Gary Sheffield Quotes

There was no person, whether they thought I was too fat, too black, too country, too ghetto, too New York, too thug or too whatever! Nobody ultimately had the say over whether or not I was going to make it.

I am an actor who turned hero at age 32, after many years of struggle. I wanted to break the stereotype that only good-looking men with a good complexion, height and physique can be heroes, which I have managed to do.

I had to fight my whole life to break out of my circumstances. That's just part of my makeup.

We've all been underestimated at times. That's life.

It was definitely some tough moments throughout my life, but I kind of stayed focused and came through the other end of the tunnel.

All my life, people have been underestimating me.

People only look at you and say, 'You are black and you are from the banlieue,' and all the doors are closed. I had the desire to be something else. If I see a door that is a little open, I will find a way to get through.

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.'

Yonkers made me strong and made me believe in myself, because so many people would doubt you and not believe. There are people that would believe in you, but the environment was so harsh, nobody wanted you to get out, you know?

Sometimes to go forward you've got to go to the depths of your own personal despair and claw yourself back. From that point, no matter what happens, you know you can do it.

All my life people have said that I wasn't going to make it.

Going in, I knew I wasn't one of the top ones, because I didn't even make the pre-season All-American team. That shows you what people thought of me right there, so I knew I had to go to work.

I have definitely gone through my ups and downs and faced my adversity and my nay-sayers, but managed to do all right. It is a pretty classic tale.

I have to work extra hard because I am dyslexic. People said that I couldn't be an actress, but I'm proving them wrong. Acting has helped me overcome the challenge.

I've been through a lot of things in my personal and family life. That turned me into a fighter. I always strive to be the best I possibly can.

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 failed at the biggest things there are in life. I failed in my health, I failed in my marriage, I failed in everything, and I've picked myself up and gone on.

When I was at school, most people were planning on going to university and becoming doctors or lawyers. I wanted to be a singer, and I was laughed at. It was tough, but I never let anything stop me.

I know I'm not a coal miner, but I do long hours and I never complain, and there is nowhere else I'd rather be. So, yeah, that's how I'd define myself. I want to do it right, and prove people wrong once and for all about the myth of child stars.

I was always told that I was too small, too skinny, too slow, not tough enough, and I never ever believed what people told me.

Growing up, I had the weird fantasy list: I wanted to be Alice Cooper, Steven Spielberg, and Stan Lee. You have to have almost psychotic drive, because you're going to have years of failure.

A lot of things have been thrown at me in life, and I've got through it all without a rule book, taking it one day at a time.

I haven't accepted anyone telling me what is or isn't possible and have just kept moving along toward my goals.

There was never a point in my life where I gave up. My marriage, as you know, fell apart.

But no, had I been successful in my 20s I would have been just fine. But it is nice to defy the odds.