Empire state of mind? Old news. Get into Ngo state of mind. Ngo Okafor is a back to back Golden Gloves champion, breakout actor and a top model. The ambitious, humble and voracious overachiever has had a storybook path. From growing up in Nigeria to teaching engineers in New York to breaking into Hollywood, the powerhouse Okafor is unstoppable. He recently worked with Catherine Zeta-Jones in the soon to be released The Rebound and is creating a documentary, Triumph of the Will, which chronicles his journey as he trains for the legendary boxing competition, the Golden Gloves. Check out more of the fiercely talented and laser sharp focused Okafor below...

MM: What was it like growing up in Nigeria?
Ngo Okafor: My dad wanted us to grow up in Nigeria. It was interesting and fun and the only thing I knew. I'm happy I grew up there. I have a different outlook on life. It's a little easier in the U.S. [laughs]...not as unstable. If you're in the U.S. and have a job and are working, you know you're going to get paid. In Nigeria, my dad was a professor and at the end of the week, the government would say "we're not paying teachers until the end of the month." It's frustrating. It's not as though the country doesn't have the money. Nigeria is one of the top 10 oil producing countries in the world.

MM: You once thad a job teaching engineers. Genius time!
NO: Teaching is in my blood. It came naturally to me and it was fun. That is what brought me to New York. Shortly after I got here, I realized I wanted to pursue the arts.

MM: How did you get into (and eventually dominate) boxing?
NO: The crazy thing is I didn't want to do it [laughs]. I enjoyed watching boxing when I was a child but all I could think of was the trauma. The brain is not designed to get punched. One day I wanted to do something different for cardio...I was tired of the bike and running...so I tried boxing and hitting the bag. Then, two guys came into the gym and asked if I wanted to spar. It wasn't hard sparring and at the end one of the guys asked me how long I had been boxing. I told him, "Never, just for fun." He told me I should really think about pursuing it. At the same time, I started thinking that I always wanted to play sports. I wanted to express myself physically. My parents weren't into athletics, they were academics. They'd say, "if you want exercise, run around the house" [laughs].

I started talking to a guy at my gym who boxed. He said he was doing the Golden Gloves and I said "I am too" even though I didn't know what it was. He took me to his boxing gym and introduced me to his trainer and I said, "I'm going to do the Golden Gloves". It was kind of crazy, but all I saw was an opportunity to compete. What I like about boxing is that there is not a team. Just me and my will. If another man has done it, I can do it.

MM: Any boxing tips?
NO: Keep your hands up! Don't overestimate the person in front of you physically. They have two hands just like you.

MM: How did you transition from a boxing star to a breakout actor?
NO: It all kind of happened quickly. I was a little bit into modeling when I won the first Golden Gloves. I took myself to agents and they liked my pictures. Boxing helped out... I booked "The Rebound" because a fight coordinator from the movie saw me fight at the Garden.

MM: Can you even describe the thrill of boxing at the Garden...and then winning the Golden Gloves?
NO: The Garden is amazing. When you come out of the tunnel, the crowd goes nuts. My brother came in from London, it was very cool. He had a hard time watching it...my parents couldn't have watched, they would have had a heart attack.

MM: If you have children one day, will you let them step into the ring?
NO: I can't even imagine if my kids wanted to box. I wouldn't encourage it, but if they were good at it and worked hard and were smart about it, I'd support it.

MM: What's the latest on your documentary?
NO: Right now, we're close to being done. We're putting the finishing touches on it and editing right now. The documentary was an excuse for me to fight again [laughs]. In 2008, I thought, "I won the Golden Gloves, why do it again?" Then I thought it would be a good story to tell. So I said, "let's go back and win it". No one wants to see a documentary about a loser. So I had to win.

MM: As an actor/model/boxing champ/superhero, what do you like to do in your downtime? If it exists?
NO: In my downtime, I'm a workaholic. Downtime is time to think. I train and lift every day and I like to watch TV and movies. You gotta keep up with what's new. Coming up, I want to produce films and TV shows. I want to see what networks need and work on pitching something that they might be interested in.

MM: What's your next project on your dream to-do list?
NO: I have so many. My next dream is that I want to produce and put my strengths to work. I want to work with my friends. I want to make a living working together and having fun.

MM: What is the secret to your storybook success? Please tell.
NO: My secret is nothing is unattainable. No dream of yours is unattainable. Anything, anything, anything. If you allow yourself to dream, then you can do it. All you have are your dreams. What are you living for if you don't have anything to dream? I started boxing and within three years won two Golden Gloves. It doesn't logically make sense [laughs]. Life is not logical. Dream it, believe it, it can happen.