Started on this book to learn more about how to convince others of causes that I feel are worthy of supporting. What I took away from this read: That success is not accidental. It starts with having a clear purpose, giving everyone a stake, and competing against ourselves instead of against everyone else.
Common theme (from this book and Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools): championing the cause of the common man is an effective way to success.
The Golden Circle
WHY is a belief. HOWs are the actions we take to realise that belief. WHAT are the results of those actions.
People don't buy WHAT you do, they buy WHY you do it.
When people know WHY you do WHAT you do, they are willing to give you credit for everything that could serve as proof of WHY.
When they are unclear about you WHY, WHAT you do has no context. Even though the things you do or decisions you make may be good, they won't make sense to others without a clear understanding of WHY.
Advertisement shouldn't be about WHAT the product is (i.e. exhaustive description of product details), but rather WHY people would want it.
Creative Technology Ltd.: "5GB mp3 player" vs Apple: "1,000 songs in your pocket"
Those who fail to communicate a sense of WHY force people to make decisions with only empirical evidence; these decisions take more time, feel difficult or leave us uncertain.
The WHY comes from looking inwards. Finding WHY is a process of discovery, not invention.
Clarity of WHY
Provides the CONTEXT for everything else.
Discipline of HOW
For values or guiding principles to be truly effective, they have to be verbs; articulating our values as verbs give us a clear idea of how to act in any situation.
Consistency of WHAT
Authenticity means that everything you say and everything you do, you actually believe.
When belief enters the equation, passion exudes from the salesman; it is this authenticity that produces the relationships upon which all the best sales organisations are based. Relationships also build trust. And with trust comes loyalty.
Being authentic is not a requirement for success, but it is if you want that success to be LASTING.
Success by design, not by default
Engineer the outcome wanted from the beginning; ensure the pieces fit from the start.
Manipulation vs. Inspiration
Manipulation = short-term; inspiration = long-term
Examples of manipulation:
Dropping price/ running promotion
Using fear/peer pressure
Using aspirational messages (can spur behaviour, but for most, it won't last)
Promising innovation to influence behaviour
Novelty can drive sales, but impact don't last;
If a company adds too many novel features too often > downward spiral (have to constantly add new features to stay competitive/relevant); Important to focus on key features that fulfil main objectives, rather than rushing to solve problems that don't exist/ inventing things that no one asked for 🫢)
Manipulations work, but there are trade-offs. Manipulations do not breed loyalty.
Business today has largely become a series of quick fixes added on one after another after another.
On Trust (Leading a team)
Trust is not a checklist. Fulfilling all your responsibilities does not create trust. Trust is a FEELING, not a rationale experience.
Value is the transference of trust. You can't convince someone you have value, just as you can't convince someone to trust you. Trust is earned by communicating and demonstrating that you share the same values and beliefs. You have to talk about your WHY and prove it with WHAT you do.
Trust begins when we have a sense that another person or organisation is driven by things other than their own self-gain. (providing a sense of PURPOSE)
Those who trust work hard because they feel like they are working something bigger than themselves (working together for a common cause; feeling that what they did made a difference)
When employees belong, they will guarantee your success. And they won't be working hard and looking for innovative solutions for you, they will be doing it for themselves. (providing a stake for everyone; ensuring that there is something in it for everyone)
Leaders should provide a net - practical or emotional.
If there were no trust, no one would take risks. No risks would mean no exploration, no experimentation and no advancement of the society as a whole.
Great organisations become great because the people inside the organisation feel protected.
People come to work knowing that their bosses, colleagues, and the organisation as a whole will look out for them. This results in reciprocal behaviour - individual decisions, efforts and behaviours that support, benefit and protect the long-term interest of rhe organisation as a whole.
Trust is also two-way? Leaders trusting that their people can do it (after providing direction)
On Trust (Promoting a product)
Winning minds only require a comparison of all the features and benefits. Winning hearts, however, takes more work. It is a delicate balance of art and science.
Preach what you believe in inspiring others in the community to join you in your cause; excite the human spirit of those around you.
On Leadership and a Sense of Purpose
Great leadership is not about flexing and intimidation. Great leaders lead with WHY. They embody a sense of purpose that inspires those around them.
Earning the trust of an organisation doesn't come from setting out to impress everyone, it comes from setting out to serve those who serve you.
Average companies give their people something to work on. The most innovative organisations give their people something to work toward. Giving a team of like-minded people a cause to pursue ensures a greater sense of teamwork and camaraderie.
The role of a leader is not to come up with all the great ideas. The role of a leader is to create an environment in which great ideas can happen.
Great companies do not have a lock on good ideas; there are smart, innovative thinkers everywhere. But great companies give their people a purpose or challenge around which to develop ideas rather than simply instruct them to make a better mousetrap.
When people come to work with a higher sense of purpose, they find it easier to weather hard times or even to find opportunity in those hard times.
Giving the people something to believe in
Those who believe what you believe will take the cause and make it their own. They will tell people what they believed. These people will tell others what they believed. Some can/will then organise to get that people out more efficiently. Essentially offering people a place to go, not a plan to follow.
The Celery Test
Finding out whether your WHAT or HOW is consistent with your WHY.
What Gets Measured, Gets Done
How do we "measure" the intangibles then? To better "reward" those who go out of their way for the organisation? Or is that just adding more KPIs and hence unnecessarily burden the people? How do we strike a balance?
No matter the intentions, if results were measured the same way, the same (awful) behaviour would result. There is a need to come up with a new way to incentivise people - a way to measure WHY.
Start with Why, but know HOW
Energy excites. Charisma inspires.
Charisma comes from a clarity of WHY; it comes from the absolute conviction in an ideal bigger than oneself.
Energy can excite, but only charisma can inspire. Charisma commands loyalty. Energy does not.
What if we showed up to work every day simply to be better than ourselves? What if the goal was to do better than we did the week before? To make this month better than last month? For no other reason than because we want to leave the organisation in a better state than we found it?
From Start with Why by Simon Sinek
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