What Is Your Why?
What is your why? Do you have an answer to this question? Have you thought about it before? If not, that’s okay, because we are going to share why your answer to this one question is so important, and how you can identify your why!
I was fortunate enough to see Paul Dunn speak a few times in 2016, and I absolutely love him! If you aren’t familiar with Paul’s work, his mission is to share the Power of Small and the Power of Purpose. Another inspiring speaker who stresses the importance of ‘why’ is Simon Sinek who wrote a book titled, Start With Why. If you haven’t engaged with either Simon or Paul yet, you should definitely check them out! In Simon’s book, he explains that people don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it. In other words, they buy what you believe in, and I couldn’t agree more! When I heard Paul speak most recently, he stressed not only identifying your why, but making it front and center for your business. So, how do you do this?
Why the Why
In the beauty industry, we are always striving to identify and refine our unique selling proposition—in other words, how are we different from the salon around the block? Oftentimes, salons think what makes them different is the abundance of services they offer: hair extensions, color, brows, nails, and so on. But, Paul Dunn contends that differentiation comes from clarity of why, not an excess of what. Read that one more time. Differentiation comes from clarity of why, not an excess of what. People will do business with you because they value what you value - they believe they are like you. Do you want more clients, more loyalty, and more retention? Well, Dunn contends that the shortcut to more is to matter. How inspiring!
Identify Your Why
Now that you’re convinced of the importance of why, you need to actually figure out what your why is! This can seem daunting, so let’s break it down. There are two simple ways to identify this. First, engage with your team. Having two, three, five, or even ten brains is better than one for this task! Sit down with everyone and brainstorm, collaborate, and discuss your values. At the end of the session, you should be able to fill in the blank at the end of this sentence: “We do what we do because _________.”
The second method that Paul Dunn suggests is even more straightforward. When you get up in the morning, the first thing that you’re going to do is answer this question: “I get up every morning to: _________.” Fill in this blank with the first thing that comes to mind.
If you follow me, you’re going to notice that my tagline or ‘why’ is “Empowering you for consistent growth and development.” This was created because it was the first thing that came to my mind when I completed this exercise! I get up everyday to help others grow and develop themselves. Why do you wake up everyday?
Front and Center
Remember, Paul Dunn explains that you not only need a why, but you need to make your why front and center. A great way to do this is to include it on your website! If you visit Beyond The Technique’s homepage, you will see our why at the very top: “We do what we do because everyone needs a coach in their corner. Cheering them on when they’re winning, and helping them back up when they’ve been knocked down.” That is why we do what we do at Beyond The Technique. As you may know, I’m also the founder of Be Inspired Salon in Madison, WI. Underneath our header, you’ll find our why: “We want to be your hair salon because exposing your inner beauty is the most authentic form of freedom.”
I hope this has inspired you to take time and discover your why, then start sharing it with everyone! If you’re still having trouble identifying your why or you want to bounce ideas off of other pros, join our private Facebook group! We all rise when we lift each other—we can’t wait to meet you!