Is It Time To Review Your ‘Why’ Statement?
The other day, I was on a phone call when the person I was talking to asked me what my driver or big ‘why’ is.
It came out of left field.
It took me a few minutes for my brain to think about it. I rattled off something about wanting to raise the bar of the fitness industry and improve the way women are served… yadda yadda.
In theory, it sounded good, and my brain agreed with the logic of it.
But deep down I knew that wasn’t the answer.
😿
Are you familiar with Simon Sinek? If you’ve been around in the business/personal development world you’ll know his book ‘It Starts With Why’.
The basic premise is that at the very core of each business must sit a deep ‘why’ or reason for the business’s existence.
This ‘’why’ is the business’s North Star.
All decisions, strategies and tactics must align with the purpose.
When I first started in the online space, I spent months, years even, trying to find my deeper ‘why’.
It stressed me out because I couldn’t land on something that felt meaningful to me.
As a result, I adopted a more palatable and ‘easy to understand’ version like what I said to this person on the phone. It’s had many iterations over the past 10 years but it’s always something like that.
And you know what?
That answer bores me to fkn tears.
🥱🥱😑😑
Which, as you’re aware, is problematic.
I understand the power of a ‘why’ but there’s too much pressure to find it.
Some lucky people are very clear on this.
They’re the same lucky people who know what they want to do with their lives at 10 years old.
But for the majority of us, particularly those, who like me, are polyjamorous, defining a ‘why’ is exceptionally difficult.
[Side note: I don’t often talk about how multi-passionate I am. First, the word doesn’t feel like it accurately describes what I am, it’s too superficial. I prefer the word Polymath – it feels aligned, like a pair of my favourite track pants. Second, Polymath is a cool word, but do you know what’s cooler? PolyJAMorous. So yeah, I’m rolling with polyjamorous (remember there’s a J in there!]
Over the years I have done all the ‘Find Your Why’ exercises and thought experiments. I’ve followed the prompts and done the work.
But no statement has ever clicked.
Until now (I’ll get to this in a moment).
When I look back on my decade-long entrepreneurial journey I can see where the majority of my decisions stemmed from.
I dutifully did what I had been taught. Followed my favourite entrepreneurs, mimicked their business models and reverse-engineered their success paths. I invested heavily (money and time) in mentors, education programs and courses.
It’s been quite the journey.
Don’t get me wrong – these approaches worked well for me.
In the beginning, you need that advice, help and best practices.
I built an education business that allowed me to live a flexible life on my terms whilst making money and impact.
I achieved what I set out to achieve in 2014 (let’s put a gold star on my first online education business ⭐⭐)
But, after 10 years in the game I only now, finally feel like I’ve ‘got that hang of it’ (online business that is)
It’s only now, that I understand what my why is.
I share this because for so many years I felt pressure to ‘know my why’ or to know my drivers intimately. But because I didn’t I felt like a fake-entrepreneur.
Like I didn’t belong in the online game because I couldn’t fully articulate a meaningful purpose for doing what I did.
This is why I took on someone else’s version of a why – the fkn boring vanilla version.
Truth is, when I reflect on some of my products, sales page copy or messages I’ve shared I can see diluted versions of me.
(And again, this is part of the journey! There’s no judgement, pure observation).
As I embrace my Unhinged Era (listen here to learn more), and I am in a period of deep deconditioning, my ‘why’ or main drivers have revealed themselves. Note, I didn’t find it, it found me.
The more I tune into ‘me’ – my actual goals, wants, desires and needs, the clearer the roadmap ahead becomes. The more ‘OK’ I am with me, the more aligned I am.
And yes Simon, it starts with why.
My Revised Why Statement
My true why is simple. It is:
⚡ To create and educate so others can live a free life. ⚡
I’m not surprised this has revealed itself to me.
It’s been here the whole time. The first Nardia Norman tagline I had was ‘Live Life Freely’.
It aligns with my core values of freedom, curiosity and knowledge-seeking.
My brand archetype is an Alchemist/Sage blend; again not surprised by my ‘why’ statement.
When I am left to create freely, then teach it; to make what I want, when I want, to whomever I want, I am operating at my highest self.
Nobody is more powerful than when they’re operating from their highest self.
This is what true authenticity is.
You can’t try to be authentic, because by default trying makes you less authentic.
As you can’t ‘try’ to be unique or different.
There’s a quote that’s lived rent-free in my head for a few months now and it goes something like this:
“When you’re satisfied that you’re enough; you’ll unlock your most authentic self”.
A Lesson In Branding
If you haven’t figured it out yet, this whole essay is a lesson in branding.
Because whether you know it or not, or like it or not, YOU are a personal brand.
I find this freeing because you get paid for being you.
There’s business foundations that you still need to stick to.
- Build an audience
- Solve their problems with a Product
- Systemise your backend so you can sell on autopilot
Those steps won’t change, but when you bring your unique thoughts, stories, beliefs and lessons to your audience and product, you’re now in a league of your own.
The more YOU-NESS you show the world, the better your business will be.
This YOU-NESS starts with you realising that right now, you are more than enough.
You have so much to offer someone.
You don’t have to dilute yourself or try to be someone else to have a successful business.
Why This Matters
I’m looking at this Unhinged Era as the start of a new business era.
A second business. An evolved version. More me.
The discombobulated years of 2020 – 2024 weren’t a crisis or a meltdown. They were a necessary catalyst for deep introspection and growth.
Every business owner will go through periods like this.
It may last a few months or it may, like me, last a few years.
This is especially true if you’re nearing your 10-year mark and/or going through major life changes (eg baby, death etc..)
The lesson is that as a human you will evolve, expand, change tacts, find new edges, and that’s OK.
It’s your prerogative and I’d argue, human nature to do so.
Your business, which is an extension of and expression of you, should change too!
How I’ll Apply This New Info
Now that my ‘why’ feels like me, here’s how I’ll approach my new business.
I’m not overhauling the business, I’m operating through a different lens.
Let’s recap:
| MY WHY: To create and educate so others can live a free life. WHAT DO I CREATE: Information products and services that educate and inspire people to share their genius with the world. HOW DO I DO IT: By sharing and documenting my stories, lessons, insights and thoughts daily through different mediums. |
When I say this out loud it feels alive and juicy.
🍹🍊🍋
Most importantly, it gives me guidelines but doesn’t imprison me to a specific niche, problem or product.
This is crucial because you need a set of guidelines or principles that will grow with you. Not keep you boxed in.
If you’ve got more than one audience/avatar you help, then having a broader Why allows you to talk to different audiences whilst staying true to your purpose.
For example, one part of my brand is helping creative health, fitness and wellness professionals to monetise their expertise online. Another part of my brand is educating fit pros, coaches and anyone who trains women about training women. I’ve got plans to branch back out to the general public, and I want to talk more about performance, future pacing and self-leadership.
3 distinct groups, 3 sets of problems and 3 types of solutions.
But, the through line is my ‘WHY”.
🤌🏽
And this my friend, is how I can satisfy my polymath tendencies.
Gold.
Ok, over to you now.
My invitation for you is to revisit your Why statement, or if you haven’t created one, have a go.
Don’t write something that you think others will be impressed to read.
Write something that feels like everything has clicked into place.
Comments +