Earlier this month, I had a conversation with a 20 something who thought that Seth Godin was full of himself.
Maybe.
She thought that the things that Seth says are just common sense and people make too big a deal of his words.
Maybe.
But for someone who is old enough to be her Dad, (I'm not), I also understand why he is so appealing.
Some of the stuff he writes about and speaks about is common sense if you were not "brain washed" by your parents to find a good job with a good company that has a good pension plan and stick it out for 40 years.
I recall my Dad offering similar advice but I refused to take it. I was in charge of my own destiny and staying with the same company for too long was the wrong way in my mind.
Seth pushes people further than some feel comfortable.
Maybe.
I subscribe to his blog and Sundays at 6pm feature a Seth Godin blog post. I find it as a way to challenge my thinking for the week ahead.
Others think highly of him too.
I wouldn't go as far as the genius label that Jim Connolly gives Seth..
Maybe.
Posted: 21 May 2011 01:57 PM PDT
It is my honest belief, that Seth Godin is a genius.
Genius?
Without interrupting me, Seth somehow manages to compel me to need to tell you about his work from time to time. Seriously, I feel like I am actually under-serving the community here, if I forget to mention him periodically; in case new readers have not yet discovered him.
Conversely, I am currently being bombarded with sales emails, from a vocal advocate of Seth’s work and permission marketing in general. I gave them permission to email me, but with each additional pushy sales message they send me, I become less and less inclined to want to recommend them. I have never bought a product from them either. Professional curiosity is all that’s keeping me on their list.
When Seth’s blog posts arrive in my inbox each day, they are keenly awaited. Each post delivers value. Seth’s posts are written by him, but for us. The guys sending me the pushy emails also offer valuable blog posts, but they are written by them, for them. It always seems like I am being sold to. I feel like I need to keep my guard up.
If I see a link in one of Seth’s posts, I click it eagerly. I trust him. My guard is down. I believe that the link will offer me value. I’ve been educated to expect something positive. It works beautifully. You know what? Seth has never sold me a book, but I have bought every book he has ever written. In fact, I usually buy a dozen copies of each new book. I keep one and give the others away to people I know, who are ready to read what Seth has to say.
If you want to know what I am talking about, do this:
- Go to Seth’s blog.
- Subscribe.
- Then, take some time to read your way through his posts. Do not just read the latest posts. Bookmark the blog and work your way backwards!
If you do, you may learn how to inspire people to write posts like this, about you and your work.
Photo: Seth Godin
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2 comments:
Oh, hi. I'm that 20-something. I recognize that I'm in the vast minority when it comes to Godin, but I just looked at his website and some of his most recent posts.
Godin tells people to avoid excuses, hire good people and get out of their way, take responsibility for their own actions. There is nothing new here. These are all things that we all know we need to do, but which are very difficult to actually execute. If Godin helps some people accomplish these things in real life, more power to him. If it works for them, great.
But to me, they read as trite platitudes. Your mileage may vary.
Yep, Allison was the one.
If more people quit complaining about their life and use that energy to create positive change.
When I've read his books, it wasn't that it was new information, but it was similar to some of my own thinking for the past 25 years. It just so happened that he wrote it and published it, while I continued to work it and live it.
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