2 . CREATE GUIDING PRINCIPLES .
Principles are the foundation of our beliefs and values and guide our actions . Foreman ’ s life changed positively when he found his principles one night after robbing someone . Being chased by the police and dogs , he climbed under a house where he covered himself from head to toe with sewage water from busted pipes under the house so the dogs couldn ’ t smell his scent . While hiding , he thought about a speech his mom had made about not having a thief in the family . “ I was so scared ,” Foreman recalled . “ I realized for the first time I was a thief . I thought to myself if I can get from underneath this house and the police don ’ t grab me , I ’ m never going to steal anything from anyone again . After a while , the sirens passed , and I crawled from under that house and said , ‘ That ’ s it .’ . . . I had been on the journey of my life , and I never stole anything again because I had something I ’ d never had before : principles . I had a badge of principles , and I knew if I could come from that bottom , I can make it all the way to the top .”
3 . FIGHT THROUGH THE TOUGH TIMES .
Real champions fight hardest when faced with adversity , and they never give up . Foreman learned this lesson after returning to the gym following his first loss . This time , Foreman learned how to box extremely well , so his trainer entered him in the Golden Glove fight . When the bell rang in the second fight , his opponent , Bob Winters , hit Foreman so hard that he went down and became dizzy enough that one woman appeared to look like eight women wearing the same outfit . As he heard the referee count down , one or two of the women would disappear with each count . “ I remember there were only two left , so I thought I should get up before they all left ,” Foreman said . “ I jumped up and I thought , I ’ m going to put this boxing and bobbing and weaving down for a moment and just fight this guy . . . I turned into a windmill and the next thing you know , I won the boxing match . I learned that sometimes , you just gotta fight . All the rules you ’ ve got to play with and your skills are nothing . You ’ ve just got to come out and swing and fight .”
After losing the fight against Jimmy Young , Foreman found himself in the fight of his life . In the dressing room , bleeding from his forehead , hands , and feet , Foreman began having a conversation with himself , justifying that he didn ’ t need to worry about the match . During his internal conversation , he reviewed all he had — a big television contract , a home , horses , a Rolls-Royce , and all the money he needed . Telling himself he “ could retire . . .,” he heard an unexplained voice that concluded “. . . and die .”
“ After a while , death multiplied in my conversation ,” Foreman recalled . “ I realized I was about to die , and I didn ’ t know what to do . . I was in this dark space . Over my head , under my feet , and around me was absolutely nothing . If you multiply every sad thought you ever had in your life , that ’ s where I was in this dump yard of nothing . I got mad . . . I said , I don ’ t care if this is death , I still believe in God . . . that ’ s when someone grabbed me , a hand pulled me out of nothing . I was alive in that dressing room . . . and I wasn ’ t afraid anymore . I saw blood on my hand and my forehead , and I was screaming , ‘ Jesus Christ is coming alive in me .’” Foreman quit boxing , became an ordained minister , and began sharing his experience . “ The lesson I learned was conviction ,” Foreman said . “ You ’ ve got to believe in something . It doesn ’ t matter how powerful and wealthy you are if there ’ s no guide .”
5 . BE HUMBLE .
Foreman recalled being overconfident when heading into his fight with Muhammad Ali . He ’ d expected to knock Ali out in one or two rounds and didn ’ t study Ali ’ s fighting strategies . He never looked at a newspaper
4 . ALWAYS STICK TO YOUR CONVICTIONS .
Your convictions are what matter to you the most and signify to the world what kind of person you are . When Foreman became a boxer the first time , he did it for glory and fame . Declaring his convictions changed his motivations and his life .