Every start-up dreams of creating a legacy like Apple’s. Despite their humble beginnings, the company positioned itself as a technology powerhouse and leader during the last 30 years. But how did they do it, and, more importantly, how can you replicate their strategy and apply it to your business?
Simon Sinek gave a TED talk on the topic, calling it the golden circle. He drew one large circle and a medium and small circle inside. The outer circle is the organization’s “what,” the middle circle is the “how,” and the smallest inner circle is “why.” Sinek says we automatically think from the clearest thing (what you do) to the least clear (why does your business exist).
Moving in the way people think, Sinek says, is uninspiring and expected. However, Sinek argues that communication, especially when marketing and advertising your products, is best when you move inside out. Why is that?
“People don’t buy what you do; people buy why you do it.”
Sinek found his principles are rooted in biology. The neocortex, responsible for rational and analytical thought, is the outer-most layer and corresponds to the “what.” The limbic sections of the brain manage feelings and behavior, like decision making.
“When we communicate from the outside in, people can understand vast amounts of complicated information like features and benefits and facts and figures. It just doesn’t drive behavior. When we can communicate from the inside out, we’re talking directly to the part of the brain that controls behavior, and then we allow people to rationalize it with the tangible things we say and do. This is where gut decisions come from.”
Watch the rest of Sinek’s influential lecture and learn what the Wright brothers and Dr. King have in common, and how to apply the golden circle to your marketing strategy.