PrithivirajMohan
4 min readJan 19, 2022

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Book Review : Start With Why by Simon Sinek

In TEDxPugetSound 2009 author Simon Sinek a talk “How Great Leaders Inspire Action”. This eighteen and a half long TED talk called on business leaders to “Start With Why” goes viral. “Why” isn’t a powerful concept. In the telling book, Simon Sinek demonstrates why organizations guided by this concept will succeed more often than those which don’t.

Start With Why Book Cover

Assume You Know

The first chapter of “Start With Why” dives into the assumptions we make and the impact they have on our actions. Sinek gives examples of scenarios where looking at the bigger picture can shape your behavior towards driving long-term results. Take the classic example of American car manufacturers versus the Japanese. In American car factories, workers on the assembly line apply final fixes on doors using a rubber mallet, whereas in Japan the doors are engineered to fit perfectly from the start. This is also a metaphor for leadership. There are two types of leaders: those who decide to manipulate to get to the end result, and those who start with the end result in mind and let everything else naturally fall into place.

The Golden Circle

The Golden Circle

Why: Very few people or companies can clearly articulate why they do what they do. This isn’t about running a profitable company — that’s a result. Why is all about your purpose. Why does your company exist? Why do you get out of bed in the morning? And why should anyone care?

How: Some people and companies know how they do what they do. Whether you call them a ‘’differentiating value proposition’’ or a ‘’unique selling proposition,’’ HOWs are often given to explain how something is different or better.

What: Every single company on the planet knows what they do. This is true no matter how big or small the company is, or no matter what industry they belong to. Everyone can easily describe the products or services their company sells or the job function they have within the company.

When we start with “Why”, we go from the inside out of the circle. “Why” is the reason to buy and the “What” merely represent the tangible products as a proof of that belief. “What” are the reasons we can point to rationalize why we so much like a company over another.

How a Tipping Point Tips

The Law of Diffusion of Innovations stated by Everett M. Rogers pertains to the bell curve of product adoption. The curve outlines the percentage of the market who adopt your product, beginning with the Innovators (2.5%), followed by Early Adopters (13.5%), Early Majority (34%), Late Majority (34%) and Laggards (16%).The ones who queued up for hours, or days outside an Apple store to buy the latest iPhone are all early adopters and belong to the left side of the curve. The people on the far right instead are never content and never loyal. For a business, it would be prudent to get to know the far right side of this curve better, so that you don’t waste time and money in trying to convert them. While some of them might end up doing business with you, they’ll probably switch to one of your competitors at the drop of a hat if they get a better deal. The goal of a business then is to be crystal clear about their “Why” and find people who believe what you believe. Once you get enough of the 15–18% on the left side of the bell curve, they will encourage the rest to follow.

The Origin of a Why

You’ve probably heard that before you start a business, market research is key. You do your market research, know your customer and then build your niche. Sinek, however, disagrees. According to Sinek, the “Why” does not come from looking ahead at what you want to achieve and then figuring out an appropriate strategy to get there. It is not born out of market research or for that matter even extensive interviews with customers or employees. It comes from looking in the completely opposite direction from where you are right now. Finding the “Why” is a process of discovery, not invention.

The “Why” is within you. And once you find and know your “Why”, the hardest part is to remain true to it.

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