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Simon Sinek

What I learnt from Simon Sinek’s TED Talk – ‘How Great Leaders Inspire Action’

chanman · Sep 22, 2016 ·

This video by Simon Sinek will change how you see the world.

In this TED talk, Sinek says most of the time we fail to start with the Why.

Instead, he argues in general that, we start with the What, then the How, then the Why.

To resonate with people, however, we need to start with the Why. This is the part that appeals to the ‘feeling’ part of the brain. Not the rational, logical part, but the emotional part.

Sinek applies this to marketing, such as when explaining Apple appeals to consumers more than Dell. Both sell great computers (the What). Both sell the How. But only Apple truly sells the Why.

golden-circle

Sinek argues that Apple found their raison d’etre and started from there. They sold the counterculture, the rebellion, the attack on the status quo and that’s what consumers bought into. They bought why Apple existed before they were convinced about Apple’s products.

They bought the Why before anything else.

What’s the reason for this?

Sinek argues that the Why and the How relate to different parts of the brain than the What does.

The What resides in the neo-cortex whilst the How and the Why live in the limbic part of the brain.

The Limbic brain is where we feel things and is the emotional centre of our brains.

Apple then, in Sinek’s example, appeals to this deeper emotional core of our brains and perhaps this is why Apple have such loyal fans.

It’s beyond reasons such as product features, specifications etc.

People love Apple because of Why they do what they do.

What can we learn from Simon Sinek’s Start With Why?

There are lots of potential applications across a wide variety of areas.

Marketing

It has immediate applications in marketing.

Sinek’s example of why Apple resonates more than Dell with consumers is compelling.

If you’re marketing your company, product or service, what is your Why?

Why do you or your product exist?

If the answer to make people’s lives better, then that will be apparent in your product.

If it’s purely for profits at the expense of the customer, then this will shine through too.

A great example in the UK is a company called Green Energy.

Green Energy supplies energy in a sustainable way.

They want to change the world. That’s Why they do what they do.

It’s a compelling why and this shines through.

I was persuaded to use them because I wanted to be more green and it didn’t really cost me more than using other suppliers.

I also liked that they were different to other

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