Returning to your ‘why’

When the difficult moments strike, and they inevitably will, you will need to return to your ‘why’. This simply refers to the fundamental reason that motivated you to take such a big leap of faith in the beginning.

Different things motivate different people. For example, your ‘why’ might be rooted in any number of things including, but not limited to:

• Building a legacy for yourself and your family
• Having more time flexibility
• Being able to do work that you love
• Creating something with impact and meaning
• Being a leader to others and providing job opportunities to your team
• Eventually selling your business so that you do not have to work anymore

There are plenty of reasons people start businesses, and it’s important that you write yours down. It will be the strongest source of motivation when times get tough, challenges arise, and self-doubt creeps in. It will be the answer to the question: “Why did you start this business in the first place?”.

Some of your reasoning will be deeply personal and the remainder might relate to others around you. Articulating this rationale in a mission statement is a powerful way of expressing it clearly enough for all to see and understand. A clear mission statement sets your direction so that stakeholders, both internally and externally, understand why your company exists. It keeps you focused and provides the foundation of a framework within which to make business decisions. By outlining your mission, the strategic choices you make become more congruent with your purpose, and your consumers are more likely to buy into your journey.

By returning to your ‘why’ regularly, you’ll reinforce the purpose behind your business. If you aren’t committed to making this vision a reality, then you might find that your enthusiasm dwindles when the going gets tough. Businesses very rarely make money from the beginning, so having money as your sole motivator will never be enough.

An example is, in the case of Lululemon, a prominent wellness brand: “Creating components for people to live longer, healthier, fun lives”. This underpins the products they create and ways in which they market themselves. It aligns with the values of the team and its founders, and is a source of motivation and inspiration.

Passion is going to be a huge part of your mission and vision and what Welltodo has seen time and time again as a primary motivator for founders in the wellness industry. You may be passionate about preventing illness, natural solutions to health challenges, or a modality of wellbeing that you think would benefit many. Keeping this in the forefront of your mind will make an enormous difference and will be the source of motivation that you need when you are tempted to give up.

What do you think?

Why is returning to your ‘why’ going to help you to keep moving forward when things get challenging in your business?

What type of challenges do you think you might encounter that will require you to return to your mission and core reason for starting in the first place?