Finding your “Why” or purpose can help you make better choices in your work and life that lead to greater fulfillment, according to best-selling author Simon Sinek. That’s what he discovered when finding his purpose helped him overcome depression. He then began helping others find their purpose through his popular 2009 TED Talk and by working with individuals and organizations.
Sinek shared his ideas about the centrality of purpose in his best-selling book, Start With Why, in 2009, which focused on organizations. He outlined his theory that the most successful organizations have a clear purpose and stick to it as they grow. To provide practical help to more people, he later co-wrote Find Your Why with David Mead and Peter Docker: a follow-up book that lays out a step-by-step process for discovering your purpose.
(Shortform note: Sinek’s concept of a Why or purpose isn’t new. In 1946, psychologist Viktor Frankl argued that the driving force in our lives is meaning, not pleasure or power, as other schools of thought at the time suggested. Frankl also argued that the meaning of life isn’t universal, but rather something each person must find for themselves, just as Sinek believes everyone has a unique purpose they must discover.)
According to Sinek, “finding your Why” means finding your purpose: the single core belief that inspires you to do the work you choose to do and be the kind of person you want to be in all spheres of your life. Sinek believes every individual and organization has a purpose, though not everyone has discovered theirs or put it into words. He argues that your purpose is fixed by your twenties. Some people argue that your purpose changes throughout your lifetime; however, Sinek contends that while life events can temporarily divert you from your purpose, or make you reassess it, they don’t change your purpose.
(Shortform note: Sinek’s belief that everyone has a single purpose that remains true throughout their lifetime doesn’t match findings from research on purpose. According to studies, people’s search for and engagement with their purpose evolves throughout different stages of life. During our teenage years, we take an exploratory approach to purpose that becomes more urgent as we become adults and feel the pressure to have certainty on what our purpose is. Finally, during our senior years, we again take an exploratory approach after the things that gave us purpose during adulthood, including raising a family and having a career, become past accomplishments.)
Sinek discusses three benefits of knowing your purpose:
1. When you know your purpose, you can seek out work that fulfills you—that is, work that matters and makes you feel that you're part of something bigger. Sinek believes everyone, no matter their role or status, deserves to find fulfillment at work. (Shortform note: Sinek draws a distinction between fulfillment and happiness, unlike traditional career advice that often conflates the two or sees them as operating in tandem. Fulfillment is lasting while happiness fluctuates. Additionally, Sinek’s understanding of fulfillment as a human need is in line with long-standing theories from psychology. Psychologist Abraham Maslow theorized that humans have five basic needs, including self-actualization, or fulfillment of our potential.)
2. Finding your purpose helps you make more persuasive appeals to people. Your energy and commitment to your purpose are contagious, so having clarity on it helps you pitch your ideas in a way that’s more authentic and enticing to others. (Shortform note: Jack Canfield, author of The Success Principles, agrees with Sinek's belief that having a clear purpose will inspire others to join you. Canfield adds that communicating your purpose in a compelling way is one of the main skills of great leaders.)
3. Knowing your purpose helps you make better decisions because you can measure each choice against your purpose and make the decision that best aligns with it. (Shortform note: In Essentialism, Greg McKeown suggests practical ways to filter out nonessential pursuits using your purpose: Learn to set boundaries and say “no” gracefully, learn to say “no more” to time or money investments that no longer serve you, and have an editor’s mindset to eliminate everything except what’s essential.)
We’ve discussed what your Why, or purpose, is and what its benefits are. Now, we’ll explore how to use your purpose to guide your life and work. We'll look at a three-part model Sinek first introduced in Start With Why, which illustrates that your central purpose determines the actions you take (your “How” or methods) and, in turn, your results (“What” you accomplish).
Sinek calls his model “The Golden Circle”: It consists of three concentric circles, each representing one of the core concepts in his theory.
1. The inner circle is the Why: the purpose that orients everything you do. It’s the core belief that motivates you to get out of bed in the morning. In terms of an organization, it’s the mission you stand for and the reason you’re in business. An organization’s Why might be to provide accessible health care to its community. An individual’s Why might be to create spaces for learning.
2. The middle circle is the How: the methods and practices that characterize you and which other people consider your strengths. Individuals and organizations can have multiple “Hows” because they are practical, operational knowledge that brings the Why to life. An organization’s How might be to empower the voices of team members. An individual’s How might be to forge meaningful connections.
3. The outer circle is the What: the outputs you generate. It’s the tangible part of your organization or life and the easiest to identify. An organization's What includes its products, services, policies, and strategies. An individual's What might be their family, job, and projects.
(Shortform note: Critics point out that Sinek’s model is missing a critical question: Who? They argue that organizations that begin with Why overlook the most important element in a business: the customers. An organization might have a compelling Why, driving its How and What. But if the organization can’t find a customer interested in its product or service (the What), it won’t succeed. Thus, you could complement Sinek’s model by asking yourself who you’re serving and what they need before considering Why you do what you do.)
Sinek believes most organizations and individuals work from the outside of the model in, because it’s easier to explain your What and How (results and methods) than your Why.
But Sinek believes great companies start with the core (Why) and work their way outward. He advocates not only focusing on your purpose, but also sharing it upfront with the people you do business with, because revealing what’s driving you fosters long-term relationships. Here’s how the three methods of presenting yourself (leading with What, How, or Why) compare:
Leading with What, or outcomes: You introduce yourself or your organization by talking about your product or service. Some people decide to buy from you, hire you, or join you—but only for as long as you’re the most convenient option available.
Leading with How, or methods: You introduce yourself or your organization by talking about the methods or practices that set you apart from the competition. Some people choose you—until your way of doing things catches on, and you become one of many similar options with the same How.
Leading with Why, or purpose: You introduce yourself or your organization by talking about your mission, the problem you’re trying to solve, or a fundamental belief you have about the future. More people choose you because they understand that supporting you means supporting that purpose. Other competitors might offer similar outcomes or methods in the future, and maybe even with more convenient terms, but you will always have the advantage of the emotional connection you forged.
(Shortform note: The concept of leading with your purpose isn’t new to sales. In To Sell Is Human, Daniel Pink recommends a model based on trust, an interest in serving the customer, plus purpose. His two rules for service-oriented selling are to make it personal and to make it purposeful. He says you’ll be most successful when serving a purpose that improves society.)
We’ve discussed Sinek’s model. Now we'll look at how to write a purpose statement. Your purpose statement is a single sentence that declares your ultimate goal and vision. According to Sinek, it has two parts: The first part should spell out the core action your Why compels you to take. The second part should state what you’re ultimately striving to achieve: the impact you want to have.
An older version of Airbnb’s mission statement is a great example of a purpose statement: To connect millions of people in real life all over the world, through a community marketplace (core action)—so that you can Belong Anywhere (impact).
(Shortform note: In First Things First, Stephen Covey also suggests writing a statement of what matters most to you and what you hope to achieve, but he approaches it with more flexibility. While Sinek’s purpose statement succinctly states the core action you take and the key impact you seek in one sentence, Covey’s mission statement more broadly defines your life’s goals and the principles that guide you toward them.)
According to Sinek, an effective purpose statement has four characteristics:
The purpose statement should be easy to understand and clear about how you’ll put it into action. By keeping it short, you help yourself remember your Why and keep it in mind when you take action. Additionally, Sinek argues that limiting it to one sentence helps ensure that it’s truthful because it forces you to state only what matters most.
The second part of the statement focuses on the impact of your work and your positive effect on others. Sinek stresses that having a positive impact feeds our sense of fulfillment, because fulfillment comes from serving others rather than seeking our own satisfaction.
Your statement should inspire you or your team to reach within for your best version. This is a meaningful, truthful version of yourself, not an aspirational—or worse, doctored—version.
Your purpose is a constant in all aspects of your life and work. Sinek notes that your desired effect doesn’t change over time or in different situations. But while you have only one purpose statement, you’ll find different ways to express your purpose in different contexts.
An Alternative Approach to the Purpose Statement
In First Things First, Stephen Covey recommends gaining clarity on your purpose by writing what he calls a mission statement. He outlines the characteristics of an effective mission statement, some of which are similar to Sinek’s suggestions. But Covey’s flexible and holistic approach to the mission statement considers characteristics that Sinek doesn’t:
While Sinek believes you need a brief statement that doesn’t embellish your purpose, Covey is more flexible and encourages creative self-expression.
Covey suggests that your personal mission statement should address your four basic human needs: survival, connection, learning, and giving back. Given Sinek’s focus on impact, he would argue that a purpose statement should mostly be about giving back.
Covey is more specific than Sinek in emphasizing that your mission statement defines the universal principles you will apply to achieve your purpose.
Finally, while Sinek believes a purpose statement is a constant in your life, Covey gives more guidance on how to make the mission statement relevant to all the spheres of your life by ensuring it includes all the different roles you play.
We’ve discussed the Why or purpose statement. Now, we’ll dive into the process Sinek created with co-authors David Mead and Peter Docker to identify your purpose.
To determine your Why in the first place, Sinek and his co-authors created a step-by-step process that individuals and groups can follow in a group discussion or workshop. Sinek’s process to find your purpose helps you or your team explore past experiences for insight into what moves you.
In this process, you’ll identify important stories in your personal or company experience, share them with a partner or group facilitator, and pull out themes. You’ll then distill these themes to write your purpose statement. (Shortform note: While Sinek argues that you can find your purpose by looking inward, Viktor Frankl argues the opposite in Man’s Search for Meaning. He contends that you can only find meaning out in the world—in other people or causes—not in your own mind.)
We’ll start by discussing four preliminary steps to Sinek’s process of finding your purpose. Since they look much the same for individuals and teams, we'll present the individual and team processes together, then mention their slight differences.
In this step, you’ll choose a partner or facilitator to help you identify themes in your life or organization that suggest a purpose. Sinek recommends choosing someone who has emotional distance from the process and can be objective. They should also be curious and perceptive, so they can ask the right follow-up questions to get to the core of each story.
After choosing your partner or facilitator, explain that after listening to each story, they should ask follow-up questions to uncover why it matters. According to Sinek, the best questions follow the trail of emotional cues, they aren’t yes or no questions, and they start with “what” rather than “why.”
On the other hand, partners or facilitators shouldn’t offer solutions or advice, or let their preconceptions bias the process. (Shortform note: One way to remain objective as a facilitator is to simply observe emotional cues to ask follow-up questions, instead of judging or naming the emotions you notice.)
The third step in preparing for the purpose discussion is input, or determining what you'll bring to the discussion. The input needed is different for teams and individuals. For individuals, input refers to the life stories you gather. For teams, it refers to the participants you invite.
Before the session, come up with 10 stories that shed light on who you are. Sinek suggests looking for meaningful anecdotes, lessons, and people who shaped you. (Shortform note: To identify meaningful stories, consider times you experienced a defining moment. In The Power of Moments, Chip and Dan Heath describe defining moments as those that generate insight, pride, and connection, and are different from everyday experiences.)
The stories that will help you discover your organization’s purpose are the ones team members have experienced and are able to share. To capture those stories, first find 10 to 30 people to participate: enough to generate diverse perspectives and experiences, but not so many that the process becomes disorganized.
According to Sinek, participants should:
(Shortform note: Sinek's ideas align closely with guidelines for team building that John Maxwell shares in The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, but Maxwell adds something Sinek doesn’t consider: Besides selecting for diversity, enthusiasm, and experience, Maxwell suggests you build a team with influential people who have good chemistry with you and other team members, and are morally upstanding. These traits will be useful to ensure the process goes smoothly, and that they later help promote the Why companywide.)
Now that we’ve laid the groundwork for a purpose discussion, we’ll explore how to conduct it. While the goal is the same for both individuals and teams, the process for each is different. Therefore, we’ll first go through the process for individuals and then explore how finding your purpose works for teams.
To begin, share the stories you came up with with your partner. While you share, they should: 1) Take notes on the main ideas and feelings behind the stories, and capture the core action you took and the effect you had or aimed for, and 2) Highlight recurring words or concepts. Sinek emphasizes that these are the themes you’ll use in the next steps.
(Shortform note: As a partner, you can determine what main ideas and recurring concepts you should make note of by following these four steps for getting to the core of a story: First, identify the facts of the story. Then, identify the emotions behind the story through the person’s words and body language. Stay silent as you observe what ideas and emotions the story sparks in you. Finally, once you’ve identified an emotion or idea, share it with them to see if it resonates. If it does, continue asking questions about it to see what else they can uncover. If it doesn’t, repeat the process to explore other possibilities.)
Now, have your partner look through their notes and identify themes. According to the authors, themes are ideas that come up in at least two stories. Together, read through the list of themes and identify the two that you feel a stronger connection to and that convey: 1) Your unique participation in the stories—the action you took. 2) Your effect on others—how they benefited from your participation.
Put the other themes aside. You’ll come back to them later when you determine your How.
(Shortform note: Like many people, you might be telling your stories with some responsibility bias, causing you to overemphasize your participation. Adam Grant explains in Give and Take that responsibility bias results from having more information about actions you’ve taken versus the contributions others have made. Your partner can help you avoid this bias by asking you about the contributions of other people involved in the stories you’re telling.)
At this stage, Sinek recommends that you and your partner each write an initial draft of your purpose statement separately. Using the two themes you selected, first write the core action your purpose compels you to take. Then, write the ultimate impact you want to have. For example: “To build strong foundations (action) so that future generations can thrive (impact).”
The authors caution against spending too much time writing—just capture what feels right. Share your drafts with each other. Decide whether to keep one or combine them. Once your draft has the right ideas, leave it for a while. Come back to it later with a fresh eye, and rework the phrasing until you feel it captures your essence.
(Shortform note: If you don’t have a partner with whom you can draft your purpose statement, consider writing a personal mission statement. This process also arrives at a succinct expression of your core action and impact without needing to collaborate with a partner. In addition, the personal mission statement allows for revisions in a way that is more flexible than Sinek’s process, because you’re meant to revise and improve it throughout your lifetime.)
The goal is to extract two key insights from stories participants will share: the core action the team consistently takes, and the effect the action has on others. To do so, the authors suggest dividing participants into groups that represent the diversity in the room. Avoid teaming people up with the colleagues they work with every day. (Shortform note: As David Epstein argues in Range, people from diverse backgrounds bring different ideas and values to the table, which results in new insights.)
To extract the first insight, begin by asking participants to share with their small groups stories of when they took pride in being part of the team. Then, ask each small group to share their three most emotionally impactful stories with the rest of the team. Ask follow-up questions after each story to uncover its significance. (Shortform note: If a team is struggling to come up with examples, help reframe their thoughts by considering proud moments that they may overlook. In The Power of Moments, Chip and Dan Heath suggest paying attention to small wins and focusing on progress instead of results.)
Ask participants to choose an action verb or phrase for each story they have shared. The verbs should capture the core actions the team took. Finally, ask each group to share what they’ve written while you take notes, highlighting repeated phrases or expressions. (Shortform note: If the team isn't sure how to translate stories into action verbs or phrases, remind them of another process in which they use verbs and phrases to solidify ideas: writing objectives in action-oriented language. The logic behind both processes is the same. Attaching action words to stories makes the stories more concrete—similar to how action verbs help make objectives actionable, as John Doerr instructs in Measure What Matters.)
To extract the second insight, ask the small groups to share stories of people whose lives changed for the better thanks to the team. Then, ask each group to share their responses with the full group while you write down a phrase from each response that captures the essence of the team’s effect on others; note repeated phrases. (Shortform note: Since the authors encourage participants to focus on the feelings the team generates, rather than the product or services they provide, this could unintentionally make an organization seem more virtuous than it is. Since customers are savvy—and as Sinek argues in Start With Why, they can detect manipulation—you shouldn’t overlook the less sanitized parts of the work you do. This will help ensure your purpose statement is truthful.)
To begin, show participants a sample purpose statement and explain where each part of the statement will come from: The team’s core actions will shape the first part of the statement; the team’s effects on others will shape the second part.
Ask small groups to draft a purpose statement using the notes from the previous conversations, particularly the repeated phrases and ideas. Each small group should do their own draft. Finally, ask small groups to share their drafts out loud so that all the participants together can decide whether to keep one of the drafts or combine them.
Save all the notes you didn’t use in the final draft of the purpose statement. These are the themes you will use to determine your “How,” or methods.
(Shortform note: To help the team collaborate effectively, facilitators can follow Kim Scott’s advice in Radical Candor: Make sure everyone listens to each other and builds on each other’s ideas. Help small groups refine their ideas before sharing them so others will assess them fairly. Stop a conversation if it becomes about “winning” rather than debating. After some debate, transition to decision-making. Remember to leave the decision in the participants’ hands.)
We’ve walked through the process of finding your Why, or purpose, and putting it in writing. Now, we’ll discuss what to do next. Sinek identifies two key actions to take after the process of discovering your Why. First, determine your How: the methods or practices that characterize you and help you live your purpose. Then, share your purpose statement.
Sinek says your How comes from the list of themes you set aside when you drafted your purpose statement.
Your How is the way you operate when you’re at your best or when using your strengths. While your Why guides you to opportunities that will bring you fulfillment, your How helps you identify which will allow you to use your best qualities. Although many opportunities, including potential jobs, may be related to your purpose, they won’t all be right for you.
(Shortform note: While determining your How can help you understand why some situations help you thrive while others work against you, in Designing Your Life Bill Burnett and Dave Evans offer a way to pinpoint which situations have either a positive or negative effect on you: a wayfinding journal. The journal works like a mood tracker where you list all the activities you do throughout a period of time, and rate how involved, energized, and joyful you felt during each of them. You can then analyze the tracker to find where your involvement, energy, and joy lag or rise—and use your How to understand why.)
The process of identifying your How, or methods, is the same for individuals and teams:
First, group similar themes until you’re left with no more than five. (Remember not to use the themes you already wrote into your purpose declaration) Each of these remaining themes is one of your “Hows,” so you will have around five practices that characterize you, and together describe how you put your purpose into action. Sinek recommends stating your How in actionable language that is easy to understand. Then, elaborate on each How to make it more concrete by adding clarifying statements.
For instance, if a How states “we build safe communities,” you could add the following clarifying statements:
(Shortform note: Besides helping you understand which situations bring out the best in you, writing down your How is an opportunity to identify myths you might be holding about yourself. Among the themes you identified, you might have included myths about your personality—traits you believe you have and that even shape the way you tell stories about yourself but turn out to be inaccurate. Thinking through your identified strengths and elaborating on them to make them more specific is an opportunity to shine a light on these myths and root them out.)
The final stage of the process of finding your purpose is to share it so you can validate your ideas with people who know you, or your organization, well. The sharing process is different for individuals versus teams.
Sinek suggests talking with friends to check whether your purpose statement is an honest expression of your best self. Ask them what they specifically value in you as a friend. Their answer should echo your purpose statement. If it doesn’t, go back to your discussion partner, and discuss whether your friends have raised any themes worth exploring. (Shortform note: The authors’ suggestion of a collaborative approach applies beyond sharing your purpose. In Designing Your Life, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans argue that you should design your life collaboratively. One way to do that is to create a team of close allies and influential people in your life that you share your life project design with, and who give you feedback and support.)
Additionally, talk to the people you interact with often about both your Why and How. This will help you collaborate more effectively with them because they’ll know where you’re coming from (your Why) and what strengths you can contribute (your How). (Shortform note: Sharing your Why and How with colleagues can contribute to a culture of Radical Candor, a management style that focuses on supporting people through personal and professional problems. If you’re a leader, you can encourage your employees to share their Why and How with you. Then you can follow Kim Scott’s advice to support their growth by giving them the feedback and challenges they need.)
Finally, lead with your purpose instead of your How or What when you introduce yourself to strangers. (Shortform note: Introducing yourself to strangers can be nerve-wracking, especially if you’re sharing something personal like your purpose. To overcome nerves when talking to strangers, follow the tips Keith Ferrazzi outlines in Never Eat Alone, including emulating an extroverted role model in social situations and setting small targets for yourself, like introducing yourself to one new person every week.)
As with the individual process, the team process of sharing your purpose involves validating your insights. However, this works on a much bigger scale and thus requires more steps.
To begin, leaders should invite people who didn’t participate in the team’s purpose discussion to a meeting. The authors suggest that you invite team members who are enthusiastic about participating because they’ll share that enthusiasm with others after the meeting. (Shortform note: In The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell explains that enthusiasm makes some people persuasive. Their enthusiasm makes others want to listen to their ideas.)
1. Introduce your purpose Explain that the purpose statement came from the stories team members shared during the previous discussion. Recount some of the stories. Then, share the purpose statement, reminding participants that the phrasing might not be perfect, but the meaning behind it and the action it invites them to take should resonate. Be alert to disagreement—if most participants feel unsure, you might need to repeat the purpose discussion.
(Shortform note: At this stage, you’re encouraging ownership of the purpose from people who didn’t participate in discovering it and therefore might be hesitant to adopt it. To help them get there, practice Extreme Ownership—embody the team’s purpose and model it. Jocko Willink and Leif Babin recommend two practices to ensure you model the kind of ownership you expect from your team: 1) Make sure the purpose statement resonates with you and that you believe that it makes sense given the team’s strategy and history, and 2) keep an open mind to the disagreements people might have and listen to any concerns.)
2. Connect with the purpose and look ahead At this stage, the authors suggest splitting participants into smaller groups. Ask them to share stories of when they felt proud to be a part of the team and how those moments reflected the organization’s purpose, as well as identify team members who personify the purpose. Bring the full group together to share their insights. (Shortform note: Speaking about moments of pride and their alignment with your purpose inspires others to act in alignment with the Why. In The Power of Moments, Chip and Dan Heath argue that, when you take a courageous action, like living true to your organization’s purpose, that becomes a defining moment of pride. For people who witness your courage, it becomes a defining moment of inspiration.)
Next, ask the full group to brainstorm ways to use the purpose to propel the team forward. They should consider internal management and the products or services the team or company offers. (Shortform note: Beyond this session, you can encourage team members to pitch creative ideas by applying the tools Ed Catmull shares in Creativity, Inc., like promoting candor, embracing failure, and being protective of new ideas.)
To close, Sinek advises asking for volunteers to share the purpose with peers, be living examples of it, and bring one of the brainstorming ideas to life. (Shortform note: In The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell offers guidelines on how to choose the right messengers. When people volunteer, keep an eye out for connectors (people with strong social networks), mavens (people who are adept at gathering and retaining information), and persuaders (people who are great at getting other people on board) and encourage them to take on some of the volunteer roles.)
In Find Your Why, Simon Sinek, David Mead, and Peter Docker lay out the steps individuals and organizations can take to discover their purpose and strengths and share them with the world. Discovering your unique purpose—your Why—and strengths helps you find fulfillment at work and in life. When you live in alignment with your purpose, you make better career decisions and inspire people to join you, whether as part of your team or supporters of your mission.
Simon Sinek is an ethnographer and best-selling author known for Start With Why, Leaders Eat Last, and The Infinite Game. He became famous thanks in part to his 2009 TED Talk on the importance of knowing your “Why,” or purpose, which became the second most-watched TED Talk ever.
Connect with Simon Sinek:
David Mead is an organizational culture expert, as well as author and speaker.
Connect with David Mead:
Peter Docker is a former Royal Air Force officer, leadership consultant, and executive coach. In 2021, he published Leading From the Jumpseat: How to Create Extraordinary Opportunities by Handing Over Control.
Connect with Peter Docker:
Find Your Why was published in 2017 by Penguin UK as a practical guide to applying the theory laid out in Start With Why.
Find Your Why builds on the theory Sinek laid out in his first bestseller, Start With Why: The most successful organizations have a clear purpose that keeps every action they take aligned with their core beliefs. Start With Why is itself part of the lineage of philosophy and psychology books that deal with purpose, like Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning, and of the newer lineage of books dealing with organizational culture and cultural change, like Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point.
Sinek wrote this sequel to Start With Why to broaden his impact so that more organizations and individuals, even if they don’t have access to direct coaching from his company, can discover their Why. Find Your Why builds on its predecessor by laying out a step-by-step process for discovering your Why, for both organizations and individuals. Peter Docker and David Mead developed the steps to put Sinek’s theory into practice.
Find Your Why didn’t achieve as much success as Start With Why in terms of sales and positive reviews. This might be because it doesn’t add any new ideas to Start With Why. However, the workbook format of Find Your Why is useful for trainers and coaches who are looking for practical advice on how to apply the ideas in the first book.
Online reviewers who enjoyed the book appreciate its practical approach to the theories. Readers of Start With Why who wanted to apply its theories in their own lives and organizations benefited from the book’s detailed instructions and examples.
Critics of the book point out that much of it repeats Start With Why, and it doesn’t offer new insights to readers familiar with Sinek’s theory. Others also felt that the process laid out in the book is unrealistic or impractical for individuals seeking their purpose, as it requires having a willing partner and a lot of time.
After reviewing the importance of finding your purpose as explained in Start With Why, Sinek lays out two step-by-step processes, one for individuals and another for teams and organizations, for discovering that purpose. The process requires either a partner or a facilitator-led group meeting and culminates in a written purpose statement. The book delves into the details of choosing a location, facilitator, and participants, then preparing for the meeting, conducting it, and following up—which may be unnecessary for most business leaders experienced in running meetings.
The first two chapters go over the theory that underpins Sinek’s concept of “Why.” Chapter 3 details the steps for the discovery process for individuals, and chapters 4 and 5 detail the steps for teams. Chapters 6 and 7 discuss steps to take after the discovery process, and three appendices offer specific instructions for facilitators. There’s repetition of concepts and instructions in the book, and many of the steps for individuals and teams are similar.
In this guide, we’ll first discuss the basics of Sinek’s theory and its benefits for people and teams. Next, we’ll look at the model Sinek developed to understand the place of purpose in your life. Then, we’ll discuss the importance of putting your purpose into words. Finally, we’ll go through the process suggested by the authors to discover your purpose, put it into words, and share it with others. Throughout the guide, we’ll contrast Sinek’s ideas with other organizational culture and self-help authors and offer alternatives to the process outlined by Sinek, Docker, and Mead.
Sinek argues that finding your Why or purpose can help you make better choices in your work and your life that lead to greater fulfillment. That’s what he found in his own life after struggling with depression until he identified his purpose: “To inspire people to do what inspires them so that, together, we can change our world for the better.” He then began to help others find their purpose, most famously through his popular 2009 TED Talk and by working directly with individuals and organizations.
Besides coaching and giving talks, Sinek shared his ideas about the centrality of purpose through his bestselling book, Start With Why, also published in 2009. In that book, he outlined his theory that the most successful organizations are the ones that have a clear purpose and stick to it as they grow.
At the center of Sinek’s theory is a model he uses to illustrate the connection between your Why (purpose), your How (methods and practices), and your What (actions and outcomes). We will explore his model in more detail in Chapter 2 of this guide.
After several years of working directly with some organizations, Sinek realized that to achieve his purpose, he needed to broaden his impact. To provide practical help to more people, he co-wrote Find Your Why with David Mead and Peter Docker: a follow-up book that lays out a step-by-step process for discovering your purpose that individuals and organizations can follow.
Is the Search for Purpose Inherent?
Sinek’s concept of a Why or purpose isn’t new. In 1946, psychologist Viktor Frankl argued that the driving force in our lives is meaning, not pleasure or power, as other schools of thought at the time suggested. In Man’s Search for Meaning, he outlines three paths to finding meaning that fall under Sinek’s umbrella of “life-changing events”: action and achievement, love and connection, and suffering.
Frankl also argued that the meaning of life isn’t universal, but rather something each person must find for themselves, just as Sinek believes everyone has a unique purpose they must discover. Their definitions of purpose and meaning are similar, despite originating in widely different contexts—this suggests that humans have an inherent desire to ascribe meaning and purpose to life.
We’ll explain Sinek’s theory of purpose in the first three chapters of this guide. The following three chapters cover how to prepare for the purpose-discovery process, how to follow the process, and what steps to take afterward. These chapters bring together the steps for individuals and teams, highlighting where the steps differ depending on the audience.
According to Sinek, “finding your Why” means finding your purpose: the single core belief that inspires you to do the work you choose to do and be the kind of person you want to be in your work, home, and family life. Sinek believes every individual and organization has a purpose, though not everyone has discovered theirs yet, or put it into words. He argues that your purpose solidifies in your twenties and stays constant. (Shortform note: Sinek's argument that your Why is fixed by your twenties adds weight to Meg Jay's assertion in The Defining Decade that your twenties are the time to lay down a strong foundation for a successful life. You’re better equipped to do so if you have a purpose, and you know what it is.)
Sinek acknowledges the counterargument that you’re not the same person in your forties, for example, as you were in your twenties, so your purpose will probably change throughout your lifetime. But while he concedes that life events can temporarily throw you off course from your purpose or make you reassess your priorities, he says events can’t change your core purpose.
(Shortform note: Sinek’s belief that everyone has a single purpose that remains true throughout their lifetime doesn’t match findings from research on purpose. According to studies, people’s search for and engagement with their purpose evolves through different stages of life. During our teenage years, we take an exploratory approach to purpose that becomes more urgent as we become adults and feel the pressure to have certainty on what our purpose is. Finally, during our senior years, we again take an exploratory approach after the things that gave us purpose during adulthood, including raising a family and having a career, become past accomplishments, and we look for new applications of our skills.)
Sinek discusses three benefits of knowing your purpose:
1. When you know your purpose, you can identify work that fulfills you—that is, it makes you feel you're part of something bigger and that your work matters. Sinek believes that everyone, no matter their role or status, deserves to find fulfillment at work.
People often mistake happiness for fulfillment, but Sinek argues they aren’t the same. Happiness is temporary, but fulfillment stays with you. For example, happiness might look like getting a raise, successfully navigating a challenge, or receiving recognition for a job well done. It only lasts a short time. On the other hand, fulfillment looks like being motivated to do your work because the work itself is rewarding to you, not because of the pay or the recognition. Sinek says it’s a grounding feeling that stays with you even if you don’t get that raise, if you make a mistake, or if there’s no one around to see you do great work.
Hits and Misses of Sinek’s Approach to Fulfillment
Sinek’s approach to fulfillment differs from traditional career advice in distinguishing between fulfillment and happiness. Typical advice often conflates the two or sees them as operating in tandem.
Additionally, his understanding of fulfillment as a human need is in line with long-standing theories from psychology. Psychologist Abraham Maslow theorized that we have five needs: physiological needs, and needs for safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization, or fulfillment of our potential.
However, Maslow’s theory organizes human needs from most to least important, putting self-actualization last. We must meet physiological needs, like food, water, and shelter, then address safety needs, and so on. Sinek’s view that everyone should have fulfillment at work glosses over the fact that many people work to meet more basic needs.
Additionally, Sinek may be giving fulfillment more weight than it warrants. In his hierarchy of needs, Maslow placed “self-actualization” at the level of least priority because self-actualization is the only level of need that doesn’t cause a person harm if they don’t achieve it.
2. Knowing your purpose makes you more persuasive. Your energy and commitment to your purpose are contagious, so whether you want people to hire you, buy from you, or work with you, having a clear purpose helps you pitch your ideas in ways that sound more meaningful and attractive to others. For example, nonprofits that effectively communicate their purpose inspire people who believe in it to volunteer their time and skills.
(Shortform note: Jack Canfield, author of The Success Principles, agrees with Sinek that having a clear purpose will help others connect with you and inspire them to join you. Further, he contends that communicating your purpose in a compelling way is one of the main skills you need to become a great leader.)
3. Knowing your purpose helps you make better decisions. Your Why works as a compass directing you to the right opportunities—those that further your purpose—and keeping you from time and resource drains.
For instance, instead of taking on a client who’s difficult to work with and tarnishes your reputation, you’ll realize ahead of time that their values don’t align with yours, and you’ll therefore avoid them.
(Shortform note: In Essentialism, Greg McKeown suggests practical ways to filter out nonessential pursuits using your purpose: Learn to set boundaries and say “no” gracefully, learn to say “no more” to time or money investments that no longer serve you, and have an editor’s mindset—eliminate everything except what’s essential.)
Sinek says that making better decisions and being more persuasive benefits individuals, entrepreneurs, and organizations. Let’s explore the specific ways these benefits of having a clear purpose apply to each group:
1. Individuals: Knowing your purpose helps you get clear on what moves you. It can inject new passion into your work if it’s already fulfilling, or it can direct you toward a more fulfilling path. (Shortform note: Research confirms this. People with a clear sense of purpose experience fewer negative emotions, have a more secure self-image, and earn more money.)
2. Entrepreneurs: A defined purpose helps you identify and appeal to the right potential investors, clients, and customers—those with whom your message will resonate. (Shortform note: In To Sell Is Human, Daniel Pink notes that entrepreneurs must constantly sell their vision to investors, clients, or employees. Believing that what you're selling serves a larger purpose makes you a more effective salesperson.)
3. Organizations: Knowing your organization’s purpose helps you in three ways:
First, you can increase the loyalty and creativity of your employees or members by involving them in your purpose. This can make your success more sustainable than that of organizations driven solely by profit.
Second, you can motivate and guide your teams by showing them the unique role they play within the organization and how they contribute to its broader purpose.
Third, you can more easily find and keep the right people. When you know your purpose, you can hire for what Sinek calls “cultural fit.” This matters because while you can fill skill and experience gaps through training and support, it’s hard to inspire and harness the potential of a team misaligned at its core. (Shortform note: Hiring for cultural fit can devolve into simply hiring people you identify with, which can make your organization’s culture homogeneous and unwelcoming to people from different backgrounds. Some culture experts suggest vetting candidates on specific cultural values and setting up objective frameworks to avoid this pitfall.)
Additional Benefits of a Clear Purpose
Besides harnessing a team’s loyalty and creativity, Chip and Dan Heath argue in The Power of Moments that a shared purpose sustains a team through challenges and boredom by keeping their work connected to a larger, meaningful mission.
Also, as Gen. Stanley McChrystal explains in Team of Teams, when specific teams share an understanding of how each contributes to the purpose of the organization, they avoid working in silos, pursuing individual goals that hinder the achievement of the larger mission.
Finally, Sinek contends that using your purpose to guide hiring decisions helps you avoid defaulting to tribalism. You can seek out people who are aligned with it, regardless of their demographics or affiliations, and take advantage of that diversity to push the mission forward.
Consider how clarifying your purpose could improve your life.
Do you feel fulfilled with the work you’re doing now? If you do, where does that sense of fulfillment come from? If not, how would your life be different if you were working at a fulfilling job?
How would being more persuasive help you? For example, you might inspire your team or be more successful in job interviews.
What kind of decisions would you make more confidently and why? For example, knowing your purpose might help you choose a new path for your career or choose between competing career opportunities.
We’ve discussed the importance of finding your purpose and its benefits. Next, we’ll explore how to use your purpose to guide your life and work. We’ll start with a three-part model Sinek first introduced in Start With Why, which illustrates how having a central purpose affects your actions (your "How" or methods) and your results ("What" you accomplish).
Sinek created the “Golden Circle” model to help you find fulfillment by placing your day-to-day actions and your strengths in the context of your purpose, or Why. In other words, his model helps you see whether the action you’re taking aligns with your purpose and thus whether it will bring you fulfillment or distract you from your Why.
(Shortform note: In Designing Your Life, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans provide a similar tool: a Life Compass. It places your life and work philosophies side by side so you can identify where they overlap and determine whether your actions are in accord with your philosophies, or beliefs about what you do and why.)
Sinek’s model consists of three concentric circles. Each circle represents one of the core concepts in his theory.
1. The innermost circle is the Why: the purpose that orients everything you do. It’s the core belief that motivates you to get out of bed in the morning. In terms of an organization, it’s the mission you stand for and the reason you’re in business. An organization’s Why might be to provide accessible health care to its community. An individual’s Why might be to create spaces for learning.
2. The middle circle is the How: your typical methods and practices that characterize you, and which other people consider your strengths. Your How brings your Why to life. An organization’s How or method might be to always pursue the most sustainable alternatives. An individual’s How might be to forge meaningful connections.
3. The outermost circle is the What: the outputs or results you generate. It’s the tangible part of your organization or life and the easiest to identify. An organization's What includes its products, services, policies, and strategies. An individual's What might be their family, job, and projects.
(Shortform note: While fans praise Sinek for clearly and succinctly bringing together three important elements of an organization’s or individual’s work, critics point out that his model is missing one core question: Who? They argue that organizations that use Sinek’s model and begin from Why, as he instructs, overlook the most important element in a business: the customers. An organization might have a compelling Why, but if they can’t find a customer who’s interested in it, they won’t be successful. Thus, you might want to complement Sinek’s model by asking yourself who you’re serving and what they need before you ask yourself why you’re in the business of serving them.)
Sinek stresses that you shouldn’t worry about your Why being unique or about being the only person or organization with your How, or particular set of methods. He believes that your Why and How together are what set you apart. Even though others might have a similar Why or How, the way you combine yours is unique. (Shortform note: If you worry that the specificity of your Why, or purpose, and How, or methods, is limiting, consider Meg Jay’s advice in The Defining Decade: Rather than believing that committing to a specific path limits you, recognize that not committing leads to a haphazard, unexceptional life.)
Start at the Core to Change Your Behavior
While Sinek’s model focuses on the big picture of your life’s purpose, it can also help you make improvements in specific aspects of your life. James Clear’s layers of behavior change, outlined in Atomic Habits, follow the same pattern as Sinek’s model:
The outermost layer consists of outcomes, the results you want to achieve.
The middle layer consists of processes or behaviors.
The innermost layer consists of your identity, who you are and what you believe.
In the same way that Sinek advocates for starting with your Why, Clear argues that to change your behavior, you should start at the center and create identity-driven habits based on who you are and what you believe, instead of focusing on the outer layer and creating goal- or outcome-driven habits. Clear says that building identity-driven habits aimed at the person you want to be creates lasting change, in contrast to goal-driven habits that you practice only in the short term, until you meet the goal.
Let’s consider Elon Musk to see how Sinek’s model works in practice. How do his disparate business ventures make sense in the context of his purpose? Based on some of his comments, we can infer that Musk’s Why, or purpose, is to secure the future of humanity and reduce the likelihood of eventual extinction. That purpose leads him to push the boundaries of innovation (his How) and create ventures including Neuralink and Tesla (his What or outcome).
Sinek argues that his model mimics how our brains work. He explains that What and How appeal to the neocortex. This outer part of the brain is well-equipped to process factual information, but not emotions, and it doesn’t hold a significant sway over your decisions. On the other hand, Why is meaningful and persuasive because it originates from—and appeals to—the limbic system. This core part of your brain processes emotions and governs decision-making. (Shortform note: Sinek’s biological justification for his framework has received some criticism: Neuroscience hasn’t produced clear evidence that one discrete part of the brain handles facts while another handles emotions.)
Our most powerful human connections come from the ability to communicate limbic system to limbic system. However, Sinek says communication doesn't come naturally to this emotional core of your brain—you have to dig through the facts and data of the neocortex level to get to emotions that live in your limbic system. Then, by putting your Why into words, you create a way for people to hear and connect with what’s in your limbic system. (Shortform note: Ancient rhetoricians identified pathos—the appeal to emotions—as the most persuasive type of rhetoric. As Jay Heinrichs notes in Thank You for Arguing, pathos gets your listener to agree with you and take an action you’re inviting them to.)
Sinek says companies and individuals should lead with their purpose when talking to customers, clients, suppliers, etc., because by keeping your purpose to yourself, you only let others (for example, customers or potential employers) see your outputs and methods without knowing what’s driving you. The connection they make with you or your organization is surface-level. According to Sinek, this doesn’t foster long-term relationships. Let’s explore why:
Leading with What, or outcomes: You introduce yourself or your organization by talking about your product or service. Some people decide to buy from you, hire you, or join you—but only for as long as you’re the cheapest or most convenient option.
Leading with How, or methods: You introduce yourself or your organization by talking about the unique methods or practices that set you apart from the competition. Some people choose you—until your way of doing things catches on, and you become one of many similar options with the same How.
Leading with Why, or purpose: You introduce yourself or your organization by talking about your mission, the problem you’re trying to solve, or the fundamental belief you have about the future. More people choose you because they understand that supporting you means supporting that purpose. Other competitors might offer similar outcomes or methods in the future, and maybe even at more convenient terms, but you will always have the advantage of the emotional connection you forged by involving people in your purpose.
(Shortform note: This concept of leading with your purpose is not new to sales. For example, in To Sell Is Human, Daniel Pink recommends a model based on trust and a genuine interest in serving the customer rather than wanting to take advantage of them. His two rules for service-oriented selling are to make it personal and to make it purposeful. By leading with your Why rather than What or How, you highlight the purpose of what you or your organization do and focus on what makes you unique, thereby applying Pink’s rules.)
Elon Musk’s space flight company, SpaceX, leads with Why.
The company boasts outcomes including spacecraft, satellites, and human spaceflight projects. However, listing these outcomes doesn’t fully explain what makes SpaceX inspiring when compared to other space flight companies creating similar products.
One of the methods SpaceX takes to reach these outcomes is pursuing sustainability and commercial viability simultaneously. This led them to create reusable spacecraft, a rideshare service for satellites and commercial space flights. But, again, companies like Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic have similar methods. So why does SpaceX stand out?
It comes down to SpaceX’s purpose: Its mission—or Why—is to make humanity multiplanetary. According to Musk himself, that purpose is what separates his organization from its competitors. It does so because it triggers our fears and hopes by appealing to a deep human desire to a) survive the existential challenges on earth, and b) discover what lies beyond what we already know.
Sinek recommends leading with your purpose or Why to create stronger connections and be more persuasive.
Write down how you'd usually introduce yourself or your organization.
Consider your previous response. Do you lead with your Why, How, or What (purpose, methods, or results)? How do you think this helps or harms your long-term relationships?
Rewrite how you might introduce yourself or your organization so the focus is on your Why.
In the previous chapter, we discussed Sinek’s model. Now we'll look at how to write a purpose statement: a sentence that declares your Why, or purpose. Sinek first explains why you should state your purpose clearly in writing and how to do so. He then presents a step-by-step process to discover and articulate your purpose, which you can go through with a partner or in a team workshop.
This chapter will go over what a purpose statement is and discuss its characteristics before we address the process to come up with one.
Your purpose statement is a single sentence that declares your ultimate goal and vision.
According to Sinek, it has two parts: The first part should spell out the core action your Why compels you to take. The second part should state what you’re ultimately striving to achieve: the impact you want to have.
An older version of Airbnb’s mission statement is a great example of a purpose statement: To connect millions of people in real life all over the world, through a community marketplace (core action)—so that you can Belong Anywhere (impact).
(Shortform note: In First Things First, Stephen Covey also suggests writing a statement of what matters most to you and what you hope to achieve, but he approaches it with more flexibility. While Sinek’s purpose statement succinctly states the core action you take and the key impact you seek in one sentence, Covey’s mission statement more broadly defines your life’s goals and the principles that guide you toward them.)
According to Sinek, an effective purpose statement has four characteristics:
The purpose statement should be easy to understand and clear about how you’ll put it into action. By keeping it short, you help yourself remember your Why and keep it in mind when you take action. Additionally, Sinek argues that keeping it at one sentence helps ensure that it’s truthful because it forces you to state only what matters most.
The second part of the statement focuses on the impact of your work and your positive effect on others. Sinek stresses that having a positive impact feeds our sense of fulfillment because fulfillment comes from serving others rather than seeking our own satisfaction.
Like many people, you may disagree with this idea, thinking that your purpose at work is surface-level. However, if you think the fulfillment that comes from earning a lot of money is your only reason to pursue work, Sinek believes you should dig deeper: The underlying reasons likely benefit others. For instance, you might be as fulfilled working at a mission-driven startup as you’d be working for a profit-driven corporation, as long as you’re making a lot of money. But before declaring that your Why is to make money, Sinek advises you to follow the process outlined in the following chapters. Dig deeper and see what that money represents. Is it to build a strong foundation for future generations? Is it so your family can live life to the fullest? There’s something else that money will unlock—that’s your Why.
(Shortform note: If you’re struggling to see how your purpose benefits others while supporting your own interests, ask yourself a question Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus pose in Minimalism: “How am I adding value to the lives of others?”)
Your statement should inspire you or your team to reach within for your best version, as you already are. This is a meaningful, truthful version of yourself, not an aspirational—or worse, doctored—version.
Many branding strategies rely on aspirational or perfected versions of their mission to appeal to customers, investors, and employers, but Sinek warns against this strategy. He argues that it’s a detectable form of manipulation that makes people stop trusting you once they figure out who you really are. Additionally, relying on a false purpose to promote yourself means you’re wasting the opportunity to find your true purpose, and with it, fulfillment and sustainable success.
However, once you’ve identified your true purpose, Sinek encourages you to incorporate it into your marketing and branding. If your purpose is sincere, people will connect with it. (Shortform note: Other specialists agree that you must approach mission-driven branding with honesty, earning consumers’ trust through your business model, in addition to broadcasting your purpose through marketing.)
Your purpose is a constant in all aspects of your life and work. Sinek notes that your desired effect doesn’t change over time or in different situations. But while you have only one purpose statement, you’ll find different ways to express your purpose in different contexts. For instance, if your purpose is to help people create meaningful connections, as a manager you will build rapport with your employees and nurture a vibrant culture in your team, and as a friend you will find opportunities to introduce acquaintances to each other when you notice they share common interests.
An Alternative Approach to the Purpose Statement
In First Things First, Stephen Covey recommends gaining clarity on your purpose by writing what he calls a mission statement. He outlines the characteristics of an effective mission statement, some of which are similar to Sinek’s suggestions. But Covey’s flexible and holistic approach to the mission statement considers other characteristics that Sinek doesn’t:
While Sinek believes you need a brief statement that doesn’t embellish your purpose, Covey is more flexible and encourages creative self-expression.
Covey suggests that your personal mission statement address your four basic human needs: survival, connection, learning, and giving back. Given Sinek’s focus on impact, he would argue that a purpose statement should mostly be about giving back.
Covey is more specific than Sinek in emphasizing that your mission statement defines the universal principles you will apply to achieve your purpose.
Finally, while Sinek believes a purpose statement is a constant in your life, Covey gives more guidance on how to make the mission statement relevant to all the spheres of your life by ensuring it includes all the different roles you play.
This example of a personal purpose statement shows how each characteristic contributes to the effectiveness of the overall statement: “To help women unleash their inner power to create a life in which they feel fulfilled, inspired, and empowered.”
1. It’s a single sentence, so it’s easy to remember and use to make decisions.
2. It’s clearly focused on the impact the person seeks to have.
3. It’s meaningful and it declares real goals and actions so the writer can easily know which opportunities or ideas are aligned with her purpose, or Why.
4. However, it’s not so specific that it limits her to only one type of work. It would be a constant whether she’s at work, in civic or volunteer work, and even in her interactions with friends and family. She could be a life coach for women, a venture capitalist who seeks out women-led ventures—or, a mother or friend with a knack for empowering girls and women.
This exercise will help you understand the characteristics of a purpose statement before you set out to write yours.
Purpose statements are impact-focused: Think of a time when you felt fulfilled. What were you doing? Does your experience confirm or refute Sinek’s ideas about fulfillment coming from serving others?
Purpose statements are meaningful and declarative: In your opinion, what value does a purpose statement have for a for-profit company or a career-oriented individual, if it’s not a branding tool?
Purpose statements are constant: Consider your outcomes, or What, including your work, personal life, and other projects. What overlap or similarities do you see between them? Is there a common thread?
In the previous chapter, we discussed the purpose statement. Now, we’ll dive into the process Sinek created with co-authors David Mead and Peter Docker to identify your purpose.
The authors’ step-by-step process can be followed with a partner to create an individual purpose statement, or applied in a group discussion to come up with a team or organization’s purpose. In this chapter, we’ll first explain the process. Then, we’ll go through the steps to implement it as an individual or organization.
To determine your Why and come up with a written statement, Sinek and his co-authors created a step-by-step process that individuals and groups can follow in a group discussion or workshop. Sinek’s process to find your purpose helps you or your team explore past experiences for insight into what moves you.
In this process, you’ll identify important stories in your personal or company experience, share them with a partner or group facilitator, and pull out themes. You’ll then distill these themes to write your Why or purpose statement. (Shortform note: While Sinek argues that you can find your purpose by looking inward, Viktor Frankl argues the opposite in Man’s Search for Meaning. He contends that you can only find meaning out in the world—in other people or causes—not in your own mind.)
We’ll start by discussing Sinek’s four preliminary steps to the process of finding your purpose. Since they look much the same for individuals and teams, we'll present the individual and team processes together, then mention their slight differences.
The mindset you bring to the process of finding your Why can significantly impact its success, according to the authors. So before you begin, they recommend reflecting on your attitudes and preconceptions.
To bring the right mindset to the individual process, Sinek recommends that you:
1. Release preconceptions. Don’t expect or angle for a specific outcome. Instead, focus on telling your stories honestly, and let the process unfold. (Shortform note: This helps avoid confirmation bias—the tendency to interpret new information in a way that confirms what we already believe and one of the cognitive biases Daniel Kahneman discusses in Thinking, Fast and Slow. Confirmation bias might cause you to focus on stories that fit what you think your purpose should be, and overlook stories that don’t fit your expectations.)
2. Embrace vulnerability. The more honest and unguarded you are, the more useful this process will be. (Shortform note: If you’re hesitant about embracing vulnerability, keep in mind Brené Brown’s assertion in The Power of Vulnerability that vulnerability is a strength, as it requires more courage to share something intimate than to keep quiet for fear of being judged.)
To lay the foundation for a team process of finding your purpose, the authors recommend that you:
1. Identify the scope of the team you’ll be working with. A team is a group working toward a common goal and sharing certain values. An organization can have multiple teams. For this process, you might be seeking the purpose of an entire company or of a specific team within it. (Shortform note: When you identify the scope of the team, consider that most individuals in an organization are part of multiple teams, so who is part of which team won’t always be clear-cut or readily apparent.)
If you’re working with a team within a larger organization, Sinek advises that you first identify the organization's overarching purpose. That will ensure that the team members understand how they contribute to it. (Shortform note: In The Practice of Adaptive Leadership, the authors argue that when people understand the organization’s overarching purpose plus their specific area’s purpose, they’re invested in the success of both. This is a quality of resilient organizations that helps them adapt to new conditions and overcome novel challenges.)
2. Be aware of underlying issues that might impact the outcome of the process. Sinek warns that the team should address any problems—besides an unclear purpose—before starting the process. (Shortform note: While Sinek doesn’t offer guidance on how to address these problems before the purpose discussion, in The Culture Code Daniel Coyle identifies two foundational elements that group culture needs before working toward a shared purpose: safety and vulnerability. If the team’s culture is safe, members feel connected to each other and valued, which helps them get through problems together. If they can be vulnerable with each other, they communicate and collaborate more effectively, and they can solve problems more easily.)
In this step, you’ll choose a partner or facilitator to help you identify themes in your life or organization that suggest a purpose. Sinek recommends choosing someone who has emotional distance from the process and can be objective. They should also be curious and perceptive, so they can ask the right follow-up questions to get to the core of each story.
After choosing your partner or facilitator, ask them to view Sinek’s TED Talk about purpose, so they understand the theory behind the process they’ll facilitate. Then, brief them on their role, which is to listen to each story and ask follow-up questions to uncover why it matters. According to Sinek, the best questions:
On the other hand, Sinek says, partners or facilitators shouldn’t offer solutions or advice, or let their preconceptions bias the process.
How to Remain Objective
It might be hard for the facilitator to stay impersonal and allow the other person to reach their own conclusions. To encourage objectivity, it might help to frame the process as a coaching session where, rather than giving advice, they’re helping you find the answers yourself. For example, a coach would:
Observe emotional cues impersonally to ask follow-up questions, instead of judging or naming the emotions they notice.
Ask questions that allow the other person to consider and construct complete answers. Thus, the person sharing stories does the mental and emotional heavy lifting, not the facilitator or partner.
Though it’s tempting to forego a partner to save time or be self-sufficient, the authors stress the importance of not doing this on your own. That’s because your life stories will trigger emotions, and you need an objective observer to help you analyze them. (Shortform note: Not having the right partner shouldn’t prevent you from seeking out your purpose. In Designing Your Life, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans offer tools you can apply on your own, including the Life Dashboard, which allows you to take stock of how you’re doing in different areas of your life, and the Life Compass, which shows you which paths will be most fulfilling to you, considering your beliefs about life and work.)
If you can’t bring in someone from outside to facilitate, Sinek says it's OK to have a team member facilitate. However, make sure they can remain objective. Also, ensure they understand that the goal of the process isn’t to revamp branding or position the company. (Shortform note: To find the right person for the job, apply Gino Wickman’s approach, outlined in Traction. Look for someone who has the talents, shares the values, and wants to do the job. In this case, you’re looking for someone who is comfortable working with groups, is objective, and wants to help the team find its purpose.)
The third step in preparing for the process of finding your purpose is input, or determining what you'll bring to the discussion. That "input" is different for individuals versus teams. For individuals, input refers to the life stories you gather ahead of time. For teams, it refers to the people you invite to participate.
Before the session, come up with 10 stories that shed light on who you are. Sinek invites you to look for meaningful anecdotes, lessons, and people who shaped you. (Shortform note: To identify “meaningful” stories, consider times you experienced a “defining moment.” In The Power of Moments, Chip and Dan Heath describe defining moments as those that generate insight, pride, and connection, and are noticeably different from everyday experiences.)
The stories that will help you discover your organization’s purpose are the ones team members have lived through and are able to share. To capture those stories, first find 10-30 people to participate: enough to generate diverse perspectives and experiences, but not so many that the process becomes disorganized.
According to Sinek, participants should:
(Shortform note: Sinek's ideas align closely with guidelines for team building that John Maxwell shares in The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, but Maxwell adds a point that Sinek doesn’t consider. Besides selecting for diversity, enthusiasm, and experience, Maxwell suggests you build a team with influential people who have good chemistry with you and other team members and are morally upstanding. These traits will be useful to ensure the process goes smoothly, and that they later advocate for the Why.)
This exercise will help you prepare for the process of uncovering your purpose. Come up with stories to share with a partner by answering these questions.
Describe a memorable life lesson you’ve learned. How did you learn it?
Describe a time you felt especially proud of yourself.
Who do you look up to? What do you admire about them?
Follow Sinek’s steps to prepare for a team purpose discussion.
Describe the team you’ll be working with. Is it the entire organization or a smaller team within a larger one? Based on your observations, are team members disconnected from their purpose, or are they just struggling to put it into words? How can you tell?
What problems do you think the team needs to address before the purpose discussion?
List three to five team members who could facilitate the discussion, and note why each would be a good fit. What can you do this week to reach out to them and see if they’d be up for the challenge?
List the people you’d like to invite to the discussion. Consider the area of the team each represents so you can ensure you have vertical and horizontal diversity.
The previous chapter detailed how to prepare for a purpose discussion. We’ll now explore how to conduct it. The core of the discussion process is sharing stories or experiences and mining them for insights about your purpose. (Shortform note: Your stories will be most useful if you talk to the people involved in them before the purpose discussion takes place. Research shows that we don’t remember our past very well on our own. Rather, we rely on others to fill in the details we’ve missed or decided to forget.)
While the goal of a purpose discussion is the same for both individuals and teams, the process for each is different. Therefore, in this chapter, we’ll first explain the process for individuals and then explore how finding your purpose works for teams.
Sinek outlines three stages of the purpose discussion for individuals: telling your stories, identifying your themes, and drafting your purpose statement.
To begin, share the stories you came up with with your partner. While you share, they should do two things:
How to Get to the Core of a Story
As a partner, how can you determine which ideas and recurring concepts you should make note of? Here are four steps for getting to the core of a story and understanding what it's really about:
Identify the facts of the story.
Identify the emotions behind the story through the other person’s words and body language.
Ask yourself what the story is really about. Stay silent as you observe what ideas and emotions come up.
Once you’ve identified an emotion or idea, share it with them to see if it resonates. If it does, continue asking questions about it to see what else they can uncover. If it doesn’t, repeat the process to explore other possibilities.
Now, have your partner look through their notes and identify themes. According to the authors, themes are ideas that come up in at least two stories.
Together, read through the list of themes and identify the two you feel a stronger connection to and that convey:
Put the other themes aside. You’ll come back to them later when you determine your How.
(Shortform note: Like many people, you might be telling your stories with some responsibility bias, causing you to overemphasize your role and your effect on others. Adam Grant explains in Give and Take that responsibility bias results from ego and from having more information about the actions you’ve taken versus the contributions other people have made. Your partner can help you avoid this bias by asking you about the contributions of other people involved in the stories you’re telling.)
At this stage, Sinek recommends that you and your partner each write a draft of your purpose statement separately. Using the two themes selected in the previous step. First, write the core action your purpose compels you to take. Then, write the ultimate impact you want that action to have.
For example: “To tell necessary stories (action) so that hurt people can heal (impact),” or “To build strong foundations (action) so that future generations can thrive (impact).”
The authors caution against spending too much time writing—just capture what feels right at a visceral level.
Share your drafts with each other. Decide whether to keep one or combine them. Once your draft has the right ideas, leave it for a while. Come back to it later with a fresh eye, and rework the phrasing until you feel it captures your essence.
(Shortform note: If you don’t have a partner with whom you can draft your purpose statement, consider writing a personal mission statement. This process also arrives at a succinct expression of your impact and core action without needing to collaborate with a partner. In addition, the personal mission statement process allows for changes and revisions in a way that is more flexible than Sinek’s process, because you’re meant to revise and improve it throughout your lifetime.)
The process of finding your purpose for teams is longer than the individual process. It comprises four stages: opening the discussion, mining team members’ stories, drafting the purpose statement, and closing the discussion.
Sinek suggests starting by sharing an example of an organization that has a clear purpose, or Why. That will introduce participants to the theory and show them what they can expect from the discussion.
Then, ask people to pair up and discuss what motivates them about the team. For example, you might ask questions like, “When you first joined, what about the team resonated with you?” and “What continues to resonate with you and motivate you today?”
Next, show the video of Sinek’s TED Talk about purpose, and ensure participants understand his basic ideas.
(Shortform note: Having team members start by discussing their motivations can create connection because it encourages genuine interactions where peers can listen and affirm each other’s experiences.)
The goal in this stage is to extract two key insights from stories participants will share in groups: the core action the team consistently takes, and the effect the action has on others.
To do so, the authors suggest dividing participants into groups that reflect the diversity in the room. Avoid teaming people up with the colleagues they work with every day. (Shortform note: As David Epstein argues in Range, people from diverse backgrounds bring different ideas and values to the table, which results in new insights. Interestingly, he also advocates striving for diversity in ideals: He contends that an organization with diverse ideals can be more effective than one in which everyone coalesces around a single vision, in contrast to Sinek’s belief that everyone in the organization should align with the same purpose.)
To extract the first insight—the core actions the team consistently takes—the facilitator should begin by asking participants to share with their small groups stories of when they took pride in being part of the team. Then, ask each small group to share their three most emotionally impactful stories with the rest of the team. Ask follow-up questions after each story to uncover its significance. For instance, you might ask, “What feelings did that moment stir up in you?” “What did you learn from that experience, and how has that shaped you?” or “What made you decide to share that story today?”
Ask participants to choose an action verb or phrase for each story they have shared. The verbs should capture the core actions the team took. Finally, ask each group to share what they’ve written while you take notes, highlighting phrases or expressions that come up more than once.
Troubleshooting for Facilitators
The process of finding your purpose for teams is complex, and problems can arise. Facilitators can be most effective by keeping these suggestions in mind:
If a team is struggling to come up with examples, help reframe their thoughts by considering proud moments that may be overlooked. In The Power of Moments, Chip and Dan Heath suggest paying attention to small wins and milestones that usually go uncelebrated, as well as focusing on progress instead of results.
To come up with good follow-up questions, there are strategies facilitators can apply. The most important strategy is to listen while people talk rather than plan what you’re going to say next. Also, there are some easy but meaningful follow-up questions to keep in mind, including asking for examples, raising counterpoints, and simply asking people to tell you more.
If the team isn't sure how to translate stories into action verbs or phrases, remind them of another process in which they use verbs and phrases to solidify ideas: writing objectives in action-oriented language. The logic behind both processes is the same. Attaching action words to stories makes the stories more concrete—similar to how action verbs help make objectives actionable, as John Doerr instructs in Measure What Matters.
To extract the second insight—the key positive effect the team has on others—ask small groups to share stories of people whose lives changed for the better, thanks to the team. Then, ask each group to share their responses while you write down a phrase from each response that captures the essence of the team’s effect on others, and note repeated phrases.
(Shortform note: Since the authors encourage participants to focus on the feelings the team generates, rather than the product or services they provide, this could unintentionally make an organization seem more virtuous than it is. Since customers are savvy—and as Sinek argues in Start With Why, they can detect manipulation—you shouldn’t overlook your business model and the less sanitized parts of the work you do. This will help make your purpose statement meaningful and truthful.)
The third stage is to write the first draft of a purpose statement. Sinek emphasizes that the statement should be actionable and resonate with the team, but the wording doesn’t need to be perfect.
To begin, the facilitator should show participants a sample purpose statement and explain where each part of the statement will come from: The team’s core actions will shape the first part of the statement; the team’s effects on others will shape the second part.
Ask small groups to draft a purpose statement using the notes from the previous conversations, particularly the repeated phrases and ideas. Each small group should do their own draft. Finally, ask small groups to share their drafts out loud so that all the participants together can decide whether to keep one of the drafts or combine them. For example, two small groups could come up with these purpose statements for a financial services institution: 1) “Empower customers to secure their financial goals,” and 2) “Give people the tools they need to build their financial futures.” The full group might then combine the statements as follows: “Empower customers to secure their financial futures.”
Save all the notes you didn’t use in the final draft of the purpose statement. These are the themes you will use to determine your How.
Steps for Effective Collaboration
To help the team collaborate effectively, facilitators might want to frame the process using the steps Kim Scott outlines in Radical Candor:
Listening. Make sure everyone listens to each other and encourage them to build on each others’ ideas.
Clarifying. Help small groups refine their ideas before sharing them with the rest of the participants. If you catch something that’s unclear, encourage them to revise it before presenting it so others will assess their ideas fairly.
Debating. Encourage respectful debating in the small groups and in the larger group. You can do this by stopping a conversation if it becomes about “winning” rather than exchanging ideas, or if people seem to get tired of the discussion.
Deciding. After some debate, transition to decision-making. Remember to leave the decision in the participants’ hands—the facilitator guides but doesn’t participate in the choice.
To close, Sinek suggests the facilitator ask the team for volunteers to keep refining the phrasing of the purpose statement. Then, suggest ways the team can start living their purpose, including the following:
More Ways to Live Your Organization’s Purpose
In The Culture Code, Daniel Coyle outlines ways leaders can develop purpose in the workplace that complement the steps in Find Your Why:
Communicate priorities to empower team members. When leaders clearly communicate the purpose and let everyone know that it’s the top priority, team members are better equipped to make decisions and assess the What, or outcomes.
Incentivize behavior through high and consistent standards. As Sinek suggests, you can do that by praising behavior that aligns with the team’s Why and encouraging members to find their personal purpose so they internalize the importance of being in alignment with their Why.
Use a shared language, like a memorable motto, to remind members of the team’s values and practices. As you refine the purpose statement, take the opportunity to make it catchy enough that team members can use as a motto.
If you don’t have the right partner available, these questions will help you through the process of finding your purpose on your own.
Write down one of the stories you previously selected in as much detail as possible. Notice your emotions and physical responses as you write. When you notice an emotion, dig deeper—what is it about the story that’s triggering the emotion?
Describe the main ideas and feelings in your story, the core action you took in the story, and the effect you had or tried to have. (Repeat this question and the previous one for each of the stories you picked for the process.)
After you’ve worked through each story, look over your notes, and highlight recurring words or ideas. These are your themes. Identify two that you feel a strong connection to and convey your unique participation in the stories and your effect on others. Write them down.
Write a statement using the two themes selected in the previous step. First, write the core action your purpose compels you to take. Second, write the ultimate impact you want that action to have. This is your purpose statement. (For example: “To tell necessary stories so that hurt people can heal,” or “To build strong foundations so that future generations can thrive.”)
In the previous chapter, we walked through the process of finding your Why, or purpose, and putting it in writing. In this chapter, we’ll discuss what to do next. Sinek notes that the purpose discussion is only the beginning—now, you’ll move on to living your purpose.
Sinek identifies two key actions to take after you discover your Why. First, identify your How: the practices and methods that characterize you and help you live your purpose. Then, share your purpose statement.
This chapter will discuss determining your How, or methods, and suggest ways to share these insights with others. The steps for individuals and teams are mostly similar, so we'll discuss the core steps and then highlight the differences.
The first step to begin living your Why or purpose is to identify your How, or what practices will help you accomplish your purpose. Sinek says your How comes from the list of themes you set aside when you drafted your purpose statement. (Themes are the ideas and actions that came up repeatedly in the stories.)
Your How is the way you operate when you’re at your best. While your Why guides you to opportunities that will bring you fulfillment, your How helps you distinguish between them to identify those that will allow you to use your best qualities and those that won’t. Although many opportunities, like potential jobs or invitations to social events, may be related to your purpose, they won’t all be right for you.
For example, your Why might be, “To help women unleash their inner power to create a life where they feel fulfilled, inspired, and empowered.” As we discussed earlier, that purpose can direct you to a wide range of fulfilling opportunities, from being a life coach for women, to working at a venture capital firm that funds women-led ventures. That’s where identifying your How, or practices, becomes crucial. If your practices are to “forge deep connections with individuals,” “help people find their own answers to their questions,” and “maintain a positive outlook even in challenging times,” those methods are nudging you in the direction of a life coach rather than venture capitalist.
You can also use your How to analyze your current situation. If you’re feeling discouraged by your circumstances, your How can help you identify where the discomfort is coming from. For instance, if you’re working at a company whose purpose aligns with your own but you still feel unfulfilled, it might be because the specific role you play doesn’t let you use your strengths. Perhaps one of your practices is to forge meaningful connections with people, but your job requires you to work on your own most of the time. In that case, your job is not allowing you to do your best work, even if, at the purpose level, you’re aligned.
(Shortform note: While determining your How can help you understand why some situations help you thrive while others work against you, the authors of Designing Your Life offer a way to pinpoint exactly which situations have either a positive or negative effect on you: a wayfinding journal. The journal works like a mood tracker where you list all your activities in a given period, and rate how involved, energized, and joyful you felt while doing each of them. You can then analyze the tracker to find where your involvement, energy, and joy lag or rise—and use your How to understand why.)
The process of identifying your How, or methods, is the same for individuals and teams:
First, group similar themes until you have no more than five. (Remember not to use the themes you already wrote into your purpose declaration) These themes are your How, or methods. Sinek recommends stating your How in actionable language that will be easy to understand. Make the statements active, declarative, and inspiring. For example, “make room for people’s feelings” instead of “be empathetic.”
Then, elaborate on each How to make it more concrete. For instance, if a How states “we build safe communities,” you could add the following clarifying statements:
Distinguish Your True Strengths From Personality Myths
Besides helping you understand which situations bring out the best in you, writing down your How, or methods, is an opportunity to identify myths you might be holding about yourself. Among the themes you identified, you might have included myths about your personality—traits you believe you have and that even shape the way you tell stories about yourself, but that are inaccurate.
For example, if you consider yourself organized, you might tell stories in a way that highlights that trait without considering how factually based it is. Thinking through your identified strengths and elaborating on them to make them more specific (for example, asking yourself, “How exactly am I organized?”) is an opportunity to shine a light on these myths and root them out.
The final stage of Sinek’s purpose process of finding your purpose is to share it. Sharing your purpose helps validate your ideas with the insights of people who know you or your organization well. It also gives you the opportunity to practice using your Why to make more persuasive appeals.
The sharing process is different for individuals versus teams. For individuals, it consists of refining and validating your purpose statement, then sharing it with others. For teams, it consists of holding a group discussion in which you share the purpose statement and practices with additional team members to validate them and encourage wider ownership of the purpose.
Sinek suggests talking with friends to check whether your purpose statement is an honest expression of your best self. Ask them what they specifically value in you as a friend. Their answer should reflect the effect you have on their life and echo your purpose statement. If it doesn’t, go back to your discussion partner, and discuss whether your friends have raised any themes worth exploring.
(Shortform note: The authors suggest a collaborative approach to validating your purpose, but this can apply to your life beyond sharing your purpose. In Designing Your Life, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans argue that since you live in collaboration with others, you should also design your life collaboratively. One way to do that is to create a team of close allies and influential people in your life who you share your life project design with and who give you feedback and support.)
Additionally, talk to the people you interact with often—both at work and in the other spheres of your life—about your Why and How. This will help them understand your motivation and strengths which, in turn, will help you collaborate more effectively with them because they’ll know where you’re coming from (your Why) and what skills you can contribute (your How).
(Shortform note: Sharing your Why, or purpose, and How, or methods, with colleagues can contribute to a culture of Radical Candor, a management style that focuses on supporting people through personal and professional problems. If you’re a leader, you can encourage your employees to share their Why and How with you. Then you can follow Kim Scott’s advice to support their ambitions and growth by analyzing their performance and growth trajectory and giving them the kind of feedback and challenges they need.)
Finally, lead with your purpose instead of your How or What when you introduce yourself to strangers. For instance, before discovering your Why, you might have introduced yourself this way, “Hi, my name is Jane. I’m a community manager, specializing in building vibrant online communities around social media influencers.”
Now, you can make a powerful pitch: “Hi, my name is Jane. My purpose is to build vibrant online communities around leaders and tastemakers so that people can find their tribes and thrive together.”
(Shortform note: Introducing yourself to strangers can be nerve-wracking, especially if you’re sharing something personal like your purpose. To overcome nerves when talking to strangers, follow the tips Keith Ferrazzi outlines in Never Eat Alone, including emulating an extroverted role model in social situations, joining clubs where you can meet people who share your interests, and setting small targets for yourself, like introducing yourself to one new person every week.)
As with the individual process, the team process of sharing your purpose involves validating your insights. However, this works on a much bigger scale and thus requires more steps.
To begin, the authors advise planning another three- to four-hour group discussion session to carry out the steps detailed in this section.
Next, leaders should invite people who didn’t participate in the team’s purpose discussion. The authors suggest you invite no more than 50 people. Look for participants who will be enthusiastic about joining the discussion, because they’re most likely to share their enthusiasm with others after the meeting.
(Shortform note: In The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell explains that enthusiasm is one of the characteristics that make some people more persuasive than others. Their enthusiasm, which they communicate through their words and body language, makes other people want to listen to their ideas.)
First, show the new participants Sinek’s TED Talk, and make sure they understand the basic concepts of knowing your Why.
Next, explain that the purpose statement came from the stories team members shared during the previous discussion. Recount some of the stories.
Then, share the purpose statement, reminding them that the phrasing might not be perfect, but the meaning behind it and the action it invites them to take should resonate.
Be alert to disagreement—if most participants feel unsure, you might need to repeat the purpose discussion. Some people might feel unsure if they aren’t aligned with it themselves, if they think others will disagree with it, or if they worry that it goes against part of the team’s strategy or history.
Ownership of the Purpose Starts With the Leader
At this stage, you’re encouraging ownership of the purpose from people who didn’t participate in discovering it and might therefore be hesitant to adopt it. To help them get there, you can practice Extreme Ownership—taking full responsibility for your team’s performance. Modeling extreme ownership helps you develop ownership in team members, because if you as the leader have doubts, your team will pick up on that and generate their own doubts. Jocko Willink and Leif Babin recommend two practices to ensure you model the kind of ownership you expect from your team:
Make sure the Why or purpose statement resonates with you and that you believe that it makes sense given the team’s strategy and history.
Don’t be overconfident. Keep an open mind regarding the disagreements people might have with the purpose, and listen to any concerns.
At this stage, the authors suggest splitting participants into groups. Ask them to share stories of when they felt proud to be a part of the team and how those moments reflected the organization’s purpose. Participants can also identify team members who personify the purpose.
(Shortform note: Speaking about moments of pride and their alignment with your purpose not only helps you reflect on it—it also inspires others to act in alignment with the purpose, or Why. In The Power of Moments, the authors argue that when you take a courageous action, like living true to your organization’s purpose even when it’s hard, that becomes a defining moment of pride. For people who witness your courage, it becomes a defining moment of inspiration.)
Next, ask participants to brainstorm ways to use the purpose to propel the team forward. They should consider internal management and the products or services it offers. For example, they might pitch a new policy or product that reflects the purpose. (Shortform note: Beyond this session, you can encourage team members to pitch creative ideas by applying the tools Ed Catmull shares in Creativity, Inc., including promoting candor, embracing failure, and being protective of new ideas.)
To close, Sinek advises asking for volunteers to share the purpose with peers, be living examples of it, and bring one of the brainstorming ideas to life. (Shortform note: In The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell offers guidelines on how to choose the right messengers. When people volunteer, keep an eye out for connectors (people with strong social networks), mavens (people who are adept at gathering and retaining information), and persuaders (people who are great at getting other people on board), and encourage them to take on some of the volunteer roles.)
You’ve reached the end of this process, but Sinek emphasizes that the real work of bringing your purpose to life starts now. This final section will discuss the authors’ advice for embarking on the journey of living your purpose. (Shortform note: You might find the idea of living your purpose daunting since it’s a lifelong project with no finish line. To keep yourself energized and remind yourself of why you’ve embarked on this journey, follow the authors’ suggestion in The Practice of Adaptive Leadership to incorporate self-care practices, including recruiting confidants and creating safe spaces for yourself.)
Sinek argues that identifying your Why (purpose) and How (methods) helps you find fulfillment in several ways:
Looking back, you can notice patterns in the types of outcomes (What) that gave you the most satisfaction—they were the ones that aligned with your Why and allowed you to apply your How.
Looking at the present, you can decide whether your current situation is the right fit for you. In some cases, having your purpose and methods put into words will reveal that the work you’re doing doesn’t align with your purpose or strengths. If you can’t amend this by finding another job, Sinek advises that you live your purpose where you are today, even if the context you’re in isn’t ideal.
For example, let’s say Jane is working at her current job only because she needs the money. Her purpose is “to build vibrant online communities around leaders and tastemakers so that people can find their tribes and thrive together.” Ideally, she’d be a community manager for a lifestyle brand or an influencer, but right now, she’s working as an assistant to a small business owner. Despite this limitation, she can still decide how to show up every day and affect the people she works with, and live true to her purpose. For instance, she might start an online group with coworkers around a common interest or pitch ideas to her boss on how to energize their online following.
Looking forward, you can intentionally seek out and nurture the work that’s most fulfilling for you, using your Why and How as filters to help you capture the right opportunities.
(Shortform note: Your work might not be the area of your life in which you personally need to find fulfillment. According to research, people see their work either as a job (something they do for money and aren’t attached to), a career (something they do to get ahead in life), or a calling (something that’s inherently fulfilling). If work for you is a job or a career, not a part of life where you seek fulfillment, consider whether you can apply your Why to other spheres of your life, like passion projects or your family.)
Now that the team has identified and shared its Why and How, it should assess whether its products, services, policies, and strategies align with them. If you need to make some changes, the authors suggest starting with small tweaks before moving on to larger issues.
According to the authors, it’s unusual that a team’s core products and services don’t align with its purpose. More often, it’s those projects that never seemed to quite get off the ground that aren’t aligned. Knowing the team’s purpose allows you to be more conscientious about where to spend the team’s resources.
Sinek warns that, as the team grows, people can lose sight of its Why. Teams can avoid this by keeping the purpose alive through stories from the discovery process as well as new ones that support the purpose.
Suggestions for Enacting Change
Other leadership and organizational culture experts suggest strategies to enact positive change in an organization. Once you clarified your Why (purpose) and How (methods), follow these recommendations to put them into practice:
If you need to make changes to better align with the organization’s purpose, you can follow the guidelines to spearhead positive change that James Kouzes and Barry Posner suggest in The Leadership Challenge. The first is to search for opportunities by taking and encouraging initiative and expanding your sources of inspiration. The second is to take risks, achieve small wins, and continuously learn from experience.
To help the team decide where to allocate its resources, you can make “stop doing” lists, which Jim Collins suggests in Good to Great. Collins argues that listing the things your organization will no longer do allows you to distribute resources more effectively.
Finally, although the authors argue that the team’s purpose should be kept alive, keep in mind Seth Godin’s advice in Tribes: Don’t let beliefs turn dogmatic. To maintain balance, consider choosing which practices to hold on to and which to be more flexible with, as Collins and Jerry Porras suggest in Built to Last.
This exercise will help you determine your individual How, or the methods that will help you accomplish your Why, or purpose.
Group the themes you set aside after writing your purpose statement until you have no more than five. Write those five themes in active and inspiring language that expresses your unique How, or methods. For example, “build safe communities.”
Consider your current work. Does it allow you to apply your How, or methods, or are you having to stifle them? How can you create opportunities for yourself to apply more of your unique How, or methods, in the work you’re doing now?
This exercise will help teams determine your How, or the methods that will help you accomplish your Why, or purpose.
Group the themes you set aside after writing your purpose statement until you have no more than five. Write those five themes in active and inspiring language that expresses your team’s unique How, or methods. For example, “build safe communities.”
Make a list of your team’s values. What overlap do you see between your values and your How, or methods,?