Quotes

35 Inspirational Neil Patrick Harris Quotes On Success

Last Updated May 2023

35 Inspirational Neil Patrick Harris Quotes On Success

Neil Patrick Harris is an American actor, singer, comedian, writer, producer, and magician. He is known primarily for his comedy roles on television and his dramatic and musical stage roles. On television, he is known for playing the title character on Doogie Howser, M.D. (1989–1993), Barney Stinson on How I Met Your Mother (2005–2014, for which he was nominated for four Emmy Awards), and Count Olaf in A Series of Unfortunate Events (2017–2019). Harris is also known for his role as the title character in Joss Whedon’s musical Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog (2008) and a fictional version of himself in the Harold & Kumar film series (2004–2011). His other films include Starship Troopers (1997), Beastly (2011), The Smurfs (2011), The Smurfs 2 (2013), A Million Ways to Die in the West (2014), and Gone Girl (2014). In 2014, he starred in the title role in Hedwig and the Angry Inch on Broadway, for which he won the 2014 Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical. Harris has hosted the Tony Awards in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013, for which he won four special class Emmy Awards. He also hosted the Primetime Emmy Awards in 2009 and 2013, and hosted the 87th Academy Awards in 2015, thus making him the first openly gay man to host the Academy Awards. Harris was named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2010. He is married to David Burtka. In 2010, they had twins via surrogacy. May these Neil Patrick Harris Quotes On Success inspire you to take action so that you may live your dreams.

1. “So pluck up your courage and take that risk! Add another story to the book of your life. Even if it doesn’t go the way you planned or wanted, you’ll still learn from it.” Neil Patrick Harris

2. “I enjoy being a hyphenate. I’ve always thought of my career as a plate spinner in the circus.” Neil Patrick Harris

3. “Being able to live my life transparently does empower me to feel like I can be myself more.” Neil Patrick Harris

4. “It’s like, the more you commit, the happier the animators are; if you’re at all iffy and concerned, then it doesn’t free them up to do as much fun stuff, so you have to just go for it and, again, trust the people around you and not be seemingly guarded and numb. Throw caution to the wind a bit.” Neil Patrick Harris

5. “Parents need to be more accepting of who their kids are and less concerned about what society thinks they need to be.” Neil Patrick Harris

6. “Thankfully I’ve been quite lucky in my career, but it’s always good to re-evaluate things and think about what else you want to do.” Neil Patrick Harris

7. “I’m lucky that people believe me when I’m in character.” Neil Patrick Harris

8. “I feel like I know where I’m going. And I like where I’m going.” Neil Patrick Harris

9. “When I’m sad I stop being sad, and be awesome instead.” Neil Patrick Harris

10. “What defines a relationship is the work that’s involved to maintain it, and it’s constantly changing.” Neil Patrick Harris

11. “I like to make decisions based on things I’m interested in doing, not what seems like the next move in my quote-unquote career.” Neil Patrick Harris

12. “I’m a very lucky man in this chapter of my professional life, ’cause I get to do jobs with wildly different skill sets.” Neil Patrick Harris

13. “You just take things as they come.” Neil Patrick Harris

14. “But magic is like pizza: even when it’s bad, it’s pretty good.” Neil Patrick Harris

15. “I would not dream of taking on Tobey Maguire. Plus, he’s a talented and nice guy, and I have nothing but nice things to say about him.” Neil Patrick Harris

16. “I’ve been very fortunate to go from interesting chapter to interesting chapter. I’ve always enjoyed the process and always enjoyed working more really than the end result of what it achieves. I’m more interested in doing the work.” Neil Patrick Harris

17. “I collect puppet stuff. I have a puppet workshop in my garage. I was looking for any opportunity to be able to get very creatively involved in that world.” Neil Patrick Harris

18. “I have more artistic control in a smaller show. But it doesn’t really matter. Sometimes you can have the smallest role in the smallest production and still make a big impact.” Neil Patrick Harris

19. “Before babies, I worked very hard to make sure I understood my surroundings and figured out where I fit in the world, whether it was at work or in a social situation.” Neil Patrick Harris

20. “I get to choose things that interest me as opposed to trying to get any job that will have me, which for a vast majority of actors is the case.” Neil Patrick Harris

21. “It’s good to have a lot of once-in-a-lifetimes in your lifetime. If you get the chance to skydive, go skydiving. If you’re offered a part in a weird Shakespeare play in San Diego, slap on some tights and rock out some iambic pentameter.” Neil Patrick Harris

22. “I often feel like books find us for reasons, and we read them when we need them the most.” Neil Patrick Harris

23. “I have an unbelievable assistant who handles all of my scheduling! It’s like a Tetris game.” Neil Patrick Harris

24. “I think, in life, being nervous about something that’s forthcoming is very helpful, whether it’s an awards show or a family gathering or a job interview. If you’re too calm and confident, then I think you aren’t executing to the best of your ability. So I try not to let nerves get the best of me, but I welcome them because it tends to fuel me to try harder.” Neil Patrick Harris

25. “When you call someone and ask them to do something they’ve never done before, in different mediums I think they would be inclined to pass because they’re afraid of the risk. But the creative people who populate the theater world love the challenge of new things.” Neil Patrick Harris

26. “Whenever I wasn’t in school with a tutor three hours a day, I’d get a knock and be rushed to set and they’d be waiting and I’d film my thing and then I’d go back to school again.” Neil Patrick Harris

27. “I think things through a lot, so I probably use my head more than my heart. That probably comes through in my acting.” Neil Patrick Harris

28. “I need to stop carving out four-hour chunks to do random things and go home and watch my children grow up.” Neil Patrick Harris

29. “For me, magic can be a story, a game, a puzzle, or a surprise that takes my breath away in a single, furious gulp.” Neil Patrick Harris

30. “I remember thinking that the rest of my life would be solo. I wasn’t weepy when I thought that – it was just a realization that I had gone this long being self-sufficient.” Neil Patrick Harris

31. “I’m probably my biggest critic. I worry that if you spend any quality time reveling in good things then karma will slap you upside the head, so I try to stay as even keel as I’m able.” Neil Patrick Harris

32. “Rather than ignore those who choose to publish their opinions without actually talking to me, I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest and feel most fortunate to be working with wonderful people in the business I love.” Neil Patrick Harris

33. “I don’t know, but I think kids just want to be listened to, so I want to make sure I do that.” Neil Patrick Harris

34. “Before babies, I worked very hard to make sure I understood my surroundings and figured out where I fit in the world, whether it was at work or whether it was in a social situation. And with kids, you just can’t. The rule is you can’t really do that because they dictate and they change so much so you just have to go with the flow more and be present and not have big expectations and be amused all the time.” Neil Patrick Harris