Start with YOU

​Wise Simon Sinek has become famous by his idea: Start With Why. His TED talk has been watched by millions of people and his book is a huge bestseller. Yet, today I beg to disagree with this wise man. ​ We cannot that easily star with why. We need to start with ourselves. You need to start with YOU. 

I agree with Simon, knowing your why is key. It's fundamental to both your success and your happiness. Indeed, knowing our personal purpose will give us that eudaimonic happiness, that meaning that will make our existence worthwhile.

10 years ago I heard for the first time the idea of finding your life purpose and expressing it in my business. Today searching for our life purpose has become as popular as Corn Flakes. There are courses and books galore.

​People are more confused than ever. Employee engagement continues to be low. Just 15% of adults wouldn't leave their current job for any reason. According to the WHO there is 1 suicide per minute. Global suicide rates increased 60% in the past 45 years. What about burnout? boredom? divorce? 

Let's not go that far. Let us just think about the average life of a ​talented Jane/Joe: went to university, hanged the tittle and the honors, climbed the ladder of academic and corporate success, made it to "management", and wondered what was she doing there. Is this all there is?

​​Of course, I was the average Jane. All those choices gave me a life I couldn't explain to myself. ​My health, my relationships and even my career were ​a disaster. ​I was unhappy. I couldn't know where to start and certainty the idea of starting with why was absolutely impossible.

We are unable to answer the important question Simon offers us as the first step towards a meaningful life. We just cannot. There is too much noise.  Interruptions and entertainment keep us away from ourselves. We have learned how not to listen to our intuition and our wisdom. "They" tell us what to think. We are constantly reminded about how inadequate we are (to thin, to laud, to much...) and how guilty we must feel (for poor people, children with cancer, war...) We are overwhelmed by all those messages of being unfairly treated. 

We are pulled in all directions. We must be though and sweet; work hard and bake cakes; have an international career and care for our kids; be beautiful and fashionable. Social preassure​ makes so much noise that we cannot hear our own wisdom and know what's truly important for us.