"It was something she didn't want me to do because she thought the rejection would ruin my self-esteem. My father was, like, 'If she wants to try it, let her try it.'"
About this Quote
A small domestic debate gets framed as a philosophy of risk: protect the kid from rejection, or let her meet it head-on and survive. Ellen Muth’s casual phrasing ("like", "let her try it") keeps the story deliberately un-grand, which is exactly why it lands. This isn’t a TED Talk about resilience; it’s the kind of everyday parenting moment that quietly decides what a person believes about failure for the next twenty years.
The mother’s position is tender and preventative: rejection isn’t just an outcome, it’s a threat to identity. That fear is culturally familiar, especially in performance worlds where "no" can feel like a verdict, not feedback. The subtext is less "don’t audition" and more "don’t get labeled". In industries that sort people early, self-esteem can feel like a resource you have to conserve.
The father’s line carries a different kind of care: trust. "If she wants to try it" recognizes desire as data, not a whim to be managed. It also reframes rejection as a normal part of attempting anything, not an exceptional trauma. The intent isn’t to toughen a child into stoicism; it’s to keep the locus of control with her. She chooses, she risks, she learns.
Coming from an actress, the anecdote reads like a quiet origin story about permission: not the permission to succeed, but the permission to be seen trying. That’s the career in miniature.
The mother’s position is tender and preventative: rejection isn’t just an outcome, it’s a threat to identity. That fear is culturally familiar, especially in performance worlds where "no" can feel like a verdict, not feedback. The subtext is less "don’t audition" and more "don’t get labeled". In industries that sort people early, self-esteem can feel like a resource you have to conserve.
The father’s line carries a different kind of care: trust. "If she wants to try it" recognizes desire as data, not a whim to be managed. It also reframes rejection as a normal part of attempting anything, not an exceptional trauma. The intent isn’t to toughen a child into stoicism; it’s to keep the locus of control with her. She chooses, she risks, she learns.
Coming from an actress, the anecdote reads like a quiet origin story about permission: not the permission to succeed, but the permission to be seen trying. That’s the career in miniature.
Quote Details
| Topic | Father |
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