As long as humans have endeavored to do anything great, there have been those who have tried to take them down. These are the opposite of the creators in life: the bullies, haters and naysayers who only want to bring people down to their level.
But when you have a dream and desire, its easy to tune out the voices of negativity. "It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better,ā Theodore Roosevelt once said. āThe credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena."
Some folks use the naysayers as fuel to push them to work even harder. Basketball legend Michael Jordan was infamous for letting his thirst for revenge drive him to even greater heights on the court.
Another Michael Jordan, "Black Panther" star, Michael B. Jordan, came face to face with someone who doubted that he could reach his dreams, and he wasnāt shy about letting her know that he remembered. What's Upworthy about the encounter is that he did so with class and confidence.
In 2023, Jordan was on the red carpet for the premiere of "Creed III," a film he starred in and directed. He was interviewed by āThe Morning Hustleā radio show host Loreāl, who had recently admitted on the āUndressing Roomā podcast that she used to make fun of him in school.
āYou know whatās so crazy? I went to school with Michael B. Jordan at a point in life,ā Loreāl said. āAnd to be honest with you, we teased him all the damn time because his name was Michael Jordan. Letās start there, and he was no Michael Jordan.ā
āHe also would come to school with a headshot,ā she added. āWe lived in Newark. Thatās the hood. We would make fun of him like, āWhat you gonna do with your stupid headshot?ā And now look at him!ā
In addition, her co-host, Eva Marcille, referred to Jordan as ācorny.ā
Jordan had no problem discussing their past on the red carpet. āWe go way back, all the way back to Chad Science [Academy] in Newark,ā Loreāl told the actor. Oh yeah, I was the corny kid, right?ā Jordan responded with a smirk.
āNo, you did not hear me say that! I said we used to make fun of the name,ā Loreāl said.
āI heard it,ā Jordan said. āI heard it. Itās all good. Whatās up?ā he responded. āBut yeah, [you are] obviously killing things out hereā¦youāre not corny anymore,ā Loreāl clarified.
After the exchange went viral, Loreāl admitted that she teased Jordan in school, but they were only classmates for one year.
āSo the narrative that I bullied him all throughout high schoolāthis was 7th grade. We were like 12 years old, and everyone made fun of each other,ā Loreāl said. āThat was school, you know. That was one year. And, again, Iāve never bullied him. That just sounds so outrageous to me.ā
Jordan later shared some advice on how to deal with bullies.
"Just stay focused, just stay locked in,ā he told a reporter from Complex. āYou know, just follow your heart, try to block out the noise and distractions as much as possible and run your race. Don't compare yourself to anybody else. Just keep going."