Inspirational Meaning of John Cena’s Never Give Up

Inspirational Meaning of John Cena’s Never Give Up: John Cena’s Never Give Up slogan teaches us to get back up when you feel defeated. Catchy music, dramatic entrance, impressive physiques, showing off their championship belts and the crowd going crazy! Yes, we are talking about none other than the WWE wrestlers.

Keeping everyone on their toes during the wrestling match is something these wrestlers are famous for. And when we talk about famous wrestlers, automatically a few names pop into our minds, including The Undertaker, Big Show, Mysterio, Triple H, Hitman Hart, and Kane, to name a few.

But there is another wrestler, who stole the limelight in 2004 when he won the WWE Championship for the first time.

Brought up in Massachusetts, this 43-year-old man with the “Never Give Up!” slogan, made a debut in wrestling in 2000.

From then on, there was no turning back. One after the other he won titles and made a place in the hearts of millions.

Still, having trouble guessing his name?

He’s the one who said:

 To succeed, I have to believe every night in my heart that I’m the best!

Does it ring a bell? Let me make it easy for you. We’re talking about one of the best professional wrestlers of all time – John Cena!

The Beginning

How did it all start for John Cena?

Born in West Newbury, Massachusetts, John is the second child of his parents Carol and John Cena Sr.

Like many kids his age, John Cena also had an interest in watching wrestling matches; Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels, and Ultimate Warrior being his favorite wrestlers.

He showed interest in sports from a very young age and by the age of 15, John Cena was already a fitness fanatic and a regular gym-goer.

He even took up Exercise Physiology as a major in college and graduated in 1998.

It was then when he decided to be a bodybuilder and move to California, although his father disapproved.

Like every young person, who is out seeking a career, John also had to face a lot of hardships.

With only a limited amount of money in his pocket, he had to do odd jobs to make ends meet and to get himself settled in the new city.

For almost two years, he cleaned toilets and folded towels at a gym in Venice Beach.

He also worked as a limousine driver alongside. Even after doing all these jobs, he was unable to afford a place for himself to live, therefore he managed by living in his car – a 1991 Lincoln Continental.

And we think it must be a piece of cake for celebrities to reach such a high level of fame?

John Cena also tried his luck in the entertainment industry and did a number of movies including, The Marine, 12 Rounds, Legendary, and Fred: The Movie.

He also hosted the show “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?”

In his music career, he released an album by the name of “You Can’t See Me” which included his hit entrance song “The Time is Now”.

John Cena’s Struggle in Life

From John Cena’s journey to success, we have learned that at every step he faced difficulties and setbacks but he didn’t give up. He kept struggling and moving forward. He left his worries behind and didn’t let anything get in his way.

Like he once said:

Never fear failure. Fear never learning from failure.

It is in times of failure when we get to know ourselves better. It shouldn’t discourage us from reaching our goals.

Losing in Wrestling Matches

In 2000, when he fought his first unofficial match in WWE, he lost. When he signed a contract with them and made an official debut against Kurt Angle, he lost again.

These failed attempts did not discourage him.

He kept practicing.

He kept working hard.

He lived by his famous slogan, “Never Give Up”.

All this hard work paid off, and eventually, he won the WWE Championship against Big Show in WrestleMania.

This was just a start for Cena. In the years that followed, he won many matches and secured numerous titles. He even has the record of being the first wrestler to win against Edward Umaga Fatu.

Nearly Fired from WWE

Today, it might be hard to imagine but John Cena was being laid off when he started wrestling?

When he made his debut, he was unable to make an impression on his audience in the beginning, due to his dull character. The WWE told him that he would be cut off in November that year.

That’s when he got into rapping. During a tour, he just casually made up a rap for his friends who encouraged him to go for it on a professional level.

He started rapping before his matches and it turned out to be the edge that his performance lacked.

The audience loved it.

This was the time when he started using his famous slogan, “Never Give Up”. He worked hard to get the attention of his audience and thus made the WWE rethink their decision.

Mocked by the Audience

John Cena soon switched up his rapping once he realized that the viewer-base was starting to expand to a younger audience.

To him it was the more appropriate option, unfortunately, it wasn’t taken well by his followers.

His fans started jeering at him when he would appear for his matches. But Cena did not let this take a toll on him.

He continued to wrestle and win, and did not regret his decision.

With increasing fame, John Cena realized that there were a lot of people who liked him and got inspired by him.

But there was also a prominent number of people who did not like him. He has been criticized for every move he makes, from wrestling to movies to songs.

There always has been a crowd to bash him and mock him.

He doesn’t get surprised when someone throws an ill-natured comment at him.

He doesn’t get offended; in fact, he uses it to build himself. Talking to Khaleej Times about adverse audiences, he said:

“So amazingly enough, I love, I constantly tell our WWE universe that I love them, that I need them because they have helped me become a man and I’m very grateful for that. And I have great perspective on everything that I’m doing and everything that I’ve done and a lot of that is thanks to them. “

Keeping a smile on his face, he took all the negative comments and used them to make himself stronger and better.

Losing the WWE Championship

In 2009, John Cena wrestled against an Irish wrestler Sheamus for the WWE Championship.

It was a huge shock for all his fans to see Cena lose against him.

This was a huge setback for him and he received a lot of hate. His fans were extremely disappointed with him.

His famous motivational speech came after this event.

He gave that speech and made an impact on the hearts of millions of people.

Motivational Speech to “Never Give Up”

John Cena’s whole journey, from being a bodybuilder to becoming a wrestler, an actor, a singer, and finally a reality TV host, is all defined by his motto to never give up.

He has failed more times than he has succeeded but he remained persistent and that’s all that matters

In the Slammy Awards 2009, he made his famous motivational speech, in reference to him losing the WWE Championship. In his speech, he explained how one should never let failure let them down.

He started his speech, by congratulating Sheamus for being the new WWE Champion.

He then apologized to his fans for letting them down. He continued by saying:

“This is kind of hard to understand, but sometimes you can try so hard at something. Sometimes you can be so prepared, and still fail. And every time you fail, it’s painful, it causes sadness, and especially as I saw last night, it causes disappointment. I’ve often said a man’s character is not judged after he celebrates a victory, but by what he does when his back is against the wall. So no matter how great the setback, you never give up!”

His speech caused a stir in the audience. Millions of people took inspiration from his speech.

His main emphasis was to make people understand how important it is to get back on one’s feet, no matter what.

“You never give up, you pick yourself up, you brush yourself off, you get up and move on and overcome. That is what I believe!”

He even addressed his haters and told them that it was okay if they felt that way, because this is what fame is about.

Not everyone can admire you.

“So, there are those, who were so offended by my actions last night, that they might have lost faith in me. I absolutely respect your decision to do so.”

John Cena has great respect for his fans, who stood by his side even after he lost the Championship.

During his speech, he particularly mentioned how grateful he was for all their love and support:

“Tonight, I speak to those who still proudly stand in my corner. You have not given up on me and I will not give up on you! The WWE Universe is all I got. This is my everything.”

He ended his famous speech by saying that he will not stop and he won’t let anything get in the way until he holds the title of the WWE Champion once again.

“I’m not gonna say tonight that I’m gonna work harder, that I’m gonna be more dedicated. I’m gonna put more time in the gym. That’s impossible! What I’m gonna say to all of you tonight, that are listening, is what happened at TLC will never happen again. It is time to set the records straight. My road to WrestleMania starts right now! Everybody here, everybody watching – I won’t be stopped, I can’t be stopped! You want a headline for WWE.com? Here it is. I will not lose another match until I once again become WWE Champion!”

With fame comes enemies and foes. We have seen John Cena face his enemies with bravery and fearlessness.

His famous slogan isn’t only something written on shirts. It is something that is real and holds a place in the heart of the person who said it.

He takes it seriously.

He gives out the message to stand strong in the face of hardships and challenges.

Cena has himself been through all of this, so he means it when he tells his fans to never give up. His motivational speech was a source of inspiration for thousands of people.

He once said:

It’s not something that I try to force people to understand. Those three words are led by example and led by action.

Every time Cena loses a match, he reminds us to never give up. He encourages himself as well as his fans, to rise and shine in the face of failure. He has said in many interviews and speeches that his setbacks actually sculpted him into what he is today. The people who gave him hate, actually made him stronger and he came out as a star.

How Jhon Cena has Inspired People

John Cena’s life is an example for people who are going through a hard time with their career or those who are looking for inspiration. They look at his life, his struggle, all the adversity faced by him, and how he bounced right back.

He is an unwavering person. He lives by his slogan “Never Give Up”.

This is proven by the fact that he has been injured badly numerous times, including a neck, elbow, and upper arm injury, which required surgery, but he still continued to wrestle after recovering.

No matter how serious an injury is, he is up and running in no time. His dedication towards his career is unmatched.

John Cena has taught his fans that it’s okay to fail sometimes and that failure can teach them a lot more than success.

We shouldn’t feel ashamed if we fail. In fact, we should learn from our mistakes and do better next time.

When John Cena lost in one of his matches, he told his audience that he felt sorry for himself for 5 minutes and then he moved on.

Failure gives you two choices, to stay down or to get up, and John Cena got up every time he failed. Failure has made him what he is today.

He tweeted regarding failure that:

It’s easy and often we talk about the wins in our lives, how often do we talk about the losses? There is much more to be learned from failure than from victory, yet with most victory is discussed and failure is privatized. Try the reverse, you may learn something new.

His fans look up to him and think of him as an idol. They use his quotes in their daily life to keep themselves motivated. John Cena’s merchandise which consists of T-shirts, caps, armbands and towels, all have “Never Give Up” slogans on them.

Inspirational for the Ill Children

Being the ambassador of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, John Cena takes out time from his jam-packed schedule, to visit terminally ill children, which shows how caring he is towards his young fans. He often pays surprise visits to his younger fans, especially those struggling with fatal illnesses.

A few years back. John Cena invited another 7-year-old boy, Giovanni, who has a life-threatening genetic disorder, to California to attend one of his matches. It was Giovanni’s life dream to meet Cena, His “Never Give Up” slogan had inspired the boy a great deal. While struggling to get through life every day, the little boy looks up to him for motivation and hope. John gave the boy a shirt with “Team Giovanni” written on it, and he wore the same shirt during his match that day.

After his meeting, Giovanni started looking at life with a whole new angle. He started enjoying his doctor’s visits and whenever he feels unwell, he tells his parents that he won’t give up as John Cena would want him to stay strong.

In 2017, John met Payton, a boy with cerebral palsy. Payton goes for physical therapy and he uses wrestling as a source of motivation. He was invited to watch a match with his father, during which Cena gave his armband and T-shirt to Payton. His father thanked John for being a source of inspiration for his son.

In 2018, John Cena told TODAY (www.today.com):

They all stand out. The most important thing is making the experience special because it’s their wish. It’s a spectacular thing. When you give them happiness, they get an escape. You don’t know the power of hope. Hope can equate to time and that’s absolutely priceless.

This is the kind of inspiration and motivation John Cena gives to little kids, so that they can be happy and have hope, despite their illnesses.

Motivational Tweets

Many out there will make it a goal to make you feel inferior or inadequate strictly to try and cause you pain or embarrassment. Recognize it for what it is, their struggle with self. Rise above that hate.

Apart from visiting his young fans and giving motivational speeches to his audience, John Cena also posts tweets once in a while, to keep the regular dose of inspiration coming.

In a tweet about how people tend to make us feel bad, he posted:

Many out there will make it a goal to make you feel inferior or inadequate strictly to try and cause you pain or embarrassment. Recognize it for what it is, their struggle with self. Rise above that hate.

Another time, he posted about staying strong and moving forward if faced with failure:

Don’t let a failed plan ruin the rest of your day. Take it in. Take a moment. Regroup, Refocus and move forward the best you can.

Most of his tweets are focused around his famous slogan and give the same message in the end, “Never Give Up”.

“Never stop learning. Never stop loving. Never stop living.”

John Cena is one of the most hardworking and dedicated men alive.

He is humble and down to earth person.

The way he treats his fans, tells a lot about him. There are very few people out there, who despite their busy timetables, take out time to make others happy, to give them hope, to encourage them and to convince them to stand tall, no matter what.

John Cena’s message of never giving up has not only inspired his fans but also given them hope for the future. Had he given up the first-time people booed at him; he would never have excelled. Had he not gone through all the hardships to pursue his career; he would have not been where he is today.

Today, he is known as one of the best professional wrestlers in the world. How did he make his name? How did he become so famous? How did he manage to win the hearts of millions?

The answer is simple – He never gave up!