Two Ways To Find Your ‘Why’

Do you know your “why?" Why are you doing what you are doing? Please don’t tell me to make money. Money is a result of what you are doing. It is not the why. Your “why” is your purpose. When you find your purpose and live it, you discover meaning and you get to do what you love. When you do what you love, you never have to work a day in your life.

When you find your passion and your purpose and live out your “why,” your work becomes a labor of love. Work is what we do by the hour, while labor sets its own pace. Living out your mission, you tap into a creative stream that allows you flow—an intense focus and crisp sense of clarity that others notice. Simon Sinek has a TED video with more than 12.8 million views in which he explains the importance of finding your “why.” He points out that “People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it. And what you do simply proves what you believe.”

What is your cause? What are your beliefs that drive you and get you out of bed every morning? Why should anyone care? Most of us can explain what we do. Most of us can explain how we do what we do. But can you articulate your “why?" Are you passionate about solving problems? Are you driven by continuous improvement? Does helping others succeed drive you? Are you trying to make the industry more professional? Do you love being part of the creative process and watching an idea germinate, blossom and flourish? Find your “why” and live it courageously. At a commencement speech at Stanford University in 2005, Steve Jobs said, “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle.”