Thirty Minute Mentors Podcast Transcript: Boxing Hall of Famer Laila Ali

I recently interviewed Laila Ali on my podcast, Thirty Minute Mentors. Here is a transcript of our interview:

Adam: Our guest today is a member of the Boxing Hall of Fame. Laila Ali is one of the greatest female boxers of all time, going undefeated over the course of her career, holding four different super middleweight titles, and a light heavyweight title. Laila, thank you for joining us.

Laila: Hi, how are you doing?

Adam: I'm doing great. How are you?

Laila: Good. Thanks for having me on.

Adam: Thanks for being here. You grew up in an environment that was anything but normal. You grew up surrounded by celebrity visitors, surrounded by hangers. The biggest celebrity of them all was your dad, Muhammad Ali. And as a teenager, you had some experiences that one might not associate with that upbringing. You spent time working at McDonald's, you also spent time in juvenile hall? Can you take listeners back to your early days? What experiences and lessons shaped your worldview and shaped the trajectory of your success?

Laila: Absolutely. My normal was unlike anyone else's. But it was mine. It was the only life that I knew. And as you mentioned, my father being a global icon, one of the most famous and loved men that ever lived. Yeah, that's not an ordinary situation, right? But my father was a very loving man, a very giving man but he was also a very busy man. So as I got older, and started to really find myself and try to figure out who I was because I had this natural thing in me from the beginning, that I wanted to be Laila. I didn't want to just be Muhammad Ali's daughter. And because everywhere I went growing up, it was just crowds around us and autograph signing. And I didn't really want that for myself, and I kind of shied away from it. So as I was trying to find myself, I also realized I was kind of a rebel without a cause. And that's how I ended up getting myself into trouble. Just really trying to get as far away as I could from my neighborhood, my family, friends just were people would just know me as just Laila, not Muhammad Ali's daughter. And in that, I ended up hanging around some of the wrong people and getting into trouble and ditching school. You know, like I said, I had this rebel in me. I had this anger in me, also. And I wrote about it in my first book, Reach! Finding Strength, Spirit, and Personal Power, because a lot of people wonder how I got into boxing in the first place. And a lot of that is in there. But some of the things that I went through that made me angry. And that pretty much is what really shaped who I am, is being Muhammad Ali's daughter venturing out of the neighborhood that you mentioned with the maids and the housekeepers and the hanger honors and kind of finding my own way, getting in trouble. No one was able to come to rescue me like when I got locked up in juvenile hall, it didn't matter who my father was. I had to stay there and do the time that I had to do. And I did a lot of thinking. And when I came out on the other end, I was a whole different person. I had that same tenacity, that same drive, but it was very focused. And I was ready to get on with my life. So that was actually a really good experience. I wouldn't ever want my children to go through it. But being that I did, it really shaped a lot of who I am now.

Adam: You mentioned your first book, you mentioned that experience in juvenile hall. And in your first book, a key theme was all these experiences you had that are not so sunny, significant failures, significant setbacks, significant obstacles that you had to overcome. And that's also a key theme of this podcast, how anyone can overcome failures, setbacks, and obstacles to become successful in their lives and their careers, and how failure can be a gateway to success. And I want to know if you could share with listeners what you consider to be the most significant of those experiences. How you were able to overcome them and what advice do you have for anyone listening on how they can overcome the failures, setbacks, and challenges that they might encounter in their lives or in their careers?

Laila: It's so tough to pinpoint just one most significant one because there's been so many and there's a collection and there's going to continue to be. I'm very blessed and thankful that at a young age, I realized that nobody was perfect and a lot of that comes through just being Muhammad Ali's daughter and watching this man that everyone put on a pedestal and knowing his mistakes, knowing his faults, and being absolutely normal, it was okay. So it really shaped the way that I viewed the world, the way that I viewed others, the way that I viewed myself. And I think that the first thing is just our mindset is so important. You have to know that you're going to make mistakes, you have to know that there's going to be obstacles, you're going to be okay, this is the challenge of life. And my father even taught us that and sat us down at a young age, it's like, it's a blessing to know that God was willing to give you that challenge because you know, you can overcome it and look at a system no matter how you look at things. So for me, like I said, I'm really thankful that I went through, I'm the only one out of nine children that had that experience that went to juvenile hall. And by the way, then went to a placement at a group home. I couldn't even go back home, I had to go live with a group home full of girls, and graduate the program and prove that I was able to go back home. And I learned so much that I wouldn't have learned just being in the house with a silver spoon in my mouth. And those things, those people that I met, those experiences that I witnessed, hearing other people's stories, I was exposed to, to be able to see a different point of view a different way. Otherwise, how would I know? You only know what you know, you know? I had maids, ya know? Everyone didn't have that, everyone didn't have loving parents, everyone didn't have a safe space to come home to and there were so many stories that I learned from these girls. I was like, man, what am I mad about? And it just kind of changed my mindset. And I came out ready to go. I always had it in me. But it was misdirected. But if you don't pity yourself, and you say, okay, you know what, I'm gonna face this challenge, I'm gonna overcome it. You come up with a plan, and you execute. That's pretty much how I approach everything in life.

Adam: I love it. Getting out of your comfort zone, in your case, you were forced out of your comfort zone. But by being pushed out of your comfort zone, you were able to become successful, having a diversity of perspectives and developing the right perspective, having that focus, focusing on a goal focusing on whatever that goal is, having that focus is going to allow you to get there.

Laila: Absolutely. And the undertone of everything from the time I was young was I wanted to be independent. I wanted to move out of the house, I want to make my own rules, you know, I said, I always just kind of want to be a boss. And it really was my motivation. You know, inspiration is one thing, when you're inspired that can only last sometimes some hours a day that goes away. But the motivation is that thing, your why when that's the thing I would always keep coming back to, and then I had to learn how to be dedicated to pull it off, you know, but I really wanted to move out of the house. I grew up in a very dysfunctional household with my mother when she got remarried. And I just want to get out of there. So then I said you know what, how can I get out of this house and make my own money? So I started going to school to learn how to do nails, I took the bus after school, the public city bus from the California Los Angeles area where I lived in Venice at the time Venice Beach, and I'd go all the way to like the hood like currently on Crenshaw on 54th to the city and got my manicuring license and moved out the house by the time I was 18. I had Leyland's nail studio and Marina del Rey built up a full clientele. And that took a lot to be 18 at the time and already be living on my own, already paying my own car, already paying my own bills and managing a full clientele, and going to City College. So you can imagine looking back now wasn't a big deal back then. But I look back now. And I look at my children at 13. And like, man, I can't imagine. Now without doing things. I'm now doing things I didn't need to be doing. But I'm just saying like, man, like 18 doing all of that. So now I can really pat myself on the back. But it was the desire to be independent. It was the desire to be successful. Whatever my idea of success was back then, I wanted to have nail salons all over the world. So that's how I started.

Adam: And you transition from being a nail salon owner to being a professional boxer, and you did so against the wishes of your father. And that took a lot of courage because your father was not just any other dad. Your father was a man synonymous with boxing. How did you muster the strength to go against the wishes of your dad, Muhammad Ali, and go into boxing and make it happen for you?

Laila: You know, I went against the wishes of my father so many times. I'm like the youngest one that you know, he's like, oh gosh, he or she is my last baby girl. I'm the one that said, “Daddy, I don't want to be Muslim” when I was eight years old and he thought I was crazy. Like how do you even know what you want to be? And I said I knew it wasn't my heart. What can you say? I'm the one that moved out of the house at 18. At one point, I moved in with a boyfriend and he's like, you know, you're not living in sin. I'm like, wait a minute, I'm not Muslim, you don't pay my bill. You know, he's looking at me like, oh, gosh. And then when I decided I wanted to become a boxer, that was a whole nother thing, because here he is the famous known person in the family for boxing, the greatest of all time. And now you have your daughter coming behind you who didn't believe women should be boxing in the first place. He had no idea women box just like I did until I saw women's boxing. For the first time on television when I went to go watch a Mike Tyson fight. And all of a sudden, these women come into the ring. And I was in absolute awe and astonishment. And just like, oh my God, how did I not know that this was a sport? Now mind you, I hadn't participated in sports. Remember, I wasn't doing well in school. I had been ditching and all of that well, when I was in high school. So I didn't have discipline. Right now, I learned this from my kids about how much discipline it takes as a child and a parent to play team sports because your parents totally have to support you and take you to practice and be there for you. And I didn't have that. By the way, I regret that I didn't play team sports. But I had no sports background. So I went home dreaming of becoming a boxer. And like, just imagining how good I could because I've always been a fighter. I was always physically strong. But I didn't know if I had the skill. So I went home dreaming about it inspired, but then the fear set in. How can I do that? What about my plans? The panelists' lives around the world, what was my dad gonna think? And I talked myself out of it. And then it took me about a year of contemplation and a few other things that happened in my life that made me say, “You know what? I'm going to do what I want to do. I don't care what anyone else thinks”. So I went to the gym, started training, I made that sound really easy. But I searched for a trainer and started going to the gym in the evening. I was like, just tell me if I have any natural talent. And every night after school, and after work, after scrubbing feet and doing the hills, I'd be at that gym, at 9 pm, ready to learn. And about three months into it, I fell all the way in love. Six months into it, I decided, okay, I'm gonna go pro and the news got back around to my dad. And that's when he proceeded to try to talk me out of it. And it didn't work. That was a funny conversation. It's funny now looking back on it, but it was a heated conversation because he had heard I was in the gym. And I said, “Yeah, that's true”. And he said, “Do you know how hard this would be? The whole world is going to be watching you? And what about when you get in that ring, and all those lights are gonna be on and there's gonna be crowds of people around you” like setting the scene for me like Doomsday, “then you get in the ring. And what did you get knocked down?”. I'm like, “Well, I'm gonna get back up just like you did”. And he's like, well, what if this, what if that and I said, “Look, I've already made up my mind. And this is what I want to do”. And he said, “I don't want you to do it. It's not for you. It's not for women. It's a man's sport. Don't do it”. And I was like, “I appreciate your concern. I respect how you feel. But this is my life. And I've already made my decision”. And that was that. So he respected me deeply. And he also knew that he needed to support me publicly as my father, but he absolutely did not like it at all.

Adam: So many important lessons there. One lesson is that, if you're Muhammad Ali, you could influence millions and millions of people around the world. But that doesn't mean that you can influence your own kid. But another important lesson is the importance of standing up, standing up for what you believe in, standing up for your true self, standing up for what you believe is the right path for you. If your parents think that you should do something, and you think you should do something else, if society thinks you should do something, and you think you should do something else, no one knows you better than yourself. Believe in yourself, have confidence in yourself, have conviction that you know what is right for you.

Laila: Absolutely. And the crazy thing about it is, that's what I learned from my father. So he did have an influence on me. You see, you just can't pick and choose. What we have to remember with our children is that they're always watching. We pick up the things sometimes you don't necessarily want us to pick up and or use them in a way that you don't necessarily want us to use them. But I was him all over again. I'm so much like my father in so many ways. And he's looking at me, he's looking at himself. And I did have conviction. I did have determination. I did the hard work. And you know, he came to me after. I don't remember, a couple of years of fighting, a couple of world titles, and apologized and cried and I cried. And he said, “I'm sorry, I was wrong telling you that you couldn't fight and that women couldn't fight. You can fight and women can fight”. But he wasn't telling me that he liked it. Because I'm still his baby girl. And he's also, with his religion, he wasn't even comfortable with me wearing a sports bra and shorts in the ring. But that was his problem as far as I was concerned. I was like, “Look, I don't have anything to do with that. This is a professional outfit. I've got to get in the ring and I've got to go fight”. But he totally apologized and gave his blessings. And I'm telling you, for me, for someone who has said, I don't care what he thinks, is what I'm telling myself because I had to, I don't care what he thinks, I don't care if he doesn't come to the fight, I'm going to do this with it without him, I built up this armor around me. And still, I did care. I didn't want him to tell me that I was good. I didn't want him to tell me that I had a good job. And that he was proud of me for knocking these girls out. So that was like one of the biggest moments even though I knew he didn't like it, that didn't matter, but just the respect because only he and I out of everyone in the family can make that connection of what it's actually like to get into the ring for battle. So my father and I connected on a whole nother level.

Adam: Lila you mentioned a few of them so far throughout our conversation, but what are the best lessons that you've learned from your father, Muhammad Ali?

Laila: One is definitely like I said, I really, really rely a lot on my intuition. On my judgment when it comes to character. And I learned so much of that from my father. My father used to literally sit us down and talk to us for hours. I didn't like it back then obviously, because it's like, wow, you know, but you know how it is like, you don't like to keep our attention so long, I have to remind my husband because he's kind of like my dad with the kids. I'm like, “Babe, they can't listen to you for two hours, you say the same thing over and over”. But a lot of it soaks in and just having the opportunity. There's people who know my father better than I do. I'm talking about his timeline of events and things that he's done because I'm not a fan of my father. I don't study Muhammad Ali, I don't study every single thing that he's done, or I haven't watched every single fight, all of that. But he would get in the car with us after he sat there and sign these autographs, or after he would entertain people or just all the kind things that he did. And then he would come and explain to us why he did the things that he did, why he just spoke to the waitress for 15 minutes and hugged her and gave her a nice tip. He said these people think you're not paying attention to them and it makes such a big change in their life. She's gonna remember that for the rest of her life, he really cared about how he touched people. Those were the special moments because you can go watch the Muhammad Ali documentary. And look, trust me, if someone went up against me in a contest of Muhammad Ali trivia I would lose. If you go to the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, there's like this wall, all these just accomplishments. So that's what I meant when I said I don't study him. But nobody has ever experienced him, like his children, his family, in terms of his intention. So everything I do, I do with the best intentions. And it really is something that I learned from my father, and then I have faith, I just have faith in the outcome. Because when you can feel like you put your all into something and you did it for the right reason, doesn't mean you were right. It's just that your heart was in the right place. Then you can really say, you know what? Whatever happens, happens. May the chips fall where they may. And you can literally have faith in that and be okay with whatever the outcome is. Because when you have faith, which I do because I obviously was brought up with faith, I'm not a religious person, but I know that there's a higher being, we're all here for a reason. That's what I believe. So you can really just let go. And it just gives you so much competence in life, because you're not worried about what other people think, you're not worried about making the wrong choice. Because I can pray about things and I can listen to my intuition and I can do what feels right to me, I can do what I know is the right thing to do. I'm not trying to step on others to get ahead. That's another lesson my dad taught me: never step on others to get ahead. People do it all the time. It happens on so many levels. So I know that this was a big answer to your question. But that's the most valuable thing I have within me in my life. Because I can apply it to any situation. And no matter who's in the room, I can walk in competence. I don't care how much money you have, I don't care how many accomplishments you have. There's literally people who look at people as above them because they have more money, or because they have a higher position, or because of their title. I'm not allowed to do that. I can't even relate to any of that. And my father was the same way. It's like, who are you as a person? How do you treat other people? These are the things that are important to me. These are the things that we're going to take with us. And once we're not here anymore, you're not going to be able to take your money, you're not gonna be able to take your cars, not gonna be able to take any of that. Only going to be you're going to be able to take as your heart your character, your soul, those things aren't important to me, it's not deep, just a day to day thing of just making the right choices.

Adam: There's so much great stuff there. And I want to unpack some of it. Doing things for the right reason, the importance of being a good person, leading with passion, understanding that you're part of something bigger than yourself, not stepping on others, but uplifting others, and not judging people based on their title or based on their status, but really appreciating people for who they are appreciating people, for their character for their goodness. And as I was listening to you describing what you took away from your dad, I'm also thinking about some of the characteristics of what makes great leaders great. And to that end, I want to ask you, what do you believe are the key characteristics of a great leader? And what can anyone do to become a better leader?

Laila: Well, definitely, you have to lead by example, a leader is someone that definitely should inspire and uplift people. Where people are like, man, I want to be like that person. And being consistent in that, being able to listen to others, to accept input, because no matter how good you are at what you do, you cannot do it alone. Everybody needs that team, the right team, but a team of people around them. And never thinking that you can't grow that you can't get better. More heads are always better than one and being able to accept constructive criticism. And like I said, I think that a leader is just someone who can take a group of people or work with a group of people, and make everybody feel like they're a part of the group, that they're just as important. That to me is what a good leader is. But there's so much more that I could probably say, but I think at the end of the day, that's what it comes down to.

Adam: You really hit the nail on the head, great leaders lead by example, great leaders are great listeners, great leaders are lifelong learners. And great leaders understand that. It's not about me, it's about us. It's about making everyone around me better. It's about uplifting the team,

Laila: You're really good at taking the things that I say. We need to write a book together. 

Adam: Sounds good to me. 

Laila: I'm just saying that off the top of my head. I'm like, that sounds good. 

Adam: Well, Laila, one of the things that you mentioned early on in our conversation, was the importance of mindset. And that's important, whether you want to be a successful entrepreneur, starting a nail salon. That's important, whether you want to be successful in the ring. And I want to know if you could share with listeners, what you believe anyone could do to develop a winning mindset?

Laila: Well, one of the things that I've talked about is setting that foundation, leveling the playing field, in your own mind. A lot of times we psych ourselves out. What is that self-talk that you have in your head? You're gonna lift yourself up, or you're gonna pull yourself down. It's gonna be I can do it, this is why I can do it, I can get better, I just need to work on X, Y, and Z, or it's, I'm not going to be able to do this, everybody else is better than me. That's just the basic example of what I'm saying and what that self-talk is because you have a coach in your head. So what kind of coach is in your head? And I think that leveling the playing field, and really understanding that nobody's perfect, everyone's going to make mistakes, just accept that that's going to happen. And when it happens, it's not that big of a deal. You definitely want to highlight the things that you can be stronger at instead of I'm not good at this, this is something I can improve upon. Just that whole idea of that self-talk and what you say. What you put out into the universe is so important. So I think that everybody isn't good at everything. We know that there's some people that really want to be a pro basketball player, but they just don't have what it takes. That's just that, at the end of the day, what you want isn't always right for you. So for whatever reason, if you couldn't make it, there's something else for you. But you have to really take that same determination and apply it to something else that you're passionate about. And I think it's really important to have that passion. Because when it does get hard, which it will when the challenges come which they will, you have to be able to like yeah, we get knocked down. Sometimes he might be a little down, but then your passion gets you back up. And the next day you gotta be like, you know what? I'm going to try another way. I'm going to come from another angle. You're going to figure something out, but that's love and passion. So people are like some people just don't know what I am passionate about. I don't know what, it's whatever you would do for free, that thing that you would do for free if you could and then it just really comes down to figuring out how you can turn it into a business for yourself or something. So it really all starts in the mind. You have to believe that you can achieve it. They always say that. But then comes the hard work, not just the inspiration. Like I say, I inspire people regularly, probably, oh, I saw what you were doing your 14-day cleanse on Instagram, but then they don't actually go purchase the cleanse and do the cleanse, or they might purchase the cleanse and leave it sitting there. They don't actually do the cleanse. So it's like, you always have to remember why? Why do you want it? Why do you want to be successful at something? What is the end goal? Because those are the things that can get you about a bit every day to go and work in the direction of whatever that goal is because life is going to happen. Obstacles are going to happen, doubt is going to set in, there's going to be times when you're tired, you just don't feel like it. So you always kind of stay connected. And there's so many different ways to do that. But that's really what it is. In general, I think anybody can do anything that they put their mind to and are willing to work at.

Adam: I think that's great. And something that I tell audiences that I speak to, you mentioned that everyone isn't good at everything. I think that most people in life are bad at most things. I could tell you, Laila that, if I had to tell you everything that I'm bad at, we could spend the entire episode just on that. And that would give us enough time for it.

Laila: I'm bad at some things that people will be surprised about, like I'm not organized. When it comes to even my email, I got like 50,000 emails in my inbox. And I was like, doing a live Zoom meeting with someone I just hired, the operations manager that she shared a screen with and I was just looking at how organized her inbox and she was. I was like, I just wish I knew how to do it. And when I told her she's like, oh, no, I have to help you, we have to set some time aside. I was like, please do. Because if I could just be so much more efficient. But there's just certain things I'm just not good at. And a lot of it comes from my upbringing. It comes from not having someone sit me down with certain things. And I'm not talking about the inbox right now. But I'm saying just some of the things that I didn't learn just growing up in the house because I had different nannies because my mom wasn't there. Because I was kind of all over the place. I spent the night at a friend's house. So there's just a lot of things I missed out on. And it just is what it is, you know, you can't have it all.

Adam: But when you recognize what you're not good at. And you understand that we're all good at a few things. And we all have that one thing about us that makes us special, that makes us different, that makes us unique. And we can fully appreciate what our superpower is. That's the first step to getting to that next level of success. And what I try to share is that what you want to do, and you're trying to figure out what to do with your life, you want to try to check three boxes. You want to try to find something that you love doing, you want to try to find something that you're great at, and you want to try to find something that allows you to make a positive impact in the lives of others. And if you can do all three of those things, you found it, that's it. It doesn't feel like work. It's fun. And to your point, the magic is in the doing. It's great to say, I'm going to do a 14-day cleanse and sign up for it. And then wonder, well, why didn't I get the results? But you ultimately have to do it. And if you're going to set a goal, that is something that you really, really want to do. And you're well equipped to do it, you're motivated to do it aligns with what you're great at doing. And you feel like doing it is going to allow you to make a positive impact, you're gonna do it, you're gonna make it happen.

Laila: Absolutely. And you have to figure out what that thing is that works. I'm a competitor, I don't like to lose. And that means even for a goal that I set for myself that nobody knows about, it's the same thing. I don't want to not finish something that I started, that's really important to me. But sometimes things get in the way. And it doesn't mean I didn't care. So that's why I have to set up some sort of accountability for myself so that I stick to certain things because it is easy to just fall off the wagon. But that's why I always have to remember my why, even if it's just to make myself a sticky note, and put it up on my mirror. Someone else reads it, they might not even understand what it says or what it means. But for me, it's gonna it's something that I know is going to remind me at the start of the day, so I can stay focused because life is going to happen. And if you don't set something up for yourself as some sort of accountability or reminder of your why and why you're doing something, it's really easy to fall off.

Adam: And a big focus for you right now is your lifestyle brand. Can you share with listeners what you've learned by building this lifestyle brand and what your best tips are on the topics of branding and personal branding?

Laila: Well for me, when I retired from boxing, I was like what am I going to do now? I had boxed for 10 years and I loved it and I was in love with it. It really is my first love. But I ran out of opposition that was keeping me inspired. And I wanted to start a family. So I decided to retire. And then I had different opportunities. I did Dancing with the Stars because of a strategic move because it was 40 million viewers a week. And I boxed myself into where I was just this intimidating boxer and everyone was always talking about knocking somebody out every time you saw me. I wanted to show a different side of myself. So that was the start of my TV career. And then I was making money. You know, I was on shows. I was hosting television shows with Hulk Hogan, but I wasn't satisfied inside. I said, what do I really want to do that will make me happy?' And I loved helping people reach their goals when it came to their health and wellness when it came to their mindset. So I started Laila Ali Lifestyle, the lifestyle that I came up with my three pillars of your mindset, your purpose, and your health. And those are the three things that are the most important things for you to have. And you could sign up on lailaali.com, and sign up to my replenish you series where it gets you started. I have nutrition products for health. I mentioned the 14-day cleanse, which is awesome. And then I have a passion for healthy cooking. So I created spice blends and that was just inspired because I've competed on Chopped and won. And the reason why I won is because I flavored the food really well and studied my cookbook Food For Life. And then I followed up with my spice blends, which are organic, non-GMO spices because we don't want to be sprinkling poison on our food every day with chemicals and fillers and colors. And some of the things that are refined salt, sugar, things that are in a lot of seasonings. So I learned all of this through my boxing career. I had to learn how to be my best in the ring. And a lot of that had to do with what I was eating, what supplements I was taking that made me more superior, I went as far as I could go in every category as an elite athlete. And I didn't want that to end when I got out of the ring. So there's different stages in your life. I'm not 22, lean, mean fighting machine anymore, you have children, I have a busy mom life. And I really wanted to just go with the flow in terms of how my body changes and encourage others so that they can be healthy, and they can start at any time. I was healthy 15-20 years ago, and I'm healthier now because I'm more educated about certain things. So I just want to encourage people to be the best version of themselves. And being that we live in a country where we have such high rates of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, all these things that most of the time, our choices that we're making for ourselves. These are things that you can change, you can wake up and make a change, take control of your life, and you can do it in baby steps. I'm passionate about helping Americans and anyone else. Find that true health and wellness, that true competence, that true strong mindset that's going to help them be the greatest version of themselves. And most recently, which I'm super excited about is my partnership with At Home. I have a Laila Ali At Home home decor brand, which is amazing because I remember 15 years ago thinking to myself, I wanted to be like Martha Stewart. Here I am now, in my own home decor line, where people can go and get pots and pans and blankets and towels and anything you can think of for your home. And it's all just beautiful, beautiful items from a great partner at At Home. So I have my home decor, I have my nutrition, I have a skincare line, people can go to my website, and they can get boxing paraphernalia, which I donate the proceeds to charity and the nutrition products. So I really feel like I've accomplished a lot. I went back to that entrepreneurial spirit that I've had ever since I hit the nail salon. So everything has really come full circle.

Adam: Laila, what can anyone listening to this conversation do to become more successful personally and professionally?

Laila: Follow your heart, follow your intuition, do what's best for you. Stop worrying about what other people think. And surround yourself with people who are going to support you and uplift you. Who you spend your time with makes such a big difference in your life. You don't want to just be the smartest, most knowledgeable, most successful one in your circle of five closest people. You meet other people who are going to help uplift you, not just be the one that's always lifting everyone else up. So I think that those are things anyone can do. Anyone can look around and say, who do I have around me? Does this person make me feel good? And this person makes me feel like I can go out and accomplish anything because the person inspires me. Has this person been successful in this life? Their life? Does this person have a successful relationship with their partner? These are the things you want to be around. You don't want it to be the opposite of everything I just said.

Adam: Laila, thank you for all the great advice and thank you for being a part of Thirty Minute Mentors. 

Laila: Thank you, Adam.

Adam Mendler is the CEO of The Veloz Group, where he co-founded and oversees ventures across a wide variety of industries. Adam is also the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. Adam has written extensively on leadership, management, entrepreneurship, marketing and sales, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities and non-profit organizations.

Follow Adam on Instagram and Twitter at @adammendler and listen and subscribe to Thirty Minute Mentors on your favorite podcasting app.