Simon Sinek on Why to Use Momentum to Define and Measure Career Success

In Chapter 5 of 20 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author and leadership expert Simon Sinek shares why momentum, not results, is how he measures success. He notes how success is something everyone pursues but few can measure and define. Sinek is less concerned with financial or lifestyle markers as success measurements and more about momentum, and seeing things start and begin to roll by themselves. He compares this to a rolling stone that gathers no moss and layers his purpose to keep that initiative moving. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen:  Why is momentum fundamental in measuring and understanding success?

Simon Sinek: Success is an elusive thing, right? What is it? And I think it’s very interesting, that if most people can’t define success – “well it means you made x amount of dollars,” or - but if you make x amount of dollars but you spend more, are you successful? Or “well it means you come home happy everyday” Okay, how do you know you’re happy, you know? Uh, so, I think success is a funny thing, which is, we all seem to pursue it but we don’t know how to measure it or actually how to define it. 

So how do you pursue something that you can’t measure? Fascinating. So, when people say to me “how do you measure success?’ The a question we all have to ask ourselves, “Am I successful?” I don’t know, I mean, I had a good year last year, uh, and what does that mean? Does that mean I made a lot of money? Does that mean I was really happy? I’ll let you decide, right? Maybe neither, maybe both. I had a good year last year, but am I successful? And the answer is no, I don’t feel I am, because I am trying to build a world that doesn’t exist yet. I’m trying to build a world in which 90 percent of the people go home at the end of the day feeling fulfilled by the work that they do. So I definitely took a step – a big step towards that goal but I’m still so far away. So somebody said to me, “then how do you know if you’re successful?” And the answer is, if it can go by itself. 

And so what is more interesting to me as a measurement of success, it’s not the markers per se, it’s not the financial goal, or the size of the house that you want to buy, those are nice things. Go for it, but those, those are not measurements of success, those are just nice things to collect along the way. For me, it’s momentum, I want a measure of momentum, which is – you know – when something is moving and you start to see it lose momentum, you’re like, “uh oh, give it a push,” because if you don’t give it a push it’s gonna stop. And an object in stasis is much harder to get going. It requires a lot more energy to get something started than it does to keep it going, right? 

And so, if you don’t let it stop and you can keep it going – you know it still might slow down there but you can get it going again much easier. And for me the opportunity is to get the ball rolling faster and faster and faster and faster and bigger and bigger; it’s like a snowball. And my responsibility is – because it’s not going down hill yet, it’s not on automatic yet – I need to still keep it going, to find that critical mass where it can go ‘Psssshh.’ 

And at the point it can go by itself without me, I need to find something else to do. And that may not happen in my lifetime. I think we must all stop measuring promotions, salaries, and these things, but rather measure the momentum of my career. “Does my career have momentum? Can I see it moving in the right direction? Can I see it gathering moss?” You know? “Can I see that’s it’s easier, becoming easier for me to keep the momentum? It’s becoming easier for me to grow, the size of this thing, it’s requiring less effort.” That’s the thing that we need to measure. That’s the thing that we need to be cognizant of, which is the momentum of our careers, not just the markers that we think define our success.

Simon Sinek on How Setting Unrealistic Goals Can Serve the Greater Good

In Chapter 4 of 20 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author and leadership expert Simon Sinek learns to set big, often unrealistic goals to advance his ambition to change the world. Similar to Big Hairy Audacious Goals - BHAG - Sinek finds underachieving on large goals to be more rewarding and inspiring than overachieving on small goals. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: Why do you prioritize serving the greater good in doing what you’re doing?

Simon Sinek:  It’s easy to pull things back; it’s very hard to ramp things up. And I’d rather start with something that’s too big and pull it back into reality, than start with something that’s so easy that you can’t really get it up. For example, you know, don’t set your goals realistically, set them entirely unrealistically. I mean, shoot for 80 and be disappointed when you hit 70. As opposed to shooting for 20 and being ecstatic when you hit 21. “We beat our goal!” Yeah, but it was a low goal. You know? I think, I think to be frustrated and achieving something, rather than ecstatic and achieving less, is a better way to live. Not to mention you achieve more. And so, I’m a great believer in the greater good –like those things, like so big, they’re ridiculous. Like, you know my goal, it’s a hundred year goal, it’s called world peace. Pshhh! You know? So daunting, you know? But that’s the idea. If I fail – and I certainly won’t achieve it in my lifetime – I like to think that what I’ll contribute towards that ridiculous idealistic nonsense goal will be more than if I say, “if I can just be happy by myself in my little house,” you know? Eh, I mean that’s nice and all, but I like the idea of contributing to your neighbor as well.

Simon Sinek on How Finding Purpose Increases Sense of Fulfillment

In Chapter 3 of 20 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author and leadership expert Simon Sinek loses his passion and rebounds by understanding his why, his purpose. Sinek references "Man's Search for Meaning" author Viktor Frankl and the three means Frankl identified to find purpose: through a loving relationship, service, and suffering. Sinek came to understand his own why through suffering and reinvention of self. By clarifying his why, Sinek better understands what actions to take to live a more meaningful and fulfilled life. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: How has better understanding your "why" put you in a more impactful position to change the world?

Simon Sinek: Well, I mean, I'm a guinea pig, you know? When I discovered this thing called "The Why" it came at a time in my life when I had lost my passion for what I was doing. And it wasn't because I saw a market opportunity, or it was an academic exercise, it came out of a time of need. Victor Frankle, the guy who wrote "Man's Search for Meaning". He said that you can find your purpose one of three ways: Through a close, loving relationship; through service; or through suffering. And for better or for worse, mine came through suffering. I wouldn't go through what I went through again, I have no desire to go through what I went through, but I'm glad that it happened. And I literally stopped talking about what I do and started talking about what I believed in the world that I imagined.

You know, there are over 90 percent of people who go home at the end of the day not feeling fulfilled by the work that they do. And this is the point I was in in my own life. Everything superficial looked good but I didn't - I didn't care - I didn't love what I did I just, I went through the motions. And I am now working towards a world in which that statistic is reversed. I imagine a world in which over 90 percent of the population is fulfilled by what they do, that 90 percent of the population goes home at the end of the day and says, "I love my job; I love my work." And for me, that kind of focus is itself fulfilling. To be able to contribute and help build that world, and to see it build. So, understanding my own "why" has absolutely contributed to my own sense of fulfillment. 

Simon Sinek on How Openness to Unknown Improves Public Speaking Skills

In Chapter 2 of 20 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author and leadership expert Simon Sinek embraces continuous improvement to incrementally improve his oratory and communication skills. Sinek prioritizes not only practice but also taking risks that make him uncomfortable. Whereas this would have been unthinkable earlier in his career, Sinek applies the lessons learned and incremental confidence to take greater risks when speaking to audiences. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen:  How do you use practice and repetition to improve your public speaking skills?

Simon Sinek: Rarely are we instant experts. You may have a particular gift or affinity towards something but you still get better. You know? People would pay me high compliments when I started speaking, and then people who see me a year or two later say that I'm even better, and I feel it.

Erik Michielsen: Why is that?

Simon Sinek: Because you, you learn more, you know? I think that hubris is dangerous. I think to think you're an expert at anything is a foolish pursuit. You're never, you're never as good as you could be. There's always room for improvement, there's always room to get better. You know, that doesn't mean you have to listen to all the advice, just you know, not necessarily does everybody know best, but to believe that you can be better, and to believe that you can offer more is a constant pursuit. You know, I used to think being a public speaker was being poised, and presenting in a way that was compelling, and speaking at the right pace, and that's a part of it, but I have been taking more risks lately doing things that are very unstructured and very uncomfortable. And I will now do, like if I have an hour to speak, I'd rather speak for twenty minutes and do forty minutes of questions. And who knows how that's gonna go? And that, to me, is the best. And so I'm a better speaker because now I'm way more open to the unknown; where a few years ago that, that would have scared me. 

Simon Sinek on How TED Talk Accelerates Career and Raises Aspirations

In Chapter 1 of 20 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author and leadership expert Simon Sinek shares how the positive response from his 2009 TEDx talk has changed his life. In the fall of 2009, Sinek released his first book and did the TED talk. The TED website promoted the talk and it went on to become one of the most favorited talks of all time. As the talk reached global audiences, Sinek's reach also increased. The experience validated Sinek's concept and increased his expectations and aspirations to affect positive change globally. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: What has the positive response to your TED talk done to influence your plans for what comes next?

Simon Sinek: The TED talk completely changed my life I'd say. You know, I was on this nice path, sharing this thing called "The Why" and was very excited when I got an opportunity to write a book. But it was the opportunity, to not only do a TED X, but the fact that TED put it on the main website - I only found out about it the morning it happened - that things started moving much quicker.  

It was one of the most favorited talks of all time, which was pretty humbling, and what started to happen was people who I never imagined that I could reach or get to - internationally even - started to hear this message. And lots of other people started talking about it and sharing it. And it was quite fun and quite remarkable that people knew about this thing called "The Why" but they didn't know me. Prior to that, it was really only people who knew me or had a couple of degrees of separation, and so the ability for TED to reach - just such a remarkable number, and it sounds hackneyed, you know, the power they have, but they have remarkable power so that was very exciting.

Simon Sinek on How to Define Fulfillment and Measure Success Each Day

In Chapter 1 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with Erik Michielsen, "Start With Why" author Simon Sinek rethinks questions what should define success and fulfillment and whether the definition should be a feeling or an accumulation. Sinek discusses these issues in context of waking up every day being at peace with the live you lead and the decisions you make.  Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people.  He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action".  Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University. 

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: How do you, at a high level, define fulfillment?

Simon Sinek: I think fulfillment is waking up every day and being at peace with the life you have lived and the decisions you have made. Um, when we define success, I get a kick out of that everybody pursues success.  The problem is that success lacks a standard definition.  What does it mean to be successful?  In my world, success is a feeling, it is not necessarily an accumulation.  If someone makes a lot of money, does that make them successful? Maybe.  If somebody does not make a lot of money, does that make them unsuccessful?  Not necessarily.  

Simon Sinek on Leaving Consulting to Write "Start With Why" and Inspire the World

In Chapter 2 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author Simon Sinek talks about his career transition from marketing consultant to author and inspirational speaker. It began by asking "Why Do People Do the Things They Do?". Sinek's direction then evolved beyond anthropology and marketing consulting into behavioral science - studying the brain, namely the Neo-Cortex and Limbic Brain. This inspires him to a decision framework called "The Golden Circle" that shapes his transition into writing, blogging, and, ultimately, authoring his first book , "Start With Why." 

Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: In 2005, you ran into some challenges, after you had been consulting for a number of years.  That put you at a career transition point.  Explain what happened there and what were the lessons learned in the business that failed?

Simon Sinek: In late 2005, September 2005 to December 2005, I hit rock bottom.  I was the closest to I have ever come to if not completely depressed.  I didn't enjoy going to work every day.  I didn't enjoy socializing with anybody.  I couldn't see a positive direction for my future.  Life wasn't fun.  I had developed this thing named the Golden Circle, which was only designed to understand why some marketing works and some marketing doesn't.  A woman I met by name of Victoria Hopper started asking if I knew how the human brain works, and I didn't.  I started looking into it and realized how the human brain works, the limbic brain versus the neocortex, overlapped perfectly with my model.  So I hadn't discovered if some marketing works, I discovered why people do what they do.  I became obsessed with understanding why I do what I do.  I stopped talking about what I do, I stopped saying I was a consultant, I stopped saying how I was different than my competition.   I started talking about why I do the things I do, to inspire people to do the things that inspire them.  It worked.  I started feeling better.  Strange things started to happen.  The more I talked about why I do the things I do, people kept on inviting me to speak.  I get 30 to 40 invitations a year to speak around the world about this concept.  Prior to three and half years ago the amount of public speaking I had done was one.

Simon Sinek on Inspiring Others to Be Happier and More Optimistic

In Chapter 3 of 16 in his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview, author and public speaker Simon Sinek elaborates on his stated goal to "inspire people to do the things that inspire them." Underlying "Start With Why" author Sinek's perspective is an immense amount of positive energy geared to make people happier and more optimistic. Further, he discusses how reaching individuals' within their company environment and changing company culture for the better can make a difference. Simon Sinek teaches leaders and organizations how to inspire people. Sinek is the author of two books, "Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Come Together and Others Don't" and "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". He is a public speaker, an adjunct professor at Columbia University and a Brandeis University graduate.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: Your stated goal is to Inspire People to Do the Things that Inspire Them.  Can you elaborate on that?

Simon Sinek: Absolutely.  It is the reason I wake up every day.  I'm a firm believer that if every single one of us worked on the things inspired us, if the hobbies were the things that inspired us, it makes us happier people.  If everyone did that, imagine what a great world we would live in.  When statistics are explained about unemployment for example.  We know that American unemployment is up to 9%. The way I look at that, it means that 91% of people still have a job. I see the world, with 91% people that still have a job, if you want to inspire people, get to them at their jobs.  The more companies that create cultures that inspire people to come to work.  Those people come to work happier, they come to work are more inspired, they do better work, they are more productive, they go home happier, they have happier families.  It is the way I see the world working one day, I hope.  

Simon Sinek on How to Apply an Anthropology Degree in Your Career

In Chapter 4 of 16 in his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview, author Simon Sinek answers "What Did You Learn Studying Anthropology at Brandeis University and How Did You Apply That in Your Early Career?" Sinek shares how majoring in anthropology enabled him to learn the skills necessary to understand consumer behavior in marketing and advertising. During college at Brandeis University, Simon Sinek, author of "Start With Why", learns to apply the science behind individual and group decision making in advertising and marketing roles, specifically in what motivates and inspires repeat consumer behavior and purchasing decisions. Simon Sinek teaches leaders and organizations how to inspire people. Sinek is the author of two books, "Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Come Together and Others Don't" and "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". He is a public speaker, an adjunct professor at Columbia University and a Brandeis University graduate.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: What did you learn studying anthropology at Brandeis University and how did you apply that in your early career?

Simon Sinek: I'm fascinated by why people do what they do.  I've always been fascinated by it.  Anthropology gave me the freedom and flexibility to study the individual and the group. If you just want to study individuals you are a psychology major and if you just want to study the group you are a sociology major.  Where when you are an anthropology major you can do it all.  Freedom is nice.  I'm just fascinated by people.  In college, I loved going to bars and watch people on dates.  Watching their body language.  I did field work with the Massachusetts state police.  When I went into my career in marketing, I was interested in why people buy one thing over another.  For me it is very much the same.  What truly motivates us and what inspires us to repeat behavior?  

Simon Sinek on What Tools Brands Use to Influence Consumer Behavior

In Chapter 5 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, "Start With Why" author urges students, professionals, and consumers to recognize negative media and messaging is often only used to sell products and does not reflect true state of mind.  Brands use marketing tactics to influence consumer behavior, loyalty, and decision making.  Sinek acknowledges how many college graduates and job seekers face a mass-media induced negative mindset full of negativity, fear, manipulation, and aspirational messages.  Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people.  He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action."  Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: For college graduates coming out of school looking for what's next, whether that means a job, graduate school, public service, many encounter a negative mindset.  What's your insight into directing them toward a more positive path?

Simon Sinek: It is true.  We are unfortunately in a mass media world.  Because businesses have not quite figured out how to differentiate themselves and really to run the most efficient businesses they are trying everything.  Negativity, fear, manipulation, and aspirational messages.  All of these messages work and we are bombarded with them.  I think just being aware helps you overcome it.  To understand the reason the news tells you, "you can die from tap water, tune in at 11."  When CNN reports some horrible thing happening on some conspiracy going on.  They are doing that because they need you to tune in so they can drive their ratings and sell more advertising.  Understand why all that negativity exists.  It is not because they want you to be scared it is because they need you to tune in.  They need you to buy.  They need you to vote.  It works but also makes us a little more crazy.  

Simon Sinek on How to Start Your Career in an Entry-Level Job

In Chapter 6 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, "Start With Why" author Simon Sinek shares how entry-level professionals can excel in their job and make it a positive career building experience. He advises early career professionals to couple their exuberance and enthusiasm with a broader perspective, noting careers are made in 30 or 40 years and not 12 months. A patient approach to building incremental skills goes a long way toward creating long-term experience useful across a career. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: I talk to a lot of recent college graduates who are putting in their dues, per se. At some point they start to get frustrated because they want to have more ownership in that organization or do their own thing.  What is your advice for folks as they are putting in their dues how to think about their future and what steps to take next?

Simon Sinek: Try to think of your life and career in broader terms.  All of us, especially when we start out, we are full of excitement, we are full of energy, we want to do good in the world, we want to prove we are smart.  We want to do it this year.  The fact of the matter is that you have a long career.  If you have 20, 30, 40 years, where do you want to be in 40 years and what do you want to achieve this year or in next 3 to 5 years to get there.  To play it on an annual basis can be demoralizing because you think to yourself "when do I get out of this?" Laying the foundation of a house is hard work and no one is going to get to see it and it is not even beautiful.  We all know that house stands up so much stronger when you have a strong foundation.  Entry level is the building of the foundation of your house.  At some point you will say I think it is built and will say it is time to make some changes now.  I want to start moving on to the scaffolding and move on to the structure.  If you understand what an entry level job is, that helps you navigate it a lot easier.  

Simon Sinek on How Authentic Behavior Builds Trust

In Chapter 7 of 16 in his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview, "Start With Why" author and leadership expert Simon Sinek answers "What is the takeaway from being authentic and what is the stuff we should set aside?" Sinek shares why it is important and valuable being authentic in one's actions. Sinek highlights how truly authentic behavior - believing in what you say and do - builds trust, creates support, and strengthens relationships. Simon Sinek teaches leaders and organizations how to inspire people. Sinek is the author of two books, "Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Come Together and Others Don't" and "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". He is a public speaker, an adjunct professor at Columbia University and a Brandeis University graduate.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: What is the takeaway from being authentic and what is the stuff we should set aside?

Simon Sinek: The word authenticity is too loosely used. Go ahead, today Erik, I want you to be more authentic.  What are you going to change?  You have no clue.  What authenticity means is the things you say and things you do you actually believe.  We are social animals and trust comes from the feeling we have when you get a sense of somebody. We are social animals and the reason the human race has been successful is because we have the ability to form cultures.  We are good at figuring people out.  It is what makes us successful as a species.   So when you are authentic, when you only say and do the things you actually believe, people will trust you.  When you don`t say the things you believe, you are just trying to get some short term behavior, people will not trust you.  So the importance and value of being authentic is that it is your long term interest that people will support you and stand by you.  People will put up with your failures.  People will help you for no other reason than it helps them. 

Simon Sinek on How to Find a Job You Love and Where You Excel

In Chapter 8 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, "Start With Why" author Simon Sinek asks why do we choose one job over another and why do we believe what we believe? Finding the right job, interviewing well, and enjoying work requires authenticity and reflection. Sinek advises others to find a job where you can naturally excel. This approach and questions propel both interviewees and interviewers to find the right fit.

Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: How does being authentic help you find the right job?

Simon Sinek: When people write their resumes it is like what I've done, what I've done, what I've done. The question is "why did you show up to work?"  Why do I even have this resume?  Why did you choose to work there?  Why did you choose to work there?  Why did you choose to quit and go there?  It is not a bad thing to quit a job.  If you realize you are a bad fit, get out of there and go somewhere else.  So, the ability for us to talk about what we believe, why organizations exist, and why we choose one job over another increases the likelihood we will find jobs and employees that are good fits for the organization.  You should apply for the jobs where you have a weird visceral reaction to the organization.  Sometimes that means going to meet them.  When you go on an interview, just as much as you are they are interviewing you, you are interviewing them.  This is where you are going to spend more time, in a week or in a day, than with your family or in your own home.  If you don’t want to go there every day, don't go there every day.  Wanting to go somewhere has nothing to do with how much money they will pay you. That will wear thin quickly when you hate your life.  The question is who are you going to work with, I'd like to meet the people I will have direct contact with, who is going to be my boss, who is going to be my mentor?  What culture do you have here?  You have to ask them questions, not about how much are you going to pay me and what are the benefits?  Ask them what life is going to be like and if this is a place where you naturally excel?

Simon Sinek on How to Set Life Goals to Leave a Personal Legacy to Society

In Chapter 9 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, "Start With Why" author and inspirational speaker Simon Sinek offers his take on age, measuring estimated time left as a platform to make a positive difference and maximize lifetime impact. Sinek argues why this is worth considering among so many life goal, legacy, and inspirational frameworks. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: When you think about your longer term goals and how your age relates to those longer term goals, you have a very different perspective than most.

Simon Sinek: Right.  When we start counting our age, we count up.  It has this built in assumption that it is never going to end.  It just goes up, up, up.  There are statistical realities that you are going to die.  You are going to die at some statistically average age.  If I live stay in good shape and eat will I'll probably live to around 85.  I will be a productive member of society until I'm about 75 or 80.  So I don't report my age at 35, I report it as 45.  I have 45 years left to do something good in this world.  I have 45 years left to achieve what I need to get done in this world.  So I very much count down.  It might sound depressing but it is reality.  The inspiration is that it gives me a kick in the ass.  

Simon Sinek on How Verbs are Useful When Setting Measurable Goals

In Chapter 10 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, "Start With Why" author Simon Sinek shares why he uses verbs, not nouns, to create stronger, more measurable life goals and personal values. Sinek builds on this by sharing his own "take an unconventional perspective", "keep it simple", "share", "silver line it", and "make long term progress". Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: In describing your values you prefer to use verbs over nouns.  Why is this the case and what verbs do you use to describe yourself?

Simon Sinek: Values have to be verbs.  It is not that I like them to be verbs.  The reason is that values are things you do.  Values are things you live by.  You cannot "do" nouns.  You can only "do" verbs.  If you look at organizations you see that they have their corporate values on the wall and it says, "innovation, respect, honesty."  

Erik Michielsen:  Nice posters. 

Simon Sinek:  Beautiful posters.  If you have to write honesty on the wall you have bigger problems.  You can't do innovation.  You can't walk into someone's office and say "from now on please, a little more innovation."   You can say look at the world from a different perspective instead of innovation.  Instead of honesty you can say "do the right thing."  You can hold people accountable to that, you can build measurements around that.  When someone says "where you honest?" and you reply "well, yeah, but it was more profitable", you can sneak around it, whereas when someone says "did you do the right thing?" it is a higher standard.  You have to have verbs if you want to do them.  My values are "take an unconventional perspective", "keep it simple", "share".  I believe in sharing everything, sharing ideas, sharing experiences, "silver line it".  What I mean by that is I find the silver lining in every cloud.  The goal is not to fix the things that are broken.  The goal is to amplify the things that work.  And ultimately one of the long-term goals is "make long term progress."  Because it is a stated value and stated way of operating, and it is a verb, I focus on measuring the long term value I can create in the world and not just the short term gains. 

Simon Sinek on How to Improve Mentor and Mentee Relationships

In Chapter 11 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author and inspirational speaker Simon Sinek shares why gratitude and repayment are so important in building mentoring relationships. Success is a team sport and requires the help, support, and, often, risk of others. Sinek shares examples how this works and how, when approached correctly, it opens doors to pay forward the support. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: Throughout your career and throughout your personal development, you have had many mentors.  What have been two key takeaways from your mentoring relationships and how is that shaping how you want to give back and serve others?

Simon Sinek: Success is a team sport.  You cannot be successful by yourself.  It doesn’t exist.  I don't care how smart, strong or talented you are.  It always requires the help or risk of others, whether someone gives you a break or some advice, it is how the world works.  The two takeaways from a mentoring relationship, one is gratitude and the other one is repaying it.  When someone does something for you, helps you with advice or an opportunity, it is not that you are awesome, it is that you have to show gratitude.  Say thank you to these people.  In return you do it for someone else.  You can't do it for them because they have already achieved more than you have.  Sometimes they will look to you. In the scheme of the world you do it for someone else. You got ahead because someone helped you. Ultimately the more you give the more you get.  It works out both ways.

Simon Sinek on How Teaching Others Builds Your Knowledge

In Chapter 12 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, while teaching marketing at Columbia University, Simon Sinek learns to better organize the pieces into course material and classroom discussion. Teaching forces "Start With Why" author Sinek to more deeply understand his own knowledge and challenges him to learn by breaking down his knowledge into smaller components.

Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: For a number of years you have taught a class at Columbia University.  What has surprised you most about that teaching experience?

Simon Sinek: You don`t know anything unless you are able to teach it to somebody else.  It is amazing how much we think we know, competence in something, until the job is not just to show it to someone else but to show it to them in a way they can understand it and do it as well or better than you.  Do you know how to ride a bicycle?  Yes I do.  Go teach somebody how to do it.  Teaching forces you to do is break down your knowledge into components that give you a deeper understanding of your own knowledge.  I love teaching because I learn more every time I teach.  

Simon Sinek on Why Creating a Sense of Purpose Helps Leaders Lead

In Chapter 13 of 16 of his 2009 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, "Start With Why" author Simon Sinek highlights why inspiring leadership, power, and authority, come not from position or rank, but from initiative and framing a sense of purpose. Sinek shares why we follow those who lead - they provide sense of direction and purpose - and the role selfishness - "What's my stake?" - plays in the process. Simon Sinek is a trained ethnographer who applies his curiosity around why people do what they do to teach leaders and companies how to inspire people. He is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". Sinek holds a BA degree in cultural anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen: How does framing a sense of purpose catalyze leadership capability?

Simon Sinek: In the first page of my book I wrote an ode to leadership, why I wrote the book. There are leaders and there are those who lead.  There are people who derive their authority or power from rank or position and there are those who lead.  Whether they are individuals or organizations, we follow those who lead not because we have to but because we want to.  We follow those who lead not for them but for ourselves.  Leaders do not need position or rank.  If they do not win office or promotion, they will continue to lead.  Where there are others who all their authority come from their rank or position. The reason we follow those who lead, true leaders, is because they give us a sense of direction, show us a sense of purpose.  It is one thing to say they show us a path.  The whole idea of blazing a path is that there is no path.  It is the ability to look at a field of grass and say there needs to be a path there and I will lay down the first steps.   That’s wonderful and that's inspiring and great leadership comes from those who point in a direction and say who's in and who's out?