The Melting Pot 72–31st January 2020

WHY SIMON SINEK IS FUNDAMENTALLY WRONG

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll have heard of Simon Sinek. He took the business world by storm in 2009 with his lecture, ‘How Great Leaders Inspire Action’. This became the 3rd most-watched TED talk of all time. In it, he unveiled his ‘Golden Circle’ with ‘Why’ at its heart. His book ‘Start with Why’ became a best-seller and his views were widely accepted by companies across the globe. An obsession with ‘Purpose’ began.

It is now a mainstream belief that businesses with a strong idea of their core purpose prosper. Other writers have developed this concept, such as David Hieatt in his book ‘Do Purpose — Why Brands with a Purpose Do Better and Matter More’. This is a belief I share. There’s no arguing with the importance of purpose. As MD of two tech companies that grew from zero to £30 million in just 5 years, I’ve seen with my own eyes the difference it can make to a business.

But where I disagree fundamentally with Sinek is his central message of ‘starting with why’. This isn’t where you should start at all.

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