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There is more to the art of storytelling and filmmaking than meets the eye. It’s not just a creative process. This is the call you make when you listen to your intuition instead of conscience. Yes, there is a difference between the two, and Hollywood’s renowned filmmaker, beloved director, the man behind ‘Jaws’, ‘Jurassic Park’, ‘Indiana Jones’, ‘ET’ and more has shed light on what differentiates intuition and prudence. He said, “I want to make it clear that your intuition is separate from your conscience. They work together, but here’s the difference: Your conscience screams, ‘Here’s what you should do,’ while your intuition whispers, ‘Here’s what you can do.'”

Quote of the Day by Steven Spielberg

“I want to make it clear that your intuition is separate from your conscience. They work together, but here’s the difference: Your conscience screams, ‘Here’s what you should do,’ while your intuition whispers, ‘Here’s what you can do.'”‘Disclosure Day’ filmmaker, Steven Spielbergshared these words of wisdom when he spoke to the Harvard Alumni Association and members of the Class of 2016 during his commencement speech. He highlights how listening to your inner voice, trusting your intuition, is the most important thing you can do.

What did Steven Spielberg actually say?

Encouraging young minds, he shared an anecdote from his life and said, “Parents and professors fill our minds with knowledge and information, and then employers and counselors take their place and explain how this world really works. And usually these voices of authority make sense, but sometimes, doubt starts to creep into our heads and our hearts.” “And even when we think, ‘I don’t see the world that way,’ it’s easy to just nod in agreement and go along, and for a while, I let it define my character. Because I was suppressing my perspective, because, like in that Nilsson song, ‘Everyone was talking over me,’ so I couldn’t hear the echoes of my own mind,” he adds. Explaining how things changed for her, what was the decision that made all the difference, she said, “At first, the inner voice I needed to hear was barely audible, and it was barely noticeable – just like me in high school. But then I started paying more attention and my intuition woke up.”He then continued, “And I want to make it clear that your intuition is separate from your conscience. They work together, but here’s the difference: Your conscience screams, ‘This is what you should do,’ while your intuition whispers, ‘Here’s what you can do.’ Listen to the voice that tells you what you can do. Nothing will define your character more than this.”This helped Steven become the filmmaker he is today. He confessed, “Because once I turned to my intuition, and I got into it, some projects began to draw me toward them, and others I turned away from.”

The meaning behind Steven Spielberg’s quotes

When Steven said, “I want to make it clear that your intuition is different from your conscience,” it was self-explanatory. Our consciousness is governed by our mind. It puts everything within the moral and emotional frame and decides what is right and what is wrong. On the one hand, it is very important to know what your conscience is telling you; On the other hand, it is more important to listen to what your inner voice is telling you.“They work in tandem,” he explained, meaning they work in coordination one behind the other, “but here’s the difference: Your conscience screams, ‘This is what you should do,’ while your intuition whispers, ‘Here’s what you can do.'” Your intuition frees you; It gives you wings to act on your potential and sometimes allows you to go beyond it. This is what ultimately defines your character.

About Steven Spielberg

Oscar-winning filmmaker Steven Spielberg is one of the most influential figures in Hollywood. According to IMDb, he has won 220 titles across various awards and genres, and has 358 prestigious nominations to his name till date. Talking about his work, his first major directorial effort was ‘The Sugarland Express’ released in 1974. This earned him the status of a rising star in the industry. Believe it or not, that was just the beginning, as what happened next made him an international superstar among directors. We’re talking about one of his most popular and favorite movies, the classic shark-attack movie, ‘Jaws’. He then explored the unknown land of UFO stories and came up with ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ in 1977. Even his upcoming release is about extraterrestrial life, titled ‘Disclosure Day’. The film starring Emily Blunt is scheduled to release on June 12, 2026.