Simon O. Sinek (born October 9, 1973) is a British-American author, motivational speaker and marketing consultant. He is the author of four books, including Start With Why (2009).
It is only from the people I've had the good fortune to meet that I am learning the lessons to guide me. Baz Luhrmann, director of 'Moulin Rouge,' for example, has a childlike curiosity about the world. He doesn't pretend to know all the answers - quite the opposite, in fact. He asks loads of questions of everyone.
We are only in charge when we are willing to let others take charge.
Success always takes help. Failure is done alone.
A small team, committed to a cause bigger than themselves, can achieve absolutely anything.
I'm pretty confident the why works now. When it first began, somebody said to me: "Will this work in big business?" I said, "I don't know. Let's try. " Somebody said will this work in entrepreneurs, relationships or government and military. I said, "I don't know. Let's try. " I kept applying the scientific method. I had a theory. I kept applying that theory, looking for opportunities to fail and it kept working.
A star wants to see himself rise to the top. A leader wants to see those around him rise to the top.
Focus on long term success but be willing to make short term adjustments to get there
The responsibility of leadership is not to come up with all the ideas but to create an environment in which great ideas can thrive.
More information is always better than less. When people know the reason things are happening, even if it's bad news, they can adjust their expectations and react accordingly. Keeping people in the dark only serves to stir negative emotions.
Because a true sense of purpose is deeply emotional, it serves as a compass to guide us to act in a way completely consistent with our values and beliefs. Purpose does not need to involve calculations or numbers. Purpose is about the quality of life. Purpose is human, not economic.
You have to be careful what you think you know.
We don't learn much when everything goes right. We learn the most when things go wrong.
I like stories of the classic hero, of good versus evil, the ones in which the good guys wear white and the bad guys wear black. . . and I love a good sword fight.
Don't quit. Never give up trying to build the world you can see, even if others can't see it. Listen to your drum and your drum only. It's the one that makes the sweetest sound.
The bad leaders are the ones that push hard so they can gain, who brow beat us so that they can receive the benefit of our hard work, not so we can enjoy the success
People don't buy what you do; they buy what you stand for.
It's ok if others share our ideas as long as they build upon them. It's called progress.
A why has to be for others. It's something you give to the world. It's the reason your friends love you because this is the thing that you give them and it fulfills them. This is the reason your clients love you or your fans love you because you give them something. It's something to offer, that's what the why is.
Too many people write books as a calling card.
The difference between those who do and those who don't is that those who don't believe it when they are told they can't.