Simon Sinek

Benefit
Credit

To every company who talks about “providing value for our customers,” the easiest way to do that is to put their interest before yours”

~Simon Sinek

When an enterprise makes a decision, to whose benefit does the cause consider a priority?  One of the great distinctions of the social sector is that it serves for the public’s benefit.  All too often, this basic philosophical tenant is lost or forgotten as we rush to adopt the latest practices and structures of the business world.  Who the organization serves should never be forgotten or taken for granted.  

State of the Why

“We are part of the American family. We believe that in a country where every race and faith and point of view can be found, we are still bound together as one people; that we share common hopes and a common creed; that the dreams of a little girl in Tucson are not so different than those of our own children, and that they all deserve the chance to be fulfilled.  That, too, is what sets us apart as a nation.
Now, by itself, this simple recognition won’t usher in a new era of cooperation. What comes of this moment is up to us. What comes of this moment will be determined not by whether we can sit together tonight, but whether we can work together tomorrow.  I believe we can. I believe we must. That’s what the people who sent us here expect of us. With their votes, they’ve determined that governing will now be a shared responsibility between parties. New laws will only pass with support from Democrats and Republicans. We will move forward together, or not at all — for the challenges we face are bigger than party, and bigger than politics.”

Barack Obama, 2011 State of the Union

The President of the United States used the concept from Simon Sinek’s, Start with Why to set the stage for last night’s State of Union.  By capturing those who share the belief of a shared vision and dream he defines the purpose of the United States.  Then he introduces the ‘how’ (cooperation, shared responsibility) before presenting the ‘what’ (education, green energy, fiscal policies).  The State of the Union represented a highly visible example of communicating from the inside-out instead of the outside-in.

Mastermind

How many of our key organizational activities resemble the game Mastermind?  We are constantly striving to find the right sequence of actions and feedback to solve the puzzle.

  • Foundations: identify, letter of inquiry, personal connections, grant request, expense grant, report back, reapply
  • Board Members: identify prospects, cultivate, elect, orient, engage, evaluate, train, celebrate
  • Donors: identify, cultivate, ask advice, engage, ask, celebrate
  • Programs:propose, budget, fund, execute, evaluate

We are constantly seeking feedback on our progress. We put forward our best guess and hope it matches the sequence of our funders, community, and customers.  It is easy to get so focused on the next step that we forget the outcome.  Simon Sinek offered the following thought:

“Focus on where you’re going and you’ll know what steps to take. Focus on the steps you’re taking and you won’t know where you’re going.”


Quality of Your Relationship

What type of relationship does your enterprise have with its customers, donors, volunteers, staff, board, and community?  Is it authentic and built on trust?  Do you attract people who are committed to your purpose and vision?  Do you take everyone who raises their hand or are you selective?

Consider the following images that are associated with appeals for funding.

What reaction does this image bring forward for you?  Some international hunger organizations prefer this or more graphic models.

Or this sign, does it make you feel inspired?  How about guilty?  What story do you tell yourself when you face this type of requests for assistance?

Does your reaction change when the message is reframed?  Does a new perspective or context alter your perception?

Does your reaction change when the image focuses on hope and opportunity?  Heifer International leads with pictures like the one above.

Perhaps this approach (via Simon Sinek) reverses the classic approach to the homeless person sign.  The message on this sign actually generated $40 in two hours for a homeless person in New York City when the traditional approach brought in $20 a day.

A quick way to create a temporary relationship is to lead with guilt or fear.  It tends to make us uncomfortable.  We are willing to take immediate action to alleviate the discomfort.  In a fundraising environment an easy way to standout in a crowded field of appeals is to shock.

What if you build a relationship on a foundation of inspiration.  What if you are selective about who you attract to your cause.  Would it change the quality of your interactions if people were considering their purpose in the context of your cause?

What type of relationships is your cause cultivating?
 

The Importance of Momentum

Achieve released an article that highlighted the importance of momentum in a fundraising campaign.  

Organizations will often lose momentum when there is a singular focus on the short term.  Organizations will also lose momentum when they are not clear about direction or the ability to express that direction with donors.  As a donor, it is very hard to support potential growth, new opportunities, or even bigger impact if you don’t understand where the organization is going.

I also came across a passage in The Soul of Leadership: Unlocking Your Potential For Greatness by Deepak Chopra.

A successful visionary makes his or her manifest in the world.  Invisible seeds planted in the silence of your deepest awareness become tangible, visible realities.  As they unfold, you will manage their growth with passion and energy.  Your purpose will be apparent to all.

The alignment of purpose and action allows us to generate a whole host of attributes, many of which are impossible to manufacture under false pretense.  If I asked you to show me more authenticity right now, could you?  I have yet to see this trick performed.  The formula for authenticity might be expressed as:

My purposed + My daily actions matching purpose = authenticity
The same formula can also be applied to the concepts of trust and charisma.  These are ideals are hollow when listed on a resume or in a fundraising pitch.  But when demonstrated daily and repeatedly and held against the Rosetta Stone of organizational purpose, then they generate a different type of relationship.  As Simon Sinek would state, when people start interacting with you because they believe what you believe instead of doing business with your enterprise because they need what you have, a paradigm shift has taken place.  Momentum is doing business with individuals that share your purpose and then building a tribe that is connected by this shared vision.  Momentum is having clarity of purpose and then living it daily.  Momentum is lost when our vision gets fuzzy or derailed by other interests.  Momentum is a result not a purpose. 

Can I or Should I?

Too often companies forget that just because they can do something doesn’t mean they should. Can is about WHAT you can do. Should is about WHY.

                                                                                         Simon Sinek
What filters does your enterprise use to decide what is the best course of action?  Are you certain about your organizational purpose?  If so, are you able to pause and consider ‘should versus what,’ when you reach critical decision-making intersections?