--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only advice I can give is to surround…" description: "\"The only advice I can give is to surround yourself with people who are friends and people who believe in you and your material and who are going to hel..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/dee-rees-4528_advice_the-only-advice-i-can-give-is-to-surroun_3209950.png" --- # The only advice I can give is to surround yourself with… ![“The only advice I can give is to surround yourself with people who are friends and people who believe in you and your material and who are going to help you take it to the next level. It doesn't mean you don't listen to criticism, but you listen to it and edit it, and you figure out what you can…” quote by Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/dee-rees-4528_advice_the-only-advice-i-can-give-is-to-surroun_3209950.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/dee-rees-4528_advice_the-only-advice-i-can-give-is-to-surroun_3209950.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/dee-rees-4528_advice_the-only-advice-i-can-give-is-to-surroun_3209950.png) > “The only advice I can give is to surround yourself with people who are friends and people who believe in you and your material and who are going to help you take it to the next level. It doesn't mean you don't listen to criticism, but you listen to it and edit it, and you figure out what you can take.” [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Surround yourself with supportive friends and believers, accept constructive criticism, and use it to improve and advance. **In simple terms:** Lean on supportive people and learn from feedback. Key Takeaway Build a supportive network and refine your work. Themes support growth collaboration Mood motivational practical Type advisory inspirational When to use this quote - entrepreneurship - creative projects - career development Key Concepts Feedback loops social capital Questions to Reflect On - Who truly supports your growth? - How do you filter criticism? A Different Perspective Too much reliance on others may dilute personal vision. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Advice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advice/) [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Next level](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next-level/) ## Related quotes > [The only advice I can give those who want to sell thei films is to surround yourself with people who are friends and people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/the-only-advice-i-can-give-those-who-want-to-sell-thei-films-is-to/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [If you're starting out or trying to get to the next level, surround yourself with people who keep you motivated and energized - people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-famiglietti/if-you-re-starting-out-or-trying-to-get-to-the-next-level-surround/) Anthony Famiglietti > [There are some people in our lives who make us feel small and insignificant. The only kind of criticism you should listen to are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dranil-kr-sinha/there-are-some-people-in-our-lives-who-make-us-feel-small-and/) [DrAnil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dranil-kr-sinha/) > [Also, when we did "Smallville," we didn't have an opportunity to interact with people who watched the show. And see what they had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-millar/also-when-we-did-smallville-we-didn-t-have-an-opportunity-to-interact/) [Miles Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-millar/) > [It's an artist's choice to listen to criticism or not. I'm very sensitive to criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/armin-van-buuren/it-s-an-artist-s-choice-to-listen-to-criticism-or-not-i-m-very/) [Armin van Buuren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/armin-van-buuren/) > [I do not listen to criticism or flattery, one weakens you and the other angers you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diego-simeone/i-do-not-listen-to-criticism-or-flattery-one-weakens-you-and-the/) [Diego Simeone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diego-simeone/) > [“I think this point is so important, I'm going to repeat it: You should never listen to criticism that is primarily intended to wound,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-stern/i-think-this-point-is-so-important-i-m-going-to-repeat-it-you-should/) [Robin Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-stern/) > [Don't listen to criticism, positive or negative. You just keep going forward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arian-foster/don-t-listen-to-criticism-positive-or-negative-you-just-keep-going/) [Arian Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arian-foster/) > [If I care to listen to every criticism, let alone act on them, then this shop may as well be closed for all other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/if-i-care-to-listen-to-every-criticism-let-alone-act-on-them-then/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [You learn as a player not to listen to the criticism. Many of the people who put out that criticism might not be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/you-learn-as-a-player-not-to-listen-to-the-criticism-many-of-the/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [“To listen to criticism and act on it if it is valid and ignore it if it is not is a sign of intelligence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chloe-thurlow/to-listen-to-criticism-and-act-on-it-if-it-is-valid-and-ignore-it-if/) [Chloe Thurlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chloe-thurlow/) > [“surround yourself with people who allow you to be yourself, it does not mean be around others who do not have a sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tasha-hoggatt/surround-yourself-with-people-who-allow-you-to-be-yourself-it-does/) [Tasha Hoggatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tasha-hoggatt/) > [Only surround yourself with people who will lift you higher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/only-surround-yourself-with-people-who-will-lift-you-higher/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Your circle should be small; surround yourself with people who have genuine love for you and want to see you win. I want them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-homie-quan/your-circle-should-be-small-surround-yourself-with-people-who-have/) [Rich Homie Quan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-homie-quan/) > [There comes a time in life when you have to let go of all the pointless drama and the people who create it, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-comes-a-time-in-life-when-you-have-to-let-go-of-all-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Dee Rees > [I want people to get from 'Pariah' that it's okay to be you and not to check a box as a parent or child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/i-want-people-to-get-from-pariah-that-it-s-okay-to-be-you-and-not-to/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [I thought I'd get an MBA, and then I could be anything. And I'd write on the side. That was the idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/i-thought-i-d-get-an-mba-and-then-i-could-be-anything-and-i-d-write/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [I thought that marketing was a way to be creative in business but quickly learned all creative stuff happens at the ad agency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/i-thought-that-marketing-was-a-way-to-be-creative-in-business-but/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [When I first started going out to lesbian clubs, I felt a very binary recreation of hetero culture. There are butches and femmes, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/when-i-first-started-going-out-to-lesbian-clubs-i-felt-a-very-binary/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [I was always going to direct. I wasn't going to hand my characters over to anyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/i-was-always-going-to-direct-i-wasn-t-going-to-hand-my-characters/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [My ultimate dream was just to be an auteur.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/my-ultimate-dream-was-just-to-be-an-auteur/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [For me, books were my source of affirmation. Alice Walker, Audrey Lord - it was these authors who wrote about their experiences. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/for-me-books-were-my-source-of-affirmation-alice-walker-audrey-lord/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [When I first came out, holidays were hard. I reached a point where I didn't go home anymore. I constructed my own, kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/when-i-first-came-out-holidays-were-hard-i-reached-a-point-where-i/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [You can't be limited by your own experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/you-can-t-be-limited-by-your-own-experience/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [We shouldn't be discriminating against each other. The whole 'light skin versus dark skin' is an idea we need to break down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/we-shouldn-t-be-discriminating-against-each-other-the-whole-light/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [Going into a room and saying, 'I'm a black lesbian' - it's a strike against you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/going-into-a-room-and-saying-i-m-a-black-lesbian-it-s-a-strike/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [Each moment is defined by a multitude of histories, the past constantly converging upon us, perpetually decaying and reforming itself on the steady pulse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/each-moment-is-defined-by-a-multitude-of-histories-the-past/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [I'd go to lesbian parties. I felt like I wasn't hard enough to be butch, but I wasn't wearing heels and a skirt -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/i-d-go-to-lesbian-parties-i-felt-like-i-wasn-t-hard-enough-to-be/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [Before Charlottesville, it might have been easy to dismiss the plot of 'Mudbound' as no longer relevant. Now, I feel like audiences will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/before-charlottesville-it-might-have-been-easy-to-dismiss-the-plot-of/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [For me, like, obviously, I want to see myself onscreen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/for-me-like-obviously-i-want-to-see-myself-onscreen/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) [Explore all 109 Dee Rees quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) ## More Advice quotes > [The sensible person is always serious about sensible advice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/the-sensible-person-is-always-serious-about-sensible-advice/) Mak\_786 > [I ask for tips, for advice. What I have also learnt is that I need to do things that are good for me. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthijs-de-ligt/i-ask-for-tips-for-advice-what-i-have-also-learnt-is-that-i-need-to/) [Matthijs de Ligt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthijs-de-ligt/) > [Don't get too attached to someone you know you can't be together with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/don-t-get-too-attached-to-someone-you-know-you-can-t-be-together-with/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [A low-minded person should not be given good advice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanakya/a-low-minded-person-should-not-be-given-good-advice/) [Chanakya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanakya/) > [The worst advice? 'Don't listen to the critics.' I think that you really ought to listen to the critics, because sometimes they're telling you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-worst-advice-don-t-listen-to-the-critics-i-think-that-you-really/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [When I was in my twenties and just so sexually prolific, the first time I went to Machu Picchu, this guy, a spiritual teacher,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-harrelson/when-i-was-in-my-twenties-and-just-so-sexually-prolific-the-first/) [Woody Harrelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-harrelson/) > [The best way to succeed in this world is to act on the advice you give to others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/the-best-way-to-succeed-in-this-world-is-to-act-on-the-advice-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [Time is priceless. You have it, but you don't own it. You spend it, but you can't keep it. And once it's gone, there's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/time-is-priceless-you-have-it-but-you-don-t-own-it-you-spend-it-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You don't need to take a persons advice to make him feel good, just ask him for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-j-peter/you-don-t-need-to-take-a-persons-advice-to-make-him-feel-good-just/) [Laurence J. Peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-j-peter/) > [Some of the things that we hold onto the most, are the things that we need to let go of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryaj-ablando-catayas/some-of-the-things-that-we-hold-onto-the-most-are-the-things-that-we/) [Ryaj Ablando Catayas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryaj-ablando-catayas/) > [“If your clothes are enough to drive would-be friends away, they're not the kind of friends you want." Typical mother advice. Sweet, honest, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aprilynne-pike/if-your-clothes-are-enough-to-drive-would-be-friends-away-they-re-not/) [Aprilynne Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aprilynne-pike/) > [“My kingdom not for a horse, but for a good piece of advice!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/my-kingdom-not-for-a-horse-but-for-a-good-piece-of-advice/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I always advise people not to act upon the advice that I give them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/i-always-advise-people-not-to-act-upon-the-advice-that-i-give-them/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [ \[A\]s you partake of the world's bill of fare, that's darned good advice to follow. Do a lot of spitting out the hot air.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-seuss/a-s-you-partake-of-the-world-s-bill-of-fare-that-s-darned-good-advice/) [Dr. Seuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-seuss/) > [My relationship with Ibrahimovic was completely neutral. He is not the type of player to approach the younger players and give them advice. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kingsley-coman/my-relationship-with-ibrahimovic-was-completely-neutral-he-is-not-the/) [Kingsley Coman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kingsley-coman/) [Browse all 8,535 Advice quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advice/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only advice I can give is to surround yourself with people who are friends and people who believe in you and your material and who are going to help you take it to the next level. 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