Actor, producer, and all-around showman Will Smith recently made a confession that sent shockwaves through the entertainment industry. During an exclusive interview on Kevin Hart’s talk show, Hart to Hart, the 54-year-old actor spoke candidly about his guilt for putting his young children, Willow and Jaden Smith, in the public eye.
The actress’ family life was thrown into disarray because he was obsessed with becoming famous, which hurt his children’s happiness. The journey was much more complex than the Oscar-winning actor had ever imagined, which came as a shocking realization given his lifelong goal of raising a happy, successful family.
Will Smith’s Pinnacle of Success
In terms of his career as an actor and as a father, 2010 was pivotal for Will Smith. The simultaneous success of his son’s films—including Karate Kid—and his daughter’s music career—with the breakout single ‘Whip My Hair’—was a watershed moment in his life’s work.
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Will Smith’s aspirations to find a happy medium between his career and his family life were fueled by his sincere desire to create the perfect family and be a better father than his own, whom he courageously acknowledged as having been abusive.
The Hollywood celeb wanted to show that a successful career didn’t have to come at the expense of a loving home life. Life had other plans for the Smith family, and they didn’t involve the glitz and glamour of stardom.
The family’s once unbreakable bond began to fray as each member’s career advanced. There was an unexpected void left by their hectic schedules and the spotlight that prevented them from spending quality time together as a family. Everyone in the Smith family was doing well, but nobody seemed happy.
Will Smith’s Journey of Self-Discovery and Re-evaluation
It all came to a head when Willow Smith, Will Smith’s daughter, started what he called a “mutiny.” It was a defining moment when he realized that money and fame do not buy happiness.
“Nobody in my family was happy. Nobody wanted to be in a platoon. Willow was the first one to begin the mutiny and it was my first realisation that success and money don’t mean happiness. Up until that point, I really believed that you could succeed on your way to a house and a family and you could win your way to happiness.”
This humbling encounter, however, led him to examine his assumptions and embark on a quest for self-knowledge. On Kevin Hart’s talk show, Will Smith reflected deeply on his life and realized the importance of mental and emotional health.
The actor studied psychology to understand better the complicated link between a person’s sense of well-being and their level of success in life. The realization that his dogged pursuit of success and fame had sometimes caused harm to those he cared about most prompted him to rethink his strategy for achieving his goals. The emotional damage caused by his aspirations was like “scorched earth.”
“You can have so much stuff that it makes you miserable. That was my first pull-back and I was like, ‘Ok, what am I missing?’ That’s when I started reading and studying psychology and its relation to human happiness. I was never unhappy. I loved life, but I was driving the people around me in such a way that I was leaving scorched earth.”
Even Hollywood’s biggest stars are immune to the pressures of dealing with their demons while pursuing success in the entertainment industry. Millions of people find hope in Will’s quest for self-improvement as he works to become a better father and a more compassionate human being.
Source: YouTube
