We
were invited to John Force Racing's shop in Brownsburg,
IN for a press event announcing the new sponsorship of
Courtney Force's funny car by Advance Auto Parts. I've
made no secret here that I am a huge John Force Racing
fan, so this was really special.
I
had the chance to speak one-on one with John for a few
minutes. I was telling him about a fun video that I produced
a few years ago when he was a guest at the PRI Opening
Breakfast in Orlando. I told him that I took his best
quotes and sound bites from the Breakfast and edited into
a "John Force In Under 5 Minutes" video. As
I was speaking to him I realized he was just staring at
me, not reacting. I thought maybe I was annoying him but
I kept describing the video. When I finished, he said
(very sincerely) to send him a copy, that he'd like to
see it. I then realized that he wasn't getting annoyed
at all: he's just so focused. He was listening to every
word I said and waited until I was done so that he wouldn't
miss anything. I learned a lot about him in that conversation.
I also noticed that as I was speaking, not once did he
scan the room to see if there were somebody else who he'd
be better off speaking with. He was 100% there, in the
moment. I am convinced that this is one of the reason
that he has become so successful.
Speaking
of his success, as you're in his shop seeing the cars
and the crew, give thought to the fact that he has created
all of this. Then think about this: John Force has developed
a professional racing operation on the same level as Don
Schumacher and Connie Kalitta, but there's a big difference.
Force did it all on his own, from scratch and with no
other source of income except what he was able to secure
in the form of sponsorship. Connie Kalitta has Kalitta
Air, Don Schumacher has Schumacher Electric. John Force
has John Force Racing, and that's it. That is why he is
so driven. He has fought and clawed his way to the top
all by himself.
