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Description edit
The bestselling author of Tribes and The Dip returns with his most powerful book yet Who is Seth Godin? "It's easy to see why people pay to hear what he has to say. Godin is a marketer, but in the broadest sense of the word. He's interested in not simply how products are marketed,... read more
Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit
- - A job that leverages your passion will reward you in many ways.
- - Educated as cogs for the machine of industry, linchpins add passion, elevating their role to that of artist.
- - To be indispensable, you must be an artist and give your art freely while calming the doubts of your lizard-brain.
Summary edit
The first few chapters are hard and it gets better.
It is almost impossible not to take positive actions after reading this book.
In my "best reading list".
People edit
- Henry Ford: Founder of Ford Motor Co., one of the first to successfully implement mass production in his car factories.
- Steve Jobs: Employee at Stop & Shop who thinks he's teaching his company a lesson for not paying him enough. He's also training himself not to be a linchpin.
- Spike Lee: An revolutionary film maker. Godin asks the question, did Spike Lee need a camera to be a Linchpin, or was a camera simply the tool that was available to him?
- Bob Metcalfe: Add a description of this character.
- Marissa Mayer
- Frank Eliason
- Keith Johnson
- Bob Lefsetz
- Paul MacLean
- John Goodman
- Ben Zander
- John Jantsch
- Susan
- David Riesman
- Adam Smith
- Jason Zimdars
- Jean-Baptiste Colbert
- Duncan Hines
- Karl Marx
- Picasso
- Andy Hertzfeld
- Bill O'Brien
- Charles Krulak
- Ellsworth Kelly
- Keller Williams
- Marcel Mauss
- Zeke
- Jeff Bezos
- Melinda
- Donald Bradman
- Richard Branson
- Bob Dylan
- Hector
- Jonathan Ive
- Ed Sutt
- Martin Luther
- Elizabeth Gilbert
- Tony Hsieh
- Lester Wunderman
Quotes edit
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“The ultimate gift you can give, the one that will repay you today and tomorrow and heal our world, is that gift. The gift of connection, of art, of love—of dignity”
Seth Godin -
“You weren't born to be a cog in the giant industrial machine. You were trained to become a cog.”
Seth Godin -
“What we want, what we need, what we must have are indispensable human beings. We need original thinkers, provocateurs, and people who care.”
Seth Godin -
“Consumers are not loyal to cheap commodities. They crave the unique, the remarkable, the human.”
Seth Godin -
“There are no longer any great jobs where someone else tells you precisely what to do.”
Seth Godin -
“Ford's discipline was to avoid short-term gains in exchange for always seeking the interchangeable, always standardizing.”
Seth Godin -
“There's plenty of research that indicates that every time Wal-Mart enters a community, jobs disappear, businesses close, and the base of the town decays. That's okay, though, because you can get a jar of pickles the size of a Volkswagen for three dollars.”
Seth Godin -
“Mediocre is merely a failed attempt to be really good.”
Seth Godin -
“The only way to get what you're worth is to stand out, to exert emotional labor, to be seen as indispensable, and to produce interactions that organizations and people care deeply about.”
Seth Godin -
“If your organization wanted to replace you with someone far better at your job than you, what would they look for?”
Seth Godin -
“No, the competitive advantage the marketplace demands is someone more human, connected, and mature. Someone with passion and energy, capable of seeing things as they are and negotiating multiple priorities as she makes useful decisions without angst. Flexible in the face of change, resilient in the face of confusion.”
Seth Godin -
“The distinction between cogs and linchpins is largely one of attitude, not learning.”
Seth Godin -
“The law of linchpin leverage: The more value you create in your job, the fewer clock minutes of labor you actually spend creating that value. In other words, most of your time, you're not being brilliant. Most of the time, you do stuff that ordinary people could do.”
Seth Godin -
“It's the art and the insight and the bravery of value creation that are rewarded.”
Seth Godin -
“Expertise gives you enough insight to reinvent what everyone else assumes is the truth.”
Seth Godin -
“If all you can do is the task and you're not in a league of your own at doing the task, you're not indispensable.”
Seth Godin -
“We spend out time and energy trying to perfect our craft, but we don't focus on the skills and interactions that will allow us to stand out and become indispensable to our organization.”
Seth Godin -
“A genius looks at something that others are stuck on and gets the world unstuck.”
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“Organizing around the average, then, is too expensive.”
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The only way to get what you’re worth is to stand out, to exert emotional labor, to be seen as indispensable, and to produce interactions that organizations and people care deeply about.
Highlighted by 1092 Kindle customers -
Those are the only two choices. Win by being more ordinary, more standard, and cheaper. Or win by being faster, more remarkable, and more human.
Highlighted by 1036 Kindle customers -
The law of linchpin leverage: The more value you create in your job, the fewer clock minutes of labor you actually spend creating that value. In other words, most of the time, you’re not being brilliant. Most of the time, you do stuff that ordinary people could do.
Highlighted by 1013 Kindle customers -
Be remarkable Be generous Create art Make judgment calls Connect people and ideas . . . and we have no choice but to reward you.
Highlighted by 993 Kindle customers -
An artist is someone who uses bravery, insight, creativity, and boldness to challenge the status quo. And an artist takes it personally.
Highlighted by 961 Kindle customers -
The easier it is to quantify, the less it’s worth.
Highlighted by 915 Kindle customers -
The linchpin feels the fear, acknowledges it, then proceeds. I can’t tell you how to do this; I think the answer is different for everyone. What I can tell you is that in today’s economy, doing it is a prerequisite for success.
Highlighted by 906 Kindle customers -
Depth of knowledge combined with good judgment is worth a lot. Depth of knowledge combined with diagnostic skills or nuanced insight is worth a lot, too.
Highlighted by 810 Kindle customers -
What They Should Teach in School Only two things: 1. Solve interesting problems 2. Lead
Highlighted by 706 Kindle customers -
Art is a personal gift that changes the recipient. An artist is an individual who creates art. The more people you change, the more you change them, the more effective your art is.
Highlighted by 579 Kindle customers
Setting & Locations edit
First Sentence edit
The problem is that the bureaucrats, note takers, literalists, manual readers, TGIF laborers, map followers, and fearful employees are in pain.
Table of Contents edit
Dedication
Introduction
1. The New World of Work: We Are Surrounded by Bureaucrats, Note Takers, Literalists, Manual Readers, TGIF Laborers, Map Followers, and Fearful Employees
2. Thinking About Your Choice
3. Indoctrination: How We Got Here
4. Becoming the Linchpin
5. Is It Possible to Do Hard Work in a Cubicle?
6. The Resistance
7. The Powerful Culture of Gifts
8. There Is No Map
9. Making the Choice
10. The Culture of Connection
11. The Seven Abilities of the Linchpin
12. When It Doesn't Work
Summary: The System Is Broken
Acknowledgements
Glossary edit
- Linchpin: The indispensable employee.
- Emotional labor: The hard work of making art, producing generosity, and exposing creativity.
- Krulak's law: The closer you get to the front, the more power you have over the brand.
- Asymptote: A straight line that continually approaches a given curve but does not meet it at any finite distance.
Series & Lists edit
Authors & Contributors edit
- Seth Godin (Author)
First Edition edit
Original Language: English
Publisher: Portfolio Hardcover
Country: United States
Publication Date: January 26, 2010
ISBN: 978-1591843160
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Portfolio Hardcover
Country: United States
Publication Date: January 26, 2010
ISBN: 978-1591843160
Page Count: 256
Classification edit
- Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
- Dewey: 650.1
Notes for Parents edit
Reading Level: AdultsWhile there is no objectionable material for children, the subject matter is likely uninteresting to anyone less than college age. Of course, the most important readers are high school students, before it's too late! There are some great principles that parents may find valuable in helping their children to become linchpins when they start their careers. The premise is that school is designed to create mindless cogs, so parents must engage with their kids to stimulate their creativity and problem-solving skills.
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