What do Apple, the Wright Brothers, Adolf Hitler, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr have in common? They are all leaders that inspire people to take action, but how? Simon Sinek explains in this TED Talk that they all were experts at appealing to the limbic part of the brain, which is the part that triggers emotion. Sinek explains in the first part of the video that people don’t get inspired by what or how people or businesses do stuff, but why they do it.
For example, Adolf Hitler who is in addition to be one of the most hated leaders of all time is also known to be one of the best speakers who ever lived. He communicated to his people that he wanted to turn the Germany into the most powerful country in the world and the Germans to be the proudest people on the planet after they lost WW1 and faced huge sanctions imposed by Britain, USA, and France through the Versailles treaty. This was the why-part of his plan. The how-part was to build the best infrastructure in the world, to give everyone a job to go to, to expand the land mass of the country, and to carry the swastika. The what-part included actions like “Die Endlösung” or the Final Solution as it’s called in English, which included killing all Jews, as well as going to war against a number of countries on several fronts. The warfare created a huge demand for weapons, ammo, and soldiers and it resulted in a bigger land mass for Germany. The what-part is one of the darkest chapters in history.
Even though Hitler’s plan was as cruel as it can get, he still managed to gather the German people to fight for what he believed in. Hitler communicated his plan from the inside and out according to the chart that Simon Sinek drew on his board. History would not be the same if Hitler communicated his plan from the outside and in.
This is a proof of how effective communication can be by using the right strategy. Companies like Apple has been successful by using this strategy according to the video.
Interesting analogy about leadership – can you think of any impactful leaders from the 21st century? How do you think they managed to be so successful?
I think Jason Russell, the director of KONY 2012, is a leader that influenced a lot of people over a short period of time. He used a very effective strategy that focused a lot on the Kony situation itself and not on himself as a leader. I think great leaders make their followers believe in a thing they are very passionate about rather than believing in a things through the leader. It was mentioned in the video that the people came to listen to Martin Luther King jr in Washington DC because of the thing that they believed in, which was human rights,and not for Luther King jr himself.