My friend Errol sent me a link to Simon's TED presentation from last fall. (thank you Errol!). If you are not familiar with TED, it is an organization dedicated to spreading good ideas. They have conferences, post all their talks on their website, www.ted.com, and have become known as the place to hear the latest, especially when it comes to technology.
Simon's talk can be found at
What I found so interesting about this talk is that it presents a way of thinking that lines up very closely to how I think. Cool, I figure I can't be thinking too badly if someone that speaks at a TED conference thinks like me! Essentially Simon's thinking can be summarized like this: instead of starting with What or How, we need to start and especially communicate the Why. In business, this means we need to think about why we are in business, what purpose does our business serve, and then communicate this to the world; people who respond to this "why" will be inspired to become our customers. In life, it means that we need to communicate our "why" to the people around us, and those that respond to this why will help us achieve it.
I have worked long and hard to figure out my "why". It's easy to come up with a few general ideas; in fact I think if you asked, most people would say they want to help people (actually I was at a networking event where we had to present ourselves this way and that is what almost everyone said). It has been much harder to become specific and truly communicate my why. Best as I know it right now, I think it goes something like this:
My "why" is to better the human experience by helping people abandon the negative elements in their lives that cause pain and suffering, identify their positive dreams and achieve these dreams. I will do this by teaching them, through my writing and speaking, how to identify their purpose, how to establish a plan to accomplish this purpose, and how to live this plan on a daily basis. I will help them transform their "adequate" lives into "extraordinary" lives.
I encourage you to view Simon's presentation and to consider what your "why" is, in life and in your work. Think about how you can communicate your why and to whom.
Have a great weekend, and don't think too hard!
