"My goal was, and still is, to write first, direct my own stuff whenever possible, and control my own creative destiny"
About this Quote
The intent is practical: build leverage by moving upstream in the production chain. "Write first" signals authorship as the foundation, not the vanity add-on. It also frames directing "my own stuff" as the ideal scenario, a hedge against being slotted into other people's visions. The phrase "whenever possible" is the tell: he knows the industry runs on permission, budgets, and institutional risk-aversion. This is aspiration tempered by a producer's realism.
The subtext reads like a response to a specific cultural moment when entertainers began openly discussing control as a brand value. Reality TV, Probst's home turf, sharpened that instinct. It’s a format famous for selling "authenticity" while being meticulously constructed in the edit bay. After years inside that machine, "control" stops sounding egotistical and starts sounding ethical: if your name is on it and your face is attached to it, you want a say in what it becomes.
Probst’s sentence is less about ego than exit strategy: diversify your power before the spotlight moves on.
Quote Details
| Topic | Writing |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Probst, Jeff. (2026, February 16). My goal was, and still is, to write first, direct my own stuff whenever possible, and control my own creative destiny. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/my-goal-was-and-still-is-to-write-first-direct-my-130293/
Chicago Style
Probst, Jeff. "My goal was, and still is, to write first, direct my own stuff whenever possible, and control my own creative destiny." FixQuotes. February 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/my-goal-was-and-still-is-to-write-first-direct-my-130293/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"My goal was, and still is, to write first, direct my own stuff whenever possible, and control my own creative destiny." FixQuotes, 16 Feb. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/my-goal-was-and-still-is-to-write-first-direct-my-130293/. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
