Simon Sinek's Golden Circle

Simon Sinek's Golden Circle assumes that the reason for undertaking projects is the most important issue a professional should be clear on.
Simon Sinek's Golden Circle

Last update: 09 May, 2019

Simon Sinek’s golden circle is a principle that you can apply to help a company thrive. It’ll allow you to discover which objectives you have to focus your efforts on and how to do that.

An English visionary called Simon Sinek popularized this theory. It claims that, although many companies are aware of what they do, and they even know what processes they need to follow to achieve their goals, they’re not clear on why they’re doing things (the mission).

This is the foundation for Simon Sinek’s ideas. It tries to explain the three questions every company needs to answer in order to achieve success in professional work. If you follow this principle, they claim, the inspirational power of the company and the benefits it enjoys will increase.

The questions of Simon Sinek’s golden circle

The three foundational questions of Simon Sinek’s golden circle are the following:

  • What does the company do? (What?)
  • How does the company fulfill its tasks or what processes does it follow? (How?)
  • What is the company’s mission that states the reason for their operations? (Why?)

The third of these questions is that which, according to Simon Sinek, many companies are unable to answer. When working with commercial teams or helping them build up their business plans, asking “why?” or “what for?” often is a good idea.

It turns out that this is a powerful weapon for identifying weak points in an action plan. In this context, an initiative isn’t good or bad in itself, per se. Instead, you should think in terms of whether it gets the company closer to or farther from the goals it wants to reach.

a man drawing a graph

So let’s take the example of the question as to whether or not you should include your new product line in the online store. It’d be foolish to just say “yes” or “no” right away. An online store expert is a person of importance here. The job of the advisor is to help them decide whether proposed actions are aligned with the mission of the business.

The real mandatory question you should ask is “why or for what purpose do I want to include these products in the online store?” After an intense series of questions, and always within the framework of Simon Sinek’s golden circle, only they will be able to answer their own question.

The foundations of Simon Sinek’s golden circle

In order to use the ideas of Simon Sinek’s golden circle, you have to put yourself in the position of people who’re going to hear about the establishment of the new project. That way you’ll be able to think about what they’re like. You’ll also consider what motivates them, why they’re interested, and their values and beliefs.

Using that as a basis, you can connect with them in order to explain the reasons for and purpose of the new project. The “why” of the idea arises from the most primitive part of your brain where you have your natural instincts.

It stimulates feelings of security in you.This is the message that many brains use. That’s because they try to conquer your life and turn you into a follower. They understand that if they present themselves appropriately, you’ll be willing to identify with the brand and share their values.

After that, the next question to consider is how you’re going to meet the project’s objectives. Here you’ll consider the advantages and benefits of implementing the new ideas. You’ll also settle any issues related to the viability of the change. You have to explain the processes, the actions, and the decisions you’ll have to make throughout the project.

the golden circle helps people put ideas into practice

The materialization of the idea

Finally, you’ll show just what you’re going to get once the project is complete. In this last step, you’ll consider the details of the final goal. This final phase of Simon Sinek’s golden circle connects with the more rational part of your brain. That’s the part that directs your actions.

Aside from that, it’ll also be the metric by which you measure your success and achievement. It also allows you to know whether or not you’ve met your objectives, rekindling your motivation because of the feelings of satisfaction and reward you get once the job has been completed.

Ultimately, you can use these theories to reconfigure the way in which you organize a new project within your company. You will be using the purpose of the business as the basis. This will be better than a company that tries to implement ideas without a purpose.


This text is provided for informational purposes only and does not replace consultation with a professional. If in doubt, consult your specialist.