Seth Godin, Linchpin And Me!

by ThePapaPost on January 18, 2010 · 2 comments

I decided to go all the way to NY to see Seth Godin’s discussion on Linchpin. Well… the man deserves it. The author Tribes, The Dip and many more books is the best.
Seth says that “this” is the time to be creative and unfollow the norms. The formula that worked in the last century does not work any more. Merely going to good schools, getting the right degrees is just not enough. Jobs are increasingly under threat as someone else can
Any complex job can theoretically be broken down into small enough jobs. And if it is a small enough job some one else with less skills can do that piece with a set of instructions. And if one person can do the job with instructions then (s)he can be easily replaced with someone else who can do it for cheaper. In fact, if you think about it, many of our jobs are like that. The factory owner or the employer has every reason to replace you with some else who can do that job for lower money.
Seth argues that one needs to be more like an artist. He talk about lizard brain to show that we are driven more by our fears than by our creative brain. As a result we tend to take paths that are already proven (and fear to take the less traversed path) and become more predictable. At the end, it all becomes a rat race that leads to no where. This has become more and more true today than ever before. It doesn’t matter where you went to school and what degrees you may have.
Now is the time to be creative and taking chances (thanks to the new digital world) as we all have unique skills
Pretty much the factory formula that Henry Ford and others revolutionzed a century ago.

Seth Godin at Linchpin Discussion, NY

It was not my idea of fun to drag my girls to the train station in NJ at an ungodly hour to head to NY to see Seth Godin (and I am sure they were less than thrilled) but there was no way I was going to miss meeting Seth Godin. Sure there are several powerful authors and speakers out there but there is only one that makes it to my inbox everyday. I skim when I read (and am constantly chastised about it by my wife) but with Seth’s books I never have to do that. Firstly they are so short and the other reason is they are interesting (each time I read something it is like an “Aha” moment). Seth Godin’s latest offering Linchpin was slated for discussion, but I would have settled for him discussing anything. The author of Tribes, The Dip and many more books certainly deserves it.

Seth starts by highlighting the mindset behind manufacturing and assembly lines and what worked in the 18th and 19th century. The formula that worked then does not work any more. Merely going to good schools, getting the right degrees is just not enough. Assembly lines have driven down the value of individuals and their wages.  Any complex job can theoretically be broken down into small jobs that can be done with a set of instructions. And if it is a small enough job some one else with less skills can do it. And if one person can do the job with instructions then (s)he can be easily replaced with someone else who can do it for less. In fact, if you think about it, many of our jobs are like that. The factory owner or the employer has every reason to replace you with some else who can do that job for less.

With Seth Godin

Picture courtesy: http://www.thedailydust.co.uk

Picture courtesy: http://www.thedailydust.co.uk

Seth argues that one needs to be more like an artist. He talks about the lizard brain to show that we are driven more by our fears. As a result we tend to take less risks and go for proven strategies. At the end, it all becomes a rat race that leads to no where. This has become more and more true today than ever before. It doesn’t matter which school you went to or what degrees you have. Now is the time to be creative and take chances, thanks to the new digital world that anyone can be influencer. Seth illustrates the case of coffee disloyalty card to drive home the point.

As he spoke I felt more enthused with passion. It was just what the doctor ordered since motivation gets waned after suffering a few job losses. With his words buzzing in my head and my return ticket in hand I headed back about my day, vowing that this time I will make my mark. Seth had issued a challenge to everyone to unfollow the norms and that is precisely what I intend to do this year.

{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }

1 Mommy Niri January 20, 2010 at 10:58 am

Seth Godin is the only feature I subscribe to as well. He is so easy to read and somehow says these super smart things which should be super obvious.

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