Start With Why

indefatigable Jack Daly, who teaches me, Piers Fawkes, Denis Glennon, who pushed me, Kevin Goetz, Tony Gomes, Paul Gumbinner, who gave me a career on a silver platter, Kenneth Hein, Peter Intermaggio, who taught me self-reliance, Pamela Moffat, Rick Sapio, who keeps doing good things for me, Alana Winter and Matt Weiss, for asking me to share my thoughts with an audience, and Diederik Werdmolder who took a bet on me right at the start.
    I am grateful to all the brilliant minds I have met within the U.S. Air Force who stuck their necks out to try something different. They embody the WHY of the USAF: to find and deliver better ways of doing things. To Maj. Gen. Erwin Lessel (who first introduced me to the organization), Maj. Gen. William Chambers, Brig. Gen. Walter Givhan, Brig. Gen. Dash Jamieson (who never stops believing), Maj. Gen. Darren McDew, Brig. Gen. (Sel) Martin Neubauer (who knows more than I will ever know), Christy Nolta, Brig. Gen. Janet Therianos and Lt. Col. Dede Halfhill (you owe me one, DeDe).
    I am immensely grateful to all the brilliant people and candid conversations that inspired so many of the ideas that became The Golden Circle and all its parts. Thank you to Kendra Coppey, who helped me out of the hole in late 2005 and to Mark Levy, who pointed me in the right direction. Thanks to Peter Whybrow, who saw a problem in America and helped me to understand the neuroscience of it all. Kirt Gunn, whose brilliant storytelling mind inspired the split. Every conversation with Brian Collins illuminated something new. Thank you to Jorelle Laakso, who taught me to reach for the things I believe in. To William Ury, who showed me a path to follow, and Lt. Gen. David Deptula, who is probably the smartest person I know and gave me a new perspective for solving highly complex problems.
    My understanding of the WHY would be incomplete without the conversations, help and support of Nic Askew, Richard Baltimore, Christopher Bennett, Christine Betts, Ariane de Bonvoisin, Scott Bornstein, Tony Conza, Vimal Duggal, Douglas Fiersetin, Nathan Frankel, JiNan Glasgow, Cameron Herold, John Hittler, Maurice Kaspy, Peter Laughter, Kevin Langley, Niki Lemon, Seth Lloyd, Bruce Lowe, Cory Luker, Karl and Agi Mallory, Peter Martins, Brad Meltzer, Nell Merlino, Ally Miller, Jeff Morgan, Alan Remer, Pamela and Nick Roditi, Ellen Rohr, Lance Platt, Jeff Rothstein, Brian Scudamore, Andy Siegel, John Stepleton, Rudy Vidal, the 2007 and 2008 classes of the Gathering of Titans, and the one and only Ball of Mystery.
    To my late grandfather, Imre Klaber, who showed me that it is more fun to be slightly eccentric than to be completely normal. To my parents, Steve and Susan Sinek, who always encouraged me to follow the beat of my own drum. And to Sara, my remarkable, remarkable sister, who appreciates that I keep my head in the clouds but makes sure I keep my feet on the ground.
    There are a few books and authors that have, over the years, inspired me, spurred ideas and offered me new perspectives: the works of Ken Blanchard, of Tom Friedman and of Seth Godin, The Starfish and the Spider by Ori Brafman and Rod Beckstrom, First, Break All the Rules by Marcus Buckingham, Good to Great by Jim Collins, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey, The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss, Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi, E-Myth by Michael Gerber, The Tipping Point and Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, Chaos by James Gleick, Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman, Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath, Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson, M.D., The Monk and the Riddle by Randy Komisar, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni, Freakanomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, FISH! By Stephen Lundin, Harry Paul, John Christensen and Ken Blanchard, The Naked Brain by Richard Restack, Authentic Happiness by Martin Seligman, The Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki, The Black Swan by Nicholas Taleb, American Mania by Peter Whybrow, M.D., and the single most important book everyone should read, the book that teaches us that we cannot control the circumstances around us, all we can control is our attitude— Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankel.
    I want to especially thank all those people who have joined this cause and actively work to inspire those around you. I am grateful for all the e-mails and notes you send me, I save them all as a reminder that it takes lots and lots of people, standing shoulder to shoulder,