What’s Your Why?

Ever think about it - What is your why? What’s at stake? Why are you doing what you’re doing? Why do you live the way you live?

Your why is your mission in life, your calling, and your reference point for all decisions you make and actions that you take. If you feel lost, uncertain, unfulfilled or anxious, it might just be because you haven’t found your why yet.

Your Work is Not Your Why

According to motivational speaker and author Simon Sinek, one of the biggest misconceptions is that our profession is our purpose. He believes that what we do for work is just one part of the equation that makes up our why.  

Sinek said that his why “is to inspire people to do the things that inspire them, so together, each of us can change our world for the better.” He works toward this goal by writing a book, hosting a talk, or giving someone advice. Or, in other words, through his work. However, he also works toward his why by being a good friend, brother, son and human being. 

How to Find Your Why

If you’re not yet sure what your why is, use the following questions to hone in on it: 

What makes you feel alive?

What are you passionate about? Is there a cause that is bigger than you that you feel compelled to be a part of?

What are your strengths?

Think about your natural talents. What are you really good at? Is there something that you’ve always found easy, but others find challenging? If you aren’t sure, start with a character strengths assessment and go from there.

Where can you add the most value?

How can you use your strengths to create value, by applying your knowledge, skills and experience? Carefully consider this question—doing work that you are good at is not necessarily work that will lead to personal fulfilment. 

How do you measure your life?

You will not be able to figure out your why if you don’t know what you stand for. What is most important to you? How will you measure a successful life?

Have you figured out what your why is? Comment below and tell us about it!