I was broke, depressed and lost: Dwayne The Rock Johnson's Tale of Survival | Goalcast Speech

✪ Jobless, lost and broke, Dwayne Johnson sat in his apartment, crying and depressed, unsure of what to do next...From rock-bottom to "The Rock"!
✪ "I was broke, depressed and lost": Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's Tale of Survival | Goalcast Speech

Video Script:: 

I had a very complicated relationship with my dad and it was really there was a foundation of tough love with my father and wasn't a big I love you guy he would beat my ass when I was five years old there's a testosterone thing that just happens between sons and their fathers and he wanted sympathy and I said if you want somebody go home to your mother and get it said you are throwing it all away it is the worst mistake you'll ever make and I wish I had someone could just pull my side okay I wish I knew that my dad got into professional wrestling in the 60s and the 70s where it was an all-white wrestling business an all-white audience and at that time in the late 60s where racial tension and divide was still very strong and the wounds were still there but he was able to change behavior the audience's behavior so this all-white audience who would never cheer black man cheered him in these arenas he would get up at usually 5:00 5:30 in the morning and he would say if I get up you're gonna get up too yes and I would just I wouldn't work out but he would just make sure that I was there and be with him and that was our time that we could spend together my dad always said to that regardless of what you do in life and where you go respect is gonna be given when it's earned and you have to go out and earn it every single day the thing that has worked for me is to remember the hard times I was evicted when I was 14 we were kicked off the island we couldn't live in Hawaii had no place to live my mom and I came home and I'll never forget the rent was $180 a week and there was an eviction a week and there was an eviction notice on the on the door and it was this was the one it was the final eviction notice my mom started crying and I never forgot in that moment it was a seminal moment for me because I felt like I never want to be in this position again what can I do so at 14 years old I thought well the heroes in my life Muhammad Ali for example professional wrestlers they're all men who have worked hard with their hands and they built their body yes that's what I'm gonna do I do what my dad taught me and these other euros I'm gonna go build my body so we're never evicted again and at that time we were we were at an all-time low I think with our family and I am already a pretty big boy six foot four 200 maybe 20 25 pounds I had a very bad mustache I had a chip on my shoulder fresh into this High School in Bethlehem Pennsylvania Freedom High School a teacher comes in his name is Jody Swick tough guy he shook my hand I'll never forget that shake so I want you to do something for me yes would you come out and play football for me I said okay and I went honest and I played football for for Jodie Swick and he was our head football coach and he became a father figure to me in a mentor I fell in love with a game of football and I started getting recruited from every college across the country my thought process started to change that's what I started thinking about goals what I want to accomplish my goal is to play in the NFL again because we didn't have a lot of money so I wanted to be the first one to buy my parents a house and the dream didn't come true I didn't get drafted I didn't get any offers nothing I had to work up in Canada at the Canadian Football League when I was cut from there I had my dad had to come pick me up and I'll never forget we're on i-75 he lived in Tampa came to Miami got in his pickup truck we drove up I 75 and I'm 23 years old I am forced to move back in with my parents he got sassy with me one time was about a mile and a half from home and he wanted sympathy and it was pouring down rain and I said if you want somebody to go home to your mother and get it and I wish I had someone at that time who could just pull me aside nay it's gonna be okay after about a month and a half of staying in that little apartment and cleaning I got a phone call from the head coach of the team who cut me the head coach of the Calgary Stampeders he called me and he said hey I know we cut you but I'd like you to come back I said okay I appreciate that coach thank you very much I'll think about it he said okay great I hung up the phone and my dad said you're gonna do it right I said no I don't think so and he goes what I said my gut tells me I'm done he said what are you gonna do took a deep breath I said I'd like to get into the business he said what business I said the wrestling business he said you are throwing it all away it is a worse mistake you will ever make he said you're ruining your career at that time we were living in a small apartment in Tampa Florida and he said look around this is what I have I don't have anything and I don't want that for you so maybe I'll be no good but I feel like in my heart I have to do this I was the hottest heel in the company and things were on fire correct me if I'm anything is wrong you brought your mom a house for Christmas I did 1218 [Music] it's so cool to buy our house and you bought your dad a house - I did I bought my old man a house students so that's the greatest thing ever right below your paratah yeah we had one more shot [Music] was it love use Thank You Rocky the soul man Johnson passed away uh he passed away on January 15th and we just buried him a few days ago and I didn't get a chance to say the things that I wanted to say or I wish he would have said that things to me the important critical things that anchor us that I didn't get from him but then the birth of a child and what that does and the the lens perspective that just shifts it's the greatest thing that I have ever experienced in my life my daughter's taught me how to be more caring and more sensitive and more selfless yeah my dad loved me with the small capacity in which he was capable of so the relationship that I had with my dad was the relationship that was appropriate at that time my dad was on his own when he was 13 years old homeless in industries it just gives me a real perspective now that I'm older and dad had myself on the tough-love than I got so because for years and I know a lot of my friends a lot of guys out there there there's a testosterone thing that just happens between sons and their fathers very important to heal to make sure that we come back to gratitude for for what I was able to have with it what what the sole man my dad was able to accomplish during his career was no small feat I remember night after night watching him perform all over the country being awed by his quickness by his agility he was an amazing performer and for Dwayne for everything you've done for me you made me proud I continued our family Russ and legacy but I will say this on the bottom of my heart and I love him very much he's my son and he always will be we're not very proud of the thing that has worked for me is to remember the hard times and I just remind myself I was evicted when I was 14 we were kicked off the island we couldn't live in Hawaii and no place to live I would remember that and it allows me then to be present in the moment and understand holy shit the stuff I have around me right now this is the shit that I dreamed up when I was a kid I am here now try and find a way to be grateful for every single thing I had every single day wins losses loved ones you name it my life wasn't always this way it was much different many moons ago so these days I'm grateful to the bone for everything the other thing is hunger you always hear people say well it's about being number one not being at the top or how about this you're always gonna find somebody out there who's gonna work harder well I don't know that that might be bullshit but I know no one is gonna be hungrier than I am there's one thing to be hungry it's another thing when you're starving for greatness and starving for success and I love that because it immediately clicked it to my DNA I know it's like to operate every single day regardless of the success that I've been a lucky son-of-a-bitch to achieve I operate every day so from starving if you're going through some hard times you got to hold on to that fundamental quality of faith and hard work because on the other side of those hard times is something better is a better life you