Trying to make sense of all our learnings, I had a session with Nicolas. It was surprisingly eye-opening, though not in the way I expected.

I laid out everything about our project to Nicolas. Given his background as an assessment and future leadership expert, I thought he'd immediately dive deep into the specifics. But no – he had just one question that he kept coming back to: "Why do you want to do this?" Only then can we answer the question about what we want to assess and how?! So logic, so simple.

Challenge yourself! Invite feedback!

At first, it was irritating. I mean, really irritating. But as the session went on, I realized just how powerful and necessary that question was. The thing is, everything I do is usually dripping with purpose and consideration for the greater good. But as Nicolas pointed out, none of that was coming through in my explanation. We've gotten so caught up in the form, the 'how', that we've lost sight of the 'why'.

Not What. Not How. But what is our deep Why is the first and formost question?

It's frustrating to realize we need to go back to the drawing board. We have to step away from focusing on the product and its functions, and instead reconnect with the user benefits. We need to rediscover and articulate our deep 'why' – the very thing that started this whole journey in the first place.

Fail often, fail fast

As annoying as it is to backtrack, I'm grateful for Nicolas's insight. It's a tough pill to swallow, but I know it's necessary. We've got to strip everything back and rebuild from our core purpose.

Note to self: Never underestimate the power of inviting a fresh perspective to the table. And always, always keep the 'why' at the forefront.

Thanks, Nicolas.