Simon Sinek: Start with Why

I am a believer of working for something greater than yourself.  Best motivation is figuring out what gives meaning to your life, and doing your job to get closer to your purpose.

I have not seen anyone who can motivate himself continuously for his own gain.  Everyone who inspired me to act either acted or believed that they are fulfilling their life's purpose, the reason why they exist.  No one has inspired me by telling me how early I can retire by working extra hours.

I believe that's because we all want to be a part of something greater.  We all want to belong to something.  We need to share purpose with people around us.

Simon Sinek shared his view of how great leaders inspire.  They inspire us by describing the purpose.  Great leaders don't start with what we should do or how we should do things, but rather why we should.  They help us see the bigger meaning of why we must.  They communicate the shared value for the rest of us to emulate.

What strikes me is that we also choose based on stories of 'why' when it comes to deciding what to buy.  When we hear stories that appeal to our emotion, we do not rationalize.  Instead we react and decide with our gut feelings.  We are tricked into thinking that our purpose can be fulfilled by buying that cool product.

Both good marketers and good leaders are masters of manipulating your emotion.  It's up to us to figure out whether we are being sold to or being inspired to follow.