We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Maurice King a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Maurice with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
My work ethic is somewhat uncommon lol. Even when I coached, I expected my kids to work hard but I never expected them to have my work ethic, it wouldn’t be fair to ask them for that. But my work ethic started when I was around 8 or maybe 9 years old. The first time I played organized basketball and I was terrible! I only got into the games because my mom paid and the organization had rules where everyone had to get into the game at least a little bit. After the paid season was over, the coach came around and handed almost everyone on the team a paper to have their parents sign for AAU. AAU was different than peewee basketball, it was the next level! I reached my hand out but there was no paper for me, the coach didn’t pick me to play on his AAU team. I was hurt and developed a chip on my shoulder and an insane work ethic from that very moment. I literally went home that night and began training. I became obsessed with getting bigger and better and the craziest part about all of that was my mom and I lived in an apartment with no basketball goal, all we had was covered parking which was close enough to 10ft high for me lol. If I wasn’t in school I was training myself everyday with no days off. Next season came around and let’s just say I got my paper invitation to same AAU team that I didn’t make the year before. I use that same chip on my shoulder mentally still today but in a good way! I went on to receive a college scholarship later in life for football and basketball! And it all stemmed from that one moment of failure that birthed a crazy insane work ethic in me! I apply that work ethic to everything! I’ve been a professional actor now for the past 2 years and it started the same way! 2 years later I’m a highly requested actor now.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I’m an actor and entrepreneur. My last project I got the opportunity to work with Ben Barnes and Patrick Mahomes in a nation T-Mobile project. I’ve also gotten the opportunity to be in 3 music videos with likes of ASAP Rocky, Tech N9ne and X-Raided and also have done 3 feature films so far in 2023. I love the art of acting! To be able to people on a roller coaster of emotions during a film is the best feeling ever!
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Looking back, I’d say the most important qualities to have or develop is resilience, patience and hard work! Don’t stop working at your craft ever! Become obsessed with the work ethic and journey! And know that nothing happens overnight! I tell people all the time, it takes hard work to make things look easy! My advice would be to observe an area in your field of expertise that could use your skill, mindset and abilities, now that’s your lane! You become unfireable when you’re an expert in your lane because only you can do what you do the way you do it! Lastly, stand out in a good way!!!!
Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
My acting coach and mentor Stu Large! He’s been an Hollywood actor for 35 years and he pushes me so hard in class that the auditions and roles become easy!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://m.imdb.com/name/nm14895839/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
- Instagram: maurice_clark_official
Image Credits
Captured by Me!
