Business leadership author and motivational speaker Simon Sinek’s best known book, Start with Why (2009), counsels making issues of motivation, mission and purpose central to any organisation, arguing that the best leaders work by inspiration.
Catherine Tong Dannaoui, executive director of HandsOn Hong Kong, an NGO that galvanises people to volunteer for a host of local good causes, tells Richard Lord how it changed her life.
My predecessor, Sue Toomey, showed me his Ted Talk. She said it had blown her away, and she’d played it for her team.
Running a charity and being part of a team, your purpose is something you have to think about all the time or you’re in trouble. We support lots of other charities, and it always comes back to “why”.
It gave a lot of inspiration and guidance to all of us: let’s never make assumptions, but be curious and ask our partners what it is that they’re thinking about and what they need.
I watched the video and moved on. Then, two years ago, I was asked to take over, as Sue was leaving. I was terrified and I had impostor syndrome: I didn’t think that I could do this. That was when I read the book, and I also started immersing myself in his podcasts and videos.
It has not just been about: we’re a charity so we need to have purpose. A lot of what he talks about has shaped who I am as a leader now.
His thesis is: we all know what our jobs are but a lot of us don’t know why we do them. A lot of people put “what” at the centre; his whole thing is flipping that. Whatever your job is, whether non-profit or for-profit, in what circumstances do you thrive?
What are your values? Why do you get out of bed in the morning and do what you do?
His work has helped us as an organisation. My responsibility is to get everyone in our team to know what our north star is.
For me, it was a big light bulb moment. I’ve always been a big people pleaser, putting other people’s needs first, and I thought of that as a weakness. Leading an organisation, how can I do that in my own way?
I realised that wanting to help other people thrive is my why. It’s not about running a charity; it’s about wanting the people around me to live their best and happiest lives.
His work has helped us as an organisation. My responsibility is to get everyone in our team to know what our north star is.
The vision is: what do we want Hong Kong to look like when we’re done? It guides the decisions we make: the things we do and the things we don’t do.
Operating in this way yields results. Just because you’re a boss, doesn’t mean you’re a leader; you need to get people to follow you. But when you as a leader live your values, it galvanises other people and improves retention.
Simon Sinek talks about people who give versus people who take. If you care for people, they will care for your vision and your organisation. When people are motivated, they want to work for you.