Discovering your WHY

What do you do? What do you sell or make?

This is typically the starting point of any message that businesses will deliver to their clients and most businesses will end their message with a call to action. In my case: “I am a newborn photographer, I take beautiful pictures using natural light. Come and have your pictures taken by me.”

 

Are you moved?

Is anyone inspired?

Does anyone feel an urge to do business with me?

I’m guessing not. Because I have not reached you. I have given you information and hoped that that is enough to drive your behaviour and influence your decision making process. But humans are not driven to change by information alone.

None of the great historical movements in the world began because somebody told somebody else a fact. Bullet points have never started a revolution.

So why would a list of my business attributes convince you to trust me?

They wouldn’t.

Because there is something far more powerful and more potent than What and How!

What most businesses fail to communicate, in fact what so, many business fail to even understand themselves is WHY! Why do you do what you do? Why does it matter to you and more importantly why should it matter to me, your potential customer.

It is this WHY that drives people to action.

Unless we are able to genuinely and authentically articulate our why, we will never move our audience. We will not change or influence their behaviour or gain their trust and loyalty.

By listing your function and features, your pricing and your promotions people will understand what you are offering, they will be able to compare your product with that of your competitors and they will have the information required to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of your business versus another, but this doesn’t drive their behaviour. This will not inspire them to choose you.

People don’t buy WHAT you do they buy WHY you do it.
— Simon Sinek

But if you don’t understand why you do what you do, how will your audience understand.

If you want to move your audience you must first be willing to move yourself.

Once you understand your WHY and are able to communicate it you will never again have to hustle for business, fight a pricing war or fear your competition because you will no longer be targeting everybody who needs what you sell, but instead those who believe what you believe and there is no substitute for this. Your clients will chose you for you. They will trust you. They will share your vision. They will be committed to you. And they will pay a premium for you.

Each one of us has a story and people will either listen to it, or they won’t. But you mustn't be ignorant of it or afraid of it. It’s your story. You need to own it and share It.