If you’ve been to any of my seminars, read my book, been a client, or have had a conversation with me, you probably know that I’m a huge fan of Seth Godin. If you don’t know, you’re about to find out. I love that he’s always challenging the status quo, giving out great ideas, and he comes from a genuine place of wanting to help people be better at what they do. I don’t know about you, but I can’t say I know too many Seth Godins.

For years, I’ve thought about what I would say to him if I ever got the opportunity to meet him face to face. How do you thank your hero? What do you say to someone who has changed the way you think about things over and over again? It may sound petty, but it was and has been very important to me to always properly thank people who influence me in a positive way. Seth has done this so many times through his insightful blogs, books, and posts on triiibes (his online community), that coming up with the way to say thank you was on my mind a lot.

We’ll get back to that in a minute. First, here’s the history:

I first found out about Seth in 2004 when I worked at the radio stations. The big man at corporate gave everyone in programming an assignment. The assignment was to read Purple Cow, by Seth Godin. Unfortunately, I wasn’t on the required readers list, but I did get my hands on a copy and took a look at it. I still remember reading it and thinking about how it made me feel: like there was someone else out there like me, who knew that standing out and being different was the only way to get noticed. In radio marketing, this was the only way to get noticed, yet there was still a lot of resistance to the idea.

My first thought after reading Purple Cow: Was it really possible that I wasn’t the only weirdo?

Why would I ask myself that question? Well, when I was working inside of different companies over the years, I would always get great evaluations, my bosses were impressed with how hard I worked, and I got along well with my co-workers. I always created systems, brought new ideas, contributed even when I wasn’t asked to, and questioned why we did things certain ways. I consider these things to be huge accomplishments, but I usually felt like my work was not being appreciated. Often times when I had an idea, I would be met with this: “well, we’ve always done it this way…” or “let’s save that for next year and see if there is money in the budget…”. I actually heard these reactions more often than the welcoming “great idea! Let’s act on that” or “we need more like you”. I got used to being stopped, misunderstood, called an overachiever, a workaholic, and someone who cared too much. I think that part of me shut down after awhile and started to believe that I would be more accepted if I could make myself less than excited to get up for work, unable to contribute in meetings, and “just do my job”. I could be like everyone else, just collect a paycheck and do what I was told. The only problem was, I wasn’t okay with just doing what I was told and not questioning it, which is exactly why I felt so weird.

Until I discovered Seth Godin. <enter the shift>

I wouldn’t say the shift happened quickly, but I knew I was onto something. I continued to read his blogs, his books, and interact on his site, Triiibes over the years. The real change occurred very recently when he released his new book, “Linchpin”.

The subtitle of Seth’s book is: “Are You Indispensable?” and the premise of the book is to make your work your art, to fight back when you doubt yourself and your abilities, to share your gifts with the world, and never settle for less than you deserve. (There’s a lot more than that, but that’s the overall jist of it). Imagine how this book resonated with me, after feeling like I had many gifts to share, so many ideas, so much passion to give, and, often times, no one to give it to.

Reading Linchpin made me feel less like a weirdo, and more like a leader than I have ever felt in my entire life.

I feel empowered after reading Seth’s book, knowing that all the people who say “that can’t be done” are listening to their “Lizard Brain”, (as Seth puts it) that little part of our brains that try to keep us safe, away from risks, away from something that could hurt us or make us fail. Now I feel better knowing that having ideas and being excited means that my Lizard Brain is under control and that I can do anything. There is a whole section entitled “The Resistance” which points to what you will face when you try to do something original, unique, and for you. It’s the hard part where most people quit, in fear of doing it wrong. I face The Resistance every day, with my clients and in the decisions I make for my business. The pay off happens when you fight through it and take the risk (very few do).

By saying I choose to do what I think is right, I am fighting The Resistance.

Are you?

The other interesting point about this book is that it’s written for Linchpins who want to break free, do what they love, and lead others to do the same. Why is that interesting? Because it came out right around the same time as my book, which is my story about being a Linchpin, what I did to break out, and what you can do to do the same! There are many parallels in the books that point to the same things:

1. Be yourself to get what you want

2. Don’t be afraid to be different

3. Make your work your art

4. Find others like you and empower each other

5. Fight the urge to be average and give in

6. You have to take risks if you are going to lead

Sound like topics you might be interested in? I’ll leave the rest to your imagination and hope that you pick up the books. If you take the advice, they will change your life. Promise.

Back to the rest of the story.

You’re probably asking yourself, (based on your natural curiosity from the title) how and when I met Seth Godin? I met him last week at his book launch (!) I planned the trip to New York City, attended a small dinner gathering he put together and went to the launch event the next day. At the dinner, he came over to my table and we talked about my book. Remember how I said I wanted to find the perfect way to thank him for everything he did to change me? What better way to say thank you than to give him my book, which is a product of the strength and courage he gave me to step out and start my business in the first place! Inside the book, I wrote him a short note:

“Seth, You set this Linchpin free. Thank you”

Seth Godin and I at his dinner

If you find yourself feeling like there’s more to your life, your career, your dreams, I hope you sincerely consider picking up Seth’s book. If anything, you’ll at least know that you can do anything you want. If you would have told me last year that I would have started a business, wrote a book, AND met Seth Godin, I would have thought you were a little bit crazy. This year, I say anything is possible, and it is! If you feel yourself choking or short of breath when you read that statement, your Lizard Brain may be taking over. It’s time to act. Fast!

Good luck!
To read more reviews of Linchpin, click here

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