Start With Why

I try to read a book a month. These books are mostly non-fiction and are business or personal growth related. I love thinking in general (its a gift, I tell you) and as such picking up books and reading and learning feels like I am developing both personally and professionally. Someone once told me that the person you will be in 5 years depends on the people you meet and the books you read. I find some truth and comfort in that statement.

I recently read “Start With Why” by Simon Sinek and I’d categorize it as a pretty simple premise but a game changer if you could execute it in life, work, relationships, and elsewhere. The basic premise of the book (and I am keeping this very simple) is that if you drew a circle that had three layers, it could look like this.

golden-circle

What Mr. Sinek argues is that most companies focus on WHAT they do. Dell builds computers, for examples. They then tell you HOW they do it – the have a great processing facility and it allows for personalization and you can change features, chips, memory, hard drives (etc.) and get it built just for you – for a cheap price. They never tell you why though, do they? The book argues that a company like Apple always starts with why, then explains how, and then shows a product that is the outcome of the why and how – not the other way around. Profit is never a “why” either. In very generalized thoughts and terms he demonstrates the companies that start with why  has made them industry leaders – in some cases changing complete industries and in even more extreme cases the world. He also argues that if you don’t start with why you can’t achieve the same results, and that starting with why creates an inspiration that team members, co-workers and customers can all rally behind – which creates that success.

A simple example of how to apply this is personal health. If you focus on the WHAT and HOW of personal health it doesn’t sound like a lot of fun. I need to go to the gym 4x a week and work out. I need to drink less beer. I need to eat better, less bread, less deep fried foods. I need to take the stairs instead of the elevators. The WHAT and HOW of personal health doesn’t actually sound that great.

If you started with WHY, you may look at those things a bit differently. I want to walk my daughter down the aisle. I want to be able to work and provide for my family. I want to be around long enough to play with my grandkids. If you start with those whys suddenly less beer, and more time at the gym, and taking those stairs don’t seem that bad after all.

Its a must read. Please do. It’s on Audible if you like books that way, can even be your free trial book.

Can the golden circle be used in Personal gaming? Of course it can. Clearly developers are starting with WHAT and HOW and not WHY. WildStar started with we are going to create a game that WoW would have been if they didn’t get off course. (WHAT).

We will do this by not making the same mistakes as Blizzard and keeping the game catered to the 1%, with attunments and a tougher levelling and raiding experience. We’ll reintroduce 40 man raids. (HOW)

They never really explained WHY.

I want a gaming company to think with WHY first, instead of “how much profits can we make if we do yet another twist on a theme park”. I bet if a gaming company really started with WHY, we would get that inspiring and engaging MMO we are all waiting for.

 

2 comments / Add your comment below

  1. I am going to look in to reading this book, it sounds interesting and hopefully it will help me focus on the WHY which I lack in (mainly in personal life) – thanks for the recommendation

  2. Hi Fiona – thanks for stopping by! It is a great book and I’d love to hear your take on it after you finish reading it!

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