Marquis Hill is a 20-year- old motivational speaker, author, and entrepreneur based in Atlanta, Georgia. His journey began in the 8th grade after a heart condition sidelined his basketball aspirations, leading him to discover a passion for inspiring others through motivational speaking. He is also the founder of Love Yaself Co., a brand dedicated to promoting self-love and mental health awareness among youth. With a growing online presence and a mission to uplift others, Marquis continues to share his message of resilience and self-belief.

Your eighth‑grade injury sidelined you from basketball but opened the door to motivational speaking. Looking back, how did turning a setback into your purpose reshape your view of adversity?

MH: Being transparent and vulnerable, when I first learned I had a heart murmur the doctor basically told me that the x-ray showed I had some holes in my heart, allowing blood to go to places it didn't need to go. I was told after taking two months off from basketball, if the healing process didn't go as planned, I couldn't play at that level that I always dreamed about. The level I really worked towards since I was a kid. When that situation happened I got into the car, tears dropped from my eyes, a few weeks went by and I was just out of it. Didn't want to hear from anybody, didn't want to talk to anybody. I really felt like my biggest dream, a big piece of my heart was just ripped out and I felt like I lost something that made me who I was. I just remember me and my dad, we had this conversation. I was in my room and when he came in he told me something that truly hit home for me and I never forgot it since. He told me, “You can either sit here and dwell in this moment or you can pick yourself up and make a pivot.” That has always been something that has stuck with me through any adversity I go through now. You have to go through that adversity to make advancements in your journey, you have to go through those rough moments to build that resilient spirit within you. Turning my setback into a purpose wasn't something that I always had the perspective of doing, but looking back at it, I'm so glad that I didn't let it hinder me and hold me in that same position for the rest of my life. It really showed me a different part of who I was, and I feel like that just plays a major role in what I'm doing today.

Marquis speaking to students. (*Credit: MARQUIS HILL)*

You speak often about self‑love, you even started your own brand “Love YaSelf” as a result. For young adults battling imposter syndrome, self-doubt and fear, what has protected your self‑worth and confidence?

MH: I had to learn how to value the right opinions, one thing that I found just in doing things differently in choosing your own path. That doesn't always come with the grants from everybody and it doesn't always come with validation from everybody. For a long time I thought that in order for me to be happy or to feel included, that I had to change who I was or I had to conform in a way to please other people. The more you try to find yourself in other people, the more you lose yourself. And that was one thing that I struggled with heavy, just trying to gain validation and please other people. It was at the expense of my own authenticity and I feel like when it just came to that self-love and that self-respect I had to remind myself of who I was.

When I lost basketball and I picked up speaking and now I'm making these motivational videos on social media, starting my brand and I'm pushing this positive message. Every day I'm just sharing my heart with the world. Now it's, “Oh Marquise man, what are you doing man? You up making these videos man, that junk lame and corny.” I realized that you can never win because everybody will always have an opinion. Everybody’s always going to have something to say so, I had to really look within and remind myself that what everybody else thinks about me doesn't have to be my reality. I feel like self-love and that self-respect really comes down to you looking yourself in the mirror and reminding yourself of who you are.

“I feel like self-love and that self-respect really comes down to you looking yourself in the mirror and reminding yourself of who you are.”

- Marquis Hill

In a 2024 interview you made a powerful statement, “While battling this new passion and dream, I understood that everyone won’t see your vision”. How do you decide whose feedback to value and whose doubts to ignore? How did you learn discernment?

MH: I'll give you an example of my journey when it came to putting down basketball everybody not seeing the vision. They're like, “You got a brand? Everybody doesn't make it with brands or you want to speak? What does that even look like? You're not even that confident in front of people.” The people that were sharing those opinions with me weren't doing what I wanted to do, they weren't even where I wanted to be or go. When you look at what a person does, the actions that a person takes. I feel like that's really how you make that final call on who to listen to. It's not always materialistic, it's not always financial, it’s just does that person do what they say they're going to do? Do they stay true to their word? Are they the type of person if I look up 10 years from now, would I want to resemble them and what they stand for? That’s how I discern the right opinions to listen to and who to follow and lead along this journey.

What advice do you have for young adults looking to chase excellence without inheriting the burnout many visionaries experience due to the hustle culture?

MH: When going after your dreams, cancel the notion that this thing looks like what people make it look like on social media. Along my journey there has been a lot of moments where I felt overwhelmed, are there still moments now where I feel overwhelmed? Yes. Are there still days where I question if I have the capacity or the energy and the drive to keep this thing going for years and years and years? I question that often. But I feel like that's what excellence looks like, that's what greatness looks like. It looks like you being up sometimes late at night wondering how you're going to improve, what steps can you take to get better, how can I make my business better? I feel like it does look like those moments where you may not know exactly how you're going to figure it out, but you have to go within and remind yourself that “we got this.” It does look like those moments of adversity and how you respond to them. I feel like there has been this confusion that it should feel easy and that it should feel comfortable. That when you’re chasing your dreams you should always be happy and be motivated. But that's just not the reality. The reach the greatest version of yourself, you have to understand that there's going to be a lot of growth along your journey and that growth can sometimes feel very painful. The analogy that I always give is when you want to grow, you have to understand you'll get dirt thrown on you and you'll get rained on, but watch how you blossom. As long as you keep going and you have that persistent mindset you will get there too. But it's not going to be as easy as people make it seem on social media.

What role does representation play in helping the next generation believe that their dreams and aspirations are truly possible?

MH: Me as an athlete I had other athletes to look up to, I had examples that I could follow. I turned on YouTube, I turned on the TV. I could see myself in them. When it came to speaking, there were role models that showed me that it was possible for me and that gave me the belief that maybe I can do that too one day. Early it was people like Inky Johnson, Eric Thomas and Trent Shelton. It was people that did they thing at a very high level and I could see as a young black man, myself and them. Standing on those stages and sharing my truth and being transparent and taking my story and what I've been through and encouraging and uplifting somebody else. I feel like that's one thing that we need more of today. I think just showing the next generation what is possible for them, giving them an outlet that's outside of the norm.

Want to hear more amazing stories like this? Check out our “More of Us” series! If you want to connect with Marquis and support the work he is doing, follow him on social @realmjhill, support his business Love Yaself.