Higher Performance Insights | The Three Whys: Finding Purpose When Hard Change Hits
Change happens.
Not the slow, gradual kind that we can ease into like a warm bath. But the jarring, disruptive kind that leaves us questioning our place in the world.
“We have three innate psychological needs,” writes Dan Pink in his book Drive: The Surprising Truth Behind What Motivates Us. “Competence, autonomy, and relatedness.” [1]
Dr. Rangan Chatterjee learned this firsthand when a private company took over a practice he worked at. Once flexible in his work, Dr. Chatterjee was soon required to adhere to its strict operating procedures. [2] The joy of practicing medicine became the burden of following protocols.
Sound familiar?
I was punched in the teeth with that life-altering kind of change a decade ago, and I know what happens next:
You lie awake at night. You stew. You return to work feeling worse than when you left. The cycle continues.
Purpose isn't just handed to us on a silver platter. It's there, sure, woven into who we are. But it's also the story we choose to tell, the path we choose to walk, the meaning we choose to make real.
Dr. Chatterjee discovered this through a simple but powerful practice: walking at lunch, reflecting on the pain he was relieving in his community, not measuring success by checkboxes ticked but by lives touched.
The result? In his words, "an incredible tonic."
This is where the Three Whys comes in.
It's deceptively simple: Take any task you're struggling with. Ask "Why does it matter?" Three times.
To borrow an example from Charles Duhigg’s book Smarter Faster Better, imagine a doctor whose least favorite activity is grading student papers. [3] Grading feels like a chore, disconnected from his real passion – cancer research.
But watch what happens with the Three Whys:
Why grade these papers? To help the university collect tuition.
Why does that matter? To fund my laboratory.
Why does that matter? To pursue cancer research that could save millions of lives.
Suddenly, grading papers isn't just administrative work – it's part of a mission to save lives.
This isn't positive thinking. Its purpose-finding.
And here's why it matters now more than ever: We're living through a time when change isn't just constant – it's accelerating. Remote work, hybrid schedules, shifting priorities – the black swan of COVID-19 didn't just change where we work; it changed how we think about work.
The Three Whys isn't about making peace with unwanted change. It's about finding your power in the midst of it.
Because when you can't control the what, you can always control the why.
Much like the Five Why’s, the Three Why’s uncovers a deeper meaning. By reframing how you view your role, you can regain autonomy and find a way to serve a cause bigger than yourself.
Try it today. Take your most dreaded task. Ask why it matters. Then ask again. And again.
You might just find that the purpose was there all along.
You just needed to dig a little deeper to find it.
Footnotes
[1] Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink.
[2] The Stress Solution: The 4 Steps to a Calmer, Happier, Healthier You by Dr. Rangan Chatterjee.
[3] Smarter Faster Better: The Secrets of Being Productive in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg.
Team Discussion Question
Think of a recent disruptive change that frustrated your team. How could the Three Whys method—asking 'Why does it matter?' three times—help team members find meaning in their challenging tasks? Share an example.
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