Driven or pursued?

A recent discussion with my personal mentor was related to drive. He referenced the success his son is experiencing and commented that since childhood his son has been driven. He is an achiever and the drive is internal. This drive or part of the urge to succeed, we concluded, probably genetic (thanks, Dad!). The other part is nurture and/or environmental. These observations and the discussion caused me to reflect on the career of financial professionals.

To achieve success in this profession does require a certain amount of “drive”. The individual must be a self-starter and self-directed. Yes, some of us drive ourselves pretty hard! But, sometimes our success is the result of both, drive and the sense that we are being pursued. Pursued by the need to succeed, for whatever reasons we credit.

I have a singer-songwriter friend in Northern Ireland. Mercy Tracks Me Down is the title track of his CD. This idea is what I mean by being pursued. The title says it all. Many of us think we are driven, and perhaps we are, but maybe we are being pursued by something greater than our need to succeed. Maybe we are being tracked down by our gifts that can be used to help others. Our unique gift, as life insurance professionals, is to give our clients the confidence to identify and make crucial financial decisions. These decisions may well affect them for their whole lifetime.

Turn around and face what is tracking you down. Look at it carefully and ask yourself how it helps provide the spark of desire, the drive to accomplish something that is worth doing. Then turn to face the future and see your role in helping others attain financial security and protect that security by using your gifts.

Perhaps we are driven as well as pursued. Either way, the results are phenomenal. It just doesn’t get much better than that!