3.3 Clarify Your “Why”

Why?

Let me ask you a very simple question: Why Do You Want THIS? When you make the decision to invest in yourself and your future with this training, what was the “thing?” For most people, the answer is very surface level and we’ll get into that a little further down, but our goal with this section is to discover your deepest “WHY.”

The purpose of clarifying your WHY is two-fold.

  1.     Clarity leads to motivation
  2.     Operating from your deepest conviction creates authentic and optimal performance

Let’s talk about how you get to your why? Most, if not all, sales training have a section that covers your “why.” When chatting with other students either online or in person at conferences, most of the younger students either had no idea how to discover their why or it was very superficial. 

Now, having a superficial “why” isn’t a bad thing, but if we can dig deeper, you’ll find your actual why at the root level. With that said, let’s start with something that might be superficial.

Think about what you want in life, and ask yourself this simple question:

What about ___________ is important to me?

Just answer the first thing that comes to mind. Don’t over complicate it.

If your goal is to work from home, then ask yourself the question:

What about “working from home” is important to me?

Your answer might be something like, “to have a more flexible schedule.”

You then put THAT into the previous question.

What about “having a more flexible schedule” is important to me?

Feeling less stressed and controlled.

What about “feeling less stressed and controlled” is important to me?

I work better, and am happier, when I can manage myself.

What about “working better, being happy, and managing myself” is important to me?

It’s good to go at least 7-questions deep into this exercise.

If you’re answering really honest with yourself, this exercise will expose two things:

  1.     Key events that have molded you, often from childhood
  2.     Key beliefs or values you hold about the world

If you can honestly get to the root level of WHY you’re doing what you’re doing, you’ll then realize the true importance of the thing you’re doing. As I mentioned earlier, we tend to focus on those surface level motivations and it’s actually less meaningful. Your sight picture can and will become blurry and unfortunately any performance won’t come from your core. Let’s look at an example:

I’m starting sales journey to have more flexibility in my schedule.

That’s great! Sounds important, right? But it’s not THAT INSPIRING. Why do you want more flexibility?

Go deeper.

A lot deeper.

And once you dig through the surface foundation and get to the root level, then remind yourself, daily, OF THAT REASON, for starting a business.

You’ll feel more clear.

You’ll be more motivated.

You’ll come off as far more honest and authentic.

You’ll be speaking and acting from your heart, not your head.

Your performance will be more emotional, human, and connecting.

It will be more successful, truthful, and powerful.

Assignment

Below you should see a template for “Discovering Your Deepest Why”

Print off a copy, or two or three, and find somewhere to focus or meditate on this assignment. I prefer to go somewhere out of my normal routine. Get in your car and find a quiet place to focus or think. Go to another room that you usually don’t work in.

Once you feel you’ve dug as far as you can and have hit the center or the core, circle it, print off a very large version of it, and hang it up. If you don’t have a journal, get one and start writing that down daily for your morning routine. Your WHY needs to be a the heart of everything and focusing on that as one of the first things in the morning will keep your sight picture clear at all times.

Discovering Your Deepest Why