In this motivational segment titled “Take Your Shot,” host SPEAKER A hands the floor to filmmaker Kevin Smith, who delivers a raw, profanity‑filled talk about confronting fear and taking creative risks. Smith opens with a harrowing personal story about his father’s sudden death in the emergency room, describing the moment his dad died screaming. He uses that trauma to argue that life is fleeting and that everyone will die “screaming” unless they fill their final moments with fulfillment. He then attacks the pervasive cynicism and endless “why” that discourages people from pursuing artistic projects, urging listeners to replace “why?” with “why not?” and to surround themselves with supportive, encouraging peers. Smith stresses that encouraging an artist creates a ripple effect that can change lives, and he lists a wide range of possible “shots” – from making a movie, writing a blog, opening a cupcake shop, to podcasting – emphasizing that any creative act, no matter how small, is worth trying. He concludes with a call to action: take your shot, support others, and live a life without regret. The segment ends with a question to the audience about their biggest shot and a shout‑out to a book buyer.
Good morning, Believe Nation! Today's message is Take Your Shot. Over to you, Kevin Smith. I wake up every morning.
Espresso keep me going.
I wake up every morning.
I go into the emergency room and I was like, Donald Smith? And they're like, I'm sorry, he passed. And they took me into the room. There's my father laying on a gurney. I just dead. He still has a tube sticking out of him. They were trying to intubate him or something like that, but just motionless, quiet, no breathing whatsoever. And it was weird. It was, I mean, to say the least, you always know eventually your parents are going to go, but I wasn't ready. I wasn't ready for that fucking moment. And then I walked out and I went outside and had a cigarette. I was still a cigarette smoker in those days. And I was just thinking about being half an orphan or halfway to being an orphan or something like that. My brother comes out and I was like, "Oh, can't believe it," right? He goes, "Yeah, it's pretty tough." And I said, "How was it?" Because my brother was there. He was staying with my parents. And Donald, without missing a beat, my brother goes, "Dad died screaming." And I was like, "What?" And he goes, "Dad died screaming." I said, "What do you mean?" He's like, "Well, he woke up and he was kicking the sheets off and screaming about being on fire. And he was so hot and so hot and get him water and fucking screaming. The screaming got louder and louder." and it reached a fever pitch and he died. And I don't know how else to say it, but Dad died screaming. And that fucking hit me like a Mack truck. And I remember thinking, oh my God, in this world where even a good man like my old man is going to die screaming, there's no point in not trying to achieve every fucking dream that I have. This is my eventual end. One day, that's it. And I really felt like, man, that's like this. I can't— this is my future. We're all probably going to go out screaming. So the best thing to do prior to that is to try to pack that life with as much wonderfulness, fun, productivity. Surround yourself with people that are going to help you do that, you know, because in this world there's not a lot of support, a lot of negativity, a lot of fucking cynicism. Even as I sit here and tell that story about my father dying, I guarantee you there's a cynical head in this house, maybe more, sitting there going, who cares? Move on. Tell a dick joke. The world is full of fucking why, man. You tell people something, they'll tell you why. Throw a rock and you'll hit somebody with why. Like, hey, man, I want to make a movie. Why? Why do you think you could do that? Why? Why? Nobody else is doing it. Why are you doing it? There's so much fucking why. You go out and you find why not. You surround yourself with why not. People are just like, why not? Where you're like, hey, man, I'm going to try something. Like, all right, why not? Let's give it a shot. People who will try to help you. Do your dreams, make your dreams come true. And shouldn't you do the same for fucking them? We're all in this together. And it costs nothing to encourage a fucking artist. That's why I get up here for almost 20 years now after the movie, man. There ain't a lot of filmmakers get up after the movie and spend more time than the movie itself talking. But I've been trying to impart one simple lesson for nearly 20 fucking years. Anybody can do this. You know what I'm saying? Like, I wasn't born into a business or the film business or born with a mic in my hands. I have no fucking discernible talent whatsoever, man. I have no connections to the business. We're from fucking New Jersey and stuff. I got lucky. Somebody picked up the movie and boom, I was off and running. And part of that manifest when you're brought into the indie film community, part of your job, part of your honor, part of your privilege is to make sure that keeps going, to encourage other people, you know, to tell people it's worth the shot. Just like Wayne Gretzky said, like, you miss 100% of the shots you never take. It's always worth the fucking shot. Now, if you're talking about like, if what your shot is, you're like, I've always wanted to kill 12 children, Kevin, don't take that shot at all. I'm not talking about that, you know. I'm talking about artsy shit, you know, writing a blog, making some music, making a movie, making a cupcake store, a knitting store, putting together a YouTube clip. Just anything that's just not, oh, we must do this because it's part of my job, or this will get money. Some shit you just do just to see if it could be done. Live a why not life, man, because we're all going to die fucking screaming. So make sure when you die screaming, you're totally fulfilled. You're like, I took all the shots. I did it. I went after everything I wanted to, or at least tried. Take the shot. The shot is always fucking worth taking, whether it's a dopey thing like podcasting or writing a book or writing a blog. Think about the encouragement you get when you encourage an artist. Think about the potential that comes out of it. You tell a dude, good job, man. That person maybe one day writes that blog that you meme out to the entire world because it says exactly what you always want say but couldn't yourself. Or they write that song that you play over and over after a loved one fucking dies because it means the world to you. They make that fucking movie that is the one you cling to when everything is going wrong in life. Oh, you pop that in and fucking things aren't bad for 2 hours. All that comes from encouraging an artist. Nothing good comes from discouraging an artist. So for fucking 20 years I keep coming up here and going, go out and do it. Why the fuck aren't you doing this? It's so fun. You should fucking do it. Do it. Take your fucking shot. I took my shot and it's nothing but pussy and donuts, you know. Just so I'm here to tell you, man, give it a shot. Go out and try.
Thank you guys so much for watching. The question of the day today is, what was the biggest shot that you have taken? Leave it in the comments below. I'm going to join in the discussion. I also want to give a quick shout out to Shashir Shenoy from Shenoy International. Thank you so much, so much, so much for buying a copy of my book, Your One Word. It really, really, really means a lot to me. Thank you guys again for watching. I believe in you. I hope you continue to believe in yourself and whatever your one word is. Much love, and I'll see you again tomorrow morning for another shot of espresso. I wake up every morning, espresso keep me going.
