It’s not hard to admire someone who built themselves from the ground up like Dwayne Johnson, or as his 56 million fans know him, The Rock.
Though he literally wrestled his way from poverty to Hollywood, not many have ascended to fame and fortune as gracefully as Johnson. He revealed his secret in an interview with Fortune.
He came from very humble beginnings, hustled his way through professional wrestling, and developed a successful career in the entertainment industry. The Rock never took himself too seriously remember his role as thug Elliot on , and is still quite humble.
“I’ve had such a renegade career that I honestly never had anyone in my life give me advice in [an official] way … It’s what I’ve learned over the years that has pushed me beyond limits.”
Here are 6 of the most important lessons on home-grown, self-made success from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
Work like a champion.
There’s no avoiding this basic lesson. If you don’t have the drive to be the first man on the ground and the last one to leave at the end of the day, you can never be a leader and you won’t be destined for success.
Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One Basket
This is one of the most well-known investing maxims. Johnson is a true believer on this mantra and he has diversified his sources of income, including wrestling, acting, and producing a number of reality shows and the HBO series Ballers. While the bulk of his net worth (estimated to be somewhere between $150 million and $190 million) comes from his movie roles, Johnson still applies the don’t-put-all-your-eggs-in-one-basket concept by working in more roles than his fellow actors.
And this strategy has rewarded him handsomely. In 2013, actor Robert Downey Jr. was the king of the box office for his role as Tony Stark in the film Iron Man 3, which earned $1.2 billion worldwide. However, The Rock was able to earn $100 million more than Downey Jr. by working in more movie roles. While Downey Jr. only worked on Iron Man 3, Johnson worked on four movies, including Fast & Furious 6 and G.I. Joe: Retaliation. “Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come,” says Johnson.
“It’s fundamentals: show up, outwork everyone, and rely on my own two hands to get the job done.”
Never half-ass your work.
If it’s worth doing, do it right and see it through every single time. Your work is like your batting average and you never want to give less than 110 percent.
“Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come.”
Work your butt off…
This guy is always working.
Every time you turn around he is filming a new movie…
And not just one at a time… it seems he is always filming 2-3 at a time.
And on top of making movies he is back wrestling…
He never stops…
He is always pushing himself…
Be genuine
Success doesn’t come from acting. Fearlessness can’t be faked. Being who you are and knowing yourself is the only way you can get anywhere in reality.
“The single most powerful thing I can be is to be myself.”
Never give up on your dreams.
Not many people know but The Rock started out as a football player. Or I should say he his goal was to be a football player.
He played during his college years at the university of Miami and actually won a national championship in 1991.
He obviously had aspirations to become a professional football player, but after university he did not end up in the NFL. Obviously he was not good enough.
Now to most people they would look at not making the NFL as the end of the road for their football career, they would give up on their dreams and decide it was time to get a real job.
But not The Rock… he did not give up… instead he decided to play in the CFL. Which is obviously considered small potatoes compared to the NFL.
And lets be honest not many people make it from the CFL to the NFL. But He did not quit on himself and his goals… he did what he had to do.
So he was picked up by the Calgary Stampeders; however again he was obviously not that great of a football player and was cut by the team a short while later…
2 Failures in a short amount of time (not picked up by the NFL and cut by the CFL)…
Now again most people have 1 failure and that is it they are done… they go home crying to mommy and give up on any big aspirations they might have in life… and settle into a life of mediocrity…
But not this guy... what does The Rock do?
He goes on to become arguably the greatest, most entertaining and famous wrestler of all time… and a huge movie star!
The Rock never gave up on his dreams ever… he never let temporary defeat or failure stop him…