The Connection Magazine AIM MUTUAL Spring 2020 | Page 18

WHY
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”
THE
GOLDEN
CIRCLE
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.
An edited excerpt that first appeared on
Linkedin from "Find Your Why: A Practical Guide
for Finding Purpose for You and Your Team" by
Simon Sinek with David Mead and Peter Docker.
Copyright©2017 by Sinek Partners, LLC.
Simon Sinek
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 FindYour Why and The Infinite Game
StartWithWhy.com
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