Why does your organization exist, not what you do, but why?

What’s the heartbeat behind what you do? Saying you want to make money is not enough. We all want to make money, but that is not what truly drives your organization.

I am not asking what you do, but why you do it. The same question that Simon Sinek raises in his book Start with Why? What motivates not just you, but your entire organization? What’s the point?

That’s not just a theoretical question. It’s the question. Your true purpose is personal, not just for leaders, but for everyone in the organization. It matters. It is why you open the doors in the morning and sometimes stay late at night. It is what drives you towards excellence. It is why you care what you do.

And the best leaders I know can answer it in one sentence. At John’s Crazy Socks, we can:

We’re here to spread happiness.

It sounds simple, but it drives everything we do. And if you want your organization to grow stronger, more resilient, and more human, you need to know your purpose, too.

Why Your Mission Statement Isn’t Enough

Too often, companies confuse mission statements with real purpose. I’ve been in those meetings: everyone is wordsmithing a paragraph so broad it says nothing. It is a statement no human ever utters. It gets printed in handbooks and pinned on office walls and then forgotten.

Your true purpose isn’t a polished slogan. It’s personal. It shows up in what you do every day, especially when no one’s watching. It’s why you open the doors in the morning and stay late at night. It’s what drives your team to care about customers, quality, and each other.

When you understand that purpose—and live it—everything changes.

At John’s Crazy Socks, We Spread Happiness

That’s our mission. And we talk about it all the time. Every decision we make flows from this one question: Does this spread happiness?

Customer Service That Delights

You’ve heard the phrase “the customer is always right.” Nonsense. The customer can be dead wrong, but we’re not in the business of being right. We’re in the business of spreading happiness.

So, if a customer’s package goes missing? We might reship it. Offer a refund. Send a surprise gift. Or John might hop on the phone to sing them a song. Why? Because it makes them happy. And our whole team knows that’s why we do what we do.

Every Package Is a Smile in the Mailbox

Here’s another way we make our purpose tangible. When someone buys socks from us, they don’t just get socks. They get a dose of happiness:

• A brightly colored envelope that makes them smile before they even open it.
• A handwritten thank-you note from John.
• A pair of lollipops—one for them and one to share.
• A picture and name of the team member who packed their order.
• A discount card to say thank you.

We want every customer to feel our gratitude and joy.

And when one of our Happiness Packers noticed we were sending candy with diabetic socks, we didn’t shrug, we added sugar-free options. Everyone contributes to the mission.

Giving Back Is Part of the Job

John will tell you the keys to happiness are gratitude and doing for others. From day one, we’ve donated five percent of our earnings to the Special Olympics. We’ve since added awareness and charity socks that support causes like Down syndrome, autism, and mental health raising over $800,000 for our charity partners and counting.

Purpose Is Your Lifeline in a Crisis

When the pandemic hit, we were scared. Much of our spring business depends on in-person events around World Down Syndrome Day (March 21) and Autism Awareness Month (April). All of that disappeared overnight.

If all we did was sell socks, we might have folded. But our purpose kept us moving.

First, we had to make sure our colleagues were safe. Many of our colleagues had underlying health conditions. People with Down syndrome were not more likely to catch the virus, but if they did, they were five times more likely to be hospitalized and ten times more likely to do so.

Then we asked, what could we do with socks? We created Health Care Superhero Socks and This Superhero Wears Scrubs to honor and thank the front-line workers. We raised over $50,000 from the sale of those socks for the American Nurses Foundation and the COVID Fund at Good Samaritan University Hospital.

We looked at what we could do new under those circumstances. We created masks with happiness themes and supported people with differing abilities. We included gifts of hand sanitizers for our customers.

What else could we do to spread happiness if everyone were locked down and isolated? John started a weekly dance party. What’s more fun than getting together and dancing? He still leads that dance party at 3 p.m. Eastern time every Tuesday. We started a Facebook live show, the Spreading Happiness Show with John and Mark, as a way to bring joy into people’s lives complete with a good news story of the week, an update on John’s love life, and John’s jokes. That has evolved into the Spreading Happiness Podcast.

Even If You Just Sell Socks… You Need a Why

You might say, “We just make widgets.” Or hang shingles. Or install software.

But we just sell socks. And our purpose makes us different.

We’ve counted: there are exactly one bazillion sock companies. But none have our mission. That’s how we connect with customers, attract talent, and stay resilient. That’s how we stand out in a crowded marketplace.

Purpose gives you clarity. It shapes your hiring, your marketing, your operations, and even your supply chain. When things get hard, it’s your North Star.

So What’s Your Purpose?

If you run a school, don’t just say you educate students. Tell me why you’re passionate about shaping futures.

If you lead a financial firm, what fuels your work beyond the numbers?

If you run a PT clinic, what gets you jazzed to come in each day?

Your why matters. And when you define it, you unlock power, resilience, and meaning—for yourself and your entire team.

And if you want help finding it, I’d be happy to talk. Reach out at JohnandMarkCronin.com or send an email to booking@jmspeak.com.  I can speak with you or your organization as you dive deep to understand your purpose, because once you know it, everything changes.