Tapping into one's potential frightening: Viola Davis

Actress Viola Davis, who recently won the Golden Globe for her work in the film "Fences", says that tapping into your own potential is "very frightening".

Davis used to think if she puts herself down, it would make her look more "humble". But now she realises it is important to show how confident she is of herself and of her abilities, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

"I think tapping into one's power and one's potential is a very frightening thing. And for women, it's a very new thing. It is. I always used to feel that self-deprecation was an answer to humility - that people would see me as a humble person the more I put myself down," Davis told The Observer magazine.

"And people do say that, 'Oh! I ran into so-and-so and they kept saying, 'Oh, my work in this really sucked,' and they were great! I just thought it was so refreshing that they said that! And I often think to myself, what if someone says, 'You know what, I'm confident, I'm really happy about the work I did. I really felt like I gave it my best and it came out great,' the same way men do. Why is that not seen as humble?," she added.

The 51-year-old thinks it is important that actors and actresses understand that while their work may not live up to their own expectations, they "deserve" whatever awards and accolades they get.

"It's the waking up and understanding that 'Okay, you may not be the best person out there, but you've put in enough work to understand that you deserve what you've got', that is what is at the end of hard work.

"The happily ever after comes after you've done the work. And to literally understand, especially as a woman, that a closed mouth doesn't get fed, you've got to ask for what you want and expect to get it," Davis said.

She won the Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama) for her role in "Fences".

--IANS

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