Meryl Streep

"I'm always interested in what the human condition is."

"The best part of my life has been being a mother."

"I think every person has to find their own way."

"I'm most interested in people who are contradictory."

"You cannot be suspicious of a tiger and still admire its beauty."

"The great thing about getting older is that you don't lose all the other ages you've been."

"I'm like a fireman. When I go to work, I put on my clothes and get on with it."

"You have to understand your own personal DNA. Don't do what I do. Don't copy me or anyone else. Find yourself."

"Taking joy in living is a woman's best cosmetic."

"Napping is not laziness. It's intelligence."

"Everybody has an idea of what a line is, but between the idea and the practice there is a piece of chalk."

"I find that the more I know, the less I need to say."

"The degree of freedom from unwanted thoughts and the degree of concentration on a single thought are the measures to gauge the progress in meditation."

"Acting is not about being someone different. It's finding the similarity in what is apparently different, then finding myself in there."

"What you feel when you're starting something new is fear. But that's a good sign."

"I think having a great idea is vastly overrated."

"Listening is an almost forgotten skill in our hurried lives."

"The thing to do is just one thing at a time."

"You realize that however much you earn, you can't buy your way out of the human condition."

"Everyone has a moment in their life when they realize they're not going to be a rock star."

"I'm thrilled with how my career has evolved. When I was younger, I wanted to be everything."

"Be charitable with each other. Forgive each other more."

"The girl who said no to all of this, who valued solitude... she would grow up to become a woman who told stories."

"Get the best people to help you. Delegate everything. Except what you love."

"I think your female energy is what it is. I don't think you have to look like something to be it."

"Pretending to be someone you're not costs a lot of energy."

"When you're still a kid, you look at your parents thinking they're not cool. You wait for your real parents to show up."

"There's this thing that happens in the autumn where it feels like a reset button."

"Self-possession is not about pride. It's about respect for yourself."

"Flexibility is the key to survival."