Willard Wigan Quotes

I like being the underdog. I like turning around and shutting people up when they tell me I can't.

I try and tell all the kids that I meet that hope to be amazing one day and be a professional athlete or a doctor or a lawyer or whatever they want to be. I tell them they can do all that because Tourette's won't stop them.

I want to let little kids know that no matter what situation they come up in, that they're not exempt from success. All I ever wanted was for people to believe in me and just recognize my potential. I came, I struggled, I made it, I conquered.

The theme of my life is overcoming. It is my personal mantra and what I help other people do.

All of my life, I've been told no. That I was too poor, too short, too black. I enjoy it when people underestimate me.

When you think you can't, revisit a previous triumph.

All the people who knock me down, only inspire me to do better.

Failure makes success so much sweeter, and allows you to thumb your nose at the crowds.

There aren't many hits like 'Kinky Boots,' so when you get one, the gratitude that comes with it fuels your energy. From the time I started in this business, everybody told me that who I was and what I represented would never work. Well, I get to stand on stage every day and prove the naysayers wrong by doing exactly what they told me not to do.

When I was young, a lot of things were closed off to me. I was always told, 'Don't do this, you can't do that' - instead of stopping me, it made me think, 'I can do that, I must do that.'

You actually can make it, no matter what. I truly am a firm believer in that. Eminem's living proof.

I support anyone finding their worth despite being told they can't do something.

I want to talk to the bullied kids of the world. Tell them to hang on, it will get better. Know that an 'Iron Chef,' actors, musicians, artists and all successful people have probably been bullied in their life. And the best part of your life is yet to come. Whatever it takes to live, do it!

I was told millions of times that I was never going to achieve what I set out to, but I decided to do it, and I did it.

I am proof that one person can rise above any challenge, and if I can, then so will others if they are given the chance.

People said I couldn't gig, and I proved them wrong.

Go forward, knowing that you are greater than the challenges of your time.

If you are different, or you have minimum possibilities, you can still succeed. I am living proof of that.

You know, you do need mentors, but in the end, you really just need to believe in yourself.

There's always going to be someone out there who doesn't like what you do, doesn't like your style, your face. That's part of life. But I feed off that. I don't think I'd be where I am today if it wasn't for that. It puts a little fire in the belly, keeps me going so I can prove so many people wrong.

Whatever be the challenges, whatever be the obstacles before us, I say to you as I say to everybody else that we will overcome.

I thank every bully I ever had because that's the only reason I'm here. I learned how to not be affected by it and triumph over it, and that made me - again, if I had any success whatsoever, it's because these people made fun of me.

The more challenges that are thrown at you, the more reward there is on the other side because you surprise yourself and say, 'Wow, these are things I didn't realize I was capable of.'

I'd rather be a victor than a victim.