Rolling With the Legends: Paul Salfen’s GOING FOR IT!

Spend enough time around legends and you start to notice something. Whether it’s outlaw country icon Willie Nelson, reggae royalty Ziggy and Stephen Marley, guitar virtuoso Carlos Santana, or Hollywood heavyweight Matthew McConaughey, the people who leave the biggest mark on the world tend to have one thing in common: they stopped worrying about fitting in and started focusing on being themselves.

That’s exactly what award-winning journalist, television host, and author Paul Salfen discovered after spending more than two decades interviewing some of the biggest names in entertainment, sports, music, and business. Those conversations became the foundation for his award-winning book, GOING FOR IT!: Advice, Wisdom, and Hail Mary Moments From the Stars, a collection of life lessons from people who took chances when the safe choice would’ve been easier. It’s a unique deep dive into the success mindset of hundreds of well-known people that’s unlike any other motivational book on the shelves.

“I didn’t want this to be just a celebrity quote book,” Salfen says. “I wanted readers to feel like they were sitting across from someone who had already climbed the mountain and was sharing exactly what they learned on the way up.”

For readers who appreciate creativity, freedom, and doing things on their own terms, some of the book’s most memorable voices come from artists who’ve built careers by staying true to themselves instead of chasing trends.

Willie Nelson keeps it beautifully simple.

“The best advice I ever got was, ‘Do what you want,’ and I did.”

It’s a philosophy that’s guided one of the most celebrated careers in music and helped make Nelson a cultural icon whose influence stretches far beyond country music.

The Marley family echoes that same spirit with a deeper sense of purpose. Ziggy Marley explains that success was never the goal - authenticity was. “I don’t do music for the business. I do music for a message, for a purpose… If you want to be an artist, continue to be true to who you are.”

His brother Stephen Marley offers an equally powerful reminder: “The message is in the music and people will gravitate to it.” Those aren’t just music lessons. They’re reminders that originality almost always outlasts trends.

That same mindset appears throughout GOING FOR IT!. Carlos Santana reflects on recognizing when it’s time to evolve and trust life’s next chapter. Matthew McConaughey recalls boldly asking director Joel Schumacher for the lead role in A Time to Kill - a decision that helped change the trajectory of his career. Jim Belushi remembers ignoring the advice of those who told him not to join Saturday Night Live, choosing instinct over fear. And Mike Tyson shares the lesson that became the foundation of his life: “Never give up. No matter how hard life gets, never give up.”

For Salfen, those stories became the heartbeat of the book. “Everyone has a Hail Mary moment,” he says. “Sometimes it’s changing careers. Sometimes it’s starting a business. Sometimes it’s simply believing in yourself when nobody else does. Those moments are what define us.”

While GOING FOR IT! spans the worlds of music, film, sports, and entertainment, its message resonates far beyond celebrity. It reminds readers that the people who make the greatest impact are usually the ones willing to trust themselves, take risks, and stay true to who they are - even when the world tells them otherwise.

In an era where authenticity has become the ultimate currency, Salfen believes the greatest success stories aren’t necessarily about fame or fortune. They’re about purpose.

“The people I admire most aren’t successful because they fit in,” he says. “They’re successful because they had the courage to be themselves. Whether it’s Willie Nelson, the Marley family, Carlos Santana, or Matthew McConaughey, they all reached a point where they stopped chasing approval and started chasing purpose. That’s really what GOING FOR IT! is about.”

For CRONIC readers, that philosophy feels right at home. Whether you’re creating art, building a business, writing music, or simply finding the confidence to take your own shot, the message is the same: live authentically, bet on yourself, and don’t be afraid to blaze your own trail.

Or, as Willie Nelson put it years ago: “Do what you want.”

Sometimes the best advice really is that simple.

By Jordan Blake