HOW GREAT LEADERS INSPIRE ACTION

BY SIMON SINEK

I stumbled found Simon Sinek's presentation on "How Great

Leaders Inspire Action" when looking for a video to watch. Mr.
Sinek outlines his beliefs about what makes leaders great in this
talk. Apple is famed for their innovation and ingenuity, but they are
not the only firm that manufactures computers. Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr. was not the only activist in the civil rights movement. The
Wright Brothers were not the only team attempting to fly. So Mr.
Sinek inquires, "Why them?" This is attributed to his golden circle
idea.

The golden circle is composed of three circles within each other.

The first outer circle is “what they do”. The next circle inward is
“how they do it” and the last center circle is “why they do it”.
Everyone knows what they do, some know how they do it but very
few know why they do it. Most assume that profit is why but profit
is actually a result not a reason. Why is suppose to be your
purpose, cause and/or belief. Most individuals go from the outside
in. They tell you want you they do and how they do it and expect
you to buy it. In the case of the workforce, employers tell you what
your job is and how you do it and expect you to complete the task.
Those individuals that are great leaders start from the inside out.
They start with why you are doing it. Apple communicates through
the inside out. They tell you they believe in thinking differently to
challenge the status quo. They do this by make beautifully
designed and simple to use products, which just so happens that
they make computers.

Mr. Sinek proves that individuals don’t buy what you do; they buy
why you do it. This is a more detailed version of the path-goal
theory. Good leaders will motivate individuals to achieve a certain
goal and then help them find a way to get there. Employers do not
what to just hire people who need a job. Employers want to hire
individuals who believe what you believe.