Hello friends,

Welcome back to Theory of Change! This season, we're crafting a 12-part series I’m calling the Anti-Pattern Editions in which I’m dismantling overhyped business frameworks and rebuilding them for purpose-driven work.

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This week’s target: Simon Sinek’s cult classic, Start With Why.

🙋🏼‍♀️ START WITH WHY 🙋🏼‍♀️

What it’s supposed to be

Simon Sinek’s Start With Why is a branding concept that rests on the “Golden Circle”: Why at the centre (your cause), then How (your process), then What (your offering). His claim is tidy and memorable: people don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.

It’s easy to see the pull. Who doesn’t want a clear, resonant “why” that inspires teams and seduces funders? It feels like leadership without the admin: a secular sermon where meaning beats spreadsheets.

But here’s the unintended consequence: when you start with why, you risk stopping there. You get so busy polishing the mission that you overlook the things people actually judge you on: whether your work is useful, and whether you can deliver it without falling apart.

In corporate land, the framework works fine because the real “why” is profit. A lofty mission is just marketing garnish. But for organisations whose legitimacy rests on public trust and precarious funding, over-indexing on "why" can become fatal.

Where it falls apart

When applied to truly purpose-driven work, the framework fails to withstand pressure. Here are the reasons why.

1. The problem is not “why” - it’s money and utility. Underfunding and fragile revenue models, not poor communication around purpose, are what choke most organisations. A rousing mission doesn’t fix exploitative streaming contracts for artists or widespread public mistrust of local newsrooms. 

2. Funders, commissioners, and partners aren’t mainly scanning for your lofty why. They’re checking if you can deliver. Reliable finance systems, HR, project management: these dull-sounding assets make you more fundable than a shiny website. 

3. The “why” pitch has become an utterly formulaic TEDx act, easy to imitate and hard to sustain. The template is so widely copied that most nonprofit pitches or creator websites now blur into one another. Everyone seems to be “reimagining” or “unlocking” or “empowering” something, and that sameness is itself a credibility drain (read on for a free buzzword bingo card!).

4. Most insidiously, some mission statements become excuses; the organisation uses its purpose as a shield, as a justification for dubious partnerships, turning a blind eye to sustainability, or using unpaid interns. “Our work is vital!” they cry. But the stronger the “why,” the more it can cloak dysfunction or lack of relevance.

5. Time and again I’ve found that networks (the key to any purpose-driven endeavour) are activated less by mission statements and more by experiences of value. A workshop, a performance, an event, even a thoughtful email… these things build trust and mobilise support far faster than a slide deck laced with Helvetica-captioned perfection

A better way to think about it

Purpose matters, but not necessarily as the starting point. In sectors where funding is precarious and accountability is high, trust is built less by soaring rhetoric than by visible competence and useful experiences.

When I work with teams and people on this, we always, always anchor “why” inside a much bigger picture that includes differentiators, scope, community, tactics, and values. Purpose on its own is flimsy. Purpose woven into networks, clarity, and capacity becomes durable.

(I made two videos going deep on the 8 building blocks of mission and vision back in the year of of our lord 2024 when I had quite weird hair. Feel free to check them/it out).

Try it this week

Here are three low-effort anti-Sinek experiments (sorry Simon, you seem like a nice guy).

1. Inventory your unglamorous strengths. Spend half an hour listing the practical capacities you already do well - e.g. on-time delivery, transparent finances, quick response to partners. Emphasise these in your next funding or partnership pitch.

2. Stress-test your mission with the 8 building blocks. Pick just one from the videos above - say Differentiator or Community - and test whether your current mission or vision is clear on that point. This keeps purpose tethered to real context and people, and helps you stand out from the sea of samey pitches.

3. If you are feeling brave, play buzzword bingo using this handy download I made for you with love (and ChatGPT).

🌊 WAVE GOODBYE 🌊

Have I been a bit unfair on poor Simon? Perhaps.

Let’s give him his due: Start With Why isn’t wrong, just incomplete. Purpose can inspire, but it cannot do all the heavy lifting. In practice, what sustains is competence, reliability, and the small experiences of value that earn trust. The real trick isn’t to start with why, but to keep proving why through what you do.

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Take care,

Adam

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