Why are some people and organisations more inventive, pioneering and successful than others? And why are they able to repeat their success again and again? In business, it doesn’t matter what you do, it matters WHY you do it! Start with Why.
In “Start with Why,” Simon Sinek takes us on a captivating journey that delves into the core of what makes great leaders truly exceptional. Through compelling anecdotes, profound insights, and a deep exploration of human behavior, Sinek challenges us to examine the fundamental question that separates remarkable leaders from the rest: Why?.
Simon Sinek
I first saw Simon Sinek do a TED talk on his book Start with Why. I loved it, I loved the book and re-read it regularly.
Golden Circle
At the heart of “Start with Why” lies the powerful concept of the Golden Circle, a model that consists of three layers: Why, How, and What. Sinek argues that while most individuals and organizations focus on the outermost layer (What), the most influential and inspiring leaders consistently begin with the innermost layer (Why). Defining and understanding the purpose, cause, or belief that drives their actions and decisions empowers these leaders to create lasting impact.
Great Leaders Start with Why
According to Sinek, exceptional leaders inspire and influence others by starting with the essence of their vision: the “Why.” They communicate their beliefs and values with clarity and passion, fostering a sense of purpose that resonates deeply with their teams and customers. By doing so, they attract individuals who share their values, creating a loyal following that transcends mere transactions.
Moreover, great leaders consistently stay true to their “Why” even in times of uncertainty and challenges. This unwavering dedication to their core purpose enables them to make decisions aligned with their beliefs, and it’s this consistency that garners trust and respect from those they lead.
Start with Why Key Idea #1: Captivate, not Manipulate.
If you want to motivate others, don’t manipulate – captivate.
Motivating others is an essential aspect of leadership, whether it’s driving workplace productivity, engaging in philanthropy, influencing political choices, or supporting charitable causes. However, the conventional approach of using incentives and threats to manipulate behaviour is not effective (nor OK).
Exceptional leaders
Exceptional leaders understand that true motivation comes from captivating people’s hearts and minds. Rather than relying on material rewards or punishments, they inspire individuals to take action by instilling a genuine sense of purpose and calling.
Enthusiastic individuals, who are driven by a deeper meaning in their actions, are the ones who bring unparalleled dedication and personal resources to the table. They willingly commit themselves to the common goal without external prompts or inducements.
Profound Example
A remarkable example of this profound motivation is embodied by the Wright brothers, who defied all odds in 1903 by building the world’s first engine-powered plane. Unlike their competitors, their passion wasn’t driven by financial gain or fame, but by the desire to conquer the seemingly impossible challenge. This unwavering devotion was the key to their success, setting them apart from the rest.
Captivating hearts and minds
with a sense of purpose is the hallmark of true leadership, fostering lasting dedication and achieving remarkable results. By inspiring rather than manipulating, leaders can harness the full potential of their teams, paving the way for transformative success
Start with Why Key Idea #2: Your Golden Circle
If you want to lead and motivate others, Develop your Golden Cirle.
Sinek’s Golden Circle is loosely based on the golden ratio, a mathematical concept describing proportions that are considered particularly pleasing to the eye. The Golden Circle consists of three concentric circles with the WHY as a bull’s eye in the center, the HOW wrapped around that, and the WHAT as the outermost circle.
WHAT
The WHAT describes the activities of the business or organization. Usually, the WHAT is pretty self-explanatory – say, manufacturing a product or offering certain services.
HOW
The HOW illustrates the way in which the WHAT is achieved: How do you handle everything? What is it that, for example, turns a particular manufacturing process or business culture into something special?
WHY
The WHY describes the mission of a business or organization. Why was it founded? What is its main goal?
Example : Explainer
Although all three of these factors should be well known and thought out in advance, many businesses and organizations don’t have a clear idea of their WHY. Yielding profits is, for example, not a WHY: it’s the result of the WHAT and the HOW.
In order to cooperate effectively with others, we should adopt the perspective of The Golden Circle and understand all three of its rings. Some people may naturally see the world like this, but those of us who don’t have that innate inclination can learn it.
The Golden Circle provides a leadership model that can serve as a basis for creating a business or organization and for inspiring and leading others. Ultimately, leaders must make an effort to not only communicate WHAT is being done and HOW, but also the often-forgotten WHY.
Start with Why Key Idea #3: Communicate!
Great leaders communicate The Golden Circle from the inside out.
When we make decisions, we base them more on the WHY than the WHAT – because only the WHY fosters a sense of belonging. As for the WHAT, it’s purely rational and hardly stands a chance against the emotional impact of a WHY.
For that reason, people in leadership positions who want to get others to take action always begin by explaining WHY something has to be done. That way, they create a sense of belonging which makes others want to take action.
Motivational Alignment
When people are emotionally invested, they join movements, buy products and brands – and even use them as symbols to show others who they are and who they support.
The more clearly you describe and communicate the WHY, the more people will like it, because people don’t buy WHAT people make; they buy WHY people make it.
And so, leaders communicate by starting in the core of The Golden Circle and working their way out: they first explain WHY they do what they do, then HOW they do it and, only at the very end, WHAT their product is.
Example
Apple is a good example of this phenomenon. Their “Think different” slogan emphasizes their philosophy of challenging the status quo – and succeeds in getting across their WHY. The HOW comes next: a user-friendly and visually appealing approach to design and interface. Finally, they translate all this into their WHAT: computers, smartphones and MP3 players.
When a WHY excites people, the product itself usually doesn’t matter as much: customers are convinced by the business itself and happy to buy whatever it sells.
Start with Why Key Idea #4: More Profitable and More Stable
Businesses and organizations that start with WHY are more profitable and more stable.
Successful businesses don’t stand out because of their business strategies or unconventional thinking. They are simply able to excite their employees and customers and begin every decision-making process by asking WHY.
That’s the only way for them to successfully realize their ideas. Even factors like financial and other resources are only secondary to their success.
Inspiring
By inspiring others we establish a following. Whether they’re clients or employees, excited followers are the most loyal. And, backed by them, we have the capacity to change an entire industry – or even the world.
Example
The American motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson, for instance, has built up a huge community of loyal followers over the course of its more than 100-year existence. For its customers, a Harley isn’t just a motorcycle, but a symbol so important to them that they’re willing to wait several months for a bike they’ve ordered – and, in the meantime, get the company’s logo tattooed onto their arms.
Businesses with a clear WHY generally don’t have trouble distinguishing themselves from others, which gives them the luxury of largely ignoring the competition.
As a result, they can be more authentic and imaginative than others and don’t need to depend on imitating the competition.
In addition, when businesses have a definitive personality and convey a clear WHY, they are also able to attract the best employees – which is priceless when it comes to securing the survival of a business.
Start with Why Key Idea #5: A Motivated Team is a Power tool.
Excited people are the most powerful resource a business can have.
The WHY of a business or a movement has to be clear so that people who believe in the same thing have a chance to develop trust and loyalty. Once that happens, they’ll be willing to follow – not just because they feel obligated or expect rewards, but because they believe in the cause.
Values Alignment : Getting the right people on the Bus
Followers that have a common goal and trust their leader will voluntarily work harder and longer than those who don’t, since they feel it’s worth it for them to work overtime. That’s why we should always make it our mission to find supporters and employees who believe in a shared WHY, and not just people who have certain qualifications or skills.
In other words, businesses shouldn’t hire people purely for their qualifications and start motivating them later. Instead, they should always make a point of looking for motivated employees and then get them inspired.
Example
Southwest Airlines has always put this philosophy into practice in an exemplary way. Back in the 1970s, when the competition to have the best flight attendants was at its peak, they decided to only hire cheerleaders and dancers to fill the positions. And, as it turned out, they were the ideal candidates: it was simply in their nature to spread joy and make people feel at ease.
Such enthusiastic employees are not only better with customers but also attract similarly minded staff by actively vouching for their company and its WHY.
In an atmosphere of trust, employees feel freer to innovate and go out of their way to contribute to achieving the common goal. This is what makes a business or organization stand out from the rest.
Start with Why Key Idea #6: Long-term success hinges on the survival of the original WHY.
In the real world, it’s no small challenge to keep all three rings of The Golden Circle in check. Especially because when success becomes the norm and an organization is no longer in its euphoric initial phase, the WHY often gets neglected.
It’s right at this moment that people start prioritizing numbers over all else, and short-term thinking and quick wins become more important, even though none of it reflects the business’s actual goals.
Sustainable Why
In addition, the success of an organization leads to growth, which leads to an increasing number of people being involved. And the more people are involved, the higher the risk of watering down the original WHY, which can, in turn, have a negative impact in the long run.
That’s why it’s important to preserve the WHY established by the founders in an organization’s culture: future leaders will be able to adopt it if it’s part of the organization’s identity.
An organization runs the highest risk of letting the WHY – its raison d’être – fall by the wayside when the founder leaves.
Example
Take Wal-Mart, for example: its original WHY was to serve customers and its staff. Once the founder died, the focus was shifted towards maximizing profits at the employee’s expense. Consequently, dozens of employees sued the company for being severely underpaid and Wal-Mart ended up paying hundreds of millions of dollars in penalties and settlements.
The lesson is: the hardest part isn’t finding the WHY, but staying true to it and keeping it alive.
Start with Why Key Idea #7: Your customer MUST Trust your business
Customer manipulation doesn’t foster trust and is ultimately counterproductive.
The majority of businesses rely on methods of manipulation to influence potential customers – usually to get them to buy their products. By doing this, these businesses ignore the true motivations of their customers – the WHY – rather than using them to excite the customers.
They manipulate customers by applying generic sales tactics that don’t have any special connection to a product or a service.
Trust – People are loyal to people they Trust
The tactics range from alleged clearance sales, limited-time offers and two-for-one deals that trick us into believing they’re once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, to announcements that don’t quite tell the truth or that exert social pressure – for example, “Four out of five dentists use this toothbrush.”
These tactics are used for one simple reason: they work. For a little while. But their success is short-lived. Ultimately, a business can’t benefit from these scare tactics because they don’t generate a sense of trust or loyalty.
Loyalty is Key to building a sustainable business
Because once you have truly loyal customers, you don’t need to bother with tactics like these. Loyal customers will always prefer the product of their favourite business even if it’s not the best or cheapest in its class.
And so, customer manipulation can boost sales in the short-term, but it’s not a sustainable strategy.
The Difference Between Great and Average Leaders
Sinek highlights that while average leaders can achieve short-term success by focusing on “What” they do and “How” they do it, they often struggle to maintain long-term loyalty and engagement. In contrast, great leaders inspire loyalty because they effectively communicate the “Why” behind their actions, creating a sense of belonging and shared purpose among their teams.
Average leaders may rely on external motivators such as incentives or fear to drive performance, but these tactics are short-lived and often result in a lack of true dedication from their followers. In contrast, great leaders tap into the intrinsic motivation of their teams by appealing to their sense of purpose and personal fulfilment.
To Close
Furthermore, average leaders might lose sight of their “Why” in the pursuit of success, leading to a lack of authenticity and disconnection from their original purpose. Great leaders, on the other hand, remain steadfast in their vision, guiding their organizations with integrity and passion..
Another helpful book to read in parallel is Exploring Corporate Strategy by Gerry Johnson et al’
