Be inspired and gain insight into the source of motivation that Rocky Balboa shared with the world through his riveting inspirational speech.
The character of Rocky has always been one that people have found inspiring for the last few decades. The story of the character first started with Rocky (1976) and continued for three decades, with the previous film happening in 2006. Although there are beautiful and inspirational moments in all of the movies, a speech by Sylvester Stallone as Rocky Balboa has surprised people worldwide. Stallone may never realise the legacy he will one day leave behind or all the lives he has had an incredible impact on.
The Inspirational Speech
In the 2006 movie Rocky Balboa, Rocky talks to his son and shares some harsh truths about what the world looks like. This speech has come a long way, and several people find it inspirational. He starts by talking about how much love he felt for his son when he was just born, how he adored how small he was, and how he fits into his hand. Then, he tells his son that from day one, he would tell his mother that this little guy would be the best kid in the world.
I think that one of the reasons that this speech touches so many people is because of how he talks about watching his son grow up to be “good and wonderful”. “Watching you was great, and every day was like a privilege.” Many parents who watch this speech feel the same about their children, while children who miss their parents want to hear that.
The speech takes a turn when Rocky Balboa talks about watching his son get older, becoming a man and getting ready to take on the world. The turn comes when Balboa looks at his son heartbroken and says that the poor boy has changed and stopped being himself somewhere along the line. “And when things got hard, you started looking for something to blame. Like a big shadow.”
The world can sometimes be a scary place, with a lot of trials and tribulations out there. And Rocky admits that the world can be a nasty place but inspires us all not to be a coward and to go out and take what we are worth. I love that he tells us to take what we are worth, not what we are owed because we are owed nothing and earn everything.
“Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place, and I don’t care how tough you are; it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody will be hit as hard as life, but it aint about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take? Now if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hits. And not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that, and that ain’t you! You’re better than that!”
Finally, he finishes, “Until you start believing in yourself, you ain’t going to have a life.” I wonder if Stallone realised how relevant his words would be to the world one day.
Responses To The Inspirational Video
The inspirational speech was brought back to the light of day in HD on Vimal Kumar’s YouTube channel, allowing fans to once again enjoy this amazing performance by Sylvester Stallone as Rocky Balboa. The responses to the YouTube video ranged anywhere from simply praising the passionate nature of the address to sharing exactly how the film impacted them.
To put it simply, many stories of how Stallone’s words impacted these people were simply beautiful.
One commenter, Omar, mentioned that he found it interesting that although Rocky Balboa is a fictional character, he had given him some of the best advice anyone had ever given him. “Man it’s sad that a fictional character gave me better life advice than anyone ever has.”
A commenter named Grump shared that they end up in tears every time they see the clip.
People felt like Rocky was giving them advice individually because the Doctor of Horrors says that he wasn’t just talking to his son in the film but was giving a message to all of us.
One of the commenters mentioned that they had grown up without a father being present in their life, and all they needed to be able to take on the world was the three-minute speech in the footage.
Similarly, Teru, another commenter, shared a touching story about how the address impacted their life. “I applied to more than 100+ companies for a job, and I got rejected from all of them. I was depressed and lost confidence, but this video helped me push myself forward. And I recently got a job offer. I’ll value this video and quote forever in my life.”
Here is the testimony of a few more beautiful commenters on the video clip, sharing the impact the inspirational Rocky Balboa speech had on their lives:
- Totoro – “’Now, if you know what you’re worth then go out and get what you’re worth, but you gotta be willing to take the hits.’ That line gets me every time. The path forward is a long and hard one, but an ultimately rewarding one. Follow your dreams, take nothing for granted, and it will fall into place. And remember, always be willing to take the hits.”
- Jay – “When Stallone is long gone…this speech is gonna be around for all eternity.”
- Aaron – “I can remember at 15 downloading this clip into audio and falling asleep at night to it on repeat for weeks straight… this scene changed my life and helped so much.”
- Regele – “I wonder if Stallone knows how many people he helped with this scene.
- Chris – “Played this for my sister 2 months ago. She was 27 and I’m 31. She suffered addiction and sadly I lost her a few days ago. I came back to this video because it made me feel like I tried.”
- Komal – “This was my dad’s favorite movie. I lost him to covid. Whenever I breakdown and can’t function I watch this on repeat and pretend he is telling me this.”
- Nick – “My Dad used this speech at my graduation and literally the entire place was in tears.”
- ABC – “This speech literally saved my life.”
- Corey – “Being depressed this is what you need to hear!”
- goodmourningstar – “I lost forty pounds and quit drugs after I saw this movie. I cried for the rest of the movie. Sly literally saved my life.”
- Andrew – “This is the hardest punch Rocky ever threw.”
Still Impactful To This Day
Just yesterday, Sylvester Stallone himself shared a surprising video on his Instagram profile, @officialslystallone, captioned, “This kid is a real life Rocky! @roknowswrestling We are at the Philadelphia Museum and statue where they have declared Dec 3rd Official Rocky Day. Thank you Philly, what an honor!”
The video was originally taken and shared to TikTok by @barstoolsports with the onscreen caption, “POV your son does the Rocky speech to Sylvester Stallone.”
What happens in the video is probably one of the most wholesome things ever to grace the internet, as a young boy confidently recites the entire Rocky speech to Sylvester Stallone, a man who has obviously impacted his life if he is able to recite it completely.
The best part is that Stallone proudly joined in and remembered the speech as well! Some people say don’t meet your heroes, but I think this is a moment that neither Stallone nor this young and confident boy will ever forget.
So, how has the inspirational Rocky Balboa speech impacted you?
