What you do matters, but why you do it matters so much more.

—Unknown

Finding why is a process of discovery, not invention.

—Simon Sinek

A century ago, the Wright brothers were in a fast and furious battle against numerous competitors to develop the first manned flying machine. One of their most prominent competitors was Samuel Pierpont Langley. Despite all of Langley's previous accomplishments, he felt he had not reached the pinnacle of his career. He wanted to be the first man to fly to help ensure his place in science history. He wanted to be considered in the same league as prominent earlier inventors like Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison.

Langley seemed a sure winner in the race for flight. He had the notoriety, the financial backing, and all the right connections. The war department of the U.S. government provided $50,000 of funding for Langley to build his flying machine that he called an aerodrome. Because of the financial backing he received, he was able to hire the best minds. All of these advantages were topped off by the publicity his flying activities attracted. The New York Times followed him around and reported on every flying attempt he made. It seemed everyone was rooting for Langley to be the first to fly.

On October 7, 1903, Langley was ready to test his aerodrome. Mounted to the top of a houseboat on the Potomac River, the aerodrome was launched by a catapult and immediately crashed into the river. A reporter covering the flight said it flew, “like a handful of mortar.”¹

A second attempt was made two months later, but this also ended in failure when the aerodrome shot straight up in the air then dove right back into the water.

Meanwhile, in Dayton, Ohio, Orville and Wilbur Wright were underdogs in the race to fly. They seemed to be on the opposite side of the spectrum from Langley. They had very little money and financed the project on a shoestring budget they earned from their bicycle company. The New York Times provided no media coverage of their activities and not one of their team members had a college education. They were considered a pretty ragtag group. The only advantage they held over Langley was their passionate reason of why they wanted to fly. The Wright brothers simply loved the idea of flight and had no other motives to fly. It was said that the Wright brothers took five sets of spare parts to each launch because they crashed so often, but they refused to quit trying. Nine days after Langley's second failed flight attempt, the Wright brothers took flight on December 17, 1903, in the hills of North Carolina. The brothers made four successful flights that day, thereby ensuring their names would go down in history.

The very day the Wright brothers took flight, Langley received word of their success and quit. He didn't attempt to improve upon the Wright brothers' design or learn from their knowledge and experience. Instead, he completely walked away from his goal. His why wasn't the joy of flying.

Despite everything being against Wilbur and Orville Wright, the one thing they had in their favor was a strong why, which was their deep desire to fly. It was their passion. They spent every possible moment thinking, talking, and inventing flight. They crashed, rebuilt, and flew again. They had no expectations of riches or fame as their reward was simply the opportunity to fly.

Understanding the why behind your career goals ensures you are on the right track for the long term. When you understand the why, you have a much deeper realization of the reasons you need to continue pushing forward or maybe the reasons you need to stop and head in a different direction.²

Knowing the whys will give you the strength to continue on when you might otherwise want to quit. A study was conducted of overweight men who decided to diet to lose weight. The men who wanted to lose weight so they could look better (get those six pack abs) were not as successful on their diets as those who decided to eat a healthier diet and exercise for family and health reasons. The men who focused on being healthy so they could coach their kids' soccer team or be more active with their loved ones had a much better rate of success

Few people have a clear understanding of why they do what they do. Our behaviors are often driven by expectations or habits, both of which become so routine that most of the time we are not even aware of why we are doing certain things. It will take some self-reflection to become aware of the motivations behind your behaviors and actions. Many of the people I have worked with thought they knew exactly what they wanted and why. But when I had them do a self-inventory of their goals, they had a few surprises.

Now it's your turn. Don't hold back on your answers. Each of the questions that follow will help you see your why; the real reasons behind what you do and what motivates you to continue on.

Write the first thing that comes to your mind.

1. How have you defined success in the past?
2. When you failed at something important, what did you tell yourself was the cause?
3. How will you know when you have made it? List three things, that when acquired or accomplished or experienced, will be a sign that you know you have reached the success you seek (for example, when you can afford to travel the world, or when you are able to give a certain amount to charity).
4. What is your main motivation for reaching your goals? Look at your strengths for a hint. Look beyond the reward of the goal and discover the personal reasons.
5. What will you get out of implementing your career plan? What will it do for you?

Knowing the motives behind your dreams and goals will help you overcome obstacles to your success.