Matt Damon has been through his own fair share of hardships in life. Today’s quote comes from an understanding that ignoring your problems or waiting for time to take care of them for you will never work. Instead, it is essential that you face them head-on and work towards your goal.The quote from ‘The Martian’ star Matt Damon reads, “Turn toward the problems you see. You have to engage and turn towards the problems that you see. Walk right up to them, look them in the eye, and then look yourself in the eye and decide what you’re going to do about them.”
What does the quote from Matt Damon mean?
Damon had shared this piece of advice with students in June 2016, during the commencement speech to the graduating class at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In the speech, Damon shared a piece of advice former President Bill Clinton had once given him (“turn toward the problems you see”), urging graduates to engage directly with real-world problems and embrace failure as a learning experience.The meaning behind the quote lies in understanding that human nature often leads people to look away from overwhelming issues. However, when you directly approach the problem head-on, it means that you are choosing to push past barriers and you are choosing to engage over being apathetic. Other than that, “walking right up” and looking a problem “in the eye” in the quote means directly confronting the reality of a situation and the fear that you are feeling directly rather than letting your emotions and thoughts magnify it. By examining an obstacle up close, you can take away its ability and power over you and help you understand the situation better.The quote is also about understanding your own capabilities and how you have to come to terms with your abilities. “Looking yourself in the eye” means that you confront all parts of yourself and understand how you are going to face your problems from now on. Lastly, the ultimate goal of turning toward a problem isn’t just to feel concerned; it’s to make a decision and take action. Even if your contribution resolves only a fraction of a massive issue, making a conscious choice to act restores your agency in the matter.
About Matt Damon’s early life
Matt Damon started from almost nothing, though through determination and hard work, he is now one of the most revered artists in Hollywood.
Matthew Paige Damon was born on October 8, 1970, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His father, Kent Telfer Damon, was a stockbroker and tax preparer, while his mother, Nancy Carlsson-Paige, was a professor of early childhood education at Lesley University. His parents divorced when he was a child, and he and his brother moved to Cambridge to live with their mother afterwards. Damon then went on to study at the Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, which is a public high school located in Cambridge. During his time here, Damon developed an inkling for theater and acting, and he started working on school plays regularly. Not only that, but it was his drama teacher, Gerry Speca, who helped him hone his skills and encouraged him to pursue acting more seriously in life.When he was a teenager, Damon met Ben Affleck, and the two became close friends and have remained so. Since both of them wanted to pursue acting, they started working together, traveled together to auditions in New York, and went on to collaborate on various projects. In 1988, Damon started attending Harvard University for his degree in English literature. He continued to take part in school plays and even scored minor roles in films. It was here that he first wrote the script for ‘Good Will Hunting’ for an English assignment. Around the same time, he made his official debut in ‘Mystic Pizza.’In 1992, Damon was just shy of 12 credits from graduating from his class; however, he still dropped out and dove headfirst into the world of acting. He and Affleck refined the ‘Good Will Hunting’ script and pitched it everywhere they could, with only one request: that they were going to star in the film itself. After facing a lot of rejections, the two finally got the film made, and it is still one of the most popular films from their career.
