During his keynote address at SolidWorks World 2010, writer/producer/director/and guy whose movie had just been nominated for 9—count ‘em—9 Academy Awards earlier that morning (and yet there he was on stage at the Anaheim Convention Center, and not acting as though he was wishing he was dishing with Entertainment Tonight) James Cameron (shown here getting a Golden Globe) talked about the three things that he writes on a whiteboard for his team before setting out on an oceanographic expedition (yes, he does lots of documentaries that puts him out on the water for two to three months at a time, and he admitted, “Documentary films—there’s never any damn money in it. There’s no fame in it. No red carpets,.” yet he continues):

1. Hope is not a strategy.
2. Luck is not a factor.
3. Fear is not an option.

About that last, he explained, “Don’t be afraid to be bold—even if there isn’t heritage that what you’re doing will work.”

If there is anything that characterizes Cameron’s career, it’s that he’s been bold. And clearly, it has paid off in terms of not only box-office success, but by the multitudinous awards that he has garnered from his peers.

By the way: He is presently working on a submersible that will go down into the Mariana Trench: the deepest spot on earth, 35,838 feet down. The pressure on the hull of the craft will be on the order of 16,000 psi.

And Cameron plans to go down in the submersible: Hope is not a strategy. . .luck is not a factor. . .fear is not an option.