Today’s Thoughts From interview is a real treat for me as I was honored to have one of my favorite bloggers and authors participate in this ongoing interview series. Seth Godin almost needs no introduction, but here it is anyway.
Seth Godin is:
- a celebrated author (Linchpin is his latest book);
- blogger (Seth’s blog is the most popular marketing blog in the world);
- entrepreneur (founding companies such as Yoyodyne and Squidoo);
- a sought-after speaker.
Seth graciously took some time out of his schedule to respond to my E-Mail interview request. Without any further ado, here are ten thoughts from Seth Godin.
You are often referred to as a marketer. I’ve come to think of you as a motivational author in the following sense: you are continually (and increasingly) trying to motivate people to do good work. You’re not trying to make them feel better and you’re not trying to give them the “x step method to acheiving A, B and C.” You’re trying to jolt them awake and get them to do good work. Does that seem like a fair assessment to you or is there any other overreaching arc to your work?
I think I need to combine both. The only reason there’s an opportunity to do the sort of good work you’re describing is that the economy has changed, marketing is different, good ideas spread and there’s a demand for people who make change. So, marketing still informs my work.
Which of your own books is your least favorite and why?
A long time ago I wrote a book called “email addresses of the rich and famous.” It was a goof, it was fun and at some level, it was just plain wrong.
You’ve talked about your love of food (particularly good restaurant experiences). Are you a fast eater or a slow eater?
Compared to some of the people I grew up with, slow.
Compared to many of my friends, Speedy Gonzales.
Are card games and board games underrated in this age of video and computer animation? I know that you worked in the computer game industry a number of years ago, so I think you’d have an interesting perspective on this.
Other than sharing the word ‘game’, they’re not in the same category. The nature of competing against a human being you can see in a game that’s abstract (like Scrabble) is quite different from defeating bits and registers in an immersive 3D digital environment. Done right, both can succeed, but for me, the human element is essential for it to really mean something.
If you’ve ever played Words with Friends on the iPhone, I think you can smell the hybrid that’s around the corner.
As I understand it, your new book Linchpin talks about how to become an indispensable employee, team member, business partner (?), etc. and why it’s important to be that kind of person. You’ve said that it was the hardest book you’ve ever written (or that it was the hardest book for you to write). Why is that?
I think the difficulty comes from writing a book that’s personal (personal about the reader as much as me) at the same time I was challenging myself to push my comfort zone and to connect with the ideas at a more elemental level. All of that is frightening, because if you’re wrong, people don’t ignore you, they get angry with you.
When you talk to people about all of the different work that you’ve done, is there any one thing that they refer to most often? Is it a physical book (e.g. The Purple Cow, The Dip, Tribes, or now Linchpin)? Is it an eBook (i.e. Unleashing the Ideavirus)? Is it Squidoo? Is it your blog? Or is it something else, like a video or presentation?
Zig Ziglar used to say that his tapes changed far more people than his presentations. Generally, I’m hearing that it’s the insistent dripping of the blog combined with books that some people feel are eerily well timed that is moving the needle for them. There is no grand plan, though, just my best attempt to share whatever I can.
How important is physical fitness to you in doing good work?
I’ve been fit and I’ve been unfit, and it seems to me that the endorphins and other chemicals that flow through my brain when I’m fit tend to push me to do better work. Getting the noise in your head to quiet down a bit when you’re fit and well rested seems easier to me.
How important is it to be funny or humorous in professional life? Can it be an advantage or is it ever a significant disadvantage?
Funny on purpose or funny laugh-at-you? Funny because you’re cracking a joke or funny because people enjoy being around you and you’re quick and good with words?
I think it’s pretty clear that humor as a stalling or a defense or an ego mechanism isn’t helpful. I don’t invite Will Ferrell to brainstorming meetings, because while he might be great on screen for 90 minutes, I’m not sure he’ll be helpful in pushing in other directions. Maybe I’m wrong…
Pretend that the Internet has been destroyed overnight. What do you do when you wake up the next day?
Check my email!
Discover that it’s not working.
Get a real job.
Any final thoughts for our readers?
Go. Make something happen. Ship. Do work that matters. Ship again. Make a difference. Ship.
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I found his comment, “…marketing still informs my work,” interesting. I can see how he would, and it does, but I think he has gone quite a bit beyond that. I was also a bit surprised to the games question and answer. I wasn’t aware he use to be involved with that. His answer shows he’s still on top of the field. Great post!
Bill´s last blog ..Books that have influenced me
@Bill – I agree, I really think he’s more into motivation, but marketing can certainly be a part of motivation. As for the video games, in one of his books (can’t remember which one) he mentions getting the impossible job of trying to launch a bunch of computer games back in the 1980s with virtually no staff to help him. Neat stuff.
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Q&A with Seth Godin – blogger author entrepreneur | Broadcasting … [link to post]
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Nice work, and an interesting sounding fellow. I will have to check out his book.
@Scott M – thanks. He has 11 other books, including The Dip (about when to quit and when to keep going) and The Purple Cow (kind of a classic new marketing book).
Thanks for sharing Seth with those who don’t know who he is, and for asking him questions he doesn’t typically share with his own blog readers. I thought it cute when you introduce him and suggest he needs no introduction, for if you approach Joe Public, Joe would never have heard of the dude.
On s side note, it’s a misnomer you have 12 comments when you really have two (well, now three) and two responses by you. Twitter comments aren’t comments.
Ari Herzog´s last blog ..How to Enhance Your Blog Comment: Forget the Comment
@Ari – I’m really not sure how to configure things to separate out the two; I need to look into that. As for Seth needing an introduction (or not), I figured that most of my readers had heard of him. Of course, I could be wrong.
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Thanks for the interview, Mark and Seth. One thing that struck me about Linchpin was how it was really the conversation that was already happening in my own head… but in Seth’s voice. I found myself nodding and exclaiming out loud to myself, “That’s what I’ve been saying!” with regards to what the economic shifts really mean for people.
Anyways, some overall fascinating and entertaining answers. I love seeing how people answer that last question, Mark.
Michael Martine´s last blog ..Video Tour of My Home Office
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Interview with Seth Godin by @MarkDykeman – [link to post]
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@Michael – thanks for the comments. You’ve probably noticed that I tend to repeat the last two questions for everyone who participates in these Email interviews. I like to see how the answers compare over time. Interesting reaction to reading Linchpin – perhaps you and Seth were reading each other’s minds?
Possibly. Bald guys can do that, you know.
Michael Martine´s last blog ..Video Tour of My Home Office
@Michael – I’ll have to take your word for that.
Thanks for sharing this interview Mark. Really interesting perspectives from the great man.
I’ve not read Linchpin yet, although it arrived last week from Amazon. I’m really looking forward to it now after what I’ve read.
Thanks again for sharing.
@Matthew – you’re welcome.
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