Where does our drive, our motivation, come from? Have you ever thought about that? I have—a lot. Why do some people stop at nothing to make their dreams come true, while others are good with being average or accepting whatever life hands them. My wife and I explored that topic at my last event. Here’s how the conversation went:
Dawn: Do you think were you born this driven or did your parents teach this to you?
Bo: They were driven and they were simple people—farm, cattle, sheep, chickens, livestock, nature, fishing, hunting and horses. They were hardworking and determined. And I don’t think they had anybody in their life that said, “Hey, you got this.”
My dad was the one who woke us up every morning saying, “You’re the best in there, goddammit. You’re the best.” But my mom was the one who kept saying to us, “Hey, you got this.” The two of you are very similar in that way. Moms have to be so tough. So I think the answer is I saw what they were, I saw what they did and what they stood for and that’s what I became.
What about you? How tough is it to be the one who’s constantly providing that safe space for our kids?
Dawn: It is tough because I know what they’re dreams are and how hard they have to work. But they’re kids. So you want them to go to birthday parties sometimes and be kids.
I have a very hardworking family but I didn’t come from the same background as Bo. Vacations and parties and socializing were much more important in my family. We’ve done so much with the kids early on that I feel like they’ve really taken their dreams on themselves. So I’ll try to clear my son’s schedule for a birthday party and he’s like, “No, I’ve got a game.”
So you just have to keep holding that safe space for them, and also know that we all make mistakes and you may even want to go to a party more than practice one day.
Bo: Or not.
Dawn: You just have to keep showing them by example over and over again, and eventually they begin creating and committing to their own path based on the example you’ve set.
