Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

by Simon Sinek

We can all learn to lead.

Their goals were not different than anyone else’s, and their systems and processes were easily replicated.

Great leaders, in contrast, are able to inspire people to act. Those who are able to inspire give people a sense of purpose or belonging that has little to do with any external incentive or benefit to be gained.

We make assumptions about the world around us based on sometimes incomplete or false information.

When faced with a result that doesn’t go according to plan, a series of perfectly effective short-term tactics are used until the desired outcome is achieved.

There are only two ways to influence human behavior: you can manipulate it or you can inspire it.

Beyond the business world, manipulations are the norm in politics today as well.

There is a big difference between repeat business and loyalty. Repeat business is when people do business with you multiple times. Loyalty is when people are willing to turn down a better product or a better price to continue doing business with you.

Like any addiction, the drive is not to get sober, but to find the next fix faster and more frequently. And as good as the short-term highs may feel, they have a deleterious impact on the long-term health of an organization.

The short-term gains that drive business in America today are actually destroying our health.

The Golden Circle was inspired by the golden ratio—a simple mathematical relationship that has fascinated mathematicians, biologists, architects, artists, musicians and naturists since the beginning of history.

The Golden Circle finds order and predictability in human behavior.

The Golden Circle shows how these leaders were able to inspire action instead of manipulating people to act.

WHY: Very few people or companies can clearly articulate WHY they do WHAT they do.

people don’t buy WHAT you do, they buy WHY you do it.

when a company clearly communicates their WHY, what they believe, and we believe what they believe, then we will sometimes go to extraordinary lengths to include those products or brands in our lives.

We are drawn to leaders and organizations that are good at communicating what they believe.

Relationships also build trust. And with trust comes loyalty.

Energy motivates but charisma inspires.

Regardless of WHAT we do in our lives, our WHY—our driving purpose, cause or belief—never changes.

When a WHY is clear, those who share that belief will be drawn to it and maybe want to take part in bringing it to life.

to actually move people requires organizing.

WHY-types are the visionaries,

For a message to have real impact, to affect behavior and seed loyalty, it needs more than publicity.

When we don’t know an organization’s WHY, we don’t know what to expect, so we expect the minimum—price, quality, service, features—the commodity stuff. But when we do have a sense for the WHY, we expect more.

The real reason is that there is a distinct lack of institutions to give young people in the region a sense of optimism for their future. A

Really?

leader must ensure that there are people on the team who believe what they believe and know HOW to build it.

With a WHY clearly stated in an organization, anyone within the organization can make a decision as clearly and as accurately as the founder.

It is at the WHAT level that a cause is brought to life.

? I thought it was WHY?

What Gets Measured, Gets Done