The Why before the Why

Remember, people don’t buy WHAT you do, they buy WHY you do it. If a company does not have a clear sense of WHY then it is impossible for the outside world to perceive anything more than WHAT the company does. And when that happens, manipulations that rely on pushing price, features, service or quality become the primary currency of differentiation

The professional can answer your questions about why. That’s one of the symptoms of being a professional. Once we embrace the process of our craft, the iterative cycle of shipping, feedback, and improvement leaves behind a vivid awareness of all the whys that came before. And why compounds interest—each why can be followed by another, until you rea

Apple doesn’t simply reverse the order of information, their message starts with WHY, a purpose, cause or belief that has nothing to do with WHAT they do. WHAT they do—the products they make, from computers to small electronics—no longer serves as the reason to buy, they serve as the tangible proof of their cause. The design and user interface of A

Companies try to sell us WHAT they do, but we buy WHY they do it. This is what I mean when I say they communicate from the outside in; they lead with WHAT and HOW.

Why are you doing this? Ever find yourself working on something without knowing exactly why? Someone just told you to do it. It’s pretty common, actually. That’s why it’s important to ask why you’reworking on______. What is this for? Who benefits? What’s the motivation behind it? Knowing the answers to these questions will help you better understan