--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was constantly reading books about how…" description: "\"I was constantly reading books about how to direct, and asking directors, 'How do you do it?' And when I finally actually started doing the work, it se..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/susanna-fogel-14377_books_i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how_2123901.jpg" --- # I was constantly reading books about how to direct, and… ![“I was constantly reading books about how to direct, and asking directors, 'How do you do it?' And when I finally actually started doing the work, it seemed like you have to be decisive and have an opinion. But also you have to be a good collaborator and hire the right people to shore up whatever…” quote by Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/susanna-fogel-14377_books_i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how_2123901.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/susanna-fogel-14377_books_i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how_2123901.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/susanna-fogel-14377_books_i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how_2123901.jpg) > “I was constantly reading books about how to direct, and asking directors, 'How do you do it?' And when I finally actually started doing the work, it seemed like you have to be decisive and have an opinion. But also you have to be a good collaborator and hire the right people to shore up whatever your skill set is.” [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker learned directing by studying, asking questions, and recognizing the need for decisiveness, opinion, collaboration, and hiring the right team. **In simple terms:** Directing requires study, confidence, teamwork, and good hires. Key Takeaway Combine knowledge with decisive, collaborative leadership. Themes learning leadership collaboration decisionmaking teambuilding Mood inspirational pragmatic Type educational practical When to use this quote - film set - creative meetings - hiring process - skill development Key Concepts directing fundamentals opinion formation team dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance confidence with openness? - Who should you trust to fill skill gaps? A Different Perspective Overreliance on opinion can stifle collaboration. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Directors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directors/) [Doing The Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing-the-work/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [Reading books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-books/) [Skill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skill/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not a good collaborator in general.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-quinn-yarbro/i-m-not-a-good-collaborator-in-general/) [Chelsea Quinn Yarbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-quinn-yarbro/) > [Honestly, I've just made music so long by myself, in some ways I don't feel I'm a very good collaborator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washed-out/honestly-i-ve-just-made-music-so-long-by-myself-in-some-ways-i-don-t/) [Washed Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washed-out/) > [As a film composer, you have to be a good collaborator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramin-djawadi/as-a-film-composer-you-have-to-be-a-good-collaborator/) [Ramin Djawadi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramin-djawadi/) > [I'd probably end up doing the same thing over and over. We're creatures of habit. We know what we know. With collaboration...and I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-koz/i-d-probably-end-up-doing-the-same-thing-over-and-over-we-re/) [Dave Koz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-koz/) > [Everyone who makes music is a good collaborator at their foundation because in order to make music, you have to connect to it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/everyone-who-makes-music-is-a-good-collaborator-at-their-foundation/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [Throughout my scientific career, my wife has been my most constant collaborator. Her experimental skill made major contributions to the work; she has eased…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cornforth/throughout-my-scientific-career-my-wife-has-been-my-most-constant/) [John Cornforth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cornforth/) > [I've always believed in writing without a collaborator, because where two people are writing the same book, each believes he gets all the worry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/i-ve-always-believed-in-writing-without-a-collaborator-because-where/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [I'm a great collaborator. I really am. I will steal anyone's idea if it is a good one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sondra-locke/i-m-a-great-collaborator-i-really-am-i-will-steal-anyone-s-idea-if-it/) [Sondra Locke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sondra-locke/) > [I've always been a collaborator. For me, it's, 'What's the issue I'm trying to solve? Who are the people we need to bring around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-cortez-masto/i-ve-always-been-a-collaborator-for-me-it-s-what-s-the-issue-i-m/) [Catherine Cortez-Masto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-cortez-masto/) > [My favorite collaborator is Dane Laffrey, who designed the set for 'Once on This Island,' but we've worked together since high school, when he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arden/my-favorite-collaborator-is-dane-laffrey-who-designed-the-set-for/) [Michael Arden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arden/) > [“A collaborator sees, sows, and grows seeds of opportunity and then sustains his good fortune by ensuring that others always benefit from his success.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-llopis/a-collaborator-sees-sows-and-grows-seeds-of-opportunity-and-then/) [Glenn Llopis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-llopis/) > [James DeMonaco is one of my favorite directors I’ve ever worked with. I think he shoots really well and all that, but the work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-gilford/james-demonaco-is-one-of-my-favorite-directors-i-ve-ever-worked-with/) [Zach Gilford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-gilford/) > [I'll always work with my collaborator in the room so I have a reaction on a note-by-note basis. I know in my gut when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-ll-always-work-with-my-collaborator-in-the-room-so-i-have-a/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [In a collaborator, I always look for someone who's going to push me a little bit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-stelfreeze/in-a-collaborator-i-always-look-for-someone-who-s-going-to-push-me-a/) [Brian Stelfreeze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-stelfreeze/) > [You've got to understand when a collaborator isn't satisfied anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-scorsese/you-ve-got-to-understand-when-a-collaborator-isn-t-satisfied-anymore/) [Martin Scorsese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-scorsese/) ## More by Susanna Fogel > [I studied English in college and approached filmmaking from a writing background while trying to learn as much as I could about the technical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/i-studied-english-in-college-and-approached-filmmaking-from-a-writing/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [My way of dealing with not really fitting in at my very crappy New England high school and junior high was to write sketch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/my-way-of-dealing-with-not-really-fitting-in-at-my-very-crappy-new/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [I love action movies, and I love comedy, and I love writing comedy, but the genre of action-comedy - or, at least, as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/i-love-action-movies-and-i-love-comedy-and-i-love-writing-comedy-but/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [You can have a lot of destruction, but in a realistic female movie, the women are going to be aware of that destruction and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/you-can-have-a-lot-of-destruction-but-in-a-realistic-female-movie-the/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [Any place where the Jewish district is the hipster district is a very surreal and awesome place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/any-place-where-the-jewish-district-is-the-hipster-district-is-a-very/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [As a consumer, I love action movies and have a lot of opinions about how action comedies don't really do justice to what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/as-a-consumer-i-love-action-movies-and-have-a-lot-of-opinions-about/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [Micro humor is a joke that's contained in the writing: it's a punch line, it's a turn of phrase, it's something that you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/micro-humor-is-a-joke-that-s-contained-in-the-writing-it-s-a-punch/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [If you're a filmmaker who grew up wanting to make a movie for people to have that female experience of sitting in the theater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/if-you-re-a-filmmaker-who-grew-up-wanting-to-make-a-movie-for-people/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [Have confidence in your own voice, be entrepreneurial, and take big risks with the knowledge that, by default of being a woman, people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/have-confidence-in-your-own-voice-be-entrepreneurial-and-take-big/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [As women, I think we're used to looking around to see what people think about this, who's approving of us, who's criticizing us, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/as-women-i-think-we-re-used-to-looking-around-to-see-what-people/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [The process of working with the second unit director and basically sharing your workload with another director is such an interesting, delicate thing -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/the-process-of-working-with-the-second-unit-director-and-basically/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [I want to be someone who takes risks but also stays engaged by trying new things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/i-want-to-be-someone-who-takes-risks-but-also-stays-engaged-by-trying/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [Friendships have been such an important part of my life both emotionally and logistically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/friendships-have-been-such-an-important-part-of-my-life-both/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [The older I got, the less pretentious I got in my art tastes and work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/the-older-i-got-the-less-pretentious-i-got-in-my-art-tastes-and-work/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) > [I try to write from a place of writing what I know, and what I know is interesting and appropriate women with edgy senses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/i-try-to-write-from-a-place-of-writing-what-i-know-and-what-i-know-is/) [Susanna Fogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) [Explore all 47 Susanna Fogel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was constantly reading books about how to direct, and asking directors, 'How do you do it?' And when I finally actually started doing the work, it seemed like you have to be decisive and have an opinion. But also you have to be a good collaborator and hire the right people to shore up whatever your skill set is.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Susanna Fogel" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how-to-direct-and-asking/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how-to-direct-and-asking/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/susanna-fogel-14377_books_i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how_2123901.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/susanna-fogel-14377_books_i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how_2123901.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/susanna-fogel-14377_books_i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how_2123901.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I was constantly reading books about how to direct, and asking directors, 'How do you do it?' And when I…” — Susanna Fogel", "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": "Susanna Fogel", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-fogel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I was constantly reading books about...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how-to-direct-and-asking/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-fogel/i-was-constantly-reading-books-about-how-to-direct-and-asking/#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 } } ] } ```