most but rather the smallest questionable shift in tone at the end of a spoken word that can plow most deeply into the heart.
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I was raised with "Laurel and Hardy" and "I Love Lucy" and Jerry Lewis, and I just loved it. And I had a friend in high school and we would just laugh all day and put on skits. You know, it's the Andy Kaufman thing or the Marty Short thing where you're performing in your bedroom for yourself.
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