If I see a black kid in a hoodie and it's late at night, I'm walking to the other side of the street. And if on that side of the street, there's a guy that has tattoos all over his face, white guy, bald head, tattoos everywhere, I'm walking back to the other side of the street, and the list goes on of stereotypes that we all live up to and are fearful of.

Once you are prepared and you think you have every angle of preparation covered, you have to go for it.

It's not about money or connections. It's the willingness to outwork and outlearn everyone.

Am I crazy to spend [millions] in contracts when I have the chance to get three layers deep into the playoffs?

I was lucky. I grew up knowing that hard work and smart work has a greater impact on results than being passionate about something.

I love the competitive aspect of it [business]. It's like playing chess. Why do people play chess? Knowing the realm of moves? Even when you get to be a chess master, there are other chess masters you want to beat or outperform. And to me business is just a sport that I love to compete in; a continuous intellectual challenge that really motivates me.

Never follow your dreams. Follow your effort. It's not about what you can dream of. That's easy. It's about whether or not it's important enough to you to do the work to be ready to be successful in that business.