Akbar Gbajabiamila

Because you just think you've had a lot of nows in your life and you just think that now will always come.

And we don't know that, you know, we really don't.

That's right.

We don't know when now ends.

Yes.

All right, let's do this.

You grew up in South LA, one of seven kids with Nigerian parents.

What part of that upbringing built resilience?

I think it was seeing the hard work and knowing that both my mom and dad were business owners.

My dad was a plumber.

Before he retired because of Parkinson's, my mom was a hairstylist before she passed away.

And they both built their businesses from scratch.

They came to this country, figured the way out.

And me growing up a little bit later and seeing the hustle and the hard work that my parents did, I'm like, I really respected that.

But there was one defining moment.

I talk about this in my book.

Everyone can be a ninja is, you know, my father.

I've told the story many times before, but I remember, you know, there was a time where, you know, I was on my food stamps and this and that.

And I was like, Dad, because I didn't understand it from that standpoint.

But my dad rejected the idea that, you know, that he would get the help government assistance and not saying government assistance is bad.