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Harness the Power of the Five Whys Technique to Discover Your Compelling Reason
Have you ever felt like the work you're doing just isn't making a difference? Do you feel like you could stop working and few, if any, people would notice or even care?
From time to time, it's normal to feel like you're not making a difference. It's periods like those where having a compelling reason why you're doing what you're doing is so critical. Don't have a compelling reason? Don't worry, I'll show you how to find yours.
In the last article we talked about how having a compelling reason is like a motivational super power that you can use to help achieve your long term goals. In this article we will discuss how to develop your own compelling reason for whatever you choose to focus on.
The Basics of the Five Whys
The simplest way I know to divine the true importance from an action is to use the Five Whys method. The Five Whys is a cause and effect technique first developed by Sakichi Toyoda and popularized by Toyota Motor Corporation. The most common use of the Five Whys is to perform root cause analysis, but it works wonderfully to find your compelling reason.
The Five Whys method is aptly named, because you use it by simply asking yourself 'why?' several times (usually five).
For example, let's say that you want to succeed at work, but you're not really motivated. Success itself is not an end-goal and it's certainly not a compelling reason. To find out your true reason for wanting to be successful, you can run your goal (success at work) through the Five Whys method and see what comes out.
I want to succeed at work. Okay, why?
So I can earn more money. Okay, why?
So I can provide for my family's needs. Okay, why?
So I give them the opportunities that I never had. Okay, why?
So they can have a good life and provide for their kids. Okay, why?
So it will create a cycle of healthiness, happiness and success in my children and their decendents.
Wow! You went from a non-motivating "I want to be successful" to directly helping your children and your children's children to be more healthy, happy, and successful. That is a reason that will help wake you up in the morning!
A Real-life Example
To help illustrate the point, I will give you another example that is personal and true. I've mentioned previously that I often have trouble prioritizing the time to blog about all the ideas and techniques that I want to share with developing leaders. To enable me to go from "I need to go write a blog post" to something more motivational, I used the Five Whys method to clarify my purpose for softuary.net.
The purpose of softuary.net is:
- To educate leaders and managers. Okay, why?
- To help them become better leaders. Okay, why?
- So they don't make bad and inefficient decisions. Okay, why?
- Because when they do, their employees have to compensate for those bad decisions. Okay, why?
- Because they have to work longer, harder, and work in a more stressful environment. Okay, so why is that bad?
- Because their personal lives (family, friends, hobbies, etc) suffer. Their overall enjoyment of life goes down.
RESULT: The purpose of softuary.net is to increase everyone's happiness at work and enjoyment of life.
Now that is a purpose that I can use to help me when life makes things difficult!
Like any new technique, the best way to get better is to practice often. Think about your own life. What reasons do you tell yourself for doing your job, your hobbies, or volunteering? Try using the Five Whys to unlock your true reason!
Take care and I'll talk to you next time.
Question: What is one reason you use that could be magnified and clarified by using the Five Whys technique? Post your answer the comments below.