Kind: captions
Language: en
that which we focus our imaginations on
time is what we manifest in this realm
that's the secret that's the deal right
human beings are manifesting machines
and manifest either consciously or
unconsciously but we manifest right we
manifest us what we do and so the power
of science fiction literature and it's
connection to the what if is it actually
inspires us it invites us to create the
world as a reflection of what we can
our goal with this showing company is to
introduce you to the people and ideas
that will help you actually execute on
your dreams all right today's guest is a
legendary actor director producer and
author with an unprecedented
entertainment legacy he's a triple crown
of iconic roles to his name and he's won
12 Emmys a Grammy and five n-double-a-cp
Awards he was on the cover of Time
magazine at the age of just 19 when he
made his acting debut starring in the
revolutionary television miniseries
Roots which smashed pretty much every
viewing record there was when it first
aired in 1977 to this day the finale of
that series stands is one of the most
watched episodes in television history
from there he spent 26 years as the host
and producer of one of the most
important and long-running shows in PBS
history Reading Rainbow over the show's
historic run they won 26 Emmys a Peabody
and helped entire generations of kids
learn to read despite all of that
success however he's probably still best
known for his role as blind chief
engineer Lieutenant Commander Geordi
LaForge on the mega hit Star Trek The
Next Generation that show also launched
his directing career which has been just
as storied as his acting career and his
credits include the most Star Trek
episodes directed by any cast member
several TV movies and runs on hit shows
like charmed and NCIS New Orleans
outside of entertainment he's also been
incredibly successful as an entrepreneur
and at the time of its launch his
Kickstarter campaign reboot Reading
Rainbow for the digital age set the
record for most backers ever for a
campaign they raised 1 million dollars
in just 11 hours and ultimately raised a
staggering total of 6.4 million dollars
and to top it all off he's the host of
the top two ranked iTunes podcast levar
burden reads so please help me in
welcoming one of the most enduring
entertainers of all time levar burton
you put it all together like that it
sounds like something dude
something really incredible to think
especially the kind of superstardom that
you had at 19 that you didn't implode
imploding is never fun
you know
there are there are a lot of things that
I could say about
achieving such phenomenal success at
such a young age the best thing I can
say about it is that I survived that
period in my life
because
no matter how old you are when you
achieve your dreams
then you have to reset you have to come
up with new goals you have to come up
with new dreams unless your intention is
just to ride that out for the remainder
of your existence I was 19 years old I
had dreamed of becoming a professional
actor that was where my focus was all of
my time effort energy was going into
that I had put myself in a position to
be successful I was studying theater at
the University of Southern California in
Los Angeles I was planning to go to New
York and and and work on on Broadway on
the stage and that's the thing about
about when you achieve success it may
not match your picture right it may not
match your vision of what you thought
but you've got to be flexible but once
you get there no matter how old you are
you've got to deal with the trappings of
success complacency arrogance
laziness
and to and to do that successfully you
need people around you to help you find
your true north and that's that was part
of my saving grace there were people in
my life that really cared about me and
and saw my potential and wanted to help
me achieve it in a safe and sane way
without imploding I love that you love
that you brought up arrogance you said
there was one point in your career after
roots you're smashing it TV movie after
TV movie and then people want you to
audition you're like I'm levar burton
why am i auditioning and it's about that
and that and that was an attitude that
was all
that that ultimately was self sabotaging
right that feeling that well I shouldn't
need to audition
crept in and and it hurt me and and I
had to learn that lesson that you know
just just because
this happened doesn't mean that that's
gonna happen for the rest of your life I
mean the thing I think I'm most proud of
tom is that almost 43 years I'm still
here I'm still viable I'm still
active I still believe I have something
to contribute I
still feel like I have value and purpose
and
and and that is hard fought hard earned
hard won
I had to in terms of that particular
dynamic auditioning I had to reframe
what
acting meant to me and I had to find a
reason to want to get in that room again
now you know give me in the room give me
an opportunity to compete
but that you know that
that arrogance crept in and and it's
poison working way out of that
hard work
therapy right being willing to admit
that I was not a finished product that I
was in process and and being willing to
to admit that I didn't know everything
when you're young when you're 19 20 21
I've got a my daughter would be 25 in a
few days and she's just beginning her
career as an actor in this industry and
it's hard for me to give her advice
because she's so sure
you that's a natural part of being young
is that sort of self-assuredness
so you have to be willing to be open to
be humble and to be willing to
acknowledge that you're in a process
you're on a journey I really find that
fascinating especially when you think
about how long you've been in the game
how easy it would have been for you to
get cynical yeah and how you haven't in
any way shape or form so what is like
what is that key that thing that you've
captured that allows you to continue to
be so vibrant so excitable I mean I just
love life you know I think that's I'm
you know Jessica Rabbit says in Roger
Rabbit ah I've I'm just drawn that way
you know
that's just a part of who I am I have a
natural curiosity which I don't think
I've by becoming an artist instead of a
cleric I never squashed my natural
curiosity for life a lot of people avoid
decks I think that's so important to
stay in touch with those aspects of us
that come naturally as children is part
of the challenge of growing and maturing
into adulthood
like I said following an artistic path
really helped me hold on to all of the
things the imagination
chief first and foremost that that
really helped you hold on to those
essential aspects of childhood
willingness to suspend disbelief a
willingness to believe in yourself a
willingness to to believe that if you
can dream it up you can get it done
right
those aren't those shouldn't remain the
province of childhood and and I I think
without consciously choosing it I've
followed a path that has enabled me to
stay in contact with those aspects of of
who I naturally am talk to me about self
belief because I can't imagine an
industry where it would be harder to
cultivate than acting where you're
you're going through periods where the
phone is swinging of course I didn't
know when I decided to become an actor
that that there would be so much
rejection
involved and that it would be so
difficult to
to maintain a sense of self in the face
of so much information to the contrary
it's just a part of the game is
having the ability to
continue to
believe in yourself even like I say in
the face of evidence to the contrary
when you walk into a room full of people
on an audition and you walk out without
really any sense of how you did or what
their response was and oftentimes you
don't get any feedback except for they
went in another direction
you have to be able to communicate to
yourself that you know what okay that
one's that one's done
what's next what's next
and I think trusting in
having the ability to trust in
what you've decided to do
plays a really important and key role I
believe I am doing with my life exactly
what I should be doing with my life
you've brought a purpose a couple times
which I think is really powerful and I
think is something that a lot of people
never really find in their lives or
never create in their lives whatever I'm
gonna go back to that moment where you
realize okay I'm I'm reading Nietzsche
I'm reading kirkegaard it's it's I'm
reading Eastern philosophy like you said
it's really opening the world up to you
yeah at that moment it would have been
easy to see that as a loss of purpose
because you were so focused on seminary
how did you not see it like that and was
there any element of just following sort
of looking at your life saying where's
my bliss essentially yeah what am I good
at I mean that was that was the first
question that I asked myself in the
mirror you know and that mirror talk is
this is pretty pretty critical at any
point in our lives but I looked in the
mirror and I asked so what am I good at
and and I had established a relationship
with theatre arts and and I had I had
sort of advanced in the ranks of the
theatre department at st. Pius the tenth
and I was getting a lot of of joy and
positive feedback from the arts and I
thought well
maybe that's something I could do and I
began to focus on that as you reinvent
yourself how do you tap into that do you
lead with
okay the next movement of my life is
going to be this purpose and service of
this thing I
wish I could cop to the belief that it's
all purposeful on my part but I I don't
feel like it is I
feel like I have made the best of
opportunities that have come my way
in life I didn't I didn't get the kind
of life time
where I can do whatever I want I mean I
I come from a lower middle-class
background single-parent household I
could have been one of those statistics
with which we were all too familiar
single mom worked nine-to-five I was a
latchkey kid I
had every opportunity to
become one of those statistics but I had
a person who had not only hopes and
dreams for me she had expectations and
she and she exercised those expectations
in a really demonstrative way when
you're really going after something huge
expectations whether it's to not
disappoint mom or you set the
expectations on yourself how do you push
yourself be demanding of yourself and
still love yourself how do you push
yourself be demanding on yourself and
still love yourself I've never seen
those as mutually exclusive acts I think
self-love is all about pushing yourself
demanding of yourself that you stretch
and and reach your boundaries
because I didn't grow up
in in in
what I would consider to be comfortable
circumstances you know we didn't have a
lot of money I
just naturally assumed that hard work
was a part of the deal right
because it is I mean that's my
perspective I grew up in a generation
where hard work was just a part of the
deal it's I think it's shifting now they
say that this is the first generation
that is not going to automatically do
better than their parents in in terms of
achieving the American dream and so the
question becomes for these kids so
what's it all for why am i working so
hard and and the tendency is to you know
to
not incorporate that as a part of your
value system I
didn't see that I had a choice
my mother was smart enough to educate me
to the to the challenges that I would
face in life right trying to be
successful in in American society as a
black male so I knew what I was up
against and I knew that in order to
achieve some semblance of success which
was again my definition of success was
to have that life that I saw others
having in experiencing the American
dream so what am I going to do in order
to achieve that I'm gonna work my ass
off
because the message was if you do this
is possible for you so the notion that
hardwork and self-love er are somehow
that polar opposites are working against
one another that's a foreign concept to
me and how do you deal with yourself
when you fail at something and I have
learned especially in my in in in more
recent years that it is our failures
that really
benefit us more sometimes than our
success
I've learned I think I've learned as
much from from my failures as I have
from my successes perhaps more but I
recognize that they're really important
in terms of the the overall growth of a
human being that you have to be willing
to take risks part of taking risks is
failing failure teaches us resilience
and resilience is an essential quality
for a human being to have and exercise
liberally we're gonna get me down in the
world but it's it's our resilient nature
that really proves out to be I think our
most
attractive quality as human beings the
ability to bounce back to look at at
situations and and just
reset yourself right reset yourself what
do you think the role of passion is and
resiliency
passion I think fuels the effort in in
being resilient right I think passion a
passionate underpinning is is what helps
you tell yourself that story that one
this time may not be the next time but
I'm gonna keep trying until I get there
right
passion is the antidote to
self-doubt because when you're in your
passion space you don't have time to
have all that negative talk invade your
thought process when you're in your
passion space you know you're you're
leaning forward in the world when you're
in your passion space you're actually
looking for a way to be effective it's
passion that gets me through the day
what do you say to people that come to
you and say I just don't have a passion
I don't know what to do I wish I
that is a very sad thing to contemplate
not having a passion for anything I
believe that everybody and you just
haven't been exposed to enough if you
haven't found what you're passionate
about you just haven't been exposed to
enough
you've found it yet not that you don't
have any you thought when your triggers
are yeah
then they say it has everything to do
with you know what you're good at
where your bliss lies
but more than anything else I I
think there's something that that is
alive in in the culture today in America
where there's a lot of feelings of
entitlement about I deserve I I
deserve because I am and
and I just did it it puzzles the [ __ ]
out of me quite frankly I deserve
because I am
okay and how's that working for you you
know I
just I
guess I'm old school and the respect
that I believe in hard work and I
believe that it's I believe in setting
goals and I believe in and you know
working as hard as you can
towards those goals then that that will
bring its own reward because it's not
always about the
destination you know it it actually the
journey you know let's talk about that
journey and the importance of setting
goals I think that's really important
for people to understand
so tell about your encounter with Ben
Vereen and
what you said is the power of having
dreams
when I decided to become an actor I sort
of locked in on Ben Vereen as as
the standard the Platinum standard I
mean I'm 17 years old 16 17 years old
and I wait two hours for Ben Vereen to
come to the backstage door so I can get
his autograph
he finally comes out he finally he
finally comes out I take a Polaroid
picture I have him sign my program I
shake his hand I said mr. Vereen my name
is Lavar Burt and I'm an actor and I
hope to work with you one day that was
the summer of nineteen me too this the
summer of
1976 I
was working with Ben Vereen in ruins
that's pretty crazy it's pretty crazy
do you set intention like that in your
life risk yes what is your goal setting
process look like a lot of it involves a
lot of tools that I've picked up over
the years
meditation visible visualization I used
to I used to you know set intentions by
writing them down and then I would put
them under my pillow and I would sleep
on them or tape them above my my head
where I slept
so that so that the vision the dream
occupied both my waking and sleeping
activities and I would write those daily
intentions and and just a continuous
keeping in touch with what the goal
whatever that was was
working it working it working it inside
and out that's I think what it takes one
thing I really hope people see in your
story is the degree of intention that
you have in the choices that you make
and you need only look at your career to
see how intentional you've been with the
even the three things you're most known
for are just so positive and so
optimistic very much empowering and then
I think the thing that really tells that
story is what you had to do to become a
director and I think people think oh
well he was an actor on the show so of
course they let him direct walk people
through what you had to do on your days
off to get a shot to direct that was
there was a process involved Rick Berman
the executive producer of Star Trek The
Next Generation was very happy to to
help facilitate
one of the actors on the show who wanted
to cross that line and step over and
become a director and what we call what
we called Star Trek University was
established when Jonathan Frakes made
that decision to to to step over and and
try directing
it was established that you would get a
complete and comprehensive education in
all aspects of
storytelling on film
you had to come in on your days off you
had to attend production meetings you
had to attend spotting sessions scoring
sessions you had to spend time with
every editor in the rotation
it was as I say it was a it was a
immersion in the the process and
becoming fluent in all the languages
that that makeup visual storytelling and
when you completed that process you got
a shot whether you got a second shot
after that really depended on how you
performed your first time out but you
did not get a shot until you had
demonstrated the commitment commensurate
enough to have earned the opportunity
mmm I love that and I love how much
energy and effort you put in on your
spare time absolutely and you've said
about directing and I love this that
directing is as much about leadership as
it is about storytelling yeah so what
what does great leadership look like
well I don't know but I have learned
over time that I like to lead by example
and that
that my leadership style is all about
communication I
believe that the quality of our efforts
is determined by the quality of our
communication when I'm directing you
will hear I'm very very vocal I'm on you
know I'm an alpha personality
I'm really really vocal on the set and
I'm loud and
and I let everybody know what's going on
because
if you are going to get 130 or so people
to all be on the same page they need to
know what's going on so I incorporate
all kinds of methods and methodologies
just to let folks know what's happening
where we are what we're doing this is a
rehearsal all right
and now let's shoot and and and let's go
again you said that one of the things
that makes a great director is the
ability to make a decision how do you
deal with self-doubt how do you like how
directing is is isn't one decision it is
like relentless it is a relentless
parade of decisions how do you have well
what method do you have from making a
decision when you're not entirely sure
that's really my question
you know Tony Robbins has faked it - you
make it and there's there's there's
certainly some of that going on act as
if right act as if
just make a decision make a decision you
just draw a hard and fast line in this
if it's necessary absolutely talk to me
about leading from the front yeah so why
is that so effective and how do you do
it without overpowering people or making
them feel like you're stepping on their
toes yeah that's that's a dance isn't it
having a sense of humor helps
[Music]
see I I I believe that filmmaking is a
really collaborative effort and I
believe in challenging everybody who's a
part of the process to rise to their
highest level of expression I'm bringing
my a-game I know I'm bringing my a-game
and I want you to bring yours which
means it's my job to create an
atmosphere an environment where you feel
comfortable bringing your a-game right
and if you're bringing your a-game and
I'm bringing my a-game and everybody
else is bringing their a-game
we're gonna be at the very least we're
gonna be proud of the effort that we put
forth here right we will not have been
wasting our time we were doing [ __ ]
that's what I mean by meeting leading by
example just creating that environment
where people feel comfortable
making suggestions bringing their ideas
serving the story telling them what do
you say to somebody who makes a mistake
next just move on let's move on yeah
move on mistakes are a part of it
mistakes are a part of it yeah how do
you create energy when you're there on
sets a long night 14 hours 16 hour how
do you get people up again and moving
what do you remind them of is it the end
goal is that the process is that you
just bring the XG me bringing the energy
me bringing the energy trying to make it
contagious yeah energy is contagious
though it is contagious you've said
you're an energy junkie what do you mean
by that
I'm I'm built
to want a surf life right
[Music]
bring it at me let's go let's do it
let's let's engage that's just my
natural that's my default alright bring
it on bring it on
let's do it that's that's my default I'm
an energy junkie because it's it's by by
putting myself in these different
situations and different dynamics that I
get to respond I get to be activated in
something that that feels vital that
feels meaningful talk to me about sci-fi
you've had such a long-standing interest
in science fiction what is it about that
that you think is either culturally
relevant or I guess just potentially
purely entertaining for me science
fiction has always
it's always invited us to ask what I
believe are two of the most important
words in language in combination what if
and and by contemplating that what if we
literally
invite ourselves into the process of
manifestation and science fiction is a
body of literature that has really
contributed to the continuing evolution
of the human journey through the
inspiration that it's provided there's a
reason why we have
the technology that we do it's because
at least in part because fans of science
fiction have been influenced by those
ideas and have taken those ideas and put
them into practice in the world right
there was some kid I'm sure who watched
the original episodes of Star Trek kept
seeing Kirk pull out that that
communicator right flip it open call a
ship have Scotty beam him up that kid
grew up became a designer an engineer
designed a product that you know is more
more powerful more prevalent than than
the toaster we've all had flip cellphone
in our hand or seen someone use one that
which we focus our imaginations on time
is what we manifest in this realm that's
the secret that's the deal right
human beings are manifesting machines
and we manifest either consciously or
unconsciously but we manifest right we
manifest it's what we do and so the
power of science fiction literature and
it's connection to the what if is it
actually inspires us it invites us to
create the world as a reflection of of
what we can imagine you said that we
manifest consciously or unconsciously
comes a conscious one that's that is the
job of self-discovery
that's why
being willing to engage in a rigorous
process of self-examination
which leads to self-discovery is so
critical to every human being so getting
back into manifestation
how much
are you trying to map out like the
movements in your life I'd say maybe
35 40 percent is
is me making moves right
the rest is let's see what happens
and so how do you keep going with the
forward momentum how do you create that
in your life what's the other 60 to 70
percent knowing that there's going to be
an outcome one way or another there's
going to be an out this devil reveal
itself as like we're talking about yeah
and I'll either be successful at what
I'm trying to do or not right and and
and being okay with the idea that each
are equally valid and both have
potential benefits to me
how much you've talked really eloquently
about gamification video games how much
do you gamify your own life
that's a great question well I feel like
I'm I'm dealing with a stacked deck
actually
because when I look at my life
it's clear to me that I couldn't
possibly have dreamed up a life as rich
and fulfilling and satisfying as this
one is I just
don't believe I had the capacity to
do that my imagination wasn't that
greedy
right so I I recognize that I am living
a really
blessed existence and and as I look back
on my life and I sort of take stock and
in the kind of life that I've led I
really feel like there's the hand of
someone seen force at work here because
this can't be all me I mean I'm I'm good
but I'm not that good what do you do to
respect that not [ __ ] it up
that's submit that's the ultimate way to
respect it that's the ultimate payoff
isn't it to take advantage of the
opportunities that
that you find yourself and how do you
musician you're prepared for that
it's only in the execution it's only in
the trying
sitting on the bench will only result in
splinters
you know
life is a is a contact sport
you got to get in there and test
yourself otherwise you'll never know
all right before I ask my last question
working these guys find you online
online
on Twitter at levar burton
if you're interested in in my mission
and what I'm doing go to levar burton
kids.com after many many many years of
representing the Reading Rainbow brand
I'm now working with a brand of
that I actually own I'm doing the same
thing that I've I've always done I'm
just doing it
with a brand that I own so our Burton
kids comm
check out my podcast
levar burton reads i
I love I love doing this podcast
because I'm a storyteller I mean that's
how I see myself and I I just I I enjoy
storytelling and in in all of its
potential forms and and for me sitting
with text reading aloud is such a pure
form of storytelling because it's all
about the imagination it's engaging a
listener and in their imagination and
painting a picture creating a mood that
[Music]
that's really transformative it really
it really can be so levar burton reads
where i read a short story in every
episode wherever you get your podcasts
my last question what's the impact that
you want to have on the world I want to
leave here knowing that I did everything
I could to champion a
human right in my view
literacy is a human right
and I will I will go to my grave
believing that my life will have been
worthwhile if I was able to successfully
communicate that idea and encourage and
inspire
people to become literate to actually
enjoy
the freedom that
literacy brings I
love that bar thank you so much for
coming on the show man incredible guys
hey I know you already know this man so
I do not have to convince you but you're
going to want to dive into his world
there's something so unique in the way
that he is able to leverage
entertainment to bring that raw
infectious enthusiasm and optimism the
thing the very thing that's gonna carry
you through the hard times the times of
the phone is a ringing where you can't
figure out what you're supposed to do
with your life someone that can give you
that kind of excitement someone that can
transmit it that is his true gift is to
be able to communicate and transmit the
most beautiful parts of the human
condition and when you look at his body
of work there are a few people that have
had the consistency that he has had and
I it's literally astonishing it's hard
enough to work once as an actor let
alone over and over and over and let
alone in a way where everything comes
together to be so optimistic and
empowering it is absolutely beautiful
and in no way shape or form a surprise
that he's had the level of enduring
success in an industry that churns and
burns and is always looking for the next
thing it's because he's had that ability
to look inward to have the
self-awareness to know where his bliss
lies to know what the passion is and to
use his words to do the things that make
him feel life and I hope that you guys
heard the things that he talks about I
hope that you will feel your life in the
way that he has not that you follow in
his exact footsteps but you did the
mirror time you find those things that
make you feel alive if you take that
from him it will change you forever if
you let it all right if you haven't
already be sure to subscribe and until
next time my friends be legendary take
care
[Applause]
everybody thank you so much for watching
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