The book Find Your Why by Simon Sinek is the follow-up to his first book, which attempts to explain how to find one's "why" (purpose, passion, etc.). In the first book, he didn’t explain the process for discovering this, instead focusing on explaining and arguing his theory, a somewhat debatable approach as we discussed in a previous article.

Sinek's first book, Start With Why, was primarily aimed at business leaders and entrepreneurs, encouraging them to inspire their employees and improve communication with consumers to boost engagement and sales. While this is an interesting endeavor that certainly can’t hurt, I too found the concept captivating at first glance, but soon started to question it.

Clearly, the general public was taken by this speaker and his very simple concept, so much so that demand grew for him to clarify the method for discovering one’s "why" and explain how individuals could apply it to their own careers or businesses. His concept also applies to him: he isn’t trying to make money but rather explain his "why."

Let’s begin by separating the form from the substance and addressing his speaking abilities, as seen in the many videos that helped make his message viral. Here, I’m only referring to the promotional talks for his book and theory—not his other videos, which I haven’t watched and which may indeed be of quality and inspiring, based on their titles.

Sinek’s skills as a speaker include some habits that make a big difference. You may have noticed how he often repeats key beliefs or ideas he’s trying to instill, without offering any demonstration. For example, the famous line: “People don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it!” This technique aligns with what I’ve been teaching my clients for over fifteen years in public speaking training: no matter the content, what counts is the speaker’s confidence and conviction—both in their gestures and tone of voice. It’s not detrimental to the audience’s perception of the speaker’s credibility, even if they make mistakes, hesitate, or say something completely off base. As long as they do so with confidence and repetition, most of it will go unnoticed.

If you revisit Sinek’s videos and interviews, you’ll notice he does this constantly. It’s worth exploring the concept of anaphora in rhetoric. As Wikipedia puts it, “repetition of an idea influences the individual. Repeating a word over and over will anchor it in the person’s mind, eventually influencing their perception. This is the principle behind propaganda. An idea repeated multiple times will come to appear true to the individual.” This is also used in advertising.

If this subject interests you, there are psychological studies that have highlighted this phenomenon. After all, many marketing concepts are derived from psychological discoveries.

I’m particularly interested in this phenomenon because it’s been marketed so effectively that it’s now widely popular and has even evolved into a method for career guidance. In a live LinkedIn conference in early June 2021, I heard Sinek express his wish that his concept be implemented for American high school and college students.

Now, I don’t typically write articles on every new career guidance method that emerges, nor do I consider myself an authority on regulating the field of career guidance, but this is a concept with widespread influence and the potential for harm. If you haven’t already, I recommend reading my article A Quick Critical Analysis of Simon Sinek’s "Start With Why" before continuing, as I won’t revisit the critiques made there in detail.

Regarding Find Your Why, this book doesn’t expand on the concept already explained in Start With Why, but instead explains the process and provides steps for concretely finding one’s "why" or purpose.

We won’t delve into an in-depth evaluation of the method in terms of life changes or career transitions here. To thoroughly evaluate a method, we would need to create controlled experiments, with different groups of individuals facing similar challenges and sharing the same goals, then objectively measure their satisfaction with the results over time—2 years, 5 years, 10 years, 20 years? Does that seem feasible? Scientifically, it's impossible. Too many uncontrollable variables are at play, especially when trying to compare life choices over such long timeframes.

Therefore, I’ll limit my critique to the theoretical and operational aspects of the method, which involves one central requirement: you can’t do this alone. You need someone else to help you—someone who isn’t a close friend or family member, and who can dedicate 4 to 6 hours for discussion. The authors say this is to ensure objectivity. Then, ideally, your "why" needs to be validated by those around you.

For Sinek and his co-authors, discovering your purpose depends on how others perceive you and your experiences. This follows the logic of Sinek’s own journey. In an interview, he mentioned that his theory emerged from helping others find their "why" and, as demand around him grew, he started organizing gatherings to help others. This process was then adapted into a system where someone else plays the role of Sinek in helping you find your purpose. In essence, it closely resembles group coaching, though it lacks the ethical considerations that usually come with such a profession.

Considering this central point, there’s no need to review all the issues in the book. I’ll focus on one crucial aspect: you need someone else to help you interpret your life and experiences and uncover your purpose.

This is essentially coaching without the theoretical foundations. In coaching, it’s up to the client to find their own answers, without the coach imposing their interpretation. The aim is to avoid the coach influencing the client’s decisions. Psychologists and coaches spend their lives honing their listening and questioning skills, and even they can make mistakes or influence you despite their best efforts.

Giving someone this role, especially if they lack the sensitivity, skills, or expertise to guide you, seems not only unrealistic but also dangerous—especially when it comes to career choices and life changes.

Furthermore, this method requires someone else to find meaning in your story and experiences. The authors insist that it’s impossible to find your "why" alone. Consider the implications of that statement.

In my view, there’s no higher level of influence over a career choice than relying on someone else to tell you what has meaning for you. That’s a significant red flag.

This issue becomes even more concerning when we think about how this method could be adapted for students. Will Sinek suggest that students confide in another classmate they barely know and reveal intimate details of their lives?

Consider the complications this could cause, beyond the method's effectiveness.

Sinek also introduces a bizarre belief to justify his method: the idea that you must avoid involving someone who knows you, in order to guarantee the other person’s objectivity. Where did this idea come from? Does it form part of his theory? What evidence supports this?

Even if we accept that someone who doesn’t know you is more objective, what about their sincerity? Can you truly trust someone you don’t know well to guide you in finding your purpose? How can we ensure their objectivity will lead to uncovering your "why"?

Ultimately, all of this rests on unclear, scientifically unverified foundations. We’re simply expected to trust it.

As I concluded in my previous article, Sinek’s "Golden Circle" concept (the why/how/what model) is somewhat fragile, both in terms of the marketing concepts it’s based on and the arguments meant to support it, which lack scientific or empirical validity and often misrepresent historical events.

The more critically one examines the two books, the more one realizes there’s little substance behind them. Sinek is an excellent speaker who masterfully uses persuasive techniques, and his body language reinforces his message. But once the initial excitement fades and we dig into the content, a certain disillusionment sets in.

In my view, this method of discovering one’s "why" presents real dangers, especially for those using it to guide their career change or life direction. It’s particularly concerning if it were introduced to students, who are in a vulnerable and impressionable stage of life.

In summary, if it’s about inspiring leaders to hire motivated employees, that’s fine. But using this as a tool to define one’s career path or life purpose—danger ahead.

I also recommend checking out the 1- to 3-star reviews on Amazon, where you’ll find several insightful critiques.