A colleague, and fast becoming a friend, challenged me with a great question – Why do I do what I do? What resonates with me, defines me uniquely, drives me, and fulfills me.
She suggested I read the book “Start With Why” by Simon Sinek before I jumped into developing an answer to the BIG WHY!
I downloaded the book immediately and started reading it intently. I want to share the results of my reflections. I consider this a work in progress so this may change, but right now it feels right. It resonates in me. I am enlivened by my inquiry. I am fully self expressed in this post.
Sinek’s book suggests you cannot invent your WHY. You have to access your WHY by reflecting on your pass and seeing the themes in your life. From these themes, you can access the WHY of what you do and how you do it.
In reflecting on my past, I saw the following themes playing out in my professional life.
- Challenge and accomplishment – Creating and playing games worth playing.
- Self development – Commitment to continually enhancing my leadership and management competency.
- The development of others – Commitment to empowering others to act powerfully.
- Creating extraordinary accomplishments/results through extraordinary teamwork.
Over time, I have come to believe, at the core of my being, that everything that happens in business, the invention of business models, strategies and processes, happens by people working with people. The business system is designed by and maintained through the conversations people have or don’t have with other people. While this is true at every level of the organization, it is especially impactful at the executive level.
Assuming the executive team and other teams within the organization have the intellectual capacity to effectively run their business and respond to environmental changes, I believe what gets in the way of fully accessing the totality of their intellectual capacity is their fear of full self expression. To be fully self expressed means, I am not withholding how I feel and think about issues, real time, face to face. This full self expression releases the creative genius of the team because of the free interplay of ideas and concerns and keeps everyone in the conversation, authentically, until the AHAH is reached.
Can it be this simple? Yes, I think it is this simple, at the core. If I am fully self expressed then you have access to my mind and creativity. Anything I withhold is due to fear. Drive out fear of self expression and the possibility of extraordinary creativity and innovation arises. If I am in an environment where I am fully self expressed, then I will naturally become fully engaged and empowered. Why? Because I am part of the system and I have a direct contribution to make to the system design and outcome. I will make a big difference when I am fully self expressed compared to when I let myself be shut down.
Out of this reflection, I was able to access the essence of what gives purpose and meaning to my work and my life.
MY BIG WHY
- I am passionate about seeing people in their full self expression. My facilitation provides a roadmap for my clients to access their creative genius, increase innovation, productivity and business results.
- I love working with clients who are enthusiastic and inspired about creating corporate excellence. My contribution enhances their competitive strength with their people fully aligned, engaged and empowered. This alignment and cohesion bring a synergistic advantage in creating a thriving organization.
- I enjoy enhancing the leadership capacity of individuals and teams to achieve their specific outcomes.
- I am energized when I help clients create and realize their extraordinary future.
