Start With Why by Simon Sinek (top 100 Business Book Summaries

The book, Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone To Take Action, begins by pondering the questions: do you know why your customers are your customers? And is that knowledge based on fact, or on some incorrect but pleasant assumptions? We all know there are tactics, and some would say “tricks” to obtaining customers, but does that bring you any closer to the holy grail, that is customer loyalty? To that end, we are offered The Golden Circle.

Every company knows what they do, they know how they do it, but do they know why they do it? Why do they get out of bed? Why do people care? Sinek offers the example of Apple:-

Without the WHY:

We make great computers.

They’re beautifully designed, simple to use and user-friendly.

Wanna buy one?

?With the WHY:

Everything we do, we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently.

The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully designed, simple to use and user-friendly.

And we happen to make great computers.

Wanna buy one?

?The premise is that people don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it, and that is seeded in biology.?

The neocortex of your brain is responsible for rational and analytical thought and language, while the limbic brain is responsible for feelings, such as trust and loyalty. It is also responsible for our behaviour and decision making but has no capacity for language. It is the part of the brain that controls our gut decisions.

?To successfully implement the concept, you need:

• Clarity of WHY
• Discipline of HOW
• Consistency of WHAT

?The concept is equally applicable to employees as it is to customers. Compare these two pitches:?

“Our company is extremely successful. We have beautiful offices, you should stop by and check them out sometime. We do business with all the biggest companies and brands. I’m sure you’ve seen our ads. We’re actually doing pretty well.”

VS

“You know what I love about our company? Every single one of us comes to work every day to do something we love. We get to inspire people to do the things that inspire them. It’s the most wonderful thing in the world. In fact, the fun part is trying to figure out all the ways we can do that. It really is amazing. The best part is that it’s good for business. We do really well. We have beautiful offices; you should stop by sometime to see. We work with some of the biggest companies. I’m sure you’ve seen our ads. We’re actually doing pretty well.”

Conclusion

Sinek’s theory is that “people don’t buy WHAT you do; they buy WHY you do it”. By discovering, clarifying, and articulating your why, you will communicate on a deeper level, via the limbic brain to your customer and employees alike, thereby inspiring action. If you haven’t watched it already, Sinek’s TED talk on this has had 58 million views for a reason: it’s simple, easy to understand and just 18 minutes long – it’s definitely time well spent.?

Favourite Quotes

“Quitting smoking is the easiest thing I’ve ever done… I’ve done it hundreds of times.”

Mark Twain

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“Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.”

Steve Jobs

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“Authenticity means that your Golden Circle is in balance. It means that everything you say and everything you do, you actually believe.”

Simon Sinek

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“There are only two ways to influence human behaviour: you can manipulate it, or you can inspire it.”

Simon Sinek

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“The role of a leader is not to come up with all the great ideas. The role of a leader is to create an environment in which great ideas can happen.”

Simon Sinek

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“For values or guiding principles to be truly effective they have to be verbs. It’s not ‘integrity’, it’s ‘always do the right thing’. It’s not ‘innovation’, it’s ‘look at the problem from a different angle’. Articulating our values as verbs gives us a clear idea – we have a clear idea of how to act in any situation.”

Simon Sinek

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“Leading is not the same as being the leader. Being the leader means you hold the highest rank, either by earning it, good fortune, or navigating internal politics. Leading, however, means that others willingly follow you –?not because they have to, not because they are paid to, but because they want to.”

Simon Sinek