Linchpin by Seth Godin: Book Review ON FEB 15 IN BOOK REVIEWS BY CHRIS MANTELOS Linchpin by Seth Godin is a gem of a read when it comes to inspiration for work, leisure, and how we conduct our lives. Godin’s mean theme in “Linchpin” is in becoming an artist one does not have a set schedule on what tasks they will perform on a daily basis. One must balance work and leisure. Godin suggests the genuses and master-minds presently and throughout history did not put in countless hours at their craft. Even though Malcolm Gladwell says for a person to potentially be a master in a craft they must put in at least 10,000 hours. For Godin it is not necessarily the smartest guy in the room or the cum laude MBA grad from Harvard. But the trail-brazer where street smarts is more important than book smarts. For Godin those who follow the rules are ruined in this new economy. You must know what the rules are but you and your team/partner need to realize your full potential and go by your own rule book. No manuals and no compass to use in the new information age. Godin suggests “corporate blogs are lame.” It is the brand and the experience which allows us to buy a product or service. Not what we think about what the marketing department is doing at a particular moment. Godin’s method of operation and business plan is Generosity=Give=Take=Give. People have forgotten it is not ultra-individually which leads to success, but working with a team and being a team player. Ideals of individualism portrayed in the “Great Gatsby” and the American Dream has to do with perception over reality. Being indispensible, unconventional and unorthodox. Being a artist is not conventional. We don’t need to think outside the box but be on the fringes. Working within what may work and what should work. Not to go off the rails, but stay within the perimeters of what the other or others would agree as acceptable. Godin’s greatest line in the book is “dignity is more valuable than wealth.” This passage could be compared to Aristotle’s “The Politics” which suggests people look up to those with money, but not virtue. This raises the question is virtue the same as dignity? Probably, but were the (Three) Wise Men from the Bible who visited Jesus after his birth bearing gifts and gold. Where is the Christian humility in bearing gold? There isn’t any. Humility is the greatest Christian virtue when discussion the question of morality and ethics. But it shows us does virtue, dignity, and the accumulation of wealth make us smarter than the man sitting next to us? Also, Machiavelli’s famous saying is it better to be feared than loved. But research shows loneliness leads to depression. Being feared may be a good thing but not when it comes to throwing a party in your behave. Or create diplomatic ties with another nation and when trying to negotiate a non-compete clause or a change in price from a vendor. Foucault suggests knowledge is power. Then again…wealth can be gained or lost but knowledge is constant and remains with us throughout our lives.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Jul 2013 03:42:59 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015