Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

I only came by this book because I saw Simon Sinek's TED talk. His TED talk on the same subject has been widely viewed and it was probably because of this that the idea of writing a book came about. While the core idea of the book is valuable - that the purpose in corporations is what distinguishes inspiring companies from great companies, the book is ultimately also filled with too much fluff. Although the central message is good, I was still annoyed by some of the other things that he does. Things such as using the same three or so anecdotes throughout the entire book, surely he could have perhaps found more examples rather than just gush over and over of how inspirational Apple is. Then it reads like his TED talk, making it just a bit harder to read. The usage of "The Golden Circle" is particularly annoying for me. Sinek makes it sound like he just happened to stumble onto the "Golden Circle" as if it was a natural law. Sinek is so concerned with legitimacy for his idea of "The Golden Circle" that he likens it to the golden ratio (which can actually be derived with maths) and keeps trying to legitimize his "Golden Circle" by using proofs wrong. At one point he uses the phrase: "This example proves" which is not how examples work! Examples DOES NOT prove things! This Proof by example is actually a logical fallacy. Then he points toward how the "Golden Circle" which to be clear is just three concentric circles where it goes from the inner circle to the outer circle with this: why, how, what, is exactly the same as how the brain works with the limbic structure in the middle, similar to the why (limbic structure is the oldest part of the evolved brain and is where emotions are generated) and how the prefrontal cortex is actually on the "outside" of the brain and is compared to the what in his "Golden Circle". Again, this is not entirely true. The prefrontal cortex does not stretch in a circle around the brain, the brain is not two-dimensional, and while I can appreciate that he's trying to make a link here, it just reeks of someone so insecure of his own theory that he again needs to link it with other things to make it more real. Then at the end he reveals how it's actually three dimensional and it's a cone where the why is on top and the what is on the bottom. If it wasn't golden circles but, say, squares instead, it would be a pyramid which is kind of the scheme that I think of while reading this book. Ok, this review is quite negative and probably sounds like a massive attack on this book. There's some value in all of this marketing speak, which is inspiration requires a clear purpose and through inspiration, you'll create followers who will stay loyal to you. So instead of 200+ pages, to get the insight of one sentence, perhaps just watch his TED talk again and then read about Apple, Walmart and Southwest.

Fantastic read. I highly recommend this book to anyone that is starting a business or is in a leadership position. Simon Simek is officially one of my favorite thinkers.

This is a review on the book “Start with why” by Simon Sinek. I am a student at the University of Baltimore enrolled in the survey Entrepreneurship course. The book is about the problem that many businesses or people encounter because assumptions are made. This assumptions often result in failure. The book is a great tool in getting a person to look at their real motivation for starting a business, or moving forward with an idea, which is one of the “Why’s” of the book. The “why” of an idea is the purpose or belief behind what you are trying to create. The author uses a technique called the “Golden Circle” that entrepreneurs should appraise before moving forward with an idea. Knowing why from within, before you are doing or creating something, could mean the difference between success and failure. I really enjoyed the last chapter about new competition and the lessons learned. According to Sinek, if we all started with answering the question “Why” each day and answered to do something better than the day before, the world would be a better place. It’s not always about how you can out do your competitors, it why you are in existence and business. This was a great read...