Daniel Pink was born July 23, 1964, and grew up in Columbus, Ohio. He attended Northwestern University and Yale Law School, after which he began pursuing a career in politics, with a focus on economic policy. He served under the former Secretary of Labor, Robert Reich (whom he quotes in Chapter 6) between 1993 and 1995, and he worked as a speechwriter for Vice President Al Gore from 1995 to 1997. His experiences give him unique insight into the need for businesses to adapt to a changing economic world, and his skills as a speechwriter make his writing style striking and memorable.

Pink has written many books, mostly non-fiction books focused on issues similar to those addressed in Drive. He writes about business strategies and management philosophies, the nature of human creativity, and the driving factors behind human behavior. His insights often go against conventional wisdom. In The Power of Regret, for example, he argues that regret—an emotion usually viewed as negative—can actually help people live better lives. This contrarian perspective is also found in Drive, in which he argues against the conventional wisdom that people are most strongly motivated by external rewards and punishments.