PORT Adelaide's Darren Pfeiffer would be the first to admit he's made mistakes, but rather than forget what's been, he uses them as motivation.

After failed stints with both Adelaide and Carlton, Pfeiffer could have spent the rest of his life wondering what could have been.

Instead, the 24-year-old kept working at his game and his character and, after starring for Norwood in 2011, the Power offered him a third lifeline via the NAB AFL Rookie Draft.

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But Pfeiffer said he hadn't forgotten what he'd been through and his troubled past ensured nothing was taken for granted.

"I make sure I bring myself back to that just so that I don't get too comfortable with anything," he told AFL.com.au.

"I think it's a good thing to do, keep the past in your mind and you know you won't be as big of a chance to make the same mistake again.

"Everyone's motivation goes up and down, but when I can see it plateauing or even going downwards, I like to go back to [those thoughts] and it pretty quickly snaps me back into gear."

There's no doubt Pfeiffer is a changed man.

He said he hardly recognised the version of himself that was drafted by the Crows with pick no. 17 at the 2005 NAB AFL Draft and then by the Blues in 2008.

He admitted that period of his life now seemed like a dream.

"He was a funny man that bloke," Pfeiffer said.

"It seems a bit surreal looking back into those couple of years there and it's almost like a bit of a dream, it doesn't really seem like it was reality.

"I'm a bit more confident and mature (now)…I reckon that leads into the way you play football.

"My decision making has improved a fair bit."

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While he was criticised in the past for a lack of commitment, Pfeiffer has silenced the critics with a string of consistent performances since debuting for the Power in round four.

He hasn't starred yet, but he was instrumental in the club's win against North Melbourne and was amongst the best in last week's loss to Adelaide.

But having spent last season with Norwood in the SANFL, Pfeiffer conceded it was hard to stomach the Power's constant losses.

The Redlegs made it all the way to a preliminary final last year, a vast difference to the Power unit that has so far won just four games.

Despite the failures in 2012, he maintained the future was bright at Alberton and that's what kept the playing group driven.

"It's a pretty new team. Brad Ebert and Matthew Broadbent are probably our two standouts this year with the way they've gone about it and the way they've improved their footy and they haven't played with each other for even a year yet.

"I can only see the playing group getting better and getting used to each other which is exciting, really exciting."

Harry Thring covers Port Adelaide news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Harry.