It’s a little ironic to watch a very successful Ted Talk that suggests that success starts with the question why, and try to understand why Simon Sinek had much success with this presentation.
Again, who am I to question his intentions, but then again… Why not?
I love to question Self Help literature and personalities… it’s not their fault, some of them truly believe in what they are saying. But buzz words inundate every industry, and people, including me, sometimes start repeating them without paying too much attention to what is being said.
Because something is successful, or resonates in a particular channel, doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s true or good. Success can not be attributed to a single formula, and it is usually the result of effort combined with being in the right moment, and meeting the right people, with the right set of ideas, in the right location, in the right this, and the right that… The point is that is not a Quick Fix.
So it is not surprising that countries with great deals of suffering offer a big market opportunity to those trying to sell positivism to people that crave hope.
So it is not surprising that a Golden Circle that offers a Quick Fix to help people understand success and offer the possibility to emulate their path, is so successful in a society where a lot of people want to become famous, a millionaire, or an influencer overnight.
I’m not saying that what Simon Sinek did in his speech is a waste of time. I actually enjoy it, especially when I want to find inspiration for storytelling. What he did and how he did it, is not easy to replicate and there’s a lot of lessons to learn from that speech.
Counting today, I have probably watched this video more than 10 times, and the lesson I want to extract from it this time, is that the healthiest approach you may have as a creative problem solver, as a media professional, marketer or any professional in the industry of your choice is that you need to be ready to challenge your biases, question everything, practice a healthy level of skepticism. Train yourself to be a Critical Thinker, and be ready to adjust, and accept that sometimes some things are just the way they are… the key here is “healthy skepticism, becoming “The Grinch” is not the idea.
Note: To prove that Simon Sinek actually inspires different reactions in me… here’s another post where he influenced me in a positive way. Enjoy: WHO LIVES, WHO DIES, WHO TELLS YOUR STORY.
Tralala Media 