In his book Start With Why, Simon Sinek suggests that individuals and organisations who are clear about why they do what they do, as well as what and how they do it, are the ones who lead and enjoy success: Apple and Martin Luther King Jr to name two. MLK had a dream and Apple established itself because Jobs, Wozniak et al wanted to challenge the status quo.
The book starts with a comparison of the two main ways to influence human behaviour – manipulation and inspiration – and Sinek argues that inspiration is the more powerful and sustainable, suggesting that, “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.”
This ties in with a theory I learned a few years ago when developing my copywriting skills:
People buy with emotion and justify with logic.
It’s why copywriters are urged to “sell the sizzle, not the steak”, or taught not to sell a mattress, but a good night’s sleep.
The oldest part of our brain – the limbic system – is five times more powerful than our more ‘human’ brain, and means that we think like animals before we think like humans.
Hence why choosing to inspire rather manipulate, selling the sizzle not the steak, and starting with why are all valid suggestions.
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