The Power of Why
- Jared Petravicius
- May 16, 2020
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 14, 2020
Why? -- That single question is powerful. Why do I do what I do? Why am I driven to do some things and not others? Why did I start a blog to talk about leadership?
I think we chase this “why” question our whole lives and have different answers as we grow. Either we understand ourselves more, or we have changed and our old answers no longer apply. For me it starts with my roots—with my childhood—and likely before then.
As I mention in my bio, I grew up with mixed roots. I was neither fully Puerto Rican nor fully Lithuanian. I was neither fully country nor fully city. I was neither fully first generation nor fully second generation. This straddling created an urge to find identity—to study groups of people to see where I might fit. Although, as a shy kid, I started with animals. In fact, I would watch ants for hours and study their civilization unfold. Why did they walk in a single line? Where were they going? Who was in charge?
In my shyness, I felt awkward about fitting in. In fact, for one year of my life, I hardly spoke, which eventually caused a stutter. As a result, I spent years experiencing shame as I struggled to make my lips move to express how I felt and create the connection for which I yearned.
I also witnessed dysfunction in my family when financial pressures hit and cultural differences tested the way my parents communicated. I wanted someone to lead us through these challenges.
From what I can tell, my curiosity for leadership—wanting to understand group dynamics, to find connection, and to create a better outcome for a group of people -- sparked with these experiences.
Whether you seek to lead yourself or others, start with the why. Why do you want to do this? Why should the group do this? Be authentic about it. Let the passion or vulnerability push yourself forward or pull others towards a better outcome.
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