The character arc of Simon Sinek
A life drawn by Character Arc from the public record
Born on 9 October 1973 in Wimbledon. Between then and now sit an American high school in 1991, a Brandeis degree in cultural anthropology, law studies in London, agency work at Euro RSCG and Ogilvy, Start with Why in 2009, a TED talk in 2010, Leaders Eat Last in 2014, The Infinite Game in 2019 and a publishing imprint founded in 2018. The line below draws the story so far, in order.
Tap the line to pluck it. Hover or tap any mark for its card. Drawn from the public record of his life; the sources are at the foot of the page.
Who is Simon Sinek?
One question, asked properly.
He was born in Wimbledon and finished school in New Jersey in 1991. He took a degree in cultural anthropology at Brandeis University and studied law at City, University of London, which he did not go on to practise. He worked at the advertising agencies Euro RSCG and Ogilvy and Mather, and then founded his own firm.
The anthropology is the part that explains the rest. His argument, set out in Start with Why in 2009, is that people do not buy what you do, they buy why you do it, and that most organisations describe themselves in exactly the wrong order. It reads as marketing advice and is really an observation about how a species that evolved in small groups decides who to trust.
In 2010 he gave a TED talk called How Great Leaders Inspire Action, which became one of the most watched talks anybody has given. Leaders Eat Last followed in 2014, taking its title from a practice in the United States Marine Corps, then Together Is Better in 2016, Find Your Why in 2017 and The Infinite Game in 2019. He has taught strategic communications at Columbia University and served as adjunct staff at the RAND Corporation. In 2018 he founded the imprint Optimism Press with Penguin Random House, and he runs a digital learning company.
The moments
Simon Sinek's timeline.
The 1990s
School in New Jersey
Milestone. Born in London, finished school in New Jersey.
Cultural anthropology
Milestone, and it changed everything. Anthropology, which is the part that explains everything he later argued.
Euro RSCG and Ogilvy
Milestone, and it changed his direction. Two agencies, and a decade learning how persuasion is actually sold.
The 2000s
A firm of his own
Milestone, and it changed his direction. Out of the agencies and into his own name.
Sell the idea, or publish it
Crossroads, decided.
The paths laid out: put it in a book, taken, or keep it in the firm. The book and the talk that followed reached an audience no consultancy could have, and four more books came after them.
Start with Why
Milestone, and it changed everything. People do not buy what you do, they buy why you do it. Most organisations say it backwards.
The 2010s
The TED talk
Milestone, and it changed everything. Eighteen minutes, and one of the most watched talks anybody has given.
Leaders Eat Last
Milestone, and it changed everything. Named for a practice in the Marine Corps, where the most senior eat after everybody else.
Together Is Better
Milestone. A small illustrated book, and then a workbook for the first one.
Optimism Press
Milestone, and it changed his direction. His own imprint, to publish other people as well as himself.
The Infinite Game
Milestone, and it changed everything. Business as a game with no end and no winner, only players who stay in or drop out.
The 2020s
Columbia, and RAND
Milestone. A university post and a research institution, alongside the books.
The line reaches today still adding to itself, which is why it is drawn now rather than at the end. What it has set moving is one word put back in the right order, and a great many people who now ask why before they ask what.
What he wrote
Books by Simon Sinek
- 2009
Start with Why
How great leaders inspire everyone to take action. People do not buy what you do, they buy why you do it.
- 2014
Leaders Eat Last
Why some teams pull together and others do not. Named for the Marine Corps practice of the most senior eating last.
- 2016
Together Is Better
A short illustrated book about friendship and working with other people.
- 2017
Find Your Why
A practical guide for finding purpose, written as a workbook for the first book.
- 2019
The Infinite Game
Business as a game with no end and no winner, only players who stay in or drop out.
Your turn
Every line draws a unique story.
His turned one question into a working life, and the question was why. Yours is already further along than you think, and drawing it takes about five minutes.
Simon Sinek: frequently asked questions
What people ask about his line.
What is Simon Sinek's character arc?
What is Start with Why by Simon Sinek?
What is Simon Sinek's TED talk?
What is Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek?
What did Simon Sinek study?
What is The Infinite Game by Simon Sinek?
What does Simon Sinek do now?
Where does this timeline of Simon Sinek's life come from?
More character arcs
Lives that rhyme with his.
Sources
- Simon Sinek, English Wikipedia biography, filed under living people.
- TED, How Great Leaders Inspire Action, 2010.
- Publisher records for Start with Why, Leaders Eat Last, Find Your Why and The Infinite Game.