This is the story of how I found my why. It actually began before I was born. In 1970 Milton Friedman published an essay in the New York Times entitled, "A Friedman Doctrine: The Social Responsibility of a Business is to Increase Its Profits." The subject matter of the essay is pretty obvious. The paper posited the argument that a business has no other social responsibility other than to make money for its shareholders. Well, the greed of corporate America latched right onto this concept. In fact, a mere 18 years later, I received an F on a social studies paper for challenging Friedman's premise. I wasn't given the bad grade because my arguments weren't sound. According to my teacher, I was given the bad grade because, "I was too young and inexperienced to understand such complex ideas." In other words, how dare I go against the establishment like that?!
Fortunately my mother shared my viewpoint that Friedman's premise was wrong. Unfortunately, neither of us had any circle of influence. I could explain to the people around me why profit is and should be a secondary concern for businesses, but most of the time I would be laughed at. Once in a while, someone would listen and understand.
Not long after I uprooted my entire life to take a chance on...love, I came across this TEDTalk: Start From Why. It resonated with me on a fundamental level. I had never seen this guy before. I had never heard of Simon Sinek, but I was intrigued. Before long Simon published his first book and was doing all kinds of public appearances. He was creating videos that confirmed and reenforced all of the things that I had been saying and believing for years! Even better--people were listening to him! I'll be honest, at first I was slightly envious. I mean, what does he have that I don't? Ok, so he's cute and charming..big deal. Anyway, I got over my envy pretty quickly because..people were (and are) listening to him!
(Just a quick insert..Simon Sinek is exactly 5 days older than me. If I actually believed in horoscopes and stuff, I'd say that there's something about Libras born in the year of the Ox...)
It was so satisfying to take a breath. My fundamental concepts concerning business were validated. I mean, so many businesses fail every year because their premise is faulty. If the only reason a business exists is to make money, there is no solid foundation. Sure, it's possible to build a structure on mud, but it will most likely fall apart. But if that structure were built on a concrete foundation, its chances for survival are far better. In terms of business, that concrete foundation is people. The primary purpose for a business is to create value, through a fundamental product or service, for people. To achieve that purpose, a successful business will invest in its people because when companies truly invest in their people properly, those people feel invested in the product and the company, making that product and company better for it. The result of all of this is better products and more revenue. Hearing these concepts coming from an influencer in the industry...well, it made me feel pretty good.
The only problem was, I still hadn't found my own 'why.' I made a lot of mistakes in trying to figure out what to do. It started in high school. I was too occupied with what I didn't want, rather than focusing on what I did want. I didn't want to go into healthcare like my mother. I didn't want to go into a stereotypical female line of work. I didn't want to be defined by what others perceived as my limitations. Unfortunately, by focusing on what I didn't want, I limited myself.
Later on, I let others influence me. I was told for years that I, like many women, was not 'wired' for math. I let that scare me away from taking math in college until it was absolutely necessary. When I couldn't put it off any longer, I found that I'm actually pretty good at math. Of course, I didn't learn my lesson. I let people I care about and respect influence my decisions concerning career changes and life in general. Throughout it all, there was always a common thread; something that I just couldn't quite put my finger on.
I recently took a Sparketype test to see what it said I should be doing with my life. According to the results, my primary type is an Advocate who gives "voice to an idea, person, living thing or community." My shadow type is a Sage who finds "a deep sense of satisfaction in the pursuit of illuminating or teaching," in the context of my primary type of advocate. *
After reading these results, a lot of things in my life started to click into place. I speak up. It's just what I do. When I see injustice, I say something. All of my life I have been an advocate for those who can't or don't have a voice in the small circle of influence I have. It's not just what I do, it's who I am. I don't think that I'm capable of seeing injustice without using my voice against it. My why has always been there, I was just too caught up in myself and pleasing others to see it. Now that I understand my why, nothing can stop me.
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