Introduction – Why Mike Why?

A friend of mine, Beth Adkisson, introduced me to Ted.com and asked me to watch Simon Sinek’s presentation on the topic of “How Great Leaders inspire action”. In his presentation, Mr. Sinek talked about the Golden Circle and how people should first consider “Why” they want to do instead of “What” they want to do. He gave very compiling examples from Apple Computers, the Wright Brothers and Doctor Martin Luther King. In his book “Start With Why”, Mr. Sinek shared several gems:

1. “People don’t buy WHAT you do; they buy WHY you do it.”

2. “Those whom we consider great leaders all have an ability to draw us close and to command our loyalty. And we feel a strong bond with those who are also drawn to the same leaders and organizations.”

3. “A WHY is just a belief! That’s all it is. HOWs are the actions you take to realize that belief. And WHATs are the results of those actions – everything you say and do: your products, services, marketing, PR, culture, and whom you hire.”

4. ” You have to earn trust by communicating and demonstrating that you share the same values and beliefs. You have to talk about your WHY and prove it with WHAT you do. Again, a WHY is just a belief, HOWs are the actions we take to realize that belief, and WHATs are the results of those actions. When all three are in balance, trust is built and value is perceived.”

I was inspired by the lecture. It got me thinking about my life (personally and professionally), my purposes, my beliefs, and how I want others to see and care about me. So, I am writing this article as a self-inventory of Who I Am and why I am who I am.

Who is Mike?

I am a middle-age, fairly successful information technology executive with a wonderful family (wife and three great kids), a lovely home in the Orange County suburb, supportive extended family and friend circle, and good health. My wife and I are more in love with each other now after twenty three years of marriage than when we were first married. My kids are straight A’s students. No drugs, no troubles, nothing to cause us concerns. I get along with my extended family members from both sides. I have good friends and business contacts. I reached the top of my profession ten years ago by becoming the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for several large high-tech manufacturing and financial services companies. We are blessed with our health, our home and our financial stability. It was not always this rosy.

I was a boy of thirteen when we came to the US. I was a Vietnamese refugee. My step-father was an American GI serving in the Navy. My parents were married in the 60’s in Vietnam. We escaped from Saigon just before the Fall of 1975. Our first home in the US was a two-bedroom apartment that housed the 10 of us. It was Mom, Dad, the four of us siblings and four of my cousins who came to the US with us.

My first job was at the local fairground during the summer of 1975. My cousin and I were hired to wash down the grandstand, getting it ready for the upcoming County Fair horse races. We were assigned Men-room attending duties during the Fair, responsible for cleaning all 17 Men restrooms.

I worked throughout my high school and college years. I was a gas station attendant. I worked as a janitor after school during my freshman year. I became a Dodgers fan and gained great admiration for Vin Scully by listening to the radio during those lonely cleaning evenings.  I got a summer job as a dishwasher at Denny’s between my sophomore and junior years working the grave yard shift. One night, I cut my finger on the egg slicer because I was sleepy, went home and came back the next day asking the manager to be a waiter. I waited table at Denny’s for the next two years after school. I was also an honor student. I played varsity basketball and ran track.

At UCLA, I worked as a translator, lab assistant, teaching assistant and tutor. I graduated with a degree in Engineering System Sciences and Applied Mathematics and got my first professional job at Hughes Aircraft Radar System Group as a Software Engineer. That was the beginning of my professional career.

My Why’s

My humble beginning shaped my values. As a refugee who came to the US with nothing, I watched my parents worked hard, made sacrifices and held the family together. My Mom did not have to take on my four cousins as an additional burden, but she did. It taught me the value of Perseverance. I worked hard and persevered. I studied with a focus on going to college to make something out of myself. I was the first one in my family with a college degree from the US.

By working at various odd jobs and low pay, I learned the value of Hard Work. I earned my money. I learned to save. I also learned to value the people I worked with. I always had fun at my various jobs back then. My coworkers and I really got along. We helped each other out. We took the time to know each other. Everybody had a life story to tell. I learned to empathize and appreciate what I have.

The three things I learned from my youth are Perseverance, Hard Work and Empathy. These are the things I took with me and practiced throughout my life. They defined who I am. They are my core beliefs.

So, back to Mr. Sinek’s premise of asking the “Why” question. The question I am asking myself is: “Why do I want to work?” or is it “Why should companies want to hire me or work with me?” or is it “Why should people care about me?”

Here’s my answer: “I want to work because I value working. I want to provide for my family and I want to take all of my god-giving ability as far as I can!”

This is my core mission statement. This is why I get up every morning. This is why I care. This is why I can and will put up with the hard times, the office politics and the curve balls that Life is throwing at me every day.

The How’s

I have over twenty years of successful professional track record. I held positions ranging from Developer, Project Manager and Enterprise Architect to Director of Application Development, VP of IT and Chief Information Officer. I led multiple functional teams spanning across diverse industries and business verticals. I traveled the world leading projects in Asia, Europe and the US. Through it all, I achieved my success by living up to my core beliefs and to these approaches:

1. Treat everybody respectfully. Do your best to know them and listen empathically to their stories, issues and ideas.
2. Hard work means being the most organized as I can be, the most curious as I ought to be and the most accountable as I should be. Working smart, thinking outside the box and be responsible for your work are great complements to working hard.
3. Perseverance provides the focus needed to overcome mistakes. Everybody makes mistakes. There are times when the solutions are not easily derived. Never give up until the right solution is reached.

I followed the same principles in my personal life. I am a man of strong faith. I believe in a higher power and I understand that I am very blessed. I do my best to live my life based on these approached:

1. Achieve my life balance through faith, family and self-worth.
2. Pay it forward whenever possible.
3. You don’t always get what you want. Hopefully, you will get what you need and be happy with it.

So What’s?

I surmise this is where everything comes together. Based on Mr. Sinek’s model, once you have clearly defined the “Why” and lay out the “How” then the “What” should come easily. Yes? So, what do I want to do with my life? What am I trying to sell you? I have been struggling with this question for a long time.

I have narrowed it down to two paths. I can continue pursuing my desire to start my own software consulting company, build it and hopefully one day and hand it over to my son (or daughter) to run it. Or, I can find another corporate executive position as a CIO or VP of IT with a company that appreciates my values, draw a nice compensation package, work for the next dozen of years or so and retire happily to Aruba with my wife.

My friend, Susan Howington, CEO of Power Connections, came up with a unique assessment called the Wheel of Energy and Motivation (WEM). It mapped and scored your various roles in life to your level of energy and motivation to perform each role. I will share the WEM concepts and actual assessment parameters at another time. The results of this assessment actually confirmed my own core beliefs for myself.

I have lay out my personal career Golden Circle below.

My friend, Dipak Shah, CEO of Reliant Solutions, gave me great insight and advice when I shared my dilemma with him. He asked me to map my desires (my chosen paths) to my Comfort Factors. They are the Emotional State, Financial Gain, Lifestyle and Stress Level. Furthermore, he added a third dimension called Family Considerations. There are four levels: You and Your Spouse, You and Your Family, You and lastly You and Your Extended Family. I mapped the two paths to my Comfort Factors and Family Considerations. The results are displayed below.

Here are the explanations for the levels:

1. Emotional State: A High rating means the most comfortable.
2. Financial Gain: A High rating means the most money I will make.
3. Lifestyle: A High rating means the best Lifestyle.
4. Stress Level: A High rating means the most Stress.

These ratings are perceptions gained from each family unit based on the four Family Considerations. At a glance, you can conclude that my wife prefers that I find a corporate CIO or VP of IT position so we can maintain our financial stability and lifestyle. I prefer the entrepreneurial route knowing that I have to compromise our financial budget and family lifestyle. It comes down to what do I perceived as the most important family consideration. Is it me and my spouse (and children) or just me and what I want to do. This is where my Why’s or core beliefs kick in. I believe I can follow either path to stay true to my core beliefs.

In Conclusion

This has been a great self-awareness exercise for me. Being able to identify my Why’s and clarify my How’s helped me identify my What’s. Here is my summary:

Why do I want to work?

I want to work because I value working. I want to provide for my family and I want to take all of my god-giving ability as far as I can.

How do I want to work?

Leverage my professional and personal experiences to find and work for a company that appreciates and shares my core belief. They are: Respect for others, work smart, be accountable, persevere, find the right solution, pay it forward, be happy, work-life balance and have faith in your life. This could be my own company or another company.

What do I want?

I want to gain a corporate position as the Chief Information Officer or VP of Information Technology… Or, I want to focus on building my own software consulting company. Give me a call at 949.306.4719 and I will share with you my final decision. Thank you.