Public Persona Constraints Limit Authentic Emotional Expression

Key Quotes

"I used to use a lot of words growing up about myself to myself and to others I would say I'm an idiot I'm stupid I'll never learn these things I'm not smart I was in the bottom of my class bottom of four in my class they used to grade us or rank us in our in our classes where I was in school so I could always see that I was in the bottom four consistently all through middle school and high school so it just always I was just like I'm never going to be good enough I'm never going to learn like you guys I would say these words and built an identity about me to self that would limit me and to others that would limit me"

Lewis Howes explains that negative self-talk and the identity built from it can create limitations for both oneself and how others perceive them. He illustrates this by recounting his own experiences of consistently ranking at the bottom of his class and internalizing those perceived failures. This self-imposed identity, Howes suggests, directly impacts one's potential and how they interact with the world.

"You know when people see me on the streets uh I'm fluffy uh huh hey fluffy you know it's very rare that I'll get you know uh gabriel really they'll say fluffy and then they'll like who is it it's gabriel iglesias you know what I mean it's all tied together but it's so much easier to call somebody by the nickname it's it's an easy nickname and it's not like it's a different person it's just it's a nickname that's you know it's me but um I am seen a certain way because of the shows and the consistency that oh you know he's the guy that talks about his son he's the guy that talks about his friend he's the guy that so I'm limited in the sense that if I was to all of a sudden start talking about politics or become you know start venting and being very vulgar and being you know that you know and there are times when I do want to vent and I can't on stage because it's not something that goes with with what I've created and it's not going to be well received by everyone"

Gabriel Iglesias discusses how his successful stage persona, "Fluffy," has become so strongly associated with him that people rarely use his given name. He explains that while "Fluffy" is an extension of himself, the public perception tied to this persona limits his ability to express a wider range of topics or emotions on stage, such as political commentary or vulgar venting, for fear of alienating his audience.

"And that's not always the case you know uh always happy uh huh and that's not always the case you know uh always happy always in a good mood uh I'm not always in a good mood and every time I go out in public I always I'm afraid that people are going to like like I don't want to meet somebody run into somebody if I'm not having the best of days so I try not to not to put myself in environments where I'm going to run into people um I'm not one who's going to be like no I don't want to take a picture I'm not going to snap on somebody and and photos is is it's part of the deal uh huh uh if I can do it and there's time for it absolutely no problem but there are times when I'm dealing with issues problems and I'm just like oh I just want to go to the drive through get something to eat and just go back home but you know uh because of the fact that I'm seen a certain way it's like you got to always be smiling you got to always be happy you got to always be that and that that that is hard because sometimes you just want to be a normal person"

Gabriel Iglesias expresses the difficulty of maintaining his public persona, which is perceived as always happy and in a good mood, when he is personally experiencing bad days or dealing with problems. He shares his anxiety about encountering fans when he is not feeling his best, as the expectation is for him to always be "on" and smiling, which he finds challenging because he, like anyone, desires moments of normalcy and privacy.

"There are so many more pros than there are cons the cons are very small they're very small um no man let me tell you when people when you get recognized you know i i have other friends that are you know other comics and i know a lot of people that are that are famous and i don't know man i i i don't want to say that mine is is better but for some reason when i get recognized it's i'm not seen like like oh it's it's taylor swift kind of a thing uh huh you know the recognition i get from people the the look is almost like hey man this guy's like a like it's like seeing a family member you haven't seen in a long time and i feel i feel that from people when i when i get recognized it's not it's very different i see how other people get recognized and i'm like wow okay with me it's a lot it's a lot different i get people right away that are like like the the glow and the energy is very it's like it feels like family it like like a moment like a real sweet sweet thing and um i love that it's it's it tells me that what i'm doing is making a difference what i'm doing because i get a lot of people also that will open up you know hey man i was going through this and i was watching and hey man uh just so you know you i've heard you've helped me get through so many times and it's that's an incredible feeling and that's a game changer"

Gabriel Iglesias reflects on the positive aspects of his public recognition, stating that the pros significantly outweigh the cons. He describes the recognition he receives as feeling like a warm, familial connection rather than the more distant admiration some celebrities experience. Iglesias highlights that this positive reception is deeply meaningful because many fans share how his work has helped them through difficult times, which he finds to be an incredibly rewarding and perspective-shifting experience.

"So being fluffy is is very much a uh it's a good thing a lot of pros to it yeah a lot of pros do i wish i could vent about certain things of course i do but uh i think that it's it's part of the deal you have to sacrifice this is part of the sacrifice to be where i'm at"

Gabriel Iglesias acknowledges that while he sometimes wishes he could express more personal frustrations or vent on stage, the persona of "Fluffy" is overwhelmingly beneficial to his career. He views this limitation as a necessary sacrifice inherent to his success, indicating that the advantages of his established comedic identity are substantial enough to warrant this trade-off.

"The challenge now is making those situations funny near death how can you make that funny that's you know that's the challenge wow