When you lose your WHY, you lose your way. Knowing and operating from your WHY will give you a deep sense of fulfillment and meaning. We start with finding your WHY with Simon Sinek’s help. Simon is a well-known corporate leadership speaker who has written several books on the subject, including Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action (2017). Check out his 8-minute video on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ss78LfY3nE or search YouTube for “Sinek why TED talk.” Once you have a handle on that, check out a fantastic 4-minute video on YouTube by Michael Jr., a stand-up comedian. It truly exemplifies what it means to find your WHY. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ytFB8TrkTo&t=4s or search for “Michael Jr. know your why.” Please, please, take a few minutes to watch these videos.
Now, here is one effective way to find your WHY. Get a pack of 3×5 cards. Clear off your dining room table. Think over each stage of your life. Write a separate card for each idea you come up with as you answer the following questions. Start with your youth.
· What things did you love doing? What inspired you?
· What gave you deep satisfaction or accomplishment?
· What were you really good at? What are your gifts? Some people are really good at some things but don’t particularly like doing them.
Now answer those same questions about things you have not done but think you might want to do. When you are done, take a break. Keep some blank cards with you because ideas may come to you throughout the day and night. You may have more to add when you wake up the next morning.
1. Come back the next day and sort them into two piles, those things you loved doing and those there were just so-so.
2. Now take the “loved doing” pile and select all the ones that gave you deep satisfaction or accomplishment, eliminating those that were just fun.
3. Take that pile and select all the ones you were really good at. When I did this part, I loved playing the piano, and it gave me great satisfaction when I did, but I was terrible at it after four years of lessons, so I did not pull that card.
This last pile is gold for you. Take it and lay the cards out on the table. See if you can find patterns or common themes. You may find more than one. Use this information to draft your WHY which should look something like this:
My purpose is to ____ so that ____. Here are a couple of examples.
· My purpose is TO inspire people to do the things that inspire them SO THAT, together, we can change our world.
· Here is my WHY: My purpose is TO organize and present information clearly and succinctly SO THAT others will easily understand and use it. It’s not glamorous, but it inspires me.