The Rock Says He Still Acts Like He's "Days Away from Being Evicted" in New Facebook Video

From Prevention

• Dwayne Johnson opened up about his reasons for living in a new Facebook video.

• The Rock said growing up "broke" shaped his drive for success.

• Today, Johnson says family and legacy are most important to him.

We all have our reasons for getting up in the morning. For some, it's to do a job we're passionate about, while for others, it's to take care of loved ones who are important to us. For Dwayne Johnson, it's a little bit of both.

On March 21, The Rock did a Q&A on Facebook, where he answered fans' questions about his reasons for living. He said his "why" has evolved over time, beginning when he was a teenager as he vowed to make a better living for himself. "I didn't want to be broke. That was my 'why,'" he said in the video. When The Rock was 13 years old, he lived in a one bedroom efficiency apartment with his dad Rocky Johnson and mom Ata Johnson.

"We were evicted out of that, forced off the island of Hawaii. But that became a defining moment for me, because it motivated me to just get to the gym," he said. "In my mind, that was the only way that I wasn’t going to be broke." The actor thought he could do something about his financial situation by building his body and making "something out of myself."

Johnson transformed into the athlete he set out to be. In 1991, the actor attended the University of Miami and played football as a defensive tackle.

"Even throughout college playing for the U, I just did not want to be broke, and that was my 'why,'" he said. Once The Rock graduated and made his World Wrestling Federation debut in 1996, his reason for living evolved from general financial stability to making a living through wrestling.

Living in Memphis, Tennessee, Johnson said he was often "starving"—only making $40 per match. He would eat at the same diner three times a day, because he said it was all he could afford. "I felt like I was living my passion, and I felt that money’s going to come. And even if money didn’t come, I was just so grateful I was doing something I loved," he said.

When the actor turned 29, his reason for living changed forever: Johnson welcomed his oldest daughter Simone. At the time, he was already a professional wrestler and said he finally felt comfortable financially. "But when I held Simone, I realized in that moment, the power of living for something more important than myself. And I had never experienced that in my life," he said. "My 'why' then became my daughter," he said.

Today, it should come as no surprise that Johnson's reason for living is his family. "These days my 'why' is my daughters Simone, Jasmine, and Baby Tia. My family, my wife, my loved ones, and my friends who I keep very close to me," he said. "That’s my 'why,' taking care of them."

Johnson added that legacy is also really important to him. "Being acutely aware of the decisions I make and trying to make the best decisions for my family and my legacy, 'cause our legacy is all we have," he explains. "When we’re walking in the clouds, the legacy we leave behind is what becomes real. That’s the anchor. That’s history, we made history. "

"And to me, legacy isn’t about being famous or anything like that," he continued. "Legacy applies to all of us. It is our legacy that makes up who we are. It’s what we leave behind. So, these days my legacy is my family [and] my loved ones."

Even though Johnson was the highest paid actor of 2019, he says he's still shaped by how he grew up. "I still operate every day like my back is against the wall, like I’m two days away from still being evicted, like I still have $7 in my pocket," The Rock shared. "That mindset is in the forefront of my mind. That keeps me smart, it keeps me motivated, it keeps me hungry, it also keeps my therapist very busy too."

He closed with a message to his fans about the coronavirus pandemic. "Stay strong, try and stay healthy," he said. "Let’s get through this thing, I believe that we will."

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