John Cena has reflected on a pivotal moment in his WWE career, revealing how a decision driven by money nearly damaged the trust he had built with Vince McMahon.

Speaking with NPR, Cena discussed how a fear of not being heard has stayed with him throughout his life. He explained that the feeling stems from his early years in wrestling, when he constantly had to fight for opportunities before finally earning respect.

"So it's definitely there. As a human being, it's definitely there, I think managed. A fear of mine or a trigger of mine is not feeling heard."

Cena admitted those insecurities can still make him defensive, but said he has worked hard to keep them in check while accepting that fear is a normal part of life.

"Yes. Yes. Man, that puts me in defense. Whew. I just... and I've worked hard to create far more of a balance there, but I think it's like I started not really as anybody's first pick as a professional and then somehow made it to every cut. And then finally, it took years for people to kind of listen to me, even though I thought I had good ideas. And I ended up having some ideas that were good and kind of did good not only for myself, but everyone involved. So maybe there's a fear in there that, like, 'Oh, I'm not heard,' or 'I'm not enough,' you know. But I think this is something a lot of folks struggle with, and a lot of folks think. I just think it's OK to have fear."

Cena then recalled one of the biggest mistakes of his career, revealing he nearly joined a social networking startup without informing Vince McMahon. Because his name was closely tied to WWE's intellectual property, the move could have created major issues.

"So the answer to that is yes, and I'm faced with those all the time. I think we all are. Those are my most teachable moments, and those are the ones I reflect on with guilt, borderline shame. I think one time I tried to get involved with an entrepreneurial social network startup. And I didn't tell my boss. And we talk about everything. This was like, 'Man, we're going to do this together.' And in potentially being part of this startup, I would... my name's John Cena, so I would essentially be leveraging intellectual property."

Cena confirmed that the "boss" was Vince McMahon and admitted the motivation behind the opportunity was straightforward.

"This is Vince McMahon. The big boss. I was just trying to get more money, simply."

Rather than reacting with anger, Cena said McMahon calmly explained the potential consequences of the situation. Looking back, Cena believes the WWE Chairman had every reason to be furious after years of building trust between them.

"Man, my boss found out, and to be honest, he was great. He was great. He, like, walked me through the... 'OK, this is the choice you've made. Let's walk through all the tentacles of what might happen.' And in a moment where it was a direct violation of trust to somebody I had worked years... and he invested years in trusting me, too... so it was a moment where he could have just gone nuclear because, you know, trust takes years to build and moments to destroy. And he didn't. He didn't. He had patience and tolerance."

The conversation immediately changed Cena's perspective, with the future WWE legend quickly backing out of the deal.

"It took five minutes or less to realize, like, I'm such an idiot. And I immediately called the company back and said I'm out. This isn't for me."