WHY
just saving a buck. That feeling of alliance
with something bigger is the reason we
keep wearing the jersey of our hometown
sports team even though they’ve missed the
playoffs for 10 years and counting. It’s why
some of us will always buy Apple products
over other brands, even if Apple isn’t always
the most affordable choice. Whether we
like to admit it or not, we are not entirely
rational beings. If we were, no one would
ever fall in love and no one would ever start
a business. Faced with an overwhelming
chance of failure, no rational person would
ever take either of those risks. But we
do. Every day. Because how we feel about
something or someone is more powerful
than what we think about it or them.
There’s just one problem with feelings.
They can be tremendously difficult to
express in words. That’s the reason we so
often resort to metaphors and analogies,
like “our relationship feels like a train
heading at high speed toward a rickety
bridge” or “when I get to the office, I feel
like a little kid on the playground again.”
Even though communicating our feelings
is hard, the payoff is big. When we align
emotionally with our customers and clients,
our connection is much stronger and more
meaningful than any affiliation based on
features and benefits. That’s what starting
with WHY is all about.
And here's the best part, this whole concept
of WHY is grounded in the tenets of the
biology of human decision making. How
the Golden Circle works maps perfectly
with how our brain works.
The outer section of the Golden Circle—the
WHAT—corresponds to the outer section
of the brain—the neocortex. This is the part
of the brain responsible for rational and
analytical thought. It helps us understand
facts and figures, features and benefits.
The neocortex is also responsible for
language.
The middle two sections of the
Golden Circle—the WHY and HOW—
correspond to the middle section of the
brain, the limbic system. This is the
part of the brain responsible for all our
behavior and decision making. It’s also
responsible for all our feelings, like trust
and loyalty. But unlike the neocortex,
the limbic system has no capacity for
language. This is where “gut feelings”
come from. It’s not our stomach. It’s a
feeling we get about a decision we have
to make that we struggle to explain.
That separation of powers is the
biological reason we sometimes find it
difficult to put our feelings into words
(“I love you more than words can say”),
explain our actions (“The devil made me
do it!”) or justify our decisions (“I don’t
know ... it just felt right”).
We can learn, however, to put words to
those feelings. And those who do are
the ones who are better able to inspire
action in themselves, among their
colleagues and with their customers.
THE WHY EFFECT
Once you understand your WHY,
you’ll be able to clearly articulate what
makes you feel fulfilled and to better
understand what drives your behavior
when you’re at your natural best. When
you can do that, you’ll have a point of
reference for everything you do going
forward. You’ll be able to make more
intentional choices for your business,
your career, and your life. You’ll be able
to inspire others to buy from you, work
with you, and join your cause. Never
again should you have to play the lottery
and act on gut decisions that are made
for reasons you don’t really understand.
From now on, you can work with
purpose, on purpose. From now on, you
can start with WHY.
If we want to feel an undying passion
for our work, if we want to feel we are
contributing to something bigger than
ourselves, we all need to know our WHY.
Discover your WHY at:
startwithwhy.com/p/why-discovery +
Coming soon!
Simon Sinek is an unshakable optimist who
believes in a bright future and our ability to
build it together. He discovered remarkable
patterns about how the greatest leaders and
organizations think, act and communicate.
Simon may be best known for popularizing
the concept of WHY in his first TED Talk
in 2009. It rose to become the third most
watched on TED.com, with over 37 million
views and subtitled in 46 languages.
Simon is the author of multiple best-selling
books including Start With Why (global
best seller), Leaders Eat Last (New York
Times and Wall Street Journal best seller),
Together is Better (New York Times and
Wall Street Journal best seller) and Find
Your Why and The Infinite Game, coming
soon.
StartWithWhy.com
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