There is a great deal of emphasis in business these days on “finding your WHY”. That one big reason you do what you do.

Some people do what they do because they have a personal reason. Maybe they have overcome a serious illness and now work with others going through the same struggle. Maybe they love an activity so much they know others will benefit from it so they share it.

Others do what they do because they just love sharing their knowledge….whether that’s about social media, fitness or parenting.

I’ve been in business (on and off) for over 30 years. During that time I have done numerous things – run an event company, published a parenting magazine, taught pre-natal classes and acted as a doula/labour support person for pregnant moms and sharing social media strategies.

I never really gave much thought to my WHY over the years. I just knew I did the work I really loved doing. But I never dug any deeper to really learn why it was important to me. Sure I believed that every mother deserved to be well educated and know her choices around birth, and I just as strongly believed that entrepreneurs should know social media strategies that would enhance their businesses. But I’ve recently realized these were actually part of something bigger.

Simon Sinek, well known for his “Start with Why” presentation, really jump started the current conversation about “why” when he gave his famous TED talk about 5 years ago.

The past few months I’ve made some major changes in my life that have finally led me to my WHY. I turned off my cable service so I no longer watch television. I instead take time every week to watch inspirational/training/wisdom videos on YouTube. I have started to spend time EVERY day in self-development. I am working with two coaches who help me focus and hold me accountable.

These changes have resulted in more business and more importantly a much better attitude and clearer focus on my vision.

What I also found is my WHY! How do I know? I started reading and observing things differently.

I’ve been doing a lot of family history research and realized how much it impacted my soul. Learning about the people from my family tree got me excited and wanting to learn more about them. My grandfather was a diplomat who traveled the world. My grandmother was a nurse in WW1 and my mom was a seamstress at Buckingham Palace! One of my relatives was also sent to Australia as punishment for stealing bread when he was a teenager. Today in Australia there are two historical sites named after him!

My grandparents on their wedding day. London Nov 1929

My ‘personal why’ is wanting to travel the world and see all the places where my family has history! I want to go to McClelland castle in Scotland, see the pub my grandfather ran in London, visit Rio where my dad was born and so much more!

I am now more in touch with my feelings and intuition and I was clearly seeing that certain topics I was exposed to really got my heart racing faster. These topics were my “world view why”.

By doing more self-improvement work, exposing myself to books, videos and podcasts that challenge me and enrich my mind I’m learning every day. I’m seeing things in a new light and finding certain topics really impacting me.

I realized these topics (the environment, animal welfare, slavery and equality) really mattered to me. But, I wasn’t able to do much – other than write letters and sign petitions. I discovered that my WHY is wanting to TAKE ACTION on things that matter to me.

So, I now know that the more business I build, the more people I serve – the more I can make that donation that will make a difference. I can donate my time because I’m making enough money to take time off to give to the causes that mean something to me. I can take that trip to see the places that mean something to my family and I can reconnect with the past.

It’s only taken me 30+ years to ‘get it’ but now that I have I can’t contain my excitement! I’m looking forward to really working towards my why.

Do you know what your why is?