…In 1989, four friends found themselves surrounded by a house of drunk teenagers, a night that would be remembered more for the incredible keg party than for the long, deep conversation we had about what drove us to be our best selves. We were a jock, a player, a scholar, and a thief/liar. Despite our differences, we spent hours discussing the aspects of our personalities that pushed us, made us want to be more, and instilled confidence in ourselves. We concluded it was that inner voice, that feeling we all listen to when it matters most. We had different names for it: Spirit, Demon, Essence. I called mine “My Inner Question.”

These are the questions I always ask myself in moments of adversity or uncertainty: Can you do this? Should you do this? Who are you? What gives you the right to be this person?

Years passed, and that night faded into the fuzzy realm of memory. Then, I had a daughter. As she entered that in-between childhood and adolescence stage, she asked me, “What pushes you? How can I find confidence and drive?” Suddenly, that long-lost conversation came rushing back. I shared with her the memories of those friends and the ideas of purpose and drive we had discussed. She asked, “Dad, do I have inner questions?”

I paused, unsure of what to say. Would my inner questions be the same for her? Would they push her and drive her to succeed as they did for me? I told her, “Yes, you do. You are a Hurley.” I was amazed as I watched her take this simple understanding of self-identity and put it into practice. She grew, shared these ideas with her younger sister, and developed her philosophy. Every morning, she asks herself, “Who am I? I’m a Hurley, and that’s who I am!”

The Hurley Q was born from the idea that by asking yourself honest questions and being your harshest critic, there is nothing you can’t overcome. Those three friends who helped transform this personal belief into a sense of being will always be remembered, admired, and missed.

In 2020, the Three Hurley Musketeers—Scott, Kayla, and Skylar—stopped talking about ideas and started turning them into actions. The Hurley Q became our central place to give birth to new entrepreneurial adventures and see if a lifetime of pushing ourselves with the belief in our inner Q could be more than an idea.