My parents, of course, I have to tell you, didn't understand my dreams at all. They were always wondering, they said, "What is he doing? When are you going to get a job, a real job? When are you going to make money?" And all of those questions I got. And they said, "I hope we didn't raise a bum, someone that doesn't make money and just wants to live in a gymnasium and think about their bodies." Well, I endured all of this negative thinking, and the more negative the thinking got, and the more negative the questions got, the stronger and the more positive I became, the stronger I became inside.
当然,我得告诉你们,我父母根本无法理解我的梦想。他们总是疑惑地问,“他在做什么呢?你什么时候能得到一份工作,一份真正的工作?你什么时候能挣钱?”还有一些类似的疑惑。他们会说:“希望我们养的不是一个寻欢作乐的儿子,一个不挣钱却只想在健身馆里考虑他的身材的人。”我承受了所有这一切消极的想法,而且这些想法越消极,我就变得越积极,这些疑惑越多,我就变得越坚强,我的内心也变得更强大。
So of course some of your families maybe think the same way, and this is why I'm mentioning that. Some of your families maybe don't believe in your dreams. But let me tell you something, my young friends. Keep your dreams. No matter what, keep your dreams. Don't give up on them, even when you are temporarily defeated or denied. Keep your dreams.
当然你们中有些人的家人可能也会这样想,这也是我提起这件事的原因。你们的家人也许不相信你们的梦想,但是,朋友们,让我告诉你们,执着于你的梦想!无论如何,坚持你们的梦想。即使你们遭遇暂时的失败或者被否定,也不要放弃你们的梦想。执着于你们的梦想。
I remember the first time I went to the United States and I was competing in a competition, the World Championships in Bodybuilding. I lost. I came in second, and I was devastated. I was crushed. I felt like a loser, a major loser, let me tell you. I cried, as a matter of fact, because I felt like I disappointed my friends and I disappointed myself. But the next day I got my act together, I shifted gears, and I said, "I'm going to learn from that lesson. I'm going to stay here in America. I'm not going to go back to Europe. I'm going to stay in America and I'm going to train with the American champions, I'm going to train the American way. I'm going to eat the American food, I'm going to train with the American machines and the principles. And a year later, in America, I became the World Champion in Bodybuilding. So I think this is a very, very important lesson.
我还记得第一次到美国参加世界健美锦标赛。当时我输了,我仅得了第二,感觉非常绝望,彻底崩溃了。让我告诉你们,我当时就像一个失败者,一个遭受惨败的人。我哭了,事实上因为我感觉自己让朋友们失望了,也让自己失望了。但第二天,我重振旗鼓,改变了态度,并对自己说,“我要吸取教训。我要留在美国。我不会再回欧洲,我要留在美国与美国的冠军一起训练,以美国的方式训练。”一年后,我成了世界健美冠军。所以,我认为这是一次非常重要的教训。