--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Once I reached my 40s, I thought to…" description: "\"Once I reached my 40s, I thought to myself that if I'm going to play live now, I need to really mean this. I can't go out and be a little bit, for one ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/michael-stipe-6714_choices_once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-mysel_2409953.png" --- # Once I reached my 40s, I thought to myself that if I'm… ![“Once I reached my 40s, I thought to myself that if I'm going to play live now, I need to really mean this. I can't go out and be a little bit, for one moment slovenly in my choices as a performer. I mean, these people have paid a lot of money to be here, they've been through the nightmare of…” quote by Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/michael-stipe-6714_choices_once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-mysel_2409953.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/michael-stipe-6714_choices_once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-mysel_2409953.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/michael-stipe-6714_choices_once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-mysel_2409953.png) > “Once I reached my 40s, I thought to myself that if I'm going to play live now, I need to really mean this. I can't go out and be a little bit, for one moment slovenly in my choices as a performer. I mean, these people have paid a lot of money to be here, they've been through the nightmare of getting here, starving themselves waiting for us to get on stage, so I'm going to give them what they came here for.” [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A performer’s commitment to authenticity and respect for the audience’s investment. **In simple terms:** Give your best, honor the audience. Key Takeaway Treat every performance as a sacred responsibility. Themes authenticity responsibility artistry Mood inspired serious Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - concerts - theatre - public speaking - teaching Key Concepts performance ethics audience relationship Questions to Reflect On - What does authenticity cost you? - How do you balance perfection and vulnerability? A Different Perspective High pressure may cause burnout. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Live Now](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-now/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Nightmare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nightmare/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [I remember seeing 'Chicago' and 'Legally Blonde' and waiting by the stage door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirstin-maldonado/i-remember-seeing-chicago-and-legally-blonde-and-waiting-by-the-stage/) [Kirstin Maldonado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirstin-maldonado/) > [There was a time in my 40s where I thought, oh, it's all over - not just work, but I'm never going to feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-weller/there-was-a-time-in-my-40s-where-i-thought-oh-it-s-all-over-not-just/) [Paul Weller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-weller/) > [I'm very comfortable in my own skin now. I started just being myself more and more. For women, this happens as you get older.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-estefan/i-m-very-comfortable-in-my-own-skin-now-i-started-just-being-myself/) [Gloria Estefan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-estefan/) > [“It was just a stage I was going through.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-banks/it-was-just-a-stage-i-was-going-through/) [Iain Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-banks/) > [I've really grown to love film, but I think occasionally you need to get up on a stage and see what's going on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-kirk/i-ve-really-grown-to-love-film-but-i-think-occasionally-you-need-to/) [Justin Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-kirk/) > [All art is autobiographical - if it's not, it's not going to quicken on-stage, and it's not going to come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/constantin-stanislavski/all-art-is-autobiographical-if-it-s-not-it-s-not-going-to-quicken-on/) [Constantin Stanislavski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/constantin-stanislavski/) > [It's hard to know at any stage whether a show is going to work or not. Every few years, a different trend comes along.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aidan-turner/it-s-hard-to-know-at-any-stage-whether-a-show-is-going-to-work-or-not/) [Aidan Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aidan-turner/) > [Drag artists are more men than real men. You need a lot of courage, personality, and guts to go out there. Even if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bebe-zahara-benet/drag-artists-are-more-men-than-real-men-you-need-a-lot-of-courage/) [BeBe Zahara Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bebe-zahara-benet/) > [I can't believe Tina Turner actually was on the same stage. I can't believe I set foot on the same stage, and it's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandy-norwood/i-can-t-believe-tina-turner-actually-was-on-the-same-stage-i-can-t/) [Brandy Norwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandy-norwood/) > [It has begun to occur to me that life is a stage I'm going through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/it-has-begun-to-occur-to-me-that-life-is-a-stage-i-m-going-through/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [All the world's a stage we're going through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorrie-moore/all-the-world-s-a-stage-we-re-going-through/) [Lorrie Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorrie-moore/) > [No matter where you play, a stadium or an arena, when you're present on stage, it's going to feel like a theater.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-mendes/no-matter-where-you-play-a-stadium-or-an-arena-when-you-re-present-on/) [Shawn Mendes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-mendes/) > [I'm not 'one of the guys.' I don't want to pretend to be one on stage. I'm not going to dress like a guy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-leggero/i-m-not-one-of-the-guys-i-don-t-want-to-pretend-to-be-one-on-stage-i/) [Natasha Leggero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-leggero/) > [I can't wait until I touch the stage, I'm going to catch the spirit and lose my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theophilus-london/i-can-t-wait-until-i-touch-the-stage-i-m-going-to-catch-the-spirit/) [Theophilus London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theophilus-london/) > [I like to challenge myself. Whether that's on television or film or on stage, that's what I'm going to go for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cobie-smulders/i-like-to-challenge-myself-whether-that-s-on-television-or-film-or-on/) [Cobie Smulders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cobie-smulders/) ## More by Michael Stipe > [We don't get groupies.We get teenagers who want to read us their poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/we-don-t-get-groupies-we-get-teenagers-who-want-to-read-us-their/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ At the \[teenage\] time, I did have an inkling of my sexuality. And I had an inkling that I was different from other people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/at-the-teenage-time-i-did-have-an-inkling-of-my-sexuality-and-i-had/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I don't find R.E.M. to be nihilistic. There is a constant undertone of joyous optimism. I'm not going to kill myself to Patti Smith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-don-t-find-r-e-m-to-be-nihilistic-there-is-a-constant-undertone-of/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ I simply constructed a project to try to snap Kurt \[Cobain\] out of a frame of mind. I sent him a plane ticket and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-simply-constructed-a-project-to-try-to-snap-kurt-cobain-out-of-a/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I was vulnerable every day. Every night that I stepped on stage I was laying myself open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-was-vulnerable-every-day-every-night-that-i-stepped-on-stage-i-was/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [We're absolutely American and distinctly so, I think. That's part of what people respond to outside of this country, part of the reason that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/we-re-absolutely-american-and-distinctly-so-i-think-that-s-part-of/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ \[Columbia House\] magazines were how I found out about the punk world going on in New York. Because of what I read, at the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/columbia-house-magazines-were-how-i-found-out-about-the-punk-world/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I'm tired of being this solemn poet of the masses, the enigma shrouded in a mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-m-tired-of-being-this-solemn-poet-of-the-masses-the-enigma-shrouded/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [Frankly I'm not great with heroin addicts. I tried heroin, but it was by accident. I'm not great with that level of substance abuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/frankly-i-m-not-great-with-heroin-addicts-i-tried-heroin-but-it-was/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [The whole punk ethic was do-it-yourself, and I've always been very literal, especially as a kid. When they said that anybody can do this,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/the-whole-punk-ethic-was-do-it-yourself-and-i-ve-always-been-very/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [They spoke truth and a lot of people listened… that voice, Kurt we miss you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/they-spoke-truth-and-a-lot-of-people-listened-that-voice-kurt-we-miss/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [A wise man once said-'the skill in attending a party is knowing when it's time to leave,'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/a-wise-man-once-said-the-skill-in-attending-a-party-is-knowing-when/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [They always want me to play myself and that's a big snooze.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/they-always-want-me-to-play-myself-and-that-s-a-big-snooze/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [Anything you do as a group is fraught with compromise... But everyone 's got to do that, right? It's part of being a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/anything-you-do-as-a-group-is-fraught-with-compromise-but-everyone-s/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [To be called an elder statesman is so unbelievably insulting. Brad Pitt is exactly three years younger than me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/to-be-called-an-elder-statesman-is-so-unbelievably-insulting-brad/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) [Explore all 98 Michael Stipe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) ## More Choices quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [“Don’t allow anyone to pressure you into taking a job in a field that doesn’t feel right in your gut. You are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-james/don-t-allow-anyone-to-pressure-you-into-taking-a-job-in-a-field-that/) Alison James > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) Pancho Barnes > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Movies have power. Power to impact society and the choices we make. I want to entertain, but I also want to say something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/movies-have-power-power-to-impact-society-and-the-choices-we-make-i/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [Clarissa," he said, "here with the vampire, I see. When things have settled a bit, we really must discuss you choice in pets..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/clarissa-he-said-here-with-the-vampire-i-see-when-things-have-settled/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/change-is-inevitable-but-personal-growth-is-a-choice/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Act always so as to increase the number of choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-von-foerster/act-always-so-as-to-increase-the-number-of-choices/) [Heinz von Foerster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-von-foerster/) > [Give me a platter of choice finnan haddie, freshly cooked in its bath of water and milk, add melted butter, a slice or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-claiborne/give-me-a-platter-of-choice-finnan-haddie-freshly-cooked-in-its-bath/) [Craig Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-claiborne/) > [I don't know that any woman could ever not think about that at some point - even making the choice not to do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-watts/i-don-t-know-that-any-woman-could-ever-not-think-about-that-at-some/) [Naomi Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-watts/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) [Browse all 11,466 Choices quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Once I reached my 40s, I thought to myself that if I'm going to play live now, I need to really mean this. I can't go out and be a little bit, for one moment slovenly in my choices as a performer. I mean, these people have paid a lot of money to be here, they've been through the nightmare of getting here, starving themselves waiting for us to get on stage, so I'm going to give them what they came here for.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Stipe" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-myself-that-if-i-m-going-to-play/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Choices" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-myself-that-if-i-m-going-to-play/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/michael-stipe-6714_choices_once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-mysel_2409953.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/michael-stipe-6714_choices_once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-mysel_2409953.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/michael-stipe-6714_choices_once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-mysel_2409953.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Once I reached my 40s, I thought to myself that if I'm going to play live now, I need to really mean this. I…” — Michael Stipe", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Michael Stipe", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Once I reached my 40s, I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-myself-that-if-i-m-going-to-play/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/once-i-reached-my-40s-i-thought-to-myself-that-if-i-m-going-to-play/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```