Quotes About Adversity

If you have any setback in your life, like not being in the England squad was for me - any setback, like losing a family member - everyone handles it in different ways. When I first wasn't included I was numb. I'd been the main England striker for years and years. It was really disappointing.

Look at me - I was the boo boy for years and years. Did I ever think I would end up in Hollywood or the FA Cup final? No, I didn't.

Even if I don't always behave as I should, this still doesn't explain why so many people have something against me. But you know how it is. A lot of people vent themselves by coming to the stadium to yell at me. I hope it's not racism. I tell myself that it's not racism; it's because I'm tough, and I repeat this to myself.

If you do this, you're going to have some heartaches from it. You're going to have people yelling at you or maybe screaming at you or criticizing you, but I think it's the best way to sell a superior chicken.

Imagine being a running back or a receiver. You get tackled, and then when you get up, you're surrounded by a bunch of guys, and they're all screaming and yelling at you... Mentally, it wears on you, like, 'God, how long can I do this?' It's a mental thing.

There's no private side to acting, which some people find hard. I've drawn inspiration from athletes. They manage to be themselves under the pressure of public scrutiny, and they have it much harder - they have to perform with people yelling at them.

You are overboard in deep open water without a PFD (personal floatation device), or at least that's what your instructor is yelling. Sink or swim, plebe.

I've performed in basements and at supermarkets. The crowd would be yelling and throwing things at you.

I had pneumonia when I was 18 months old and I was given penicillin, which I was allergic to, and since then my teeth have been yellow.

Too many people think life is a yellow brick road. We learned that hardships make you better and that you have to adapt to your surroundings. And then you understand.

How lonely it is going to be now on the Yellow Brick Road.

I went from being a player who had received just a few yellow cards in his career to a red card in a World Cup. It was a devastating moment for me. It was my first game in the World Cup, so I was excited and thankful for the opportunity. Being sent off was a big blow.

At 17, I traveled to Mexico in a lemon yellow Mustang and saved money by bunking down in cheap, cockroach-infested flophouses. In my early 20s, I went on to thumb rides through Europe, readily sleeping in train stations, my backpack as a pillow. Once I even hunkered down for a night on a sidewalk grate - for warmth - in Paris.

Fear has nothing to do with cowardice. A fellow is only yellow when he lets his fear make him quit.

Scars are a truly beautiful thing. Yes, they can be a little ugly on the outside, but scars show that you're a survivor, that you made it through something, and not only did you make it through, but now you're stronger and wiser and more educated because of that tough time that you went through.

They have vilified me, they have crucified me; yes, they have even criticized me.

If I'm only defined by my sport, I really have failed. Yes, I've opened myself up for more criticism, but I'm a professional athlete. I get criticised every week. I'm used to it. It doesn't mean it doesn't hurt, but you get used to it.

Will they attack us? Yes. Will they smear our backgrounds and distort our records? Undoubtedly. Will they lie about us, harass our families, namecall to try to intimidate us? They will. There's nothing safe about it. But is it worth it? Well, let me ask you. Is freedom worth it? Is America worth it?

Yes, everybody has bullied me. They kept saying I was nasal and what not.

Have I ever left the field with a broken nose, black eye? Yes, numerous times. I've had a broken nose and a few black eyes. It's part and parcel of the game, really.

Yes, I started by running barefoot. My feet used to slip in canvas shoes. So we put them aside and ran barefoot.

I just don't want to be known as the face for cancer. It is one part of my life. Yes, it was a major part because it changed me a lot, but that is not all my life.

Yes, I've been very low, I thought I won't survive. I thought I won't make it, not just in my career but in life too.

You definitely get the answer 'no' more times in this business than you do 'yes.' It's what you do with those 'nos' that makes your success either great or not.