What’s Jennifer Lopez’s secret to success? Hard work. Sharing the journey of “Jenny from the block” in Variety’s cover story. Lopez details how she became one of the biggest movie stars of today, and the first Latina actress to earn more than $1 million for a movie.

“My business philosophy is that you have to work harder than everybody else. I always tell my kids and they’re like, ‘Yeah, we know you work hard.’ I’m like, ‘No, it’s not just that I work hard. I put in harder work than everybody else. I work harder and harder and harder and harder. When everybody is sleeping, I’m doing more.’ It’s just a relentless pursuit of creativity,” she said.

Lopez also had to overcome discrimination and double standards on her way to stardom.

“Very early in my career I dealt with a lot of stuff like that. Not getting the passes that men get when they’re misbehaving or doing whatever. I was never someone to misbehave, but you’re late and you’re chastised in front of the whole crew and you’re the lead of the movie. The male lead is late and nobody says anything,” she said.

Even in interviews, people wouldn’t think she’d be relevant in a few years, but she proved them wrong.

“It was disrespectful like crazy,” Lopez said. “After a while they go, ‘I’m still interviewing her 15 years later. I guess she’s not going anywhere. She’s going to be around, gotta give her a little respect now.'”