Simon Sinek's Advice for 2022

 The first summary of 2022 is Simon Sinek Tweeted a Simple Truth About Success We All Need to Hear Before 2022.

Many of us are familiar with ideas and advice of Simon Sinek, including books such as  Together is Better, Start With Why, Leaders Eat Last.

Sinek has a knack for reducing the complex into simple words.

As we head into the second half of the school year, we can use his advice to support our own goals and our students’ as well.

We all have goals. Often we use as inspiration those who have reached the highest levels, yet we can neglect to reflect on their drive, effort, sacrifice, and resilience on their rise to the top.

We glorify Tom Brady, Wayne Gretsky, LeBron James (or Michael Jordan), Jack Nicklaus (or Tiger Woods) as the GOATS of their respective sports. Although we know they worked hard to reach their pinnacles, we focus on their talent as the primary reason for their success.

As we head into a new year and set or re-set goals for ourselves, Simon Sinek reminds us that for an aspirational goal to be accomplished it needs to be preceded by ‘planning, commitment, and ultimately, action’. 

There’s a reason so many New Year’s resolutions flame out a few weeks into January: we set lofty goals without developing feasible, incremental plans. Whether it’s to drop a few pounds, eat better, or find more ‘me time’, we can get caught up in the destination without establishing a systematic way to get there and an accompanying mindset that keeps up positive through the inevitable ups and downs.

The longer I’m in education the more strongly I believe the agency (strong, confident sense of self) we help build in our students is our greatest gift to them.

We need to remind our kids that whatever ambitious goals they set for themselves, they need to take smaller steps and measure gradual progress over time. Most of us know Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team and Tom Brady was a backup quarterback in college; they ultimately accomplished great things in their careers but we need to think about how they responded to significant setbacks in their lives.

Thank you for such a smooth start to the second half of the school year under continued uncertain conditions!

Joe

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Simon Sinek’s messages are worth pause and reflection, but what beguiles me most is their cut-through-the-confusion simplicity.  No obfuscation, no over-complication. This is how it is.

No surprise, then, that I was struck but a recent tweet from him that reminded me of a core truth of success we so often forget. He wrote: "While dreams of greatness are great, we must remember to appreciate the joy of the start."

There are three things I want to call out here that, in my mind, underscore this message:

First, as much attention as we give achievement, no achievement is possible without an idea that becomes a goal that leads to planning, commitment, and ultimately, action. Too often, achievements hang in thin air like some magically suspended bauble. Let's celebrate the achievement at all its points -- because every step was required to get there.

Second, while Sinek doesn't directly address this in his tweet, I'm also reminded that we're sometimes too goal focused. In other words, we lose the joy and impact of the journey when all we care about is the destination. Tennis great Arthur Ashe has an apt quote in this vein: "The doing is often more important than the outcome." Why? Because the doing is where we experience life, where we learn, where we overcome challenges. The achievement -- the end point -- is merely a marker that signifies how much we've grown along the way.

Third, appreciation does not play second fiddle to hustle. We hear a lot about hustle in the entrepreneurial and business spaces. It's the secret sauce to true success, some would say. But if you don't appreciate the journey -- however difficult -- how long can you last? And how strong will your relationships be? What sort of impact can someone have who hates the journey and pushes forward simply to say they made it? Appreciation of opportunity, capacity, and experience are all key to making the sort of impact we dream of making. So yes, let's "dream of greatness," but embrace the start, the journey, and the love of the game.