WWE Legend John Cena Explains Importance Of Authenticity

John Cena's followed his "Hustle, Loyalty, Respect" moniker throughout most of his WWE career, inspiring many fans to work hard, stay true, and do the right thing. During an appearance on "The Romesh Ranganathan Show," Cena recalled first implementing the catchphrase in his own life and what it's meant for his life and career.

"What's the best advice [I've] been given? Show up early, outwork everybody. ... The second-best piece of advice, I think is the best piece of advice I've ever been given: be authentic. Be who you are," he recalled. Cena then explained that every single person he's ever looked up to seemed to implement this exact philosophy in their lives as well. 

"Be authentic, because your failures are going to happen. When they happen, you lose as you," he added. "You can have a takeaway, a teachable moment, and when you win, you succeed as you, and the get is that much greater." Cena explained that this mindset has allowed him to deal with imposter syndrome and similar feelings.

When he first became popular in WWE, Cena was known as the "Doctor of Thuganomics," and built parts of his persona around his rapping skills. According to Cena, his dedication to authenticity was behind choosing to record and release a rap album at the time. 

"We got local artists from the New England scene, and we kind of had Freddy Fox — Bumpy Knuckles — oversee the whole thing," he recounted. "The through line and the ethos of it was to just make an album that, hopefully, that hip-hop heads and rappers would be like, 'Hmmm, alright. I didn't see that one coming.'"

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "The Romesh Ranganathan Show," and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.