Daily Inspiration Quote by Vicky Krieps

Krieps’ line lands like a quiet indictment dressed up as a casual observation: if you’re the kind of person who feels intensely, you’re “born with a problem” not because emotion is defective, but because the system is. She’s flipping the usual script. Sensitivity isn’t framed as a gift or a personal quirk; it’s treated as a liability in a culture that rewards output, composure, and speed.

The bluntness of “you have to function” gives the quote its sting. “Function” is the language of machines and workplaces, not inner lives. It suggests a society calibrated for performance: be reliable, be productive, keep moving, don’t spill. Then comes the sharper twist: “you’re not here to feel things”. She’s not literally denying human feeling; she’s describing the unspoken social instruction. Feelings are tolerated only if they’re manageable, aesthetically pleasing, and conveniently timed. Grief gets a few days off; anxiety gets an app; joy is fine as long as it doesn’t interrupt the meeting.

As an actress, Krieps is also talking from inside a profession that monetizes emotion while punishing it off-camera. You’re hired to access vulnerability on cue, then expected to snap back into professionalism, brand safety, and “function”. The subtext is a critique of modern emotional labor: society wants the benefits of feeling - empathy, art, connection - without paying the cost of making space for it. Her “problem” isn’t being too sensitive. It’s living in a world that treats sensitivity as a scheduling conflict.