This is Day 9 of the 21-Day Journaling Challenge held in Nov 2011. The challenge is now over but you can do the tasks in your own time. Visit the overview page for all the challenge tasks.
Hi everyone – Welcome to Day 9 of 21DJC! :)
Yesterday’s question was: “On a Scale of 1-10, How Much Do You Love Yourself?“. (Read the responses.)
Self-love is such a tricky topic. Do you love yourself? How much do you love yourself?
The modern society has taught us to be unhappy with ourselves. That we’re not thin enough, not toned enough, not muscular enough, not attractive enough, not rich enough, not smart enough, not skilled enough, not successful enough, not accomplished enough, not well-known enough – and what have you.
Because of that, feelings of self loathe become embedded in us, subconsciously. Our journey through life then becomes a process where we reverse what we were conditioned with since young; where we discover who we are on the inside; where we evolve into our ideal selves.
I’ve come quite a long way where self-love is concerned. In the past, I really hated myself. I was emotionally stingy, I was judgmental, I was critical – I was basically difficult to be around. I didn’t even like me – there were often times when I felt that I could never stand it if I ever had to be around someone who had the exact personality as mine. I didn’t realize it then, but looking back, my self-love was probably in the negative range.
It’s been a few years, but I’ve worked on becoming a better person since then, and I’m a lot more at peace with who I am today. I think I’m still far from being my ideal self, and there’s a lot I need to work on, but I appreciate myself a lot more than I used to.
I believe being a better person is a journey and not an end point. By constantly growing, it helps me to become a better person day after day, which in turn makes me appreciate myself more. If there’s ever anything I don’t like about myself, I’ll reflect on it, develop my desired traits, and shed off the undesirable ones. I believe I’m on the right path, and in time to come I’ll achieve the same level of unconditional, self-love which my higher self has for me.
With that said, let’s now move to today’s question!
21DJC Day 9
On Day 6, you answered the question: What Frustrates You?. Today, I’d like to invite you to think about something different:
What Drives You?
What drives you in life? What do you live for? What are the times when you feel charged up and ready to take on the world? And why?
(Today’s question can be found in #77 of 101 Important Questions To Ask Yourself In Life.)
Your Task Today:
- Reflect and answer today’s question. There’s no word limit – whether minimum or maximum. Write as few or as many words as you want. It’s all up to what you want to express!
- Share your answer. After you are done writing, copy and paste your answer in the comments area and post it there.
- Check out other participants’ answers. Other participants will be sharing their answers too, so feel free to read and reply to their answers. This is a group course, so let’s support each other in these 21 days.
((Images: Empty book for journaling, Determined woman))
Planning and organizing. I am always excited when I set a new goal to do something and get to plan it out. It could be anything: a career or business opportunity, a better way to organize the coat closet or garage, the best way to organize everything about an office: the layout, how processes should flow. I really love coming up with possibilities and planning the work. Doing the work is another story. If I don’t have the money to do what I want, I’d rather wait on it than to do it to a lesser quality. And when it comes to business ideas, I often let fear stop me at the planning phase. I’m smart, I pick things up easily, I have lots of different skills and tons of ideas, which actually works against me. To many interests to focus on, loads of talent, but little or no action-I’m the most talented underachiever I know! If I could get paid for making plans, I’d be rich! So I’d say that getting ready to do something new drives me.
At first I would say life the energy brought by the fact of living and experimenting. My daughter has revealed me that I love transmitting. I’m a trainer and a translator and for me both tasks are complementary. I’m driven by patience by the desire to make people love and understand languages. I like human beings I think that’s why I teach children, teenagers and adults alike.
I now put no limits to my deep desire. I used to question myself to say that I should teach only to one category be it only children or only adults…but by growing and questioning myself I realized that every age has its potential, its importance and I feel up to meeting this challenge.
I believe I am driven from success. I live for learning and I am always looking for inspiration in everything I do.
What keeps me going is the hope that someday all of my dreams will become reality.
The quest to understand. When I tackle to solve a problem, what keeps me going is that I have to deep down understanding of what is going on. I like to “translate” the problem into Kim-Speak. I do not just easily accept what I hear, but look to corroborate it in some way. At the same, although it might not sound logical, I am a very trusting and gullible person. I really do take a lot of things at face value and what things people say I typically assume is correct. I assume positive intent. And others are often the source of new information and new angles to look at a situation. But I would not share that information outward to the larger community unless I understand it and understand its source. I am not at ease to just “repeat” what I hear without understanding. I take the time to think. Thus, I do spend a lot of my energy in the “translation” stage and I use that to get to the next step in my problem. I am constantly asking questions, being curious, and I think that innate part of me is related to my quest to understand. I do want to understand how logically things fit together and what things are needed to make things work, make things proceed, make things understandable to others, make things have value to the world around me.
I feel at my happiest when that “proverbial light goes off in my head” and I am able to see and understand the item that I have been struggling to understand. And then I take that extra bit of information and use it to build something new.
:rolleyes: :rolleyes: Good question! And one I’ve never considered…which means it is probably going to turn out to be an important area for me :)
Having never thought about it before, off the top of my head, I’d have to say my emotions! Which is probably not a good thing most of the time. Wow. That is probably a huge problem in my life :( While emotions are important and great fuel, they probably shouldn’t be one’s driving force in life. No wonder I don’t know what I want.
Survival to an extent.
Responsibility/what people will think is also on the list.
Thanks so much for asking this question!!!!!
(But, oh boy! I need work!)
Hopes and dreams. There are things that I want to accomplish, things that I want to have. These things are what drive me to succeed. Things like wanting to travel and desiring a homestead. I will do what it takes to acquire what I want.
This might sound negative, but i feel most charged up when someone tells me i cant do a certain thing and i prove them wrong
What drives me? There are a number of things I suppose. I can’t really put it into words, but I’ll try. I’m driven by my need to fulfill my purpose. In my eyes I haven’t reached it yet, so I’m driven everyday to get up and keep moving along my path, as slow and filled with obstacles as it can be. I guess the obstacles are what drives me even more. I cannot rest, I cannot quit, until I’ve met my purpose and am living it and walking in it. And I’m a naturally competitive person, so even when I am in the place to walk my passion, I’ll probably find something else to strive for excellence in. :)
The things that drive me most are,
Love, family, friends, books, music, photography and being with people rather than things..
What drives me seems quite a hard question but I am driven by the urge to a see a positive change in the society. I would love to see people progress, a peaceful world and everyone living their life in the best way. I would love to see the weak empowered and the vulnerable as well with good representation. My drive is the will to see a better day, in all aspects of life
21DJC Day 9 – What Drives You?
Work/ Financial Payback _ Independence _ A Life worth Living _ Sense of Self Worth _ Value : These things all drive me, knowing that working leaves me dependent on myself alone and no one else motivates me incredibly. I like the feeling that I am taking care of today and my future.
I am a security nut, wish I were a little more, wing it, go for it, who gives a hoot personality but I am not. I am anal, I like things in order. Things that help me feel more secure motivate me.
Confidence motivates me; find something that gives me confidence and you will have the key to motivating me in whatever direction you would like!
Like most people I am sure, finances, flexibility, freedom, fun, family, faith motivate me. Health, happiness, hope motivate me. If it makes me feel good it motivates me!!!
I have very few days that I don’t feel motivated. I lose very few days to feeling totally demotivated so I am thankful for the energies in my universe that keep me moving!!!
Life is a precious gift. I once read a quote, “What you are when you are born is God’s gift to you, what you make of your own life is your gift to God”… Living a full life, a very full life from so many different angles motivates me daily!!!!
What drives me everyday is simply life and death. I have probably mentioned losing several loved ones. I’m sure I did on the post “who is the most important person to you in the world”. Life drives me to get up everyday and work on becoming a better person and trying to intake every experience and moment that I can.
There are so many good and bad experiences that I have encountered. I firmly believe that any experience I have changes a part of me for better or worse. I learned at the age of 16 and 17, that life on this planet is short. Throughout all the bad times I have had, I still see so much beauty in the world. If I get up everyday and do something positive, that makes me feel happiness inside. Even if it’s to get up and clean the house, I take pride in my home and it makes me feel good. I have made huge mistakes in life that I am still trying to work on. Everyday is a new day with new experiences and life really is what you make of it. I know if I wake up in a bad mood over stress or something beyond my control, I can make the choice to stay in that mood and ruin my entire day or I can accept what is happening and fix what I can and let the rest fall into place.
I am driven by my two daughters and my life with them. I want to show them things and places that leave them with happy memories. I am driven to learn something new everyday to make inner peace within myself. I have and still am working very hard to leave the past where it belongs, left behind. I look toward the future but not so much that I waste my days planning a tomorrow that may never come. There are things I sometimes wish I could change that has happened but I try to understand that you can not go back in time to change an event, and regret only eats at a person’s soul.
This is what drives me, to spend each and every moment on this earth doing things that I enjoy, to take the good with the bad, to realize mistakes and fix them best of my ability, to savor every experience I have whether good or bad. Simply put, I do not want to leave this earth with any regrets. I don’t want to die and leave my children with the wrong lessons in life. I don’t want to be older and wish I’d done something when I can be doing it today. I want to leave this earth knowing I lived the best life here that I could. I want my loved ones to know they are loved and that life has so much to offer if we just try to seek out the beauty in it.
If I had passed away in my sleep last night, I fell asleep knowing I had taught my daughters to take pride in anything, even being a stay at home mom. To cherish and take care of things you have no matter how little it is. I would have died knowing that yesterday I listened to music with my daughters and we sang and played as I done dishes. I told my boyfriend I loved him. I spoke with two important people in my life and they knew how much I value them. My daughters fell asleep after we read 3 bed time stories together even though I was tired. Life and death drive me to face each day.
Like many people, I’m driven when I see some positive change or impact that happened because of my involvement, even a small one. Then I feel that my existence is not in vain, and I really want to do more, to have more positive change around. I’m also immensely driven if I get approval from my peers, I need this feedback from others, and I admit there’s nothing selfless in that. But I’m also driven if I’m inspired by another person, someone who is passionate about what they do, like I’m certainly inspired by Celes doing PEB and challanges.
I am driven by LOVE.
LOVE of God … :clap:
LOVE of the Catholic Church … :angel:
LOVE of myself as a blossoming woman … :dance:
LOVE of my family and friends …. :hug:
LOVE of my country, with all its prospects and problems … :rolleyes:
LOVE of humanity … :)
I love your answer. Love is a powerful thing.
Well said,the whole universe is been driven by LOVE……
Other people drive me. I don’t do a lot for myself – I do it because I want people to admire me, because I want to be recognized for my hard work.
So, what really drives me is my ego.
inspirational message drives me, i get inspired when i listen to motivational speakers, or read books that are purpose driven.music also drives me, especially lyrics that involves appreciating God for your life and all he has done for you. when i also get a job well done, and i am being appreciated, it drives me and always inspire me to do more.
What drives me?
In this world –
First – Nature. It seems to just be built in. The will to survive is in me.
Without it I would not get up in the morning and go to work.
Without it I would not gather wood for heat (or get bags of wood pellets for the stove)
Second – Love. My motivation is not only directed at my survival, but to to the survival and well being and happiness of my family.
There was a time when I was much more ambitious with regards to business and money. The drive there was twofold; It was the challenge – to prove to myself and the world I could do it – and there was the practical usefulness that more wealth can bring in terms of comfort and security.
I have lost the drive for that. I may be “settling” – but it is a conscious decision now. While my work can be stressful, I can “turn it off” after ten hours, and the risk is not mine.
Third – At my work, I am driven by a desire to make a good showing – to do my work with excellence and with style -and to help and teach those that I can along the way.
It is important to my self esteem, that I perform very well those few things that I can do well, and that those that can tell the difference, notice and appreciate it.
Work as performance art. Each success or finesse leaving a splash of flair and excellence in the ether.
As the days of the Journalling challenge goes on, its getting challenging. It is showing me on how many areas in life I have avoided giving a thought to as I guess somewhere I am aware its going to take time and have been my lazy self.
What drives me is question I am really trying hard to figure out !!!! Mind is so clouded with daily mundane busy activities and chatter, I seem to have forgotten what I as a person feel happy or charged up about.
A day or an activity is highly driven for me when
1. I am well rested physically and get up fresh in the morning
2. I have planned the activities for the day the previous day or the first thing in the morning and lay of the day is clear to me visually.
3. And I am very clear of every detail of the tasks or to put in other words the tasks are something I am clear about and knowledgeable about, in that case I am all charged up to face it.
4. If I have not planned or there are topics which are new to me or I have no support/link/help to learn about it, then my confidence level goes down and my drive too.
Somewhere writing this I realize that I do have a low self esteem and low belief about my own talents and achievements and have been downplaying them so much that people around me too see me in the same light that I do.
So what do it need to do. There are activities/tasks that you take up out of choice or you are given. Be clear in your mind and do not procrastinate to learn about the same.
Also its been more and more clear to me I am in a profession which does not use my strengths but need my weak areas more and hence pulls me down.
I am really charged up if I have to interact with people with no deadlines and am helping them with information or just listening to them. If my day is going to be filled up with such an activity then I would look forward to everyday with the same enthusiasm.
feel that my answer might be too simple but here it is –
I’m driven by the prospect of being the best person that I can be!
(And I become even more driven when the people around me support and encourage me)
Living my best life and being me is what drives me every morning I wake, knowing that I am doing what I’m passionate about and knowing my husband will always support me and love for being me. It’s the best compliment knowing that you love something and you are doing what do because it will better others and yourself. ;)
I live everyday for me.. I cannot imagine living a world without being driven for something or of something. If you ask me what drives me everyday..? I would simply tell you this:
Find something you’re passionate about
Live your dreams
Make you dreams a reality and go get ’em
Be determined above all else
Let no one and no circumstance get in your way
Kick adversity, rather let it kick you
Put aside the naysayers, do what you believe in 120%
Find someone you want model and model them – don’t be them of course ;)
I love being determined knowing that the path I am on is bring a service to others. I live for those who don’t know how to live…
The question would be what are the times, I feel charge? When I’m excited about something or something is going my way and its helping the community. I feel charged on a good nights sleep, waking up to a beautiful summer morning and with a glass of water and walking my dogs. Best way for me to start the day and I feel charged and ready to face any opponent. :)
Just doing this makes me feel positive, energetic and determined. I love what I do and that’s where I get my jazz from .
All the Best,
Ezza :love:
About me i think that there are more than one fore driving me to live:
1st of all is my in deep believe in Allah (God). Belivieving that Allah is always here seeing me, hearing me, feeling me give me power to live. believing that Allah is fair and knows everything and will judge me and all human beings make me feel more inner peace.
Also My love for my family, my Appreciation to my parents, My wish to see my daughters growing to be big lovely girls. My wish to have abetter tomorrow in community.
I think also that my desire to play my supposed role in others surrounding people and comunity.
This is an important question. When I´m going through a rough time I have to remaind myself why I´m doing things and why I´m working so hard, why is it worth it.
I get motivated by many things.
– Setting goals (long & short term): when I commit myself to do something that is in some way important to me there is nothing that can stop me. When the goal isn´t big enough or when it is not really what I want I end up not achieving it, but when it is something I really want I work really hard until I get it.
– I´m a perfectionist: whatever I do, no matter how complex or simple it is, I have to do my best and I have to work as hard as I possibly can. That is just the way I am and the way I´ve always been.
– Watching inspirational movies: some movies motivate me to do my best and to work hard to accomplish my dreams, to work hard for what I believe. I have a list of this movies in my computer so whenever I need “extra help” I sit down and enjoy.
– Songs / motivational quotes / motivational lectures, tv shows etc.
– Seeing people who are in some way better than me, that makes me want to be like them. There are so many amazing people out there, this is a never ending source of motivation.
– Taking chances, discovering new things, being the best I can be.
– I want the world to be a better place because I lived. I want to do something good for humanity.
– Knowing that with every new day I hace a chance to do things better. When I wake up I can choose between being happy and making the best of those 24 hours or being sad. It is always a choice, it is always in my hands.
– Knowing that there are people who love me and want me to do good, I can´t let them down.
Motivation is so important in our lives. I believe many people are so sad and are stuck in a job they don´t like, stuck in a life they don´t like because they are not motivated by anything.
My husband drives me around the country so I can take photographs of whatever my :heart: sees. Okay, that was a silly answer, but it is the truth….Now to what drives me in life.
What drives me is the hope for a dream to be fulfilled.
I have a business that I know would be a blessing to many, a curse to some, and a door to others. To achieve my dream I have school to finish, obtain my master’s degree, obtain a license required by the state of Missouri, and believe in my self and my ability regardless of those who have and will tell me it is not possible.
What drives me is my desire…..
It wasn’t a silly answer at all because I never took photography professionally or went to school for it, however even if my best friend and I drive to the mall and back, I will come home with photos. I see so much beauty in the world and I love capturing it in a photograph and cherishing it. My friends and family now have a running joke, whenever we are doing an activity, even it’s a walk, they will say “Is today picture day for us?”.
Good luck with your dream and business. Have a wonderful day!
I almost forgot to say, I find it extremely awesome that you get to go around the country and take photos of anything you want to. That was my answer for our question “if we could do something free for the rest of our lives”. I said I would travel and take beautiful photos of everything I see along the way. :heart:
I’m driven from 4main things – (1) the knowledge that I make a difference in the world (2) that I am helping others, (3) the knowledge that I will gain satisfaction in the end and lastly, (4) love.
(1) I’m driven by the knowledge that I make a difference in the world – that I put a dent in the world and leave a mark on the world. Why? I believe everyone will make a difference. But what difference they make, well – it’s up to their character. For example, Osama bin Laden (9/11 attack) killed many people – he changed the lives of millions. Also, Celes, by running PE, has helped thousands change their lives for the better.
(2) I’m also driven by the fact that I am helping others right now (via my blog, GLB). Why? This is my passion – I love to help others.
(3) I know I will gain satisfaction at the end if I persevere right until then.
(4) Last but not least, I’m driven by love. Love for my family. Love for myself. Love for my friends (in a friend way). I want to help them too (see my #2 reason) so I sort of give them encouragement if they share same goals as me.
What drives me?
Sometimes I feel that in the journey of life that someone else wants to take control with the daily nudges. Unless I am really clear I get pushed around like a boat on the ocean. Fortunately I have a crew – my family. We all help each other to get the best from our situations.
The daily love that I receive from my family, the love we share and the happy moments we spend together drive me forward not always with confidence but with persistence and determination to give them the best so they too are happy, loving and sharing.
This is pretty uneven for me. There are days when I am so driven — by my exercise — swimming and walking, by my work, by my workmates, by school — my MA program, my feminism, by my crush, by my partner, by friends, by fave sites in the internet…it changes.
Of late, since I returned from Jakarta (which is my San Francisco, as in I left my heart in…), I have to honestly say that I am not as driven. Don’t get me wrong, I wake up fine, I have a routine I have and am continuing to keep. And I often like how how my day unfolds. I get natural highs with this and that — YMs from my special friend, a good breakfast, suddenly hearing a long-ago fave song that I haven’t heard for ages, an email from a person I’ve been missing…But I am not as driven or as passionate as I have been before, or as I would like to be.
I try to live my life based on my ideals, and I try not to let externals dictate my choices. It’s not bad, but my highs are not so high, and my lows are not that low either. In fact, my above mid-point is my low already, so far. And I am thankful. Oftentimes, if my life was a line, it would be a medium-sized, not straight, but not jagged either, quiet, peaceful line. I am not complaining. I am grateful for many things in my life. But I miss the spunk, the spikes, the passion.
Hmmm, I didn’t know I was feeling like this…or I wasn’t paying that much attention to this state — I think it’s okay to have this state, if this is what I want, but point is, I have not paid attention to this, and I seem to want something else, so for me to address that (and I have this Guided Journaling we are doing to thank for, for calling attention to this in me), I have to first be aware I have this, sit with it, talk to it, be friends with it, then ask my high self for guidance on what I was want to do with this and how to. Yes, that is what I will do.
If you Celes, or any other friends from here have something to share with me in this department, I am most grateful…in advance. Hugs to all. Namaste!
New experiences and facing my fears helps to drive me. It gives me a sense of strength and possibility. When I go out of my comfort zone and try something new I feel alive. Also when others question my ability or put me down it sparks within me a fire of desire to prove them wrong and show to them that I am capable of achieving whatever I put my mind to. I live to learn! I have always loved and craved knowledge, new experiences, new skills, ect. I also love meeting new people and learning about them. I crave getting to know people on a very deep level. Interacting with people on a purer level, not a superficial one, really energizes me because of the soul connection I am able to make. Thus, I would say I live for two things: 1) to learn and 2) to connect with others.
I love your answer!!! I too long for knowledge about different things and there are so many things in this life to learn or learn more about. I also agree with you, if another person tells me I can’t do something, it makes me try so much harder. Like you said, it sparks a fire in me to do something for the satisfaction of knowing I can and to prove to them they misjudged my ability. Your love for connected with others really is admirable. Especially in this day and time. Good luck in everything you set your mind to do. Have a blessed day! :)
What drives me is my desire to improve as a person. I suppose it stems from my previous desire to attain enlightenment but i found it ironic that i was trying to achieve enlightenment through desire. However I did learn something from that experience that taught me the importance of self improvement. I’ve always read self help books and the like but it wasn’t until last July when after i turned 20 that i decided to draw and develop my skills as an artist. I used to think i couldn’t draw to save my life that i didn’t have what it takes to draw like the masters. however after being inspired by many people on the social art site deviantart i decided to start uploading my pieces. the site gave me a sense of accountability for my progress and i can get feed back. soon I started meeting and talking with skilled artists and wanting to be like them i decided to learn from an art book my dad got me a long time ago. i never used it so i figured it was a good opportunity. By the time i finished going through the book i developed a solid foundation and my desire to improve grew. I started being progress oriented and wanted to find ways to improve, such as using different mediums like tablet and Photoshop. I really like that i was improving and the people i met and became friends with encouraged me by saying how much i’ve changed. Over the course of a year and 3 and half months i developed a lot, met a lot of different people and incorporated a lot of the lessons from art into my life. i never felt more proud than when i reflected on my one year birthday where i recreated my very first sketch. it was a huge accomplishment that i’m still proud of
The hardest part is deciding to take up something new, especially when you feel that you are to old to be good enough. I also picked up art a while back and when I reflected on the progress I made in 1 year I was amazed. I’m glad you decided to give it a shot :)
I found that art also helped me learn a lot about myself and it changed the way I saw the world. Before I didn’t notice color, texture, and lighting as much as I do now. Hopefully, when I’m not busy with college I’ll pick up art again and maybe even try Photoshop ( I have always wanted to learn how to use it but never got the chance)
Thanks for sharing your journal entry :D
I really enjoyed reading your answer as well. Congratulations on your accomplishments and doing something you love and learning to do it well is a great way to be driven in life. I myself have the desire to learn more about art. Not to become an artist or draw because I express myself through poetry. I just want to learn more about art because it captures so much beauty and emotion. I would like in the near future to focus more on my creative side with photography. Not as a career but a hobby. I treasure my photos of loved ones and beautiful places I have been and love taking photos of something I find beautiful. Wishing you the best Bryan. Tanya, you are so right. I will be 35 next week and am getting ready to go back to school for the first time since I graduated high school in 1994. It’s scary but I know it will be worth it. That was part of my answer for this post. I am driven to learn and experience new things. Have a wonderful day to you both.
The current drive in my life is my mom, my husband and my kids.
Sometimes, I stammer and I am really scared to speak in front of a large crowd. Recently, I took my kid to a mall and I was able to speak in front of a huge crowd without even getting scared and being aware of speaking in the crowd. I was actually at peace and enjoying my kids company.
I really get charged to do anything special for these special people in my life
Science…seeing the underlying framework of the mysteries of the Universe and how that speaks of a brilliant Being…applying the concepts of science and redesigning systems for more efficient use…logical analysis…….intellectual competence…being able to speak from my mind….and fully experiencing the beauty of science.
(even if it is about phytocyte functioning and using that to design better technologies)
Poetry, comforting and loving others…inspiring…nature and beauty.
Speaking through technical jargon or spiritual poetry.
Feeling powerful enough to create my life, and yet trust in the divine…
The experience of the mystical and the Divine is not only the energy of science, but it is the Spirituality or the Rational…
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