Why Do You Do What You Do? And Why Does It Matter?
Updated: Mar 22, 2024
Written by: Marisa Guthrie, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Have you ever asked yourself why you do what you do? I don’t mean to earn money — that’s an outcome. You could have chosen any number of ways to make money. But why you have chosen to set up this business? Why now? And what is it here to do?
This is a question I always ask my clients, whether they have been in business for years or are just at the start-up stage. The most common response I hear is, “I just kind of fell into it” or “I never set out to do this. It just sorts of happened.” But I have news for you, none of this is an accident, you quite deliberately chose this, and you chose it for a reason.
Many years ago, when I was teaching a workshop about branding, I asked this same question to a therapist who taught Alexander Technique. He gave me the stock answer of, “It just kind of happened,” but when we took time to delve a little deeper, he told me a beautiful story about his journey as a therapist and what had brought him to this place.
He had experienced severe burnout early on in his career and had found his way out through Alexander Technique, so he was on a mission to get people to use their bodies in a more relaxing way. His story was completely unique and was something I had never associated with that therapy before, even though I had worked in that industry for years. In one fell swoop, through telling one story, he had explained and understood his why.
But when it came to his website and social media, he said something quite different. Up to that point, he had not connected his own unique story to his marketing, so he was missing a vital opportunity to create a connection with his audience.
Like that therapist, for years, I thought about what I offered rather than why I do what I do. So that was what I talked about - the ‘what.’ I put my energy into focusing on what services I offer as a business coach, so I ended up sounding like everybody else. I focused on the features and attributes but never thought to explain what got me here, what motivates me.
Like everyone else in business coaching, I said, I was ‘passionate’ about helping business owners, that what I offered was ‘transformation,’ ‘taking things to the next level,’ ‘growth,’ ‘development,’ in fact, all the things that everyone says in this industry!
But what your customers really want to know is why you do what you do.
Your ‘why’ is about:
What your values are
What you stand for and what you are committed to
What your story is and how that connects to the story of your audience
After watching the famous TED Talk by Simon Sinek ‘How great leaders inspire action,’ the light bulb moment came for me because it demonstrated the importance of storytelling in business. It showed that to create a real connection. You have to talk about the ‘why,’ not the ‘what’ and ‘how,’ something I had been doing for years.
So let’s look at how telling your story will help you and your customers connect with your ‘why’ and how that will impact your business.
Telling your brand story
Most of us are operating in pretty busy marketplaces. I know that in my industry there are a LOT of people doing what I do. So how do I talk about my work, and more importantly, how do my clients and prospects differentiate me from my competitors?
Before I connected with my ‘why,’ I used the same kind of language as everyone else in coaching. Not only did this not feel very congruent for me, but ultimately, it didn’t really tell anyone else anything about me. I wasn’t saying anything new or different, so I found it hard to talk about what I did, and this is a really common problem for business owners.
Once I connected my story or why I really do what I do, it opened the door to a whole new way to communicate, and I have never looked back since. My ‘why’ all comes down to social justice and wanting to create a better society through how we do business. On my ‘about’ page, I say: “When I was younger, I felt ambivalent about the business world. It didn’t fit with my identity or my perception of what was important in life. Early on in my career, however, I saw first-hand how certain products and services could improve people’s lives.”
Now, this is probably not what you are expecting a business coach to say, and I am extremely confident that no one else is saying that about themselves. So in reading this, you are quickly going to decide whether this is something you resonate with or not, whether it is something that speaks to you and your experience or not. And that’s great for both you and me because it means we are going to get a good idea as to whether we are a good fit or not.
It will also give you so much clarity about all the other aspects of your business, such as strategy, your business model, and your marketing.
The benefits of finding your ‘Why’ and telling your story
They say that a business should be “an inch wide and mile deep”. Understanding and communicating your why takes you deep into the story of your business. The story is the best way to convey feeling and emotion and information and ideas.
It also:
Focuses the attention on your audience/client customer as you clearly identify who you are helping and why.
Demonstrates what your values are and creates that all-important emotional connection.
Means you always have something original to say, so you never have to worry about the competition and what they are saying about their work.
Gives your brand that deeper meaning so people understand very quickly what you stand for.
Keeps you motivated to make your business a success on your terms because you understand why you get up every day and what you are here to do.
As Simon says,
“People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.”
Fully understanding why you do what you do and telling your story from that place isn’t necessarily going to come overnight (but if it does, great!), but once you figure it out, it is going to give you so much clarity about all the other aspects of your business which will enable you to grow and takes things to the next level.
Marisa Guthrie, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Before setting up her coaching and mentoring business in 2008, Marisa was involved in running businesses for nearly 20 years. A serial entrepreneur, Marisa has set up several businesses and social enterprises, including a cross-party think tank and a business networking organization for women. She was also CEO for a health charity and a business policy advisor for the local and national government.
Marisa's work closely supports entrepreneurs in bringing their authentic selves to their work and helps them feel comfortable in their professional identity and business brand. Her mission is for small business owners to do business differently.
