I’m a day late, but never a story short. Hence the title. But I kept trying to think of something of substance to write about this week until the final hour, and I fucked around, like Lamar Odom at All-Star Weekend.
Earlier this year I read David Goggin’s book Can’t Hurt Me. Well, I listened to the audiobook but same difference. But he mentions something in there about the difference between motivation and drive. As I made some changes in my life, I’ve noticed the things that have driven me and the things that have motivated me.
I’ve been motivated, like everyone else, to do a lot of things in my life. To get in shape, to “get this bread,” to chase my dreams. I’ve also been driven to do many others, like pursue comedy and be true to myself.
He describes motivation as a spark of inspiration, usually lasting a couple of weeks. Then drifting away, like the books you were going to read or the diet you were going to stick to. But one thing he highlights is that motivation is like an adrenaline dump, and after it’s gone you’re left with pure will.
The will to do or to not.
Drive usually results in a lifestyle change and the effects last much longer than motivation.
There is a lot of grey area in the space between motivation and drive. And in this space we usually find ourselves faced with the question to challenge ourselves to the unknown or to welcome back the familiar.
He advises to look for things that drive you. I like to think of it as motivation being a pushing force, that when it’s behind you can force you to do things you wouldn’t before, but when that push is gone, the struggle falls back on you. I describe drive, on the other hand, as a pull. A force that draws you to it, like a siren to the rocks, or a moth to a light. It’s an incessant desire for a certain dream or person or place. Motivation is deciding to fight, and Drive is the plan you have after you get hit. Eh, works for me. But my point is find the things in life that drive you, whether it’s to a pursuit of happiness, or betterment, or just cause. Where there is a will, there is a way.
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