What drives you?

One of the things people often attribute to your change of status or level is the kind of car you drive. This reminds me of a time my Dad had just changed his car from the old Volkswagen to a brand new Mercedes Benz 200. The interesting thing about the car was that it was white in colour. It could be easily seen; very conspicuous. If you saw a white Mercedes Benz around that time at Jemita Yola (now Adamawa state in Nigeria) where we lived, you would be almost absolutely right to say, "that's Engineer Ekundayo's car." A friend that had not known he's changed his car one time came across my Dad and Dad horned to say hi. He drove by without acknowledging the horn as he didn't know 'levels' had changed. It was at a later meeting Dad informed him about the change.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have come to discover that the fulfillment of a man's dreams lies in being driven by the right thing. Just like the kind of car you drive shows your 'level', what drives you shows the kind of person you are or the kind of success you seek. I remember once asking a friend who wanted to be a medical doctor by all means; "why do you want to be a medical doctor?" She replied in haste, "we must bear that title (doctor) together." It's not difficult to know what drives such a person, is it? Listen to me, what drives you determines how far you will go in life. What drives you determines your survival in the storm. Bear this in mind, whether you build your house on sand or on a rock, the storm is inevitable. It will sure face the storms of life. Surviving adversity is dependent on what you have allowed to drive you. 

What is driving you?

Money: Ask yourself, 'why do I want to become 'whatever it is you want to be?'' Why do you want to be an engineer, a business man, a doctor - just for the money?

Parents: you are enrolled to become a lawyer because your father thinks it'd be cool to have one more lawyer in the family or you are intending to get married to a medical doctor because your parents thinks since you are going to be a nurse it'd be a perfect marriage. Are your parents your drive?

Fame/Name: why have you decided to take up a music career? Just to be famous? You like writing so people can know you as the famous writer, innit?

There are zillions of these things that drive people and I tell you they are all wrong - cars, ladies, beauty, status, power and so on. Money, fame, beauty, power can all disappear and leave you with nothing but shame and agony. However I know of one thing that should drive everyone of us - FULFILLMENT! It remains when other disappears. It's often the cause when Heroes of our generation and ones past say, "I have finished the fight - I finished well"

In the words of Fela Durotoye, "Fulfillment is what you get from actualizing purpose and your life’s assignment for the time being. It leaves you with a smile on your face when you lie down to sleep even when you were not paid for what you did. Its worth is far more than money."

Folks, if fulfillment is what drives you, you will strive to live a life of purpose - a life worthy of emulation, an exemplary life that is backed up by a vision. Guess what? Money, fame, cars will then become by-products. Be sure you are rightly driven today. If your drive has been the wrong things before, it's high time you changed. It's not too late, its not too early.   

Thanks for reading once again. May you be driven rightly :)

- Le Dynamique Professeur