Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action
The power of Why is not an opinion; it is biology.
Simon Sinek’s first and most famous book needs no introductions in the leadership category. Start with Why
Simon shows that the leaders who’ve had the most significant influence in the world all think, act, and communicate the same way—and it’s the opposite of what everyone else does.
Simon calls this powerful idea The Golden Circle, and it provides a framework upon which organizations can be built, movements can be led, and people can be inspired.
And it all starts with WHY.
His examples include Apple, Martin Luther King, and the Wright brothers -- and, as a counterpoint, Tivo, which (until a recent court victory that tripled its stock price) appeared to be struggling.
The author uses the Golden Circle model to explain how legendary leaders were able to inspire, rather than manipulate, to motivate people. It is the framework for the WHY.
The power of WHY is not opinion. It’s biology. The Golden Circle is more than a communications hierarchy. Its principles are deeply grounded in the tenets of human decision-making. How the Golden Circle works maps perfectly with how our brain works. The Golden Circle can be used as a guide for your journey to find purpose and fulfillment. It explains loyalty and how to create enough momentum to turn an idea into a social movement.
If you hire people just because they can do a job, they’ll work for your money.
But if you hire people who believe what you believe, they’ll work for you with blood, sweat, and tears.
~Simon Sinek
In our corporate experience, we have encountered or read about many leaders who use fear, manipulation, and authority to control their employees.
As Sinek points out, these tactics directly impact organizations' growth and do not benefit the leader or the business in the long term.
Trust, loyalty, and commitment are not built on fear.
Sinek shows us how inspiration plays a huge role in leadership, even more than motivation or incentives.
If a leader can inspire those who work for them, the engagement will increase, which will, in turn, positively affect productivity and profits.
This is my experience as well. I have had several opportunities to work for great leaders who truly inspire and motivate with a purpose. I have seen my colleagues and team members believe in the vision and commit to the company's success.
There are plenty of best-seller books on leadership; however, this one stands out.
It is a great read that will inspire, motivate, and change how we think, act, and communicate, similar to the great examples in this book.
I hope this book inspires you the same way it did to many aspiring leaders like me. Please let me know about your experience in the comments below.