Too often, we as information security professionals set out to complete a task without thinking about how the task fits into our own belief system. We are so focused on what we need to do, or how it needs to be done, that we forget why we are doing it. This can lead to cognitive dissonance, because we find ourselves tackling problems that are not congruent to our purpose for being. Leaders that have inspired and changed the course of history are the leaders that have a clear sense of why: Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Bill Gates, Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Greta Thunberg. Simon Sinek accurately states that people do not buy what you do; they buy why you do it. In an information security context, this is true as well. 

"People don't buy what you do; they buy why you do it. And what you do simply proves what you believe."

Simon Sinek

In this episode of the podcast, I am joined by Tarik Saleh, a good friend and former co-worker of mine whom I think understands the importance of starting with why. We review his career with a particular lens on why he gets out of bed every morning and selects the projects he goes for and those he passes on.