Amy Adams’ career is a testament to what can happen when you keep going. Even when the path ahead looks nothing like the one you imagined. Long before she became a six-time Oscar nominee and one of Hollywood’s most acclaimed actors, Adams faced years of rejection, uncertainty and false starts.
Her journey to Hollywood was unconventional. Raised in Colorado as one of seven children in a military family, Adams initially trained as a dancer before turning to musical theater. She worked in dinner theater and other small roles before moving to Los Angeles in 1999 at age 24 to pursue acting.
In 1999, she made her film debut in Drop Dead Gorgeous . A few years later, Steven Spielberg cast her in Catch Me If You Can. While she received attention for her performance, the role didn’t immediately transform her career.
Despite working with Steven Spielberg and Leonardo DiCaprio, Adams found herself unemployed for a year after the film’s release. As Adams later recalled, she was auditioning constantly and struggling with fear of failure. “I was auditioning a ton, [but] I was so afraid of failure,” she told Parade in 2021. “I just kept choking and bombing.”
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Eventually, Adams changed her approach. Instead of chasing stardom, she focused more on the roles and characters themselves. Then came the 2005 film Junebug and that changed everything. The performance earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. “I was in a different place,” she says. “Working toward happiness and contentment felt more important than working toward success.”
In 2007 Enchanted followed and Adams went on to earn six Oscar nominations for Doubt, The Fighter, The Master, American Hustle and Vice.
Adams also learned to put Hollywood success in perspective. In a 2009 Parade interview, she said, “I have tried never to define myself by success, whatever that is. My happiness is way beyond roles and awards.”
On August 20, Adams celebrates her 52nd birthday. In honor of the occasion, it’s an ideal time to spotlight one of her most meaningful observations about life and what she learned about letting go.
Quote of the Day by Amy Adams
“I tend to be really pragmatic, but ultimately tend to be attracted to people who sort of pull me into more spontaneity. And I’ve really learned that through surrender, the best experiences of my life have happened.” — Amy Adams
Adams shared this thought in a January 2010 interview with Sara Wayland for Collider while promoting Leap Year. In the romantic comedy, Adams plays Anna Brady, a woman whose carefully planned trip to Ireland and her plans for her future goes wildly off course.
The role prompted Adams to reflect on how much she identified with Anna. She described herself as pragmatic but said she was ultimately attracted to people who brought more spontaneity into her life. She then connected that idea to her own experiences, saying she had learned that some of the best experiences of her life had happened “through surrender.”
She summed up the lesson as being about having control, losing control and then finding an amazing life for yourself. The sentiment feels especially meaningful considering the unpredictable path her own career had taken.
Related: Quote of the Day: Michael J. Fox on Acceptance
Deeper Meaning of Amy Adams’ Quote
The most powerful word in Adams’ quote may be “surrender.” She isn’t talking about giving up on your dreams. She is talking about releasing the need to control exactly how—or when—they will happen.
That’s difficult when you are a planner or someone accustomed to working hard for what you want. But life inevitably brings unexpected opportunities, disappointments and detours. Adams’ own career is a reminder that those detours aren’t necessarily failures.
After Catch Me If You Can, Adams had to endure a period when the opportunities didn’t arrive as expected. Looking back, she said, “Ultimately, it just wasn’t my time. I wasn’t ready. I still had a lot to learn and a lot of self-growth to work through.”
Maybe that is the most encouraging part of Adams’ message. Surrender doesn’t mean giving up on your dreams. It means being open enough to let your life surprise you. Sometimes the path we planned isn’t the path we’re meant to take. And the unexpected turns may lead somewhere even better.
Related: Quote of the Day: Stoic Philosopher Epictetus on Embracing the Unknown and Letting Go of Control
More Quotes from Amy Adams
You can’t believe the hype. You have to make and change your own path.”
“I have tried never to define myself by success, whatever that is. My happiness is way beyond roles and awards.”
“You can’t be completely helpless. At some point you have to realize that it’s your own choices that mold your life.”
“I’ve always been someone who had a spirit of perseverance.”
“I see when I stopped needing to be perfect. I stopped carrying the weight of criticism.”
“Working toward happiness and contentment felt more important than working toward success.”
“Being pregnant finally helped me understand what my true relationship was with my body. Meaning that it wasn’t put on this earth to look good in a swimsuit. I was like, ‘Look, I can carry a baby! I’m gaining weight right, everything’s going well.’ And I’ve had that relationship ever since. I’ve been working out when I can, and I’m trying to eat in a healthful way, but losing weight is not my number-one priority. It’s part of my job to return to some semblance of what I was before. But I don’t feel I’ve ever made my career on my rockin’ bod.”
Next, 225 life quotes.