Lately there’s been a lot of talk about the importance of defining your “why” – the core belief that fuels your business and is the main reason you love what you do.
The basic idea is that people are more interested in your “why” (the reason you do what you do) than in your “what” (the products and services you offer) – so the stronger your why is, the more people will resonate with you and want to do business with you.
(If you’re not familiar with this concept, check out Simon Sinek’s famous Ted Talk, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action.” It was a HUGE epiphany for me. You can learn more about it here.)
What’s YOUR Why?
So many business owners and entrepreneurs, when I ask them what their why is, tell me they’re spurred by the desire to “help people.”
That’s great. Helping people is awesome.
But really, isn’t that what every business owner or entrepreneur should say? Who would start a business that DOESN’T help people in some way?**
If you don’t want to sound like every other business out there and fade into the noise, you’ve got to say something different.
It’s time to get more specific
Who exactly do you want to help? What specific positive impact do you have on their lives? Why are you driven to help them in this way? What experiences in your life have led you to do this? How does your work benefit society and the world? What do you stand for?
By getting crystal clear on the answers to these questions, you’ll develop a “why” that will capture people’s attention and inspire them to like you, engage with you – and buy from you.
**Yeah, I know a lot of businesses exist purely to make money – I’m hoping that in our increasingly consumer-centric world, that kind of business will go the way of the dodo. We consumers are powerful, yo. Companies rely on OUR money to survive – and we get to choose where we want to spend it.
