Have no single point of failure. Have no single path to success.

→ James Clear on Instagram

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For a long time, I thought I understood Simon Sinek's push for all of us to "start with why." It wasn't until I was listening to an interview with him recently that I realized I didn't - at least not entirely.

In the conversation, he was talking about the interplay between our "why" & our "how."

He clarified that his "how" (speaking & writing books) comes from his "why" (to create a world where more people are inspired to go to work), but that it may very well change someday.

The "how" is transient, in other words, evolving in response to our internal evolution.

His point, & what I finally understood, was that the "why" doesn't change, only the manifestation of it. Only what it looks like today.

It's much the same way we should be thinking about the values we consider the pillars of our brands.

If we're building a brand that puts "simplicity" or "community" at its core, then we need to be open to the possibility that how we render those out may change. They may change because we grow, because market demands create new opportunities, or because a lockdown forces us to alter what we do.

In many ways, recognizing this is liberating. It frees us to explore the different ways we might actualize our principles & deliver value to those we seek to serve.

In this recognition & this doing, we'll be more inclined to embrace new experiments & opportunities.

We'll be less likely to settle for how to do something simply because it's the way we've always done it.

We'll be less fragile because we'll have a more robust definition of ourselves & the change we seek to make - a definition that's open, not closed; expansive, not reductive; focused on tomorrow & not yesterday.

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Functional Branding exists to help change-makers make change. If I can ever be of service to you, please don't hesitate to reach out.