Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t

“There is a pattern that exists in the organizations that achieve the greatest success, the ones that outmaneuver and outinnovate their competitors, the ones that command the greatest respect from inside and outside their organizations, the ones with the highest loyalty and lowest churn and the ability to weather nearly every storm or challenge.”

Here, Simon Sinek emphasizes that companies and organizations do not achieve success by chance or by the whims of a marketplace, but because they actively develop measures—and in doing so, establish clear patterns—that pave the way for success, even in the face of adversity.

“Before there was empathy at the company, going to work felt like, well, work.”

Sinek introduces empathy as a revolutionary component of the workplace, especially in the hands of competent leaders. One of the basic premises of his book is that going to work does not have to be a dreaded part of our lives.

“This is what happens when the leaders of an organization listen to the people who work there. Without coercion, pressure or force, the people naturally work together to help each other and advance the company.”

Much like empathy, the act of simply listening to employees produces a positive domino effect within an organization—which leads to a stronger sense of collaboration and teamwork.