Partner Article

WHY inspires change not WHAT

It is often said that success comes from perfect market conditions, a great team and plenty of capital. We hear people say “they were in the right place at the right time” and that is why they were successful. Really?

People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it. People buy from, and align with, those who share their beliefs. This theory is that of Simon Sinek, the author of “Start With Why”. He explains the theory behind finding your passion and how that passion helps us become effective leaders that can inspire change.

Simon interestingly uses the Wright Brothers as an example of the power of passion. He compares them to Samuel Pierpont Landley who wanted to be famous and rich and chose the same pursuit as the Wright Brothers to achieve his objective. The Wright Brothers didn’t have any money or a specialised team. And they certainly weren’t in the right place. They just concentrated on their passion and weren’t chasing success to be rich and famous.

Samuel Pierpont Landley on the other hand had plenty of capital and a large, influential and educated team. He was always in the right place at the right time and had The New York Times following him wherever he went, hoping to capture a historic moment. And yet, if we were to be asked who Samuel Pierpont Langley was, most of us would struggle for an answer.

The difference between Langley and the Wright Brothers was that the Wright brothers, “were driven by a cause, a purpose, a belief.” They believed a flying machine would change the course of the world.

Innovators are people like the Wright brothers, Martin Luther King and Apple. Early adopters are the people who see the vision and passion of those innovators. And those early adopters are the ones who build enough excitement to cause the early majority to buy in.

Innovators and early adopters are more comfortable taking risks and trying something new because they are motivated by passion and “are driven by what they believe about the world and not just by what product is available.”

We follow these leaders because of why they do what they do–because of what they believe, and because we want to stand up for (and prove that) we believe the same thing.

The goal is to do business with people who believe what you believe. Employ people who believe what you believe. If you employ people to do a job they work for money. If you employ them because they believe what you believe they will work with blood, sweat and tears. They are driven by a course, a belief. They will help inspire change because of WHY not WHAT.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Michael Bruce .