#173: Become The BEST Version Of Yourself With Zion Clark, All American Wrestler & Motivational Speaker

I took that chance to just step outside that line, step outside the comfort zone, even if it's just for a second. You need to get that taste of what it's like to really set yourself apart from everybody else. Not in a bad way, but like, be your own person, achieve your own great feats. You know, it's not about achieving what so and so did or doing what he did over there. You know, it's more about what can you do, what's something that you can achieve that's unique to you.

Come on this journey with me each.

Week when you join me, we are.

Going to chase down our goals, overcome adversity, and set you up for a better tomorrow.

I'm ready for my close up.

Hi, and welcome back. I'm so excited for you to meet our guest today. Zion Clark is an elite athlete, author, motivational speaker, Guinness world record holder as the fastest man on two hands and, and also passionate about reforming the foster care system as he spent 17 years of his life there. Known for his Netflix documentary, Zion won two sport Emmys and is one of the longest running documentaries on there for more than three years. If you haven't seen this documentary yet, check it out. He's 24 years old and is coming from Ohio, but today I'm meeting up with him in San Diego. Zion, thank you so much for being here.

Thank you for having me. Every chance I get to share my story, every chance I get to just inspire more people, I always jump on it. You know, me personally makes me feel good. And on top of that, I'm doing something positive.

You are doing more than something positive. I'll tell you. I research all of my guests ahead of time. And Zion, I have to admit, I mean, I was crying reading your story, which I'm sure happens very often with a lot of people. It's such a heart warming yet really hard story. Your life has not been easy and it's just such a beautiful trajectory of your life and I'm just so proud of you. Like, as a mother, I'm watching everything, research everything, and I just want to hug you. I'm. I'm so proud of you. So does that happen to you all the time? People come running up just wanting to hug you?

Yeah, more often. I guess now that I've really been able to establish myself and really show, like, just not show people, but show myself that I can do something good on a whole different level, you know, on top of support in my family and withholding our family name, you know, because they're the Ones that really developed me into who I am in the very end.

Well, let's start out just so people understand, because I think people who see how high profile you are now, how successful you are now, it's hard for them to understand that, first of all, you were born without legs, which is. I know that you don't see it as a disability. Many people do see that as a disability. If nothing else, it definitely differentiates you right, from everybody else. But not only did you have that one challenge to deal with immediately in life, but your mother also had to give you up when you were born, and you went right into the foster care system, which, as we know, is not a good experience. You know, people don't understand, I think, unless they really dig into your life, how hard things have been for you and how hard that window of time was when you had to move around from home to home just trying to get by. What got you through those days?

Thing that really got me through times like that, you know, I had my friends at school, I had wrestling, which was really like an outlet for me ever since I was a kid. You know, it was the one place I could go to during all those times with wrestling. It just. It gave me just that peace of mind. You know, I was treated as an equal. I didn't have to wear my prosthetic legs. I didn't have to be forced to be like everybody else. If anything, they encouraged me to be more different and to try to see what I could do. That's one of the things I loved.

About the documentary, was seeing that you didn't really want to wear the prosthetic legs. In fact, you preferred not having them on. And you and your coach preferred coming up with solutions in wrestling that embraced your body.

Exactly. And I love that because he really took the time to understand. The crazy part about that is they've been working with me for most of the time. I was a wrestler up to that point. You know, ever since I was about 7, 8 years old. His identical twin brother is the one that got me into the sport of wrestling. So I was connected really closely with their family for years at that point. And they always, every time I came across, every time I was at a practice, they would stay after, try to help me figure things out. And sometimes something would work, but then it wouldn't be perfect. So we got to keep going back to the drawing board. And it just. They spent time, like years really helped helping me. It finally paid off and I'm glad I could really do right by them. Too, you know, make them proud. Because every time I wrestle, everything I learned are from those two. Those two guys.

Oh, my gosh, your coach is so proud of you. It's so obvious in the documentary, and it's so touching. But so everyone that doesn't know your entire story, up until that time, you were not a champion wrestler out of the gates. This did not come easy to you?

Oh, absolutely not. Wrestling ever since I was young was extremely difficult for me, actually. And it really forced me to work harder, I guess, all the time. And I got used to, you know, getting beat up year after year, for one, it kind of gave me a toughness. Two, I just really loved the sport so much. I didn't care how many times I lost and care how many times I got beat up. I would just keep going back because it wasn't just about the actual sport. And, you know, ever since second grade, all the way up to my junior year, high school, maybe, like, with a year in middle school that actually didn't do too bad, but that's middle school. So just that whole journey up until I was, like, 17, I was just like, okay. I lost everything. I have friends, though. And that was my logical thinking back then. Well, before my last year, my coach was talking to all the, like, juniors about, like, next year and how it'll be good to get, like, college offers and how, like, if you work hard enough, you'll, like, you'll get it. And I'm just thinking, like, I haven't done anything like, freshman year, zero win, sophomore year, zero wins, junior year, one win out of, like, 35. Everything just was not looking up. And when I left that. That summer between my junior and senior year, I remember I talked to my mom because she was trying. She wanted me to get a job or something if I wasn't going to be doing too much. And I was like, mom, can I just train every day? Like, I promise I'll do it all day, every day. And she was like, you got to prove it. Next thing you know, for three months straight, I trained almost Monday through Sunday, two, three times a day. I was going to different tournaments, still losing over the summer. And then I finally stepped out my senior year, first match and just killed it. And then after that, I won, like, it was like 16, 17 more in a row before I lost my first one of that year. And by then, I was beating, like, some of the best guys in the state. And it was just. It was a weird feeling for me, I'm telling you. Like, because I was just doing Everything I'd worked on just. I probably did over a thousand shots, a thousand takedowns, over a thousand takedown defenses. Just training something so many times that I did it practically second nature. And yeah, I took off next. You know, I'm in that match to go to state, which sadly I lost. But it opened up a whole bunch of doors because it's a match before, you know, I knocked off one of the top ranked guys in the state. This guy I was battling against beat me one to zero and triple overtime, sudden death. And he was predicted to win like the whole tournament that year and I think he did. Yeah, it just opened a whole bunch of doors. I just so happened to put on some of my best performances at the time that I needed to do on, like, do them the most honestly.

Well, Zion, let's talk about where did that confidence come from? Because I know that there was this couple year window. Some big changes happened. Your mother came into your life. Some really significant changes happened. What was that transition like to stepping into confidence for you?

It was rough at first. You know, my mom, she didn't know what to expect. I didn't know what to expect. You know, I was kind of tired of everything at this point. I was at the point where like, you know, I was either going to get sent to her or I was going to get sent to a group home. And after that, you know, just kind of out on your own and you're.

16 years old at that time.

So at that point I was really just kind of over it. Like I said, you know, I was just so drained, so tired of everything. I was getting in trouble constantly. I was getting kicked out of school, I was getting in all sorts of things I shouldn't be getting into. And I just had this thing about me where I just didn't care. You know, I still had my friends or whatever, but at that point, like the home life had gotten so insane to me that I was just like, you know what? Doesn't matter if I go to school or not. They're going to either show up to school or they're going to show up at the home or whatever happens. And that has happened so many different times. I was just like, okay, whatever. And then my mom stepped in and she just completely changed everything up. At first I had no idea what she was doing and why she was acting the way she was acting. You know, like I would get in trouble and she wouldn't yell at me, she would just talk to me. I could be a serious talk. I'd still get in trouble. But, like, there was this calmness about her that really resonated with it because I was so used to just forever just like, screaming and yelling every time I did something bad from the get go. And she just completely had patience and showed me nothing but love and opened up her home. And my sisters and my uncles, my grandparents, my family, like, my family. I have a huge family. Like, we're spread, like, all over the country. They completely all welcomed me in. And next thing you know, school started to get a little better, stop getting kicked out. Grades started to go up, wrestling started to go up. I watched my sister, her name is Indonesia. I call her Indy. I watch her winner win the long jump state title with a torn MCL like, that year. And then I joined track, and I was like, okay, she. She can be a state champ doing that. I want to be a state champion. So next thing you know, I trained for a couple months in track and field, and I won two state titles and got a four top places. And that was just because, like, they really motivated me, and they were like, what? I wanted to be like, I wanted to be a good athlete. I wanted to be a good student. I wanted to just be happy, honestly. Next thing you know, I'm just completely resonating with them. And I got adopted. Funny thing, the day I got adopted, my mom and I were so accustomed to living together that we forgot it was just a normal day. Like, I was at school, I was in class. She went to work. Like, I was like, one of those days where I wanted to just, like, kick it a little bit, be comfortable. So I'm wearing, like, a torn wrestling shirt. It was one of my favorite shirts. Wearing some ripped sweatshirts and chilling. Next thing you know, my caseworker shows up, and I was. She was like, you ready to go? And I was just, like, completely shook. I didn't know what to do. I was just like, for what? I was like. I asked her, I was like, what did I do? I was like, I haven't done anything. I was like, what did I do? And she. She's like, you're getting adopted. You forget. And I was just like, yeah, but.

That'S such a testament to how comfortable and at peace you were in your life. Wow.

Yeah. It was so crazy. Next thing you know, like, my mom, like, her work gave her off, like, the rest of the day. She, like, sped over to the courthouse, met me there. Right when I got to the school, you walked in, she's gonna wear clothes. I was in some school clothes. And Got adopted on the spot, went back to school. She went. She went home because I had to go back to class.

That was what you felt like was really the turning point for you in your life. Was that when.

Yeah, and it wasn't even like a big, like. Like it was big and official, but it wasn't like a ton of people. Like, it was always like. Like how it was all the other times where I was adopted. But this time felt. I didn't feel nervous. I didn't feel like it was the wrong thing. You know, it felt completely right.

The way that you just described that sounds like how people. When someone's going to get married and they'll say, if it doesn't feel right, you're going to know. And if it is right, you're going to know when it really is right. And that's just. I felt like exactly what you're explaining right now. There'd always be a reason something didn't feel right or you're questioning something. But this time, it just felt like it was the right place to be.

Yeah. And like I said, we went back to school next. You know, my last name is Clark. I'm winning titles, I'm kicking people's butt on the mat. I got good grades, getting college offers. Just everything. Ever since then, everything just blew up. Since I've been 18, and it's been quite a journey, and I'm still seeing what's what I'm. What I can do, honestly.

You're 24 years old. You are at the beginning of your journey, my friend. How did the Netflix opportunity come into your life?

This random guy actually just messaged me on Facebook. I remember I was in my. In my room, and I was like, mom, who is this dude? Because I never had anybody like that reach out to me or anything. You know, the biggest thing I had done at that point was I got followed around by ESPN for, like, the second half of my wrestling career of my high school, or the second half of my senior year in high school. And I was just like, mom, who is this dude you talk to? Pretty much. Because I was like, I don't. Because at that time, I wasn't a very sociable person, even through all the wrestling in high school, especially when I started to get more attention and more TV stuff where they would pop up, I would not talk to them. You know, I just didn't, like. I didn't like that part of, you know, being successful, I guess. And I was just like, no, I need to focus. And that's exactly what I did, like, I might say something for 30 seconds or less, and I would sit with my team, have a good time with my team. And I told my coach, I was like, coach D, you talk. I don't know what to say. I got the other thing. I'm 18. I've never spoken to really anybody. You know, I have my few friends. I really just chill and try to just survive for the most part.

So how did it go from you being so focused and not speaking to these people to you actually launching a documentary on Netflix?

We had to do like a phone call with me and my mom and this dude. His name was Floyd. We were like, it sounds like a good idea. You know, he was able to sell it to us. And next thing you know, they flew out from New York. We recorded for a week and a half. I went to college and like a year and a half later, I get an email with the finished product and they submitted it to Sundance. And next thing you know, we're in the Sundance Film Festival and we get the best short film at the Sundance Film Festival in Salt Lake City, Utah. It flew me out. I was in the middle of my wrestling season at Kent State and my coach was mad, but I was like, like I missed something and I was a starter. But you know, this is. That was like a big, like, opportunity. He even understood. He was just mad because, like, you know, like, he really needed me to be there. But it was also like a big thing.

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Yeah, being the Sundance Film Festival is kind of a big thing.

Yeah. So I went out there and it won a short film, did a really cool interview, met a whole bunch of like top, like top tier, top level people. And at that time I think I'm only like 20, it's like 2021 and went back to school, made up a test and went back to the college life, you know, because I was in school, I was studying my business major so that next year I get a call and they're like, hey, Netflix is going to. Netflix wants to pick this up. And I was just like, yeah, there's like, what do you want to do? I was like, do it. And leading up to them even buying it, you know, it hit almost every big film festival around the world. Like, all across the United States, all across Europe, all across Canada, like, everywhere. And it got number one in almost every single one of them. And then Netflix picks it up. And then overnight, just everything was different. I forgot. I forgot about the day it was dropping. You know, I was in school. I was. That was like spring. Like, springtime. I was getting ready for finals. I was completely not in tune with what was about to happen. And it blew up overnight. Just spread like wildfire after then, like, you know, people coming up and all this stuff. But again, I still wasn't ready to really talk to people just yet. So I just have everybody, like, keep their distance and kept focusing on my stuff, you know, I was at the regional. The regional finals, and this news team that came up, like, right before I'm getting ready to get on the mat, and I gave him the craziest look. And then I looked at my coach like. Like, I didn't even say any words. I was just like, dude, you. This. This has to get shut down right now. And he made him back up because I gave him the chair. I gave the camera. I gave the cameraman this crazy look because, like, I was ready. I'm like, when you're getting ready for a match, especially a college match, you're getting ready for a fight, essentially. I don't want to talk to anybody. I used to. Got me, like, two hours before that. Not on the side of the mat with my headgear. But, yeah, it was just, like, crazy. That tournament ended up getting second place at the regional championships and making it to the national championship. It was just a crazy moment. I beat this dude in the semifinals and just. I beat him back, too. It was a match like, he was like, we were going at it. I would just catch those takedowns and then hold off on defense. So, like, as the match went on, the score just kept going up. And then I ended up with the tech right at the very end. So Tech in wrestling, you win by 15 points. If you have 15 more points, the other person, no matter what the score is, you automatically win. So I ended up getting one of those. And then I lost in the finals for first place. Very close match.

At what point did you decide to start going for the Olympics or writing the book? Or launching the speaking career. How did those things take place next?

So the speaking career happened pretty naturally, kind of by itself. I remember I was again back at Kent State. I was in class. The athletic director comes in. It's like, I need to talk to Zion. So I was like, okay, what did I do? Because, you know, I used to, like, I lived your typical college life, if I'm. If I'm gonna be honest, you know, but, you know, I was like, what did I do? And, like, I was thinking, like, I said, I shouldn't be in trouble for anything. And he brings me into his office and sets down these big stack of papers, and I was just like, oh, what did I. Like, oh, man, what did I do?

Can't be good.

Yeah. And he opens it, and it's just all these letters and these hand drawn pictures from this school in Akron, Ohio, which was like a refugee school. So at the time, you know, all that, the war that was going on in Syria, they were sending families, were sending their kids over to all different parts of the country just so they could escape and, you know, survive. These kids, they'd seen my documentary, so they wrote me letters. There's only about, like, 80 kids in this school. And I looked at the athletic director, I looked at every single one of them, looked at all the pictures, and I looked at them. I was like, hey, can I. Can I do something for these kids? I was like, I got to do something, you know? And I didn't know what I was saying, didn't know what I was doing, but it felt like the right thing to do. And he was like, we can. You can show up at the school. I was like, I'd love to talk to these kids. I just wanted to say, like, thank you. Like, shake their hand, give them high fives or something, you know, I just wanted to go, like, meet them. And they had set it up to where it was a surprise. And I came into this gym, and all their faces lit up, and this one little girl drawn a really nice, detailed picture. It said, be as I, with, like, the Kent State logo on it. So I was able to get Kent State and BSN Sports in Ohio to help me make these shirts that said B is on. And the whole school, the staff, everybody got them, and I got to speak to these kids, and it was the coolest thing ever. Honestly, they were just so intently listening. I went down every single one of them, and I asked every single one of them. In the middle of me talking, I was like, all right, what do you want to Be when you grow up? What do you want to be when you grow up? What do you like? Every single one. And after that, I was just like. Then I started talking about it, like, if you wanted to be this, this, this, this. And I wasn't paying attention, but somebody had told the Fox News in Cleveland that I was doing that. And next thing you know, there's, like, a whole news crew capturing my very first speech I ever get. I'd ever get.

Oh, my gosh. That has to be intimidating.

Yeah. I didn't know until it was too late, though. So I just went and talked to these kids, act like there was nobody there. You know, I was, like, real intent on, like, talking to these kids and saying thank you. You know, it's the best. Like, at the time, it was the best I could do for them. You know, I was in college. I felt like the only thing I could do is just show my face and say, hi, hopefully I can make, like, hoping I can make their day or something.

And it was the feedback you got from that speech or the feeling that you had when you left that you.

Said, I think I should say it wasn't even that. You know, at the time, I still wasn't. I was still in school. So I went back to school. Next thing. You know, every once in a while, I get opportunity here, opportunity there, and I just kind of started speaking, like, even now, like, I used to just. I would just go up there and speak what's on my mind. And even now, I do the same thing. I cannot. I am physically unable to write down a speech. Like, I can't do it. My brain doesn't work that way. It's. It's all bad if I do it that way. My thing is, I'll have my set points. I'll go in and I'll speak off those points.

That's very smart, by the way. So many people try to script everything out, and that is not a winning combination. So it's so good that you do it the way you do.

Yeah, I feel like more natural is a lot better. And, yeah, ever since then, speaking has been getting crazy. You know, right before COVID hit, I was starting to hit big locations, like different colleges, different schools. Always be with kids. Like, it was. It was. I was just having so much fun, and next thing you know, I'm speaking in Vegas at the F45 World Conference, and that's huge. Yeah, I know. And it was. It was crazy. It was in Vegas, and it was just the coolest time I've ever Had, you know, I'd never been to Vegas, never really been to that side of the country at that point. I was with my squad, my friends, my manager, just my like whole support system. And I went out there, was nervous. You know, there was over a thousand people in this crowd, super nervous. And I go out there and it was like, just like I was the only one up there. And I just spoke, was on my mind, just walked around, I had one of those mics on so I could move freely on my hands. Just walked around and spoke my piece. And as soon as I was done, it just. The whole like, the whole like venue just like erupted.

That's when, you know, you found your calling. Like, that's it.

Yeah, it was crazy. The first thing I did when I went backstage was I called my mom and told her exactly what just happened. That was like a big thing I did. And only person I could think of at the time was like, I wish my mom could be here, you know. So I just kind of dipped out of Ohio pretty much and just hopped on the road, kind of set myself up in California a bit. And in the way Olympic wrestling came around, that was at the end of my college career. I decided to actually leave college early because I saw a better opportunity. And the window of opportunity was closing and closing pretty fast. And I was just sitting there at school studying these books and I was like, I could do a lot more. I could be a lot more, be a lot better at wrestling, be a lot better at speaking, be a lot better at everything I do. If I went out, out west and not, not that, not that there's nothing wrong with, not that there's nothing wrong with getting a degree or anything, but some people, it doesn't work that way. And I think I'm one of those people. Next thing you know, I'm in California and I just crashed out. My buddy's name is Joey Davis. He's a Bellator fighter that we met actually when we were both in college still. So this guy, he's known, he's like a four time national champ. He went 133 wins, 0 losses. Is one of my closest friends. I went to his house, crashed out there and just got some of the best training I'd ever had over the next like seven, eight months, just every single day, like in there training with some of the best wrestlers, some of the best, best fighters in the world. Because I went from just, you know, college and college, don't get me wrong, there's good guys in college, a lot of Guys. Some guys turn into Olympians and stuff out of college, too, but I felt like my route might have been better that way. And next thing you know, I'm chatting with this guy's name. His name's Antonio McKee. He coaches up in Long Beach. And this guy is absolutely incredible. His son aj, is actually currently the Bellator world champion. I just won it about a month and a half, two months ago. Shout out to my boy, the mercenary aj. Yeah, you know I love you, Doc, but these guys, they just open it up to me. Actually, not really robin it up. The first day I met them, Coach told me, he was like, you can either work hard, I will personally kick you out of my gym. He said, I don't care. You got a Netflix document. He said, I don't care if you big. He said, if you want to come in here and work hard, I can make you into the champion you want to be. You want to be. And I was like, I'm with that. And so I started coming in every day, and I'm kid you not, I got beat up pretty bad for, like, three months before I really started to catch the hang of it. So say you're right here in your level, and this is where college is at. These guys are up here.

So Zion's showing us right now. If you're listening to the audio of this, if you're, like, in the middle part, like. Like, on a scale of 1 to 10, if you're around 5, that you. You are at a 5, and these guys were running at a 10 out.

Of 10 or higher, honestly, because you have guys that are in that gym, like Tyrone Woodley, Rampage Jackson, Chocolate. Like, some of the, like, most decorated UFC champions that have ever stepped in the cage.

How to an arena like that, like, how do you. What do you say to yourself when you're walking in there?

I don't know. I'm gonna. I'm gonna take down the biggest dude here. I want to take down the most savage dude here, and I gotta work my way up. Like, here's the thing. Everybody in there is good. Everybody is good. Everybody's a professional. Everybody has professional fights, professional title fights under their belt. And then there's me, and, you know, yeah, I'm a All American. Yeah, I did some big stuff in college, but those guys are all Americans, too. Those guys are national champions, too. They don't care. You know, they've been there, done that. They're on to the next thing. And so I walked in there and just started working my hardest. You Know, we have my boy Slice. He's actually a Kimbo Slice junior. We call him Baby Slice. So I kept like, you know. You know, Kimbo Slice is right. Yeah, yeah. His son Kevin and he's a savage. Dude has bricks for hands. I remember one day I just decided like, all right, I think I'm going to put the gloves on. I think I'm comfortable. And then he punches me in the mouth and I just get my brain rattled a little bit. And then I came back for more. You know, you got to have that mentality. The sport of fighting, even wrestling, once it gets to a certain level, it's not for everybody and it can get dangerous. That's why you have to like have some training. That's why you have to have some sort of skill. I didn't know if I had that type of skill and I didn't at first. But coach was like, like when my last coach, he was very patient with me and very instructive and savage all at the same time. And now I feel like I'm a very round fighter. I'm actually working on a possible contract with the organization, which I'd rather not say yet. That you definitely have heard of.

But we can imagine what it might be.

Yeah.

Zion, what you've done is amazing. And I've got to tell you, just from my personal experience, I want to talk a little bit about Unmatched, your new book, which is incredible by the way. You did such an amazing job. I have a 14 year old son and we were reading it together and my son was in awe. He first looked at, he said, mommy, he doesn't have legs. And I said, I know sweetheart, but let's, let's, let's see how the story unfolds. And we keep watching. And he says, mom, he's way more jacked than me. And it was so cute to hear the way he saw your story. Right. And how did he get so strong without light? He was really trying to understand, to apply it back to his life. Right. It was such a. And with your tattoo, no excuses. And I want to hear about that. You know, my son with this book looked at me and he said, I don't think I can make excuses anymore, can I? And I said, no my friend either, can I? And that was just like the. For any parent listening right now, this book, Unmatched, go right now to Amazon. It's an editor's pick by the way. I don't know if you saw that, which is unbelievable. That's amazing. Like 00 0.1% of books get Amazon editors pick but there's a reason why this book is so inspiring. It's so motivating. It's so, so beautifully done and I'm just. I'm blown away by it. So thank you for writing it.

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I feel really appreciated. Thank you. This book, you know, when I was writing it, the whole time I was writing it, I wasn't thinking about myself. Honestly. When I first got approached by Candlewick and we talked about this, I'm writing two more books. And those books are gonna be nothing like this. Because this book, I wanted to be very special to something that was important to me. And I told them, not that the other books aren't, but the other books are gonna tell my full story, the ins and outs. But this book, I wanted a younger audience to really understand and I wanted to be able to inspire a younger audience. And I wanted to be able to show them that like anything is possible, anything can be achieved, you know, And I felt that just with my daily interactions with kids, when it comes to speaking or just out in public, I like, I love, I love children. Like, honestly. And I just felt that if I could transfer that energy that I have when I'm with them into this book, the gap of misunderstanding would be completely close.

Oh, it's so true and so well done. I want to read two quick things from the book that I think are important for people to understand a little bit. This is not a heavy read. Okay, so here's one page that I just, I love. Technically I'm disabled, but I refuse to see my body as less than whole. There is a difference between not having legs and believing you are missing something. And I can't miss what I've never had that is so incredibly powerful as I am.

Thank you. It's a. It's how I feel, though. It's really how I choose to live. You know, people in this life, they don't see that bigger picture. They don't see what's on the other side. You know, for a while, I felt like I didn't see what was on the other side either. But at the same time, I took that chance to just step outside that line, step outside the comfort zone, even if it's just for a second. You need to get that taste of what it's like to really set yourself up apart from everybody else. Not in a bad way, but, like, be your own person, achieve your own great feats. You know, it's not about achieving what so and so did or doing what he did over there. You know, it's more about what can you do, what's something that you can achieve that's. That's unique to you?

Oh, that's. That just hit me right between the eyes. I'll tell you. That's because so often we just set a target of this is I want to be like that person and achieve that goal, and it has to unravel that way. But that really. Thank you for sharing that, because I realize it doesn't have to be that way. And in fact, the way that you've created all your success is going a completely new path that nobody ever thought of.

Yeah. You know, like I said before, it was. It was a gamble. You know, I went out to California with $150 in my pocket, and it was very challenging for the last couple of years. You know, I was back and forth between Ohio. I was, like, trying to set myself up. So I got, like, constant opportunities out in California, which is crazy, because after the Ellen DeGeneres Show, I was down there with my mom, a whole bunch of doors open, and I had a really serious talk with my mom before we were supposed to fly back to Ohio. And I was like, I don't think I'm going to come back. Like, that was one of the first times in my life where I really believed I was saying, like, I really believed what I was saying. And, like, on a level, to that extent, you know, I'm on the other side of the country, far, extremely far from home. And my mom was like, if you need anything, just let me know. I was like, I think I got this. Fast forward to now. I have my own place. I have my own crib in San Diego, California, which I'm so happy about. Never have to see the snow again. If I don't want to. That's always going to be, like, up there for me. But, like, seriously, it's just the opportunity that opened for me and the doors that opened. It was a journey. It was a process. You know, I failed a lot. I messed a lot of things up. I. It is a learning process. I practically went into these different types of industries when it comes to acting, being an author, being a motivational speaker, just being an entrepreneur in general. It's a tricky world, that's for sure. And I felt like I was. After a while, I felt one. I felt like I matured over the last couple of years, just navigating and experiencing new things and figuring things out, figuring life out for the most part. And now I feel really confident what's about to happen this next year. Some of the things I couldn't even talk about because they're, like, huge, but some very special things are happening with my team and I. We're all excited.

It's so exciting to see and thank you for sharing that you've had, you know, the past few years working on this. And that's all coming off of the success that you built and the tenacity that you build and the motivation and discipline that you built in your earlier years. Everything is building off the success that you've created for yourself from nothing. And with adversity every day coming at you in so many different directions, you just allow for no excuses. And that is the most powerful message that I think anyone can hear.

Thank you. You know, when it comes to no excuses, especially with the tat on my back, the way that came around, there's, like, two different stories behind it. The first half of the story was I really wanted a tattoo. My mom was like, you're not getting a tattoo until you're 18. And so I. When I finally learned that I made it to the state final, like the state championships, I was like, ma, let me make a deal. I was like, if I win a title, for every title I win, you owe me two tattoos, but you owe me a tattoo. And it was funny, and I didn't think she would go through with it. You know, I was 18, talking out my rear end on that one. But she was like, deal. And I was like, oh, okay. You know, not that I was incentive. I really wanted to be a state champ just because my sister wanted to. But, you know, my family, we always like to have our fun and stuff like that, but I ended up winning two titles, so my mom was like, all right, I'll buy you Two tattoos. So the first one I got was her name with a crown, and next one I got was no Excuses.

Well, it makes for unbelievable images in your book, so I will say you got an amazing mother that made an excellent decision.

Oh, yeah. Hey. My mom, she's. She is simply amazing. Another part of why I chose no Excuses is our assistant coach. Her name was Coach Percy. Percy McGee, actually. And this man was such. He's such a kind man, but at the same time, he. He was like our conditioning coach, too. And he would make me do extra stuff just because he wanted to see how far I would go. Like, he would honestly be like, see what my limits were. I remember I was in this match. It was a big tournament, senior year, and I was going up against this dude that was one of the top five guys in the state. Like, this isn't even, like, any qualifiers. It's just regular match, and, you know, we go into overtime. And I had torn my shoulder a little bit. Like, a big bruise on my shoulder, and it just. I was really starting to kind of give up a little bit. And he literally, like, grabbed me by my shirt, like, by my single, and, like, picked me up and told me, like, he's like, you better not. You better not quit. He's like, this guy, you can beat him. You've been hanging with him this whole time. He's like, why can't you beat him? He's like, you should be able to go over there and take him down. And he sits me on the ground, smacks me on my back super hard, and was like, no excuses. He, let's go.

And what happened in that match?

Dude tried to jump over me, and I caught his legs in midair and won. The match was a huge upset.

No excuses for the win. That was it right there. Defying moments.

Yeah. And it just. That moment stuck with me forever because, like, that was also the match. As soon as I won a match like that, three different colleges that were at that tournament, like, three different representatives came out to me. Three different college offers just like that.

Well, this is a defining moment for me. Zion, it's been such a pleasure having you on the show. I'm so grateful for you creating Unmatched for the books that you haven't written yet, for the Netflix special and for what you're going to do next that I can't wait to see. How does everyone find you and how does everyone find Unmatched?

You can find Unmatched. You can actually go into Target if you want to go into a Target. And buy it. You can order on Amazon, you can get it off Indigo. You can get it from Barnes and Nobles also. And then to find me, my handles are. My Instagram handle is big_z_ 2020. My Facebook, Zion, Clark, Snapchat. Big_z97. Definitely subscribe to that. I'll be doing a whole bunch of different adventures on there. A lot of funny content. YouTube. Sign on, Clark.

All right, well, we're going to be adding you on Snapchat. I did not know about that yet. My son is going to be extra happy. We will be cheering you on on the sidelines. Can't wait to see what you do next, Zion. Keep going with no excuses.

Thank you.

All right. Until next week, we'll be creating our confidence. I hope you will be, too. I decided to change that dynamic. I couldn't be more excited for what you're gonna hear. Start learning and growing. Inevitably something will happen. No one succeeds alone.

You don't stop and look around once in a while. You could miss it.

Come on this journey with me.