Selling Whys

I’ve been digging into the phenomenon known as Steve Jobs’ reality distortion field, trying to grasp how he pulled it off. One idea came out of it, partly inspired by a famous TED Talk by Simon Sinek.

Mediocre salespeople sell you a product, and good ones sell you a lifestyle, an idea to buy into. The truly extraordinary, those who often become charismatic leaders, sell visions: they sell the “why.”

I find it astonishing that most people don’t proactively think of the “why” in their own work. They complain about being treated like tools in a corporate machine, yet they willingly instrumentalize themselves. They’ve programmed their minds to function like a tool: receive input, produce the desired output, repeat. They don’t question why the work is being done, in what context it adds value, or whether there might be a better way. They clock in, complete the tasks assigned, submit their work, and do it all over again the next day. How can anyone be surprised when the corporate machine treats them like a tool if that’s the life they’ve chosen?

In our workplace, there’s a principle we call the 7/2/1 rule. It means that in an ideal business unit, 70% of the people handle the what: they focus on the tasks handed to them, take the inputs and deliver quality outputs. 20% handle the how, figuring out the best way to accomplish those tasks. And the remaining 10% handle the why, engaging in the strategic discussions about what to do and why to do it. In real-world practice, I find it’s more like an 85/10/5 division.

Many people struggle to find a “why” in their work or life. This sense of meaninglessness is, in part, a byproduct of capitalism’s rise and the decline of religion. Yet, people need a “why.” And if you can be the person who identifies a compelling “why” and sells it to others, they’ll work tirelessly for it, and it won’t even be about the money.

Selling a “why” is what strong leaders do, and it’s exactly what Jobs did when he convinced John Sculley to leave Pepsi for Apple: “Do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water, or do you want a chance to change the world?” Apple’s vision (affordable, delicately designed personal computers) was a much stronger “why” than selling soda.

The world isn’t short of hardworking, intelligent, and well-trained people. But only a few can see where the market is going and keep up with it, and also have the charisma to sell those “whys” to both employees and customers.