START WITH WHY

A Book Review

Being a great and inspiring leader oftentimes is what we aspire to be, but
there are those who want to take the extra mile, and would not only settle with
greatness but wants to inspire their subordinates to be the best versions of
themselves, leaders who doest not only want to succeed but most importantly want
to leave a mark behind. If you are a leader and wants to make a difference, I greatly
recommend the book “Start With Why” written by Simon Sinek. This book will help us
leaders to become great and inspiring especially when we are in our mission to help
as well as inspire others to take action. The book clearly emphasized the importance of
communicating or knowing your why first if you want to inspire others. It also uses
real-world examples of great leaders who have shown great level of leadership skills
that made them stand out amidst the competition they are into. Lastly the author
wants us to adapt the leaders’ mindset for us to become a great leader who has the
ability to inspire and lead others.
So what does the book primarily discuss? The book “Start with Why” is a self-help
book wherein it teaches aspiring leaders to be able to to possess the ability to inspire
in order to motivate people. " Why" isn’t just a word, it’s a powerful idea. In this book,
Simon Sinek proves why organizations guided by this idea will succeed more over
and over again than those that do not. Due to its effectiveness and simplicity,
according to (Kauflin, 2017) the book was ranked as the "bestselling leadership
book". The way the ideas is presented made the book so captivating because of its
simplicity, yet very universal and common which makes it different from other self-
help book. Many of the most inspiring leaders we know today seem to have adopted
his idea of the Golden Circle and communicate it the right way. One of the great
leaders and companies that the author always mentioned in his book that really
seemed to internalize his idea of the Golden Circle is the famous computer company,
Apple. The way the author used Apple as a great example really captivates readers
to discover, learn and read the book. Everyone wants to achieve what Apple
achieves and everyone wants to know their secret to its longevity of success, that is
why it is so brilliant that the author used this famous company to captivate millions of
readers. Many books have also offered the same answers which are based on
sound evidences on how to become an effective leader but the way Simon Sineks’
used timely and universal solutions or ideas to problems that the leaders are facing
nowadays is feasible. Since then, millions have been touched by the power of his
ideas, and these ideas remain as relevant and timely as ever.
In my 10 years of serving the Philippine Air Force, I had dealt with many situations
and events that really test my leadership skills. Sometimes those situations made
me question myself if I am doing a great job as a leader to my fellow comrades. I
really can’t forget this event that really tested the kind of leader I am to my
subordinates, when one of my subordinates lost the desire towards his work. In other
words, he already wanted to quit his job. Since I am his field station commander at
that time, I asked him what was wrong but he did not give me any clear
explanations. One thing for sure though, he was struggling at that time. It was then
I questioned myself, where did I go wrong? Was I the one lacking or did I lack the
skill to motivate him to continue his job? Those questions really keep haunting me
every time I see that person? That is why I read so many leadership books
attempting to find answers to my problems. Yes, there are books that really gave
you sound and valid solutions based on facts but so far the results are just short
term. I really want to find a solution that would be long term. After reading this book,
it was then I realized that I can still do more in order to achieve greater results. The
book helps me understand why I do what I do or the purpose why I am here.
The Golden Circle which the author wants every leader to follow, provides
convincing evidence of how much more we can achieve, if we remind ourselves to
start everything we do by first asking why. "Why" means what is your purpose, cause
or belief? When we question ourselves why, that is when we start to see the
solution. Starting with why often leads to inspiration rather than manipulation. Asking
"Why" never manipulates but it makes people creative and motivated. When people
know your WHY people will start to follow you not because they have to because
you are their superior, instead they follow you because they want to. If you want to
inspire and motivate others, start by telling them why you do such things or what is
the purpose of doing this thing, instead of what that person should do, then you’ll see
a huge change in engagement. When you start with why and communicate from the
inside out, you’ll build a group of people that trust you.
Yes, it’s true that this book really gives the best solutions to those organizations that
wants to be successful after starting to use the mantra “Start with Why” however for
some reason, one thing I realized it’s not only the “why” that matters there should
also be some other factors to be considered in order to achieve great results. So
when should you start with why? One great example that demonstrates why people
buy into why you do it rather than what you do is the Apple products, although
expensive, why do people still line up outside the Apple Store, waiting for the latest
apple product, when other Computers and android phones offer the same
technology and experience like apple, the answer is simple, they offer "why" they do
it and not only "what" they do. At the same time, the author was not able to discuss
that limitations the company has, despite showing people "why" they do what they
do, those with purchasing power who are minimum wage earners could not afford
the apple products, even though they wanted to, even though the company shows
the "why" in order to entice people to buy their products, but due to its excessive
price, they could never afford the product, especially in our country, where maximum
of people live below the poverty line, companies that sell "why" they sell their
products would not be as successful as those companies that offer prices within the
"budget". Nonetheless monetary aspects aside, starting with "why" still offer great
success if you want to be a great leader
Start with why, but don’t always lead with it. As a leader, it’s essential that you are
crystal clear on what you, as well as your organization's, values, principles,
standards and beliefs. Your organization's core values will guide you to become the
leader that you wanted and needed to be.
Reference
Kauflin, Jeff. 2017. "The Year's Five Bestselling Leadership Books, And Why They
are So Great". forbes.com.