When I lost my heavyweight world title to Andy Ruiz Jr. last June, I was completely prepared for it. Maybe that sounds like a weird thing to say about my first defeat as a professional boxer. The referee had stopped the fight in the seventh round.
But it was clear that I was going to get a second chance. I said well done to Andy, dusted myself off and went back to the drawing board.
I knew exactly what to do next.
Some of you might find it strange that I’m starting this story with my only defeat. But I think you should share your struggles more than your successes. A lot of people only see me as a boxer — all they want me to do is knock someone out. What they don’t realise is that without personal growth, without the stuff that hardly anyone sees, I wouldn’t have achieved anything in the ring.
You see, before you understand the highs and lows of sports, you have to understand the highs and the lows of life. And if you can understand the highs and the lows of life, trust me, you can deal with anything.