“In order to be successful, you must find your WHY”. Have you ever heard that before? Of all the times I’ve heard this said, the speaker never followed up with how you find this elusive WHY. In seminars when the soft music plays and I’m given time to think about my WHY, I’m usually thinking to myself, “Shouldn’t I figure out WHO I am first?” After all, the parts to a story are “who, what, when, where, why and how”? We always learned to identify them in that order. This of course is reinforced as my son begins learning this concept in school. As you can tell, I tend to be a very logical and practical person. If you are like me, and really want to identify your WHY, but not sure how, I’m going to share with you what worked for me.
Everyone reading this was given life, your own story to create as you see fit. As you create your story, I’m going to recommend you skip the other 4 w’s and go to your WHY first. Ask yourself the following questions:
1. What do I want my business to do for my life?
2. Why do I want each of those things? Why are they important to me and/or my family?
3. For each level of answers, keep asking yourself, why?
You may begin to recognize a theme. You may feel more excited as you continue answering these questions. It may happen quickly, or you may have to reflect for a while. Be honest, patient and open to what’s in front of you. When you find the answer that ignites passion, you have likely found your WHY.
Now you may be wondering why you should do this little exercise. Here it is: Once you identify and understand it, your WHY can provide you the motivation and purpose necessary to do whatever it takes to succeed. It gives deeper and more lasting meaning and value to your efforts and daily activities.
So, if you find yourself asking, “How will I ever reach my goal?” or “What do I have to do to get ahead?” or possibly, “When will business start picking up?” Instead, ask yourself, “Why? Why are you in business?” Once you have that, everything else will become more clear.