Challenging Captain America’s, Anthony Mackie, Viral Quote on Success

At the heart of achievement lies a fundamental question: is success earned through effort and determination, or simply bestowed upon the chosen few? When actor Anthony Mackie's controversial statement that "success is given, not earned" went viral, it triggered important conversations about the nature of accomplishment, especially for younger generations already navigating a complex relationship with achievement in the social media age.

This thought-provoking episode dissects what success truly means beyond the soundbites and viral quotes. Drawing wisdom from motivation pioneer Earl Nightingale, who defined success as "the progressive realization of a worthy ideal," we explore why success should be viewed as a journey rather than a destination. The path isn't about accumulating possessions or validation but about aligning with your authentic self through purposeful action toward meaningful goals.

Those with platforms and influence bear significant responsibility for the messages they amplify. When we remove context from challenging conversations, we risk fostering entitlement and passivity rather than agency and resilience. Through Ralph Emerson's timeless wisdom that excellence creates its own opportunity, we discover that true success comes from continuous self-improvement—being better than yesterday, not better than others.

Your success journey is uniquely yours. Stop comparing your chapter one to someone else's chapter twenty. Whether building a career, pursuing a passion, or developing personally, the authentic path to achievement requires vision, action, and the courage to define success on your own terms. Remember: your human mess is the process that shapes your purpose your way. Join our community as we navigate life's challenges together and discover what it truly means to live purposefully.

Chapters

• 0:00 Anthony Mackie's Controversial Success Quote
• 3:28 Redefining Success: Earl Nightingale's Perspective
• 7:22 The Responsibility of Influence
• 11:25 Success Requires Action, Not Waiting
• 14:45 Your Journey Is Not Their Journey
• 18:34 Success Is Earned, Not Given

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

What's good everybody. On this episode I talk about a controversial quote from actor Anthony Mackie on success. He said that success is given, it's not earned, and I have something to say about that. Check out this episode. One love.

Speaker 1: 0:14

I'm Adrian Starks, known as Mr Purpose. I'm a speaker, voice narrator, comic card and superhero fanatic, book lover, martial artist, health enthusiast and just a fellow human seeking purpose. Join me and our guest as we navigate the chaotic journey of life, of what I like to call the human mess, to discover how we can craft and share our purpose. There's no single path, but together we'll explore the diverse perspectives to uncover the tools to help you shape your purpose your way. Let's get it and let's create. Welcome back everybody to your Purposeful Life, and this is Adrian Starks.

Speaker 1: 1:00

And today let's get right into this controversial quote from Anthony Mackie, the actor of Brave New World, captain America, or Captain America, brave New World. And there's a quote that's surfacing right now, that went viral, where he was particularly talking in a moment of truth, and this podcast put this quote out, and it says this we're telling our younger generation, our kids, wrong. This podcast put this quote out and it says this we're telling our younger generation, our kids wrong. Success is given, it's not earned. And when I had a chance to go back and listen to this interview, I could understand where Anthony Mackie was coming from. He was coming from a place of trying so many times, because now he's 46, he's only three years older than me and when you spend your time trying over and over again, going to auditions, going to gigs, going to things left and right, and you see the same faces, eventually you come to the point where you're thinking wait a minute, they were here just like me. Why are they getting these roles? Why are they going ahead of me? I think I did pretty good. I'm better than what they performed, and it's not in a way of being mean and saying that anyone deserves less than you. It's that at some point you realize that you've done a pretty good job. You put in the work, you showed up, you showed out and now is your chance, but then you just watch success go to other people. So over time you build this level of resentment, you build this level of, or this internal feeling of, like you're being left out or you're being shortchanged, and that can come up in a conversation. That brings out that emotion, and I feel that Anthony Mackie doesn't mean that success is just something that is a whim. I really feel like he meant in the context of acting and what he has seen.

Speaker 1: 2:47

But what we have to be careful of is how we put things out as soundbites, and social media is great about this media in general. They get people's attention in three ways One is through fear, the other is through entertainment and the third is through controversial statements or topics. That's how they get our attention and when that goes viral, we pay attention to it, and where your attention goes, your energy flows and that energy becomes currency, becomes time, and they make money off of that. And so when they put out something, people are looking at it. But what happens too is subconsciously we begin to believe that, and for the younger generation, they've got too many problems as it is. The younger generation right now is focusing on fame and fortune. How do I get so many likes and followers? How do I go viral? How do I do the craziest dances? How do I wear the least amount of clothes? How do I create the most outrageous events in public? Create the most outrageous events in public basically embarrassing people or crossing boundaries with people just to get people to like your videos for money, so to speak. That's what they say, but a lot of them are not getting paid money for that. They're hoping they get paid for that. And do we really want to add on this conversation? Or this topic of success is given it's not earned, or this topic of success is given it's not earned.

Speaker 1: 4:07

So I would like to challenge that quote because in my journey, my purposeful journey of living, I've faced many failures and also some great successes, and what I've learned is that success is different for everybody. It is not a one size fits approach, and the greatest definition of success that I have learned came from Earl Nightingale. He's considered to be the father or the dean of motivation. Now, this was a time when you had to be a good speaker. You had to have the educational background. You had to have a way of educating the masses and know what you're talking about and have the things to back that up. Now, to be an expert in success, you can just be successful in your field and then, all of a sudden, now people want to listen to you. But it was much more different in those times of Earl Nightingale. You had to be a successful business owner and entrepreneur and you had to walk in a certain way of integrity that people would listen.

Speaker 1: 4:57

But he said this success is a progressive realization of a worthy ideal or goal. I'll say it again Success is a progressive realization of a worthy ideal or goal. Now, it took me many years, y'all, to figure this one out, and what I realized was that success is about a vision, a purpose, something that you're trying to accomplish, but in the midst of that is what we call the journey, and there are going to be things that are going to alter throughout that journey Even you, changes that happen in your environment and in your internal environment as you grow into this person that will experience the reality that you're wanting to experience. That becomes a successful way of living. Now, the end result is what we call just a result, that is, the effect of the causes that you're doing. But in between, the cause and effect is what we call successful living. Now, given the fact that that success is in alignment with what you truly want, who you truly are, and you're being led by your moral compass and your means of integrity, that becomes success, because right now, we see success in many ways and it's perpetuated as this thing of what you have and who you are versus of what you do. Success is about action, it's about intent, it's about who you are becoming in pursuit of what you're trying to vision.

Speaker 1: 6:20

So, with that being said, that's a longer journey, it takes time, it takes introspection, it takes the ability to not be liked by everyone. It takes the ability to look at yourself consciously and ask what the hell am I doing right now? Why am I in this relationship again? Why is this happening again? Why am I getting fired again? Or why am I doing this different job again? Why am I not succeeding in this realm? Why didn't I get this audition again? No-transcript thinking? Why did it take me this long to get to this point?

Speaker 1: 7:08

So for the viewers out here, for us listening to this, we cannot relay the message to our younger generation that, oh yeah, that's right, success is given, it's not earned. At that point, why try? And my question I would have to, anthony Mackie, would be this Well, if you've made it to this point of being a superhero and I love superheroes, everybody you can see in the background here I have the Hulk. There's many more superheroes I have I believe that superheroes are important not just for kids. They're important for adults because we can all be a superhero in our lives and other people's lives and for our superhero geeks out there.

Speaker 1: 7:45

I will have some episodes talking about superheroes in the future, but back to this idea of Anthony Mackie now becoming a superhero. You have a great responsibility now, and in the movie Spider-Man, peter Parker's grandfather said this with great power comes great responsibility. And now that you're a superhero, you cannot tell these kids who are looking up to you that success is given, it's not earned. In that case, how did you get this role? That's what I would ask him. I wouldn't ask him in a way of degrading him or trying to embarrass him. I would say since you are Captain America now, do you feel like that role was just given to you or was it earned?

Speaker 1: 8:26

And this is where I have a bone to pick with podcasting interviews. Now, everybody wants to be a podcaster, everybody wants to do interviews and once again, as a podcaster, as an interviewer, you have a great responsibility because your superpower is putting out information to the public and people are going to hear that. Your community is going to listen, they're going to trust what you're giving them and you cannot skew information just to go viral. You got to stop that and for the listeners out there pay attention to things like that. That quote was taken out of context and I would have never put that quote up Now. I would have let it stay in the conversation because that's a conversation between me and the other person. It's a candid conversation. But I would have never let that quote go viral or try to make it go viral, because you're creating a facade of misinformation that the youth are going to use.

Speaker 1: 9:19

And the thing is that, if success is given, why even try? And the thing is that, if success is given, why even try? Why even go for that job interview? Why even read that extra book to improve your self-help? Why even go to the gym to work out? Why even go on that other date? Why even do anything if it's given? Why just sit at home and just wait for it to fall into your lap? Good luck on that one. There's a lot of people who do that and they're still sitting at home right now wondering why the world does not like them. And it's not that the world doesn't like them. The world doesn't even know. They're there because they're not out in the activity of doing things, because success is about action. It's not about just sitting and waiting for things to be given to you. That is what I wanted to talk about today.

Speaker 1: 10:08

Success is something that we have to believe can come true for us, and it's not about what you have, it's about what you do. And when we're in a position of power, we have to be careful about our conversations. And for podcasters out there doing interviews, do your research, challenge your guest a little bit, probe them, get behind that mess called stardom, called fame, called fortune, and let's get to the human being behind things. Let's see what they're really about. That's what's important, and I feel like we're in a state now where people want the real, they want the deepness of things, and we have to give them that. And I want to leave you all with a quote from Ralph Emerson, and I love him. He was one of my favorite philosophers and he said that no matter how far you are in the woods, if you can preach a better sermon, write a better book or build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to get to your door. It took me years to figure this quote out, and what he meant by that was not being better than people, but being better than you were yesterday, that is your challenge. To be better at what you want to do. That becomes part of your success route.

Speaker 1: 11:21

And when you have a vision, you have to act on it. You have to plan for it, be ready for that opportunity when it comes. Like Anthony Mackie, if he didn't go to that audition for Captain America because he had to go to one, someone reached him with the script. He had to read it, he had to go for it. He wouldn't have received it.

Speaker 1: 11:41

And, just like anything else, when you have a vision about being successful in something, it will become a reality. Think about all the buildings that go about there, the high-rises, the apartments, the condominiums, the businesses, the homes. They have to have a blueprint and from that blueprint they have to find the resources, the people, time and energy to bring about that particular blueprint to a reality that people can see in the tangible form. And to experience. Success is like that it's intangible starting out, but then it becomes tangible over time as you're acting out those little things day in and day out, because you have hope, you have faith and you have conviction and there's nothing in this world that can stand in the way of a person who has a plan backed by patience, faith and determination, that becomes your success route. And you have to be purposeful about what you want to achieve and experience in this life.

Speaker 1: 12:37

And back to Anthony Mackie again, I love you, brother, I have much respect for you and I wish you the best. And we all know that when you get a role in Marvel or any type of superhero film like that, you're pretty set, you're good to go, you're going to get some more opportunities, you're going to have sequels and who knows, trilogies. And I know that his success has come now. And in that moment of the conversation I know I feel that he was in a rhythm of feeling and he was just giving himself. But I also realized that we have to speak up when we feel something is just not sitting right. And it's not about me proving him wrong. It's about me expressing what I feel about this context behind success, because success is not a one-size-fits-all approach. If that were the case, everybody would be happy.

Speaker 1: 13:30

Think about all your favorite people in life, people who have gone through failures that you don't know about. Let's talk about Hollywood just a little bit. Look at all the people who have all the fame and fortune and resources one could ever have. But if you ask them, are they actually happy? Do they have peace of mind, fulfillment, are they okay with being alone? A lot of them would probably hesitate on that question Because if you watch them, a lot of them are jumping from relationship to relationship. They're not fulfilled because something is missing, and a lot of that comes from self-introspection of what you need to do to bring yourself to a level of happiness that you appreciate. That also becomes part of your successful living understanding who you are, and introspection on a day-to-day basis, not to criticize yourself, but to look at yourself strategically and say what am I missing right now? What do I have? That I can elaborate more on. That is success.

Speaker 1: 14:31

Success is earned because you have to get it from someone, and someone has to be watching you at some point and trusting in the fact that if they give you the opportunity, you're going to run with it. So, yeah, it's given as an opportunity, but you have to earn the right to have that become your reality. It's not going to just be given to you, just to sit and say, oh, I have it now, you got to do something with it. Going to just be given to you just to sit and say, oh, I have it. Now you got to do something with it. My question to you is what are you going to do with it? Don't worry about what the next person's doing.

Speaker 1: 15:08

We spend too much time I'm going to say it's too much time looking at the other lane of success, we see people flying by, getting their rewards, getting their accolades and that's not really what success is about anyways. But we see them and we compare and we say, oh, I don't even know why I'm not getting that. I guess I'm not worth it. Yes, you are worth it. You're worth it in a different way. Your journey is not their journey. We need to stop comparing and competing and start creating. Creating is a new currency. Create what you feel connected to and, as Ralph Emerson said, the world will beat a path to get to your door because it's just different. You have a different energy, a different way that will connect with people and you have to let that be your compass. And if you don't get to that final destination, at least you tried. At least you tried.

Speaker 1: 16:05

That in itself is a success. A person who doesn't try, that's a failure. Automatically, it's an automatic no, because no means next opportunity. But many people won't take the next opportunity because they're afraid of failure. And we have to try, try, try again, just like Aaliyah said in that song, and I, whoa, I miss her so much. How long has it been since she's been gone? Man, we're losing too many, too many people. I just found out today that George Foreman passed away. We're losing so many great people. We're losing so many great people, so many. But yeah, we have to try, try, try again and then try some more. That becomes success. And I'm going to keep saying this Success is not a one-size-fits-all approach.

Speaker 1: 16:53

It's different for everybody. And don't you dare to this is my young people out here, generation out here. Don't you dare think that success is just something that happens overnight. It's not the people that you see have success. They've tried multiple times, but you just didn't see in the background. What was going on is a long game, it's not a short one. You have to be ready for that and you can be ready if you prepare yourself and take each day at a time and love yourself and understand that success is a broad spectrum. No one can capture success fully. It's different for everybody. But I can tell you this success is earned. It's not given One love everybody. But I can tell you this success is earned. It's not given One love everybody.

Speaker 1: 17:44

Thank you for listening to your Purposeful Life and I'm your host, adrian Starks. Download this podcast on your platform of choice. Join me on my social media channels and be a part of the your Purposeful Life community. Subscribe to the YouTube channel and hit that like button with a purpose. Come on now. Remember your human mess is the process. Let's help you shape your purpose your way.