What Drives You?

June 27, 2010 By 20 Comments

I have a simple question for you: What drives you?

steeringwheel

That’s not a new question, right?  You hear it asked often but have you ever taken time to actually analyze where your drive comes from and why?  Sure, you may be doing the advanced work, but there are always underlying factors that drive us.  It could be achieving success, not wanting to disappoint our family, competitiveness, a need to provide for someone else, or a number of other factors.  You may jump in now and say that it’s a combination of all of those factors.  That’s ok, as long as you have taken the time to truly understand if those are the factors that drive you.

For me, my drive comes from a few different areas however the main source is the need to ensure that I never disappoint my parents.  When I was 17 both of my parents passed away 5 months from one another.  My dad passed away from cancer in October 1999 and my mom passed away from a Lupus-induced heart attack in March 2000.  While the passing of my dad was a shock, we had been dealing with my mother’s illness for most of my life.  It wasn’t a terminal diagnosis but she had an extreme and aggressive form of Lupus that had beaten her up over several years.  My mom had always told me that no matter what happened in life, she would always look over my shoulder.  After my mom passed away I got a tattoo of a blue rose (her favorite flower) with angel wings and her death date on my upper back/shoulder area to ensure that she would always be looking over my shoulder.

Having both of my parents pass away before graduating high school instilled a great fear of disappointing them and it caused me to make a pact with myself that I would never stop.  Never stop what, you might ask?  Never stop anything that I put my mind to no matter how far out of reach it may appear.  Never stop persuing my goals.  Never stop until I could provide the life for my future family that my parents never could (read: I grew up very poor, on food stamps and supplemental help).

Couple this pact that I made along with an unnatural level of competitiveness and being a perfectionist, you’ll start to get a glimpse into what drives me.  It’s not as simple as wanting to be the best or being rich.  A perfect storm of life experiences collided at a young age for me that forced me to take a different perspective on the world in front of me and how I’m going to conquer it.

So, I return to the question I asked at the start of this post: What drives you?

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Photo Credit: Team Dalog

Filed Under: Hustle, Personal Tagged With: , ,
  • http://www.georgycohen.com Georgy Cohen

    Justin,

    Thanks for sharing this. I am sure your parents would be proud of all you have accomplished, not just in terms of personal success, but by being a standup guy and a friend to many in this field.

    I can identify with some of the challenges you grew up with (finance-wise), so I can understand some of what drives you.

    Still, as I watch on the outside as you guys hustlin' and movin' and making huge strides, I am always the most heartened when I see you taking time with your loved ones. It's important to not stop, but it is important to pause.

    Best of luck going forward.

  • http://coachradio.tv/ Justin Lukasavige

    Thanks for sharing your story Justin. It's my experience that everyone has a story that drives them. It may not be as interesting or exciting as another person's, but it's their story.

    I used to be an airline captian. I was away from my family a lot. Much of my drive towards self-employment and all of my drive to succeed is because of them.

  • http://www.mikestenger.com Mike Stenger

    Technology, Social Media, and people. That's what drives me.

  • Juliane

    Justin, As they're looking over your shoulder, your parents must be very proud of you. Your story is very touching. Thank you for sharing. For myself, I am driven by my interests and wanting to make a success of my antiques business.

  • http://www.danieldecker.net Daniel Decker

    Great exercise here. Haven't really stepped back to look at the root of what drives me in a while. The below the skin stuff. My dad was killed when I was 5 so I was raised by my mom. I think my dads death and the circumstances + life direction it created caused me to always frame life in the “everything really does happen for a reason” perspective. Many times we don't see it in the moment but later we do if we look back and connect the dots.

    So what drives me? Not sure which life events shaped it but I've always had a desire to just do good and help others. To take a stand, to speak truth, to lead by example. Maybe my dads death caused me to think constantly of what I will leave behind. How will I be remembered? Those type thoughts. Regardless, I my drive is to honor God by living a life that is reflective of my beliefs and that leaves a mark. A positive mark.

  • http://twitter.com/JanetAronica Janet Aronica

    Wow. You are such a positive person, I had no idea you had this kind of adversity in your life. This is really inspiring and I know for sure they are proud.

    I'm still figuring out what drives me, it's hard to put my finger on it. It's just this intangible tick that I've always felt I should be doing more, trying hard and reaching higher. I have some weirdly high standards for myself that I never seem to reach…but I seem to get a lot done that way? I think a huge thing that also drives me is creativity and enthusiasm.

    Great post, thanks for sharing such a personal story!

  • http://openid-provider.appspot.com/mcamelo Marcelo Camelo

    To me is the desire to be able to say “I lived and I was good toward others” when my time finally comes. Or, putting it simply, it is the fear of death and the hope that being able to say that will make it less painful.

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    I really like your perspective Marcelo! That's a quote I'll remember for a
    long time. Thanks for sharing!

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    Well, you only have a couple choices: deal with it or let it break you.
    Letting it break me didn't sound like much fun. Thanks for the kind words!

    Creativity and enthusiasm are both great motivators! Keep striving for
    those high standards but make sure you build small wins in there too!

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    I couldn't agree more Daniel! I feel the same way about my parents deaths. I probably would've stayed home or gone to a local college due to how ill my mother was. I think she let go once she knew I was going to successfully graduate high school.

    Legacy is definitely a recurring theme that I think about too.

    Thanks for sharing your story!

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    Thanks for the kind words and good luck with your antiques business! Stay passionate and focused :)

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    Thanks for the kind words and good luck with your antiques business! Stay passionate and focused :)

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    A nice combo indeed!

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    A nice combo indeed!

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    I definitely agree!

    I hope you're enjoying your time home with the family now! :)

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    I definitely agree!

    I hope you're enjoying your time home with the family now! :)

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    Thanks Georgy!

    I try to hit the pause button every once in a while even if it really is more like slow motion :)

  • http://primecutsblog.com justinlevy

    Thanks Georgy!

    I try to hit the pause button every once in a while even if it really is more like slow motion :)

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