Most of us know what it is that we do in our work or our companies, and we can tell others about that pretty easily. However, can you easily tell people why you do what you do?
Simon Sinek is a young writer and inspirational speaker. You can watch his first TEDx talk, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action,” from the video player below. The essence of his message is this: In our culture we focus on what we do instead of why we do it. Yet the thing that all of the most effective leaders have in common, whether they are individuals or organizations, according to Sinek, is that they focus on the “why” and let it create the “what.”
I’ve written a couple of blog posts about vision over the last few weeks. (See When Goal Setting Misses the Point – Transforming How We Get Things Done and Finding the Courage to Follow Your Vision if you would like to read more.) In the first one, I draw a distinction between visions and goals. Vision is synonymous with Synek’s “why” while goals are synonymous with the “what.” Just as the purpose of goals is to serve a vision, the purpose of the “what” is to serve the “why.”
Here at the Center for Transformational Presence, we believe that when you stand in your most authentically powerful personal presence, you can become a dynamic catalyst for transformation in your world. We believe that when you understand life as energy in motion and understand that form follows energy, you can achieve extraordinary things. We believe that transformation is not something that you make happen, but rather is a result of shifts in perception and thinking which then inform how you “show up” to life each day. We believe that societal transformation is not about changing what people think but rather about changing how people think.
These beliefs are why we are here doing what we do. And every day more people join us and thank us for being here doing what we do, because they feel a resonance with who we are.
Our vision is to create new ways of thinking, being, and doing at every level of society – to invite new approaches to life and work, to help intuitive thinking become mainstream, and for the potential-based approach to become the norm in society, business, and government. While we are certainly not the only people helping to bring about this new way of being, we aspire to making a significant contribution to the shifting of mass consciousness.
How about you? Why do you do what you do? How does what you do reflect why you do it?
Simon Sinek closes his TEDx talk with these words: “There are leaders and there are those who lead. Leaders hold a position of power or authority, but those who lead inspire us. Whether they are individuals or organizations, we follow those who lead not because we have to but because we want to. We follow those who lead not for them, but for ourselves. And it’s those who start with ‘why’ that have the ability to inspire those around them.”
Enjoy the video!
P.S. If you have a copy of my book, The Manifestation Wheel, pages 68 – 71 will help you get clear about your “why” for any project or vision. If you don’t have the book, you can order it here.
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