I have a strong aversion to business self help books. Ones that supposedly tell you how to be successful, get rich quick, work fewer hours a day, exercise more influence on people, tend to turn me off.
So when I saw the subtitle of Seth Godin's new book Linchpin, "Are you indispensable?," a red flag went up in my head, but I read on. I have always admired Seth Godin's work and, somehow his campaign with the Acumen Fund told me this was different.
From the first page, it was obviously different.
This book does not tell you how to of anything; it simply demands you to become indispensable for the right reasons. Many of us already see the change that is happening in the marketplace. If we only lift the blinders that we have on as a business in the name of efficiency, we clearly see what customers are demanding. What we are demanding.
We are demanding a human interaction. Emotional connection with another human being, regardless of whether it is a business or personal interaction.
We no longer want to shop at a place where they treat us like a chicken in a chicken coop. We are tired of a service assembly line where even smiles and greetings are considered as "parts" of a system (for example, in McDonald's in Japan where $0 smiles are listed as a part of the menu).
The new economy of emotional currency (Seth calls this gift economy) demands more from us, but not at the humanity's expense.
On the contrary, it demands us to express our uniqueness, to do more than our job description, to create a meaning and a value in our interaction with one another.
It demands a middle manager like me to unlearn the discipline of blindly enforcing the procedures and frameworks. Even for a knowledge business like consulting where I live and work, we often fall into a trap of handing out the manuals to our junior workers. It is because, unfortunately, many of knowledge businesses nowadays are organized as a knowledge factory.
Linchpin challenges a struggling middle manager like me to become indispensable. I am learning to recognize my "lizard brain" (which, out of fear and a misguided need for self-preservation, tells us to hide and stay unremarkable) at work and say, thank you for sharing, and move on.
It is an important book that should be read by all who is serious about their career, whether young or old. I shared passages with my 13 year old, because I know the world will be a very different place when she is ready to enter the workforce. Because I want her to know it is demanded of her to be indispensable.
Linchpin gives us courage to be indispensable, share, lead, and be generous. The courage to appreciate our humanity once again. I believe that it is the only way that we get out of this turmoil that we are in.
It is not an easy book. It is not the kind of a book that you can put down and pretend you have learned all there is to learn from it. The book is just a start to live and work in a new way. It is the book to be taken seriously. Thank you, Seth, for the indispensable gift that you offer to the world.
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thank you misako
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the effort you put into this one.
Seth, it is an honor to have you comment on my blog. More than anything, it was an honor to be one of the first people to read this very important book.
ReplyDeleteVery true what you saying. I work with many middle managers that are so disillusioned with their jobs and crave something that matches the creativity and skills they have built over so many years. At the same time, corporate America is facing a major talent misalignment where the skills of their employees are wasted on sheer nonsense. That is what got me started on my path of becoming an entrepreneur, leaving the cloistered cubicles of the established software firms and create something from scratch. That will be the genesis of the new economy and next cycle of incredible invention.
ReplyDeleteBTW, keep up with the blog, you have a good writing style.
Excellent post on Seth's book. I love your take-away comments. I believe the world is changing and quickly. Linchpin will just accelerate this. Who better to teach The Linchpin Way too than your 13 year old!
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to work together.
Best,
Justin McCullough
leader4hire.net
twitter.com/leader4hire
Great review Misako!
ReplyDeleteWhat Seth says is so true. It is a win win situation for both employers and employees.
I am only halfway through the book. Will share my review with you when I am done.
Aaron from TechThinker.com
Misako, nice review of Linchpin. I liked the part that talked about your consulting firm becoming a knowledge factory. Good insight. Nice work! Keep shipping....drew :-)
ReplyDeleteI have neglected this blog for so long. Thank you, Mark, Leader4hire, Tech, drewmanity, for your kind words. Since I read Linchpin, every day I think about how to bring forth the Linchpin way at work, home, and school. These are three pillars that I am focusing on in terms of fostering the culture of linchpins. I believe we can build a better future by working together and also by working on our own in our immediate communities.
ReplyDeleteHi Misako:
ReplyDeleteThanks for this great review.
I understand why you are sharing passages of Linchpin with your 13 year old.
I have done the same with my college age son--a poet antipathetic to the business world. I knew this book would speak to him---and to anyone sensitive to the seismic shift rocking our economy, workplaces and culture.
You're right, "emotional work" is demanding. And it's scary. But as Seth writes, "Take the risk that you might make someone upset with your initiative, innovation and insight--it turns out you'll probably delight them instead."
Hi Lorraine,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your kind words. Your comment touched me very deeply. I know as a parent we want the best for our children, and then again, I realize what is "best" in my worldview may not be best for my daughter or for the age that we live in.
Linchpin gave me courage, or, to put it in another way, Linchpin helped me find the passion that I have had inside me all along. It helps to know that a fear is no longer an option. Fail lots, get used to being laughed at, allow myself to be remarkable. That's my motto.