"Because - Bobby Lewis said this once to us in class, the better you get, the less credit you'll get. Because the better you are, the more it looks like walking and talking and everybody thinks they can walk and talk"
About this Quote
The subtext is a critique of how we assign value. We’re drawn to visible struggle and obvious difficulty because it flatters the spectator. If a feat looks hard, admiration costs us nothing; we can keep our sense of superiority intact by filing it under “talent I don’t have.” But when a performance looks as ordinary as “walking and talking,” it threatens our story about ourselves. If it looks easy, then maybe we could do it too. And if we could do it too, why aren’t we? The mind’s defense is to downgrade the achievement rather than confront the gap between fantasy and discipline.
Context matters: Lipton, steeped in craft education and performance culture, is translating an industry truth into a life truth. Acting, writing, teaching - the highest levels are built to look unbuilt. He’s coaching students not just to chase skill, but to develop a spine: to keep working when the reward system gets perversely quieter, and to recognize that “effortless” is often the most expensive illusion in the room.
Quote Details
| Topic | Success |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Lipton, James. (2026, January 16). Because - Bobby Lewis said this once to us in class, the better you get, the less credit you'll get. Because the better you are, the more it looks like walking and talking and everybody thinks they can walk and talk. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/because-bobby-lewis-said-this-once-to-us-in-100367/
Chicago Style
Lipton, James. "Because - Bobby Lewis said this once to us in class, the better you get, the less credit you'll get. Because the better you are, the more it looks like walking and talking and everybody thinks they can walk and talk." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/because-bobby-lewis-said-this-once-to-us-in-100367/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Because - Bobby Lewis said this once to us in class, the better you get, the less credit you'll get. Because the better you are, the more it looks like walking and talking and everybody thinks they can walk and talk." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/because-bobby-lewis-said-this-once-to-us-in-100367/. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
