Its hard for me to take Seth Godin seriously in his new book, "Linchpin." I have the privilege of reviewing the book before its official launch on January 26th because I'm a member of www.triiibes.com, a group built around his last book Tribes. Don't get me wrong, I think Seth is brilliant. He's a marketing genius. He points out facts that support how we've been programmed by the media, government and school system to not stand out and share our genius with others and follow the status quo. It's a message he knows we're afraid to hear, but a message we so desperately need. It's about how we have a choice to ignore this mindset and make a difference in our world and to others. However, it's hard for me to relate to this message when I see his own lizard brain stopping him from using social media tools to connect with others and make a difference on a larger scale. This prehistoric resistance has caused his own credibility to waver and flies in the face of the main lessons in his book. (Just Google "seth godin and twitter" and you'll see I'm not the only one talking about Seth resisting Twitter and other social media platform.) In his introduction, he states, "Linchpins don't work in a vacuum." and, "...indispensible work is work that is connected with others." Isn't that what using social media tools like Twitter and Facebook are all about?
His new book, "Linchpin" is a case study about how indispensable we need to make ourselves because the world of being just another cog in the wheel (as we know it) is over. He talks about connecting with humanity in your work and being an artist--sharing your gifts with others. Yet, when you go to his Twitter page you see:
BOOM! This is a pretty high wall he set between himself and his followers. It smacks of "I'm protecting my identity. Nothing to see here. GO AWAY." The lock is a great visual exclamation point on this message. Nice touch. For a guy who talks about connecting with others and sharing wisdom and ideas in this book, this is a real shame and a roadblock to this particular book's true message.
Generously connecting with others is what his book "Linchpin" is all about. He states on page 235 in the Summary, "Every successful organization is built around people. Humans who do art. People who interact with other people. Men and women who don't merely shuffle money, but interact, give gifts, and connect." Yet Seth is not participating actively. Sure he connects on his blog every day, but he doesn't allow comments. No interaction.
The reason I call Seth a lizard brain is because he dedicates an entire chapter to it between pages 101-149 in a section called "The Resistance." In fact, the letter which came with the book encouraged us to bookmark that particular section in the postscript. What's funny to me is he's using the same worn out excuses to explain why he doesn't participate. Take a look at the 9:00 minute mark in the video interview between him and Loic Le Muir below and you'll hear Seth's lizard brain state:
- I don't have time for more important things if I tweet.
- I can't do it well or be "remarkable" at it like Chris Brogan.
- I don't want to hear people yelling at me.
- I'm too late to the party.
Nonsense lizard brain! (Pun intended.) Don't think I haven't heard these excuses before. A lot of other business owners feel the same.
However, please understand Twitter is so much more than what you posted about it on March 24, 2009:
- Who likes me?
- Is everything okay?
- How can I become more popular?
- What's new?
- I'm bored, let's make some noise
For me, Twitter is the "good mornings" I share every day with new people and people I've followed from the beginning. It's a place for me to share ideas and learn from others mistakes and wins. It's instant answers to burning questions. It's research and testing ground. It's human connection on a very primal level, yet more advanced and prolific than you can imagine. It's keeping up with news and events which I might be able to share with others and wouldn't have found otherwise. Twitter has become a place for me to connect with human beings I would have never had the chance to connect with if it didn't exist. It's made my offline connections even stronger because I've been able to shorten introductions, learn from others and share insights such as this post instantaneously. Ready to be shocked? I do all of this in less than one hour per day and know a lot of others who do the same. (I won't even go into how quickly the Red Cross was able to raise over $5 million for recent Haiti victims because word spread so quickly (hours!) using social media tools like Twitter and the SMS platform.)
I think Seth's lizard brain is scared to death and a little selfish. (There, I typed it and lightning didn't strike me, yet.) Yes, he states in the video he responds to every email he receives. That's a wonderful thing, but if you read my post about the Flight Attendant Effect and how people observing one positive interaction creates a planeload of happy passengers, you'll understand why I think Seth is keeping his light under his hat. Email isn't a one to many interaction, its one to one. If he can respond to an individual and allow his wisdom to touch not only that person, but many people with a few keystrokes, that to me is a gift. Is there garbage out there? Oh yes and a lot of it, but the gold nuggets and positive interactions far outweigh the negative crap. (Twitter lists help sort through the junk a lot!)
So, Seth, I'm throwing down this gauntlet. If you really stand by the "Linchpin" premise of doing things that might be uncomfortable and ignoring your lizard brain, start Tweeting. Just once a day. I promise, it won't take you but 5 seconds to post something interesting, share an anecdote or say "good morning" to someone new. You'll even have time to comb your hair. Start sharing and connecting with others and take that silly message about protecting yourself your tweets off your page. Open up to the possibility that using this tool might change even one life and encourage someone to ship their art. Who knows? You might just enlighten a whole new generation of linchpins!
After all, I've put myself on the line and shipped a post which is probably going to bring a whole lot of interesting interaction my way. (Or maybe it won't.) Your book gave me the courage to resist listening to my own big, bad lizard brain say, "Don't post that. Seth is not going to like you. He'll avoid you at parties. Triiibes members will tear you apart. Its not popular to criticize someone of that stature. Stay safe and don't write the post."
Thanks to you and your book, I'm not afraid to point out something that has bothered me for awhile. Although you're right about our current state of affairs, we need more people like you interacting and sharing good things with others on all levels of engagement. I hope you will respect my view. I hope you'll see that you've taught me something important and your message got through loud and clear. Keep in mind the world won't change overnight once you start, but someone's world just might.
I'm just a business owner who reads your books and considers the possibilities of your message in my own world. Why should I really care about this? I'm excited by the possibility that, just maybe, I can give you a small gift today as precious as the ones you continue to give others through the wisdom in your blog and books. Open your world a little more. Don't hide your brilliance. Reach out and make an impact on people who don't know you yet but need to read your message. Be a even bigger linchpin. Your opportunity awaits and I think you know I'm right. (Just don't tell that lizard brain. He may not like it.)
