Why We Do What We Do...

I was recently reading Simon Sinek’s great book, Start With Why.  Sinek is a tremendously engaging writer who encourages you to consider what it is that makes you do the things that you choose to do.  His idea is that people and businesses that operate with a clear understanding of what they’re on about tend to be more effective at achieving their targets, and at helping the people that they are attempting to serve achieve the outcomes that they have come to them for.

It got me thinking about what it is that has motivated me into my role in the gym, and that has made me traipse around the world to learn, take on dramatically larger financial risks than I might’ve otherwise, and to wake up before the sun the vast majority of the time.  I knew that I loved doing it, and that it was no hardship for me to do it, but I hadn’t connected with my underlying core purpose.

What was it about helping people to move better, feel better, and become more resilient that connected with me at such a core level?

As I listened to Sinek talk, and heard him mention entrepreneurs and leaders who had shaped the world with an unyielding sense of purpose, I started to realise what it was that made me want to do what it is that I do.  The term that best sums it up is a Hebrew word, a term that is often misunderstood and misapplied (as I understand it).  The term is Shalom.  It is a sense of wholeness, that everything is as it should be.  At my core, seeing people shift from a place where their body isn’t quite firing on all cylinders, to a place where their body enables them to live a whole life is amazing.

At QKB, our motivation comes from a deep, underlying belief that life should be awesome.

Life being awesome doesn’t mean that you’re rich and a rockstar.  It means that you’ve got enough health, resources, and mental energy to enjoy the good things in the world around you.  You don’t have a terrible shoulder that is unnecessarily holding you back.  You don’t suffer from crippling lower back pain every evening after sitting in your chair at work or walking around in heels all day.  You can play the sport that you love, run around with your kids, get up out of your chair without discomfort, basically live a life with your body moving the way that it was designed to move.

Dan John has a beautiful goal (and I’m on a plane to Singapore, so I unfortunately can’t research it exactly), and it’s one that I value for all of my clients.  His goal is to be able to walk to the mailbox on the day he dies.  It speaks of a body that is still working, a life that is being lived without becoming decrepit.  Obviously terrible things happen.  People get diseases, are involved in accidents, or are born with conditions that mean this may never happen, but for most of the population, we have the opportunity to stack the deck so that we can live long, and live healthy.   I don’t advocate insane amounts of exercise, or stupidly strict ways of eating, but I do think that a few hours of exercise each week and a generally sensible bunch of habits around food are a small price to pay for the opportunity to enjoy your family, your wealth, and our beautiful lifestyle in Australia.

All of this is a long-winded way of saying - life should be awesome.  We love it, and our clients love it.  I hope you love it too.