I Own That Stare

Award winning actor Peter Dinklage is perhaps the most loved dwarf in the world. However, this journey from being a dwarf to the most loved one was by no means easy for him.

During childhood, he had to undergo multiple surgeries to deal with the side effects of dwarfism. Besides the physical pain, the condition brought with it a lot of emotional pain and trauma. As a child, while watching a recording of a play in school, Peter realised how different he looked.?

Self-consciousness led him to isolate himself. He spent hours by himself feeling sad, angry, and bitter. Isolating himself was also his way of protecting himself from being singled out, laughed at or bullied. He would wonder what he had done to deserve the pain, and why could he not control the way people perceived him.

There was indeed one way he could control the perception. He believed that acting could help him control the way people looked at him. When he was a part of a play, and took a bow, he could hear the applause that was an acknowledgement of his talent; not his appearance.

He decided to take up acting as a profession. He got several roles that required him to play an elf or a leprechaun, but he refused to let himself get typecasted in roles based on his appearance. This intentional choice made it tough for him to get acting work. He waited till he got a break in a low-budget comedy drama called Living in Oblivion. While things didn’t immediately change for Peter after this break, meaningful roles did start trickling in.

As his body of work grew, people noticed his talent and his integrity. He earned respect as a performer and just as he had desired, people began to identify him as an actor.

In an interview, when a reporter asked him to explain why he chose acting even though he always wanted to hide from the stare that he would get when he walked out in public, he explained that when he was on stage as a performer or on screen in a movie, he felt he “owned the stare”.

Peter’s persistence paid off and it was his role as Tyrion Lannister in the HBO series The Game of Thrones that earned him awards, recognition, love, and fame. Today, he uses his hard-earned fame to inspire people to expand themselves beyond their limitations. He is an inspiration to many because of the way he has turned his limitation into his uniqueness and carved out a niche for himself, somewhere in between fitting in and standing out.

"The world's not going to change. Carve out your little corner, make your impression."

-Peter Dinklage

Peter’s story has got me thinking about my own limitations and how I could transform them into my uniqueness. I haven’t found the answer yet, but the process of reflecting about it feels exciting and enriching.I would love to hear your thoughts about the story!

If you like self-inquiry and personal reflection with the help of stories, I think my book The Tenth Story can be your companion on your journey of self-discovery. It is out now and available for purchase on Amazon

References:
1) CBS News
2) Quitpit.com