My Why (2024)

I recently rewatched Simon Sinek’s “Start With Why” TED Talk. Doing so inspired me to rethink my why, which has evolved over time.

Surviving

My why started as survival. I watched the stress and friction that was created because of financial stress. It’s sad because that would not have been the case had we not always lived in upper-class areas and neighborhoods. In a way, we were always comparing and competing, and I’m not sure that tendency ever actually goes away.

Proving Myself

From survival, I went to proving myself to myself, my family, and everyone around me. I was already playing an eternal game, but when my daughter Bela was born with a congenital heart defect, it all changed. It felt like every minute of the game actually counted as opposed to playing the long (eternal) game without any urgency.

I feel I have actually lived my life with too much urgency over the last 20 years. For example, I served my two-year LDS mission like that, constantly feeling like, “This is coming to an end, so I better take advantage of it.”

Helping Others

Over the last several years, I have found real, extreme joy in helping others. I find capitalism is the conduit to more easily allow others to fill the measure of their creation. I can’t say I see others how God sees them, but maybe more than ever in my life, I am trying to.

So why do I continue to push myself to grow professionally? To help others. If I can help them do and be more, then I am fulfilling my mission. This is my why for starting new business, for getting new partners, for investing in others, and for inviting others to invest alongside me.

I want to partner with great people and help them become more. I want to help them make more money than they ever have made before, so they can live a more fulfilling life that will help them be a better spouse, a better parent, a better community member, and hopefully a better disciple of Jesus Christ.