At the very top state institutions, like UCLA, Berkeley and the University of Texas, however, the trend of downward minority enrollment remains persistent and discouraging.
I was a pretentious teenager, so of course I had, you know, 'Raging Bull' posters and all of that. 'Raging Bull' is not a pretentious movie, but me having the poster was a pretentious action. I even grew a goatee and had a Knicks cap, because I thought I wanted to be like Spike Lee.
We tax our companies more than any other country in the world, so we really are not really encouraging businesses to grow and expand, and over time, that's going to make it so that we diminish our role in the global economy.
I remember Tyra Banks giving me encouraging advice during my first Victoria's Secret commercial shoot. I was so nervous, and she told me to just relax and be confident - that made me feel very comfortable.
Of course, De Niro has had a long history of memorable performances. Everyone knows 'Taxi Driver' and 'Raging Bull,' but 'Awakenings' really did something for me.
I hope I come across as supportive and encouraging as well as being firm when I need to be firm.
I think there are many things that we can do today to make it a better work environment that is more supportive and encouraging of diversity.
Managing can be more discouraging than playing, especially when you're losing because when you're a player, there are at least individual goals you can shoot for. When you're a manager all the worries of the team become your worries.
As you approach the finish line, you go through a tunnel of people, all of them cheering and encouraging you. Then I heard the speaker say, 'Alessandro Zanardi, you are an Ironman!' It was something phenomenal, something amazing... I got very emotional at that point.
Self-reinvention is an encouraging conceit. It is simply not always a possible one.
