Gervinho Quotes

So, from a very young age, my mom tells me that I wanted to be Michael J. Fox. I didn't want to be an actor. I just wanted to be Michael J. Fox for awhile. And then, I realized that he was an actor, so I pursued that.

As a kid, I had this ultimate goal to be a teacher. I wanted to be a history teacher like my dad.

Where I came from, the idea of going into show business was just ridiculous; in fact I didn't tell anybody because I knew people would laugh at me. So I sort of snuck around and got some pictures and got a resume together and, of course, lied and said I did all kinds of things I didn't do.

My dad, in particular, was adamant that I should finish my education. He encouraged me to go to Oxford, for instance, and I rather doubt I'd have gone if he hadn't. I would have gone straight back to L.A. and tried to start my career.

Go to school and get your education and follow your dreams.

My mum was always more pushing me towards the academic side; she wasn't really interested in me having a professional football career.

I was such a mama's boy that no one imagined that I could come into the film line. She wanted me to do a bank job.

I studied hard and completed my engineering. And I also pursued music that was my passion.

It's unbelievable when I think back to when I was a kid that one day I would have achieved so much through boxing, and to think my teachers laughed at me when I said I was going to be a boxer.

It's a dream come true. I mean, when I was a kid, I used to dream about playing college football one day, and now I'm playing in the best conference, and I truly believe that.

I went to school for eight years to be a dentist. Sorry if the person in the fifth row doesn't like it and thinks I should be a bag guy because people hate the dentist. People might not like the dentist, but they do like people who chase their dreams.

My brother was always going to go in the direction of football. With me, it was more between school and football. Eventually, it worked out for both of us. We're pleased to have gone down that path. I'm proud that my parents always supported us, in good and in bad times. You need that.

I had to go to see the careers woman at school, and when she asked me what I wanted to do after school, I told her flat: 'I want to be a professional footballer.' I can remember her being silent for a few seconds, just looking at me.

The thing that has led me to the place that I am is that every moment in my life, I've been following my dream: following my dream to go to the University of Toronto, following my dream to get my Ph.D., following my dream to work in Hollywood.

For myself, I'm still little Joanna from the hood - from a small town in Poland, and I'm still having my goals, my dreams.

Acting is my passion but everyone was against it. But mom insisted that her daughter would do what she wanted, no matter how brilliant a student she was.

If you have a dream, you can achieve that dream, you can achieve that goal. You just gotta go for it. But it also lets you know, that there is a price to pay.

I don't think you can say yes to every opportunity and work the weekends and work the overnight shift unless you're really passionate about your job. So I encourage everyone to find their passion and go for it.

The odds are stacked against you becoming a footballer, so my family made sure I always had a backup plan.

Your family are people you lean on and learn from. When I told my family I wanted to do music, they were really supportive.

My family was always really encouraging, but acting was always something I thought was a bit of a pipe dream.

It's impossible to imagine doing anything else because I always had in my head that I would be a footballer.

I can't express enough to anyone who is fighting for whatever their dream is, whether it's to become a doctor, or a teacher, or a photographer - it doesn't matter - it's such a hard, hard road.

I grew up in a rural area called Vega Baja and I'm the first of so many talented people in this area to make it out. I take great pride to represent where I come from and I am able to show my fans, and everyone who listens and watches me, that anything is possible.

Music is what I always dreamed of doing. But at a certain point in my career, they convinced me to act, and that started me acting.