Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson says he used to wrestle for $40 in flea markets — now he's one of the world's top-paid actors

Hollywood superstar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is one of the highest-paid actors in the world. He earned $270 million in 2022, according to Forbes, good enough for No. 4 on the publication's entertainers list that year. The first leg of his career, however, was nowhere near as lucrative.

"Those were the days where I was making $40 per match wrestling in flea markets and used-car dealerships in the parking lot," the 52-year-old told GQ in an article published Nov. 11.

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These humble beginnings as a pro wrestler gave Johnson the keys he needed to build his profile, and therefore his fortune, as a world-class entertainer today. Here are three lessons you can apply to supercharge your wealth-building efforts.

Focus on delighting customers

One of the first things Johnson took away from his early days of wrestling was to focus on satisfying the audience with a great show.

"What you learn there in cutting your teeth in that world of pro wrestling at that level is to do your best to send everybody home happy," he said.

Regardless of their performance at the box office, it can't be denied that Johnson's movies are focused on being crowd-pleasers and family entertainers.

This hyper-focus on customer satisfaction also fuels the success of major brands like Amazon and Apple. Jeff Bezos repeatedly mentioned in letters to Amazon shareholders his desire for it to be the world's most "customer-centric" company. Meanwhile, Apple's products have dominated the American Customer Satisfaction Index for over two decades.

As an investor, focusing on companies that have great customer satisfaction scores can be a winning formula.

Stretch yourself

Johnson is one of the few professional wrestlers to break beyond the WWE ring and create a successful career as an actor. But he continues to push himself beyond his comfort zone to star in movies ranging from superhero action flicks to family-friendly comedies.

His upcoming film "The Smashing Machine" is a biographical sports drama.

"It was also an opportunity for me, I realized, to stretch myself in ways that I hadn't been stretched yet," Johnson said of the project. "And also challenge myself in ways that I hadn't been challenged."

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Similarly, challenging yourself to acquire new skills or break into a new field could boost your career and earnings potential. College double majors experience substantial protection from earnings shocks during economic downturns — an average of 56% — compared to those who focused on a single major, according to research published in the National Bureau of Economic Research. Furthermore, students who studied two unrelated majors were 64% protected compared to just 36% for those with related majors.

You don't need to go back to college, but taking night courses to add new skills or trying out a side gig could make your monthly earnings more robust.

Finding value

Johnson says he's willing to consider lower-budget, independent movies if the material is appealing.

"The big movies are fun and there's a place for them in our business for a lot of families and people around the world to enjoy them," he said. "But there's also a place for me, in my career, where the material is deeper, it allows me to sink my teeth into something deeper, richer."

The ability to look beyond short-term finances can help many investors uncover hidden value. For instance, streaming giant Netflix had a negative cash flow of $10.5 billion between 2015 to 2019, according to Yahoo! Finance. However, the money was being spent on aggressively investing into its own business, which paid off as the company consistently experienced positive cash flow starting in 2022.

The stock is up around 1,700% over the past 10 years. Investors who looked beyond the early cash flow issue and focused on the quality of the underlying product were handsomely rewarded. Similarly, you can find hidden gems and undervalued stocks in the market today if you look beyond short-term finances and focus on the underlying business.

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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.