#84 – Who wants you to 'start with why?'

When I arrived in New York in October of 2014, most people I met were curious about what had brought me there from Madrid, my home city.

"What's your why?," they'd ask.

I kept hearing this question everywhere: at networking events, dinner parties, and informational interviews.

The truth is, I didn't know what 'my why' was, which made me feel incompetent–like I should know something that everyone else did.

IIn those moments, I fabricated answers. Sometimes, I spoke about the divisive politics in my country, the lack of economic opportunities, or my desire to introduce my son to a different culture.

Yet every time I answered such banalities, I felt narrow-minded, excessively pragmatic, small.

Now, I’m not saying that if you’re a brand it isn't important to tell your customers why you do what you do.

But if you’re a regular person, ‘starting with why’ is mere justification.

Justification is a desire of your Ego. Fearing that people will shun you for appearing eccentric, your Ego sends its crony, the Ghost of Need to Prove, to nudge you into submission.

“Prove you’re not crazy—give me your why first,” the Ghost says, tapping a baseball bat against its hand.

In contrast, your True Self doesn’t need to know why it compels to do, think, say, or be what it prompts you to. It simply does.

When you follow your True Self’s guidance, you don’t question your actions or direction—even when the potential outcome isn’t immediately clear.

You may not know why, but you know what. And you know you have to.

One summer afternoon in the balcony of my office in Madrid, my now-husband asked me to move in with him. I heard myself saying, "ok, yes." I remember thinking, "I don't know if this is the right thing to do, but something tells me I have to say yes." It was 32 years ago.

Are you blocking your intuition by striving for clear why's for your decisions?

Love,

Carolina