“Jodie Foster Was Here” – And Why That Matters

Talk about ON THE FENCE. That was the theme in all the social media channels last night during the Golden Globes– “I’m on the fence about whether Jodie Foster’s acceptance speech was epic and brilliant, or a complete nonsensical mess.”

I too watched alongside millions of people, as Jodie Foster took the stage to accept the Cecille B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award. Jodie remains one of my favorite actresses since portraying rape victim Sarah Tobias in The Accused. Her performance in that film is stunning, and I have followed her career ever since. But there was something so RAW, so REAL, about her acceptance speech last night.

When I watched it live, I didn’t quite understand what was going on at first. In fact, I tweeted this, and many of you agreed with me.

But then she changed gears, the air shifted, and something magical happened midway through her speech.

“I guess I have a sudden urge to say something that I’ve never been able to air in public that I’m a little nervous about. But maybe not as nervous as my publicist. So I’m just going to put it out there, loud and proud. I’m going to need your support on this. I am… SINGLE.” Jodie Foster said, to which the audience laughed and applauded.

Jodie Foster continued, “Seriously, I hope you’re not disappointed that there won’t be a big coming-out speech tonight because I already did my coming out a thousand years ago, in the Stone Age, in those very quaint days when a fragile young girl would open up to trusted friends and family and co-workers and then gradually, proudly to everyone who knew her, to everyone she actually met. But now I’m told, apparently that every celebrity is expected to honor the details of their private life with a press conference, a fragrance and a prime-time reality show. But seriously, if you had been a public figure from the time that you were a toddler, if you’d had to fight for a life that felt real and honest and normal against all odds, then maybe you too might value privacy above all else. Privacy. Some day, in the future, people will look back and remember how beautiful it once was.”

Jodie continued, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the crowd, “There is no way I could ever stand here without acknowledging one of the deepest loves of my life, my heroic co-parent, my ex-partner in love, but righteous soul sister in life, my confessor, ski buddy, consigliere, most beloved BFF of 20 years, Cydney Bernard. Thank you, Cyd. I am so proud of our modern family. Our amazing sons, Charlie and Kit, who are my reason to breathe and to evolve, my blood and soul. This brings me to the greatest influence of my life, my amazing mother, Evelyn. Mom, I know you’re inside those blue eyes somewhere and that there are so many things that you won’t understand tonight. But this is the only important one to take in: I love you, I love you, I love you. And I hope that if I say this three times, it will magically and perfectly enter into your soul, fill you with grace and the joy of knowing that you did good in this life. You’re a great mom. Please take that with you when you’re finally OK to go.”

And then she closed, “This feels like the end of one era and the beginning of something else. Scary and exciting and now what? Well, I may never be up on this stage again, on any stage for that matter. Change, you gotta love it. It’s just that from now on, I may be holding a different talking stick. And maybe it won’t be as sparkly, maybe it won’t open on 3,000 screens, maybe it will be so quiet and delicate that only dogs can hear it whistle. But it will be my writing on the wall. Jodie Foster was here, I still am, and I want to be seen, to be understood deeply and to be not so very lonely. Thank you, all of you, for the company. Here’s to the next 50 years.”

And then tweets like these started to happen…

Watch Jodie Foster’s full acceptance speech here.

Jodie Foster’s speech was profound on many levels, and gives us some good insight into life:

1. There is a wonderful quote by Maya Angelou that goes, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” People won’t remember what Jodie Foster said, but her authenticity, candidness, and honesty made us cheer for her. It made us feel good, and we will not forget how she made us feel. A good tip to keep in mind in your life and business.
2. Her unofficial coming out of the closet was a triumphant moment for anyone who lives with a secret. You could feel how liberating it was for her to say it, and how her aura shifted once the burden was unleashed to the public. This is why we must speak our truth, our truth as we know it. The truth really does, set you free.
3. And finally, we learned that all people want to be heard and validated. “Jodie Foster was here.” Remember that line the next time you deal with a difficult person– it is a desire for all mankind– to be heard, understood, and validated. If we can remember this, it will improve our relationships with those we love.

But, the star of night was, without a doubt – BOTOX.

Happy Monday, and Happy 63rd birthday today, to my beautiful and kind mother.

I’d love to know your thoughts on Jodie Foster’s acceptance speech: crazy or brilliant?