What is your Motivation???

What is your MOTIVATION? What drives you? What makes you continue to work towards your goals even when things aren't looking so hot???? The answer to this question should be different for every person for one simple reason..... MOTIVATION comes from within.  There may be outward influences, but the catalyst of our MOTIVATION must start within each of us.There has to be something deep down in our hearts that drives us. For me, it's leaving a legacy for my family and friends to be proud of. I strive to make sure that the people around me are proud to be there. For the same reason, I choose not to accept failure as an option. A lot of people may not know that my first university experience was not at The University of Southern Mississippi but at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. Vanderbilt is ranked as one of the top 20 universities in the country academically and regarded as the "Harvard of the South." Earning a football scholarship to a school in the SEC, especially one with such prestige, was a blessing and an honor that I did not truly appreciate at the time.  I was suspended from the football team indefinitely for violating team rules and soon transferred to a junior college. Although my TRUE friends and family (and believe me you find out that there are only a few whenever you are facing adversity) were there to offer encouraging words, they were never truly able to encourage (MOTIVATE) me. That situation devastated and almost defeated me, but that something from within, that fire that refused to fail, motivated me to work twice as hard to redeem myself. In the Bible King David wrote that he had to "encourage himself in the Lord." Every morning that I woke up in Wesson, MS at Copiah-Lincoln Community College (where I had no cell phone signal until I switched to Cellular South) I literally had to tell myself that I would not let my situation defeat me. In a sense I had to psych myself out because as my father put it,"I'd left the penthouse for the projects" LOL!!! To make matters worse, I came home every weekend to work part time for Shular Construction because I felt too ashamed to ask my parents for help. But you know what, it made me tougher, stronger, and wiser. I then understood how appreciate my blessings; I learned to make better decisions, and realized that I could weather any and all conditions I faced in life. I still remind myself that I have already overcome one of the biggest disappointments in my life thus far and came out with a degree in International Business, a great collegiate football career filled with many memories, a legacy at Southern Miss that I continue to build on by making school anthems each year, and most importantly the respect of everyone whom I have had the opportunity to spend time with. So.....what is your MOTIVATION???

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