As an acclaimed actor, writer and director, Jesse Eisenberg has achieved tremendous success in the entertainment industry. However, in a recent candid speech, he revealed that his creative drive stems from a somewhat surprising source – anxiety, self-doubt and even self-hatred.
“A lot of the things that motivate me are kind of negative motivators – misery, self-consciousness, self-hatred, and a lot of fear,” Eisenberg admitted to the audience. Rather than being crippled by these insecurities though, he has learned to reframe them as a powerful motivating force.
The constant worry that his next project could be a failure is what pushes Eisenberg to work harder and strive for excellence. “Once you’re able to kind of reframe that anxiety as fuel, as motivation, as care, you worry less and are motivated more,” he explained.
This mindset of channeling negative emotions into a positive creative output is not unique to Eisenberg. He noted that other highly accomplished individuals he has met across various fields share similar experiences of being driven by doubts about their abilities.
“They’re amazing at their job, they’re creative, they think outside the box, but they’re also worried that the next time is not going to go well,” Eisenberg observed about his ultra-successful peers. What sets them apart is the way they’ve learned to embrace and capitalize on those anxieties.
Avoiding External Criticism
Another key part of Eisenberg’s approach to his craft involves shielding himself from external criticism and opinion as much as possible. He actively avoids reading reviews of his films or even biking past streets plastered with marketing for his latest projects.
“If you’re somebody with the inclinations that I have towards self-doubt, towards self-criticism, what I have created was essentially kind of a bubble that allows me to work at my best,” he explained.
While it may seem counterintuitive to insulate himself so thoroughly, Eisenberg has found this method allows him to stay focused and avoid becoming “obsessed with something that I can’t control.”
Fostering a Collaborative Environment
In addition to his acting roles, Eisenberg has taken on directing with two films under his belt so far. Despite his success in front of the camera, he admitted that the transition to being a leader and manager was not an easy one.
“I realized pretty quickly I am not a great leader in the traditional sense of being able to kind of lead a group into battle,” he confessed. However, Eisenberg identified his true strengths lying in bringing out the best in his collaborators and coordinating their collective talents.
Key to this approach is embracing humility and an eagerness to learn from others. When working with veteran crew members who had far more experience than him in their respective roles, Eisenberg consciously deferred to their expertise.
“I am not somebody who wants to be right, and that has motivated me to find people who are very collaborative,” he stated. “That kind of humility, that kind of eagerness to learn from others and the eagerness to defer to others has just been a great asset for me.”
This was particularly evident in how he directed his lead actor Kieran Culkin, giving him complete freedom to improvise and deviate from the script rather than trying to micromanage his performance.
“When I was thinking about like kind of the priorities of the movie, the first priority of this movie is that this character is loose, alive, and complicated. That is so much more important than having the actor in the exact place,” Eisenberg explained.
Collaborating with Intimidating Talents
Eisenberg also discussed how he initially struggled with feelings of intimidation when directing the immensely talented Julianne Moore on his first film. Despite being an accomplished actor himself, he was hesitant to give Moore substantive feedback or direction out of insecurity.
“I think the reason I was probably a little intimidated was because I thought she would see me for the fraud that I must be,” he admitted. It took consciously pushing past those doubts for him to finally engage with Moore in the type of open creative dialogue he would want himself.
“The helpful thoughts were, oh, I have a really funny idea for this scene and this character that she’s playing, and I’m going to tell her what those are now,” Eisenberg realized.
His willingness to be vulnerable and share ideas, despite Moore’s superior skills and experience, is what ultimately facilitated a fruitful collaboration between the pair.
Lessons for Creatives
Through his refreshingly honest discussion, Eisenberg imparted several valuable insights that could benefit artists and creative professionals of all kinds:
- Negative emotions like anxiety and self-doubt are inevitable, but can be reframed into powerful motivation if channeled properly.
- Tuning out external criticism and opinion can help maintain focus and objectivity during the creative process.
- True leadership means providing an environment for collaborators to excel through humility, openness to learning, and prioritizing collective contributions over personal ego.
- Even when working with far more accomplished talents, do not be intimidated or discouraged from sharing ideas and feedback to elevate the creative output.
Ultimately, Eisenberg’s combination of driving himself through anxieties while simultaneously maintaining flexibility, humility and respect for his fellow creators has allowed him to produce deeply personal and accomplished works across multiple artistic mediums. His speech serves as an empowering reminder that conventional weaknesses can become powerful assets for the anxiety-driven artist.