One of my favorite examples of someone who achieved the American Dream is Sylvester Stallone.
Stallone has always been a hero of mine not only for the success he achieved as an actor and all that he has done to promote physical fitness, but more so for what he accomplished as a writer.
In 1975, at the age of 29, Stallone had been chasing his dream of becoming an actor and writer for several years, but he was struggling to get by. He even spent some time homeless after being evicted from his apartment. But that March, inspiration tapped Stallone.
He watched unknown boxer Chuck Wepner take heavyweight champion Muhamad Ali deep into the 15th and final round. Wepner was TKO’d with just 12 seconds left in the fight. Inspired by the idea of an unknown fighter going the distance with the heavily-favored champion of the world, Stallone wrote the first draft of Rocky in just three-and-a-half days.
That summer, a Hollywood bidding war broke out for Stallone’s screenplay. With just $106 to his name at the time, Stallone was offered $360,000 for the Rocky script (that’s $1.6 million in 2016 dollars). He refused. Stallone told the studios they could have the script for free if they would let him star in the movie. One studio finally agreed, but they would only do it with a bare-bones budget for the film.
The rest is history.
Rocky became a huge success and so did Stallone. The movie won Best Picture in 1976 and launched a seven-movie franchise. Stallone became one of the most successful actors and writers in Hollywood history. Though he may not have fought in the real-life boxing ring, Stallone was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2011 for all he contributed to the sport.
Most people would say Stallone was crazy not to accept the huge payday offered to him for the Rocky script. But he wouldn’t give up on his vision of the American Dream.
Here’s the advice Stallone gives about how to make your dreams come true…
Remember your dreams. We’re nowhere without them.
When I was very young, I started to visualize what I wanted to be and even what I wanted to look like. Those visions started to come into focus in my twenties.
Even facing financial obscurity, I had an insane dream. The one thing that never cost any money was being able to visualize where I wanted to go in life. And here’s the amazing thing: seeing myself as a success tricked my mind into believing I really was a success. That’s the sort of thinking that triggers winning streaks.
If you haven’t asked yourself lately if you’re living the way you want to live, now would be an excellent time. Is there still fire in your relationship? Are there still kingdoms left to conquer at work? Do you have the body you want and are you treating it the best way you know how?
Locked inside each of us is the person we want to be. Others might not recognize it yet, but I’m telling you, it’s in there. The passion shouldn’t die before we do.
Even against ridiculous odds, what propels you forward and separates you from the rest? P.R.I.D.E., which stands for perseverance, responsibility, integrity, determination, and excitement. If you have those five elements in your life, you can accomplish almost anything.
Do a bit of soul-searching. Ask yourself some difficult questions: What do you really want? What kind of person do you want to be? And, when it comes to physical fitness, how do you want to look?
– Sylvester Stallone, from his book Sly Moves
Stallone wrote Rocky at a time when many people had stopped believing in the American Dream. Certainly Stallone himself had suffered through enough rejection and adversity to come to the same conclusion. But he didn’t. He refused to stop believing in himself and his dreams.
Sylvester Stallone’s story represents what can happen if you clearly visualize what you want out of life, believe in yourself, aggressively pursue your goals, and never give up on the American Dream.
