20 Idris Elba Quotes that Show Your Only Competition is Yourself

Fear nothing. Do what you want to do, but be educated and intelligent and confident about it.

My father always told me that a fool at 40 is a fool for life.

Don’t just give yourself boundaries!

I’m not afraid to fail. I’m not afraid to fall over and make a mistake. That often cripples people on the onset of getting into anything.

I’m an ambitious person. I never considered myself in competition with anyone, and I’m not saying that from an arrogant standpoint, It’s just that my journey started so, so long ago, and I’m still on it and I won’t stand still.

Waking up in truth is so much better than living in a lie.

I’m never shaken or stirred.

When you come from an underprivileged background, oftentimes, you feel a little overwhelmed by your education or your lack of.

I’ve always had ambition, and the acting was successful and put my name on the map, but it was never the plan to stop there.

Know what your target is, don’t guess it…if you don’t know what you’re targets are you’re never going to get there.

The other thing I think is important is to keep your head down.

It turns out that you make your own luck but you work hard to keep it.

Work hard, sleep less.

My definition of bad-ass is that I’m a force of nature and true spirit. I’m self-admitting that, and it sounds vain to say that, but I am.

That’s the thing about people, they always find ways to surprise you.

You won’t know you got to the top until you got there.

I love to talk about nothing. It’s the only thing I know anything about.

Look whoever you’re talking to in the eyes. Don’t look away. Two reasons: you can tell whether they are lying. Also, so that they can see whatever you’re saying you mean and you can connect to that person.

Because I was big, I didn't have to listen to anyone doubting me. I was just considered good at football or whatever, there were no questions about it.

I knew that if I wanted to be all I could be, I would have to go to the US. It took three years to get the accent right.