Communication: Great Leaders Start With “Why?”
17 Monday Sep 2012
Posted in Advice, Communication
Tag Archives: Simon Sinek
Starting With “Why?”
28 Thursday Jun 2012
Tags
Chiara Ojeda, Garr Reynolds, message, Nancy Duarte, presentation, public speaking, Simon Sinek, speech content, start with why
While reading Resonate for the millionth time, I was excited to see on page 180 that Nancy Duarte believes presentations should start with why. This is an idea Simon Sinek talks about in his book Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Action. And I love the idea. Chiara Ojeda put together this infographic on Sinek’s “Golden Circle,” so to learn more about Sinek, definitely check it out here.
Why start a presentation with why? Sinek explains that if an audience doesn’t know why, the “what” and “how” don’t matter. Duarte breaks it down a little further in Resonate. She says starting and closing with why balances analysis with emotion because it gives the audience an emotional connection or tie to your topic. Starting with why gets to the heart of the issue.
Similarly, Sinek argues that businesses that start with why are more successful and cites Apple as an example. Richard Foster writes, “Peeling back the hard exterior of a business to reveal what is beating at its heart often reveals some surprising insights” (Source). Consider a presentation. Explaining the heart, the point, the core of that presentation at the beginning gives the audience the value from the beginning.
Garr Reynolds talks about this in his blog post “The importance of starting from why.” Reynolds argues, “We rarely spend time thinking deeply about the why. Why are we doing this? Why does it matter? Why is it important (or not)? What is the meaning in the whole scheme of things? Part of the reason we suffer in our professional, academic, and even personal lives is we do not spend enough time first with the Why. How could your work (including presentations) and your life in general be improved if you spent more time first thinking deeply about Why?” (Source).
The next time you are creating a presentation, don’t start with what. Start instead with why.
Currently Reading…
23 Friday Mar 2012
Posted in Currently Reading, Currently...
On my way to yoga this morning, I received two exciting surprises on my doorstep:
Though I am superbusy at work finishing up March classes and preparing for next month, I plan to take some personal time this weekend to start reading Simon Sinek’s Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone To Take Action and David McCandless’s The Visual Miscellaneum: A Colorful Guide to the World’s Most Consequential Trivia.
I participated in a conference call with Simon Sinek a few months ago, and, unfortunately, I found him rude and unpleasant. The conference call was to last for one hour, but I was so disturbed and offended by Sinek’s attitude and the way he spoke to two callers that I hung up after only 7 minutes. It’s difficult for me to promote his work without expressing my disappointment in him, but I love his Start With Why concept. Still, in my eyes, his credibility took a big hit. Leadership, for me, is about building others up instead of tearing them down, so I have a hard time trusting that Sinek knows what makes a good leader if he cannot practice these principles in real life. While I hope Sinek was just having a bad day, the fact remains that first impressions are lasting ones, and my impression of him is really very negative. Since I know the content of Start With Why will be truly fantastic because his TED Talk is so fantastic, I’m not worried that my bias might influence my book review. Check back soon!
David McCandless, on the other hand, is the epitome of grace, kindness, and credibility. Though I haven’t spoken with him on the phone or met him in person, I’ve watched him handle himself under pressure in a really honorable fashion. He also delivered one of my absolute favorite TED Talks. Watch it here:
McCandless has a beautiful website called Information Is Beautiful, but I haven’t read any of his books, so I am excited to jump into his gorgeous world of data visualization.
What great books are you reading this weekend?
Inspiration: Simon Sinek
04 Wednesday Jan 2012
Posted in Inspiration
With our examination of Simon Sinek’s philosophy of The Golden Circle and left-siders yesterday, I thought it was time to introduce his 2011 book: Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. Though I haven’t read Start with Why yet, I know it will be a wonderful text based upon Sinek’s TED Talk and the articles on his beautifully-designed website, Start with Why.
What do you think about Sinek’s ideas? Have you read Start with Why?
Chiara Ojeda: Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle
03 Tuesday Jan 2012
Posted in Advice, Wise Words
Tags
advice, Chiara Ojeda, Golden Circle, how great leaders inspire action, Simon Sinek, start with why, Tweak Your Slides
Want to know more about Simon Sinek? Check out this amazing infographic by Chiara Ojeda of Tweak Your Slides:
Are You a Left-Sider?
03 Tuesday Jan 2012
Posted in Inspiration
A few weeks ago, I wrote about a fantastic Simon Sinek article about left-siders. “The Left-Siders” is written for the creative, forward-thinking folks to the left of/ahead of the bell curve. Sinek calls these people “misfits” yet “visionary” because they “seem to live on another planet. They also see things most others can’t” (Source). Sinek gives tremendous advice to the left-siders: don’t stop creating! He says we must support the left-siders in our lives because they are the ones who will change the world (Source). If you’re a left-sider who is experiencing creative difficulties, reading Sinek’s article will definitely empower you to push through that “writer’s block” (with, of course, whatever medium you work best with).
Are you a left-sider?
If so, join Simon Sinek for a left-siders conference call on Friday, January 6, 2012 at 4:00 PM EST. David Mead explains, “On the call, there is no fee, there is no agenda, they are usually about an hour long and the topics vary, but they always center around being a left sider and functioning in the world as such. As usual, Simon talks about very inspirational things and it’s always a great call.” To join in, call 507-726-3128. The pin is 100241#
Inspiration: Simon Sinek on How Great Leaders Inspire Action
10 Saturday Dec 2011
Posted in Inspiration, Leadership
