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Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? |  | Author: Seth Godin
Publisher: Portfolio Hardcover
Category: Book
List Price: $25.95
Buy New: $14.83
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Seller: AleisterCrowleybooks
Rating:  182 reviews
Sales Rank: 94
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 256
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.1
ISBN: 1591843162
Dewey Decimal Number: 650.1
EAN: 9781591843160
ASIN: 1591843162
Publication Date: January 26, 2010
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | ISBN13: 9781591843160 | | • | Condition: NEW | | • | Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark. |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Review
Amazon Exclusive: Hugh MacLeod Reviews Linchpin
Hugh MacLeod is an artist, cartoonist, and Web 2.0 pundit whose blog, gapingvoid.com, has two million unique monthly visitors. His first book, Ignore Everybody, was an Amazon Top Ten Business Book of the Year and a Wall Street Journal bestseller. Read his exclusive Amazon guest review of Linchpin:
This is by far Seth’s most passionate book. He’s pulling fewer punches. He’s out for blood. He’s out to make a difference. And that glorious, heartfelt passion is obvious on every page, even if it is in Seth’s usual quiet, lucid, understated manner.
A linchpin, as Seth describes it, is somebody in an organization who is indispensable, who cannot be replacedâher role is just far too unique and valuable. And then he goes on to say, well, seriously folks, you need to be one of these people, you really do. To not be one is economic and career suicide.
No surprises thereâthat’s exactly what one would expect Seth to say. But here’s where it gets interesting.
In his best-known book, Purple Cow, Seth’s message was, “Everyone’s a marketer now.” In All Marketers Are Liars, his message was, “Everyone’s a storyteller now.” In Tribes, his message was, “Everyone’s a leader now.”
And from Linchpin?
"Everyone’s an artist now."
By Seth’s definition, an artist is not just some person who messes around with paint and brushes, an artist is somebody who does (and I LOVE this term) “emotional work.”
Work that you put your heart and soul into. Work that matters. Work that you gladly sacrifice all other alternatives for. As a working artist and cartoonist myself, I know exactly what he means. It’s not what you do, it’s the way that you do it.
The only people who have a hope of becoming linchpins in any organization, who have any hope of changing anything for the better in real terms, are those who have the capacity to do “emotional work” at a high levelâto be true artists at whatever they set their minds on doing. The guys who just plod around the office corridors, just turning up for their paycheck.... Well, those guys don’t have a prayer, poor things. The world is just too interesting and competitive now.
And Seth then challenges us, the readers, to become linchpins ourselves. To make the leap. To become artists. To do emotional work, whatever the sacrifice may be. It’s our choice, and it’s our burden. Seth won’t be there to catch us if we fall, but to become the people we need to be eventually, well, we probably wouldn’t want him to, anyway.
Congratulations, Seth. You have penned a real gem of a book here. Rock on.
--Hugh MacLeod
Product Description
"The only way to get what you're worth is to stand out, to exert emotional labor, to be seen as indispensable, and to produce interactions that organizations and people care deeply about."
In bestsellers such as Purple Cow and Tribes, Seth Godin taught readers how to make remarkable products and spread powerful ideas. But this book is different. It's about you - your choices, your future, and your potential to make a huge difference in whatever field you choose.
There used to be two teams in every workplace: management and labor. Now there's a third team, the linchpins. These people invent, lead (regardless of title), connect others, make things happen, and create order out of chaos. They figure out what to do when there's no rule book. They delight and challenge their customers and peers. They love their work, pour their best selves into it, and turn each day into a kind of art.
Linchpins are the essential building blocks of great organizations. Like the small piece of hardware that keeps a wheel from falling off its axle, they may not be famous but they're indispensable. And in today's world, they get the best jobs and the most freedom.
Have you ever found a shortcut that others missed? Seen a new way to resolve a conflict? Made a connection with someone others couldn't reach? Even once? Then you have what it takes to become indispensable, by overcoming the resistance that holds people back. Linchpin will show you how to join the likes of...
*Keith Johnson, who scours flea markets across the country to fill Anthropologie stores with unique pieces.
*Marissa Mayer, who keeps Google focused on the things that really matter.
*Jason Zimdars, a graphic designer who got his dream job at 37signals without a résumé.
*David, who works at Dean and Deluca coffeeshop in New York. He sees every customer interaction as a chance to give a gift and is cherished in return.
As Godin writes, "Every day I meet people who have so much to give but have been bullied enough or frightened enough to hold it back. It's time to stop complying with the system and draw your own map. You have brilliance in you, your contribution is essential, and the art you create is precious. Only you can do it, and you must."
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| Customer Reviews:
 Effective Psychology At Its Best March 11, 2010
Joe (Houston)
Seth is a great wordateer. His ability to provoke even the simplest worker into action astounds us all. By getting 1000 readers of his book to take a small action such as walking 30 feet far surpasses the achievement and contribution to society of one person climbing Mt. Everest (29,035 ft).
I have already internalized and practiced his words long before they were published. So, reading his book has confirmed my need to find effective ways to become indispensible, i.e., a Linchpin. Once you learn how to break through the barriers after reading this book, you can do it again and again.
Back in 2007, I and a colleague calmed our lizard brains, took action, and reached out to NASA to try to convince them with hard evidence that they needed more storage space on our glorious space station. At first they scoffed us, but after more than two years, the seeds we planted finally sprouted and they spent $30M to modify a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module on the last shuttle mission so it can be permanently attached to the space station as a stowage facility. Our small initial actions turned into a huge payoff for our customer. Today, NASA is taking storage space much more seriously than in the past. They are now concerned with collecting ideas to address the growing problem of trash removal from the space station. Rest assured and right or wrong, I will be fully fueled with ideas and an approach to an affordable and practical resolution to this growing problem, with no real fear of reprisals, especially now that this book is published and I can live these words.
Passionate, provocative .. insightful! March 10, 2010
Kevin Quinley (Fairfax, VA)
A passionate and provocative manifesto for today's knowledge worker! Should be "must reading" for anyone in today's work force who wants to remain employed.
Linchpin Award tells you what I think of this book March 6, 2010
Michael P. Chaffin
I could tell you how this is Seth's best work yet. Or how it's a true gift to you, your family and your colleagues. It's all of that. I was so moved by the concepts that I created a Linchpin Award for the Capital Hotel, which replaces the traditional and unremarkable employee of the month award. See the first presentation... [...]
Full of Life and Wisdom. March 6, 2010
Cornelis Van Der Bent (Here)
Linchpin is not about businesses and jobs; it's about life, and is full of wisdom. Seth Godin paints a true picture of who we humans are. Then, he leads ways to finding ourselves, each other, and our place in this world. This book touches hearts, and changes lives. Read/Listen it!
 Inspiration That Sticks March 5, 2010
Drea Knufken (Boulder, CO)
Seth Godin is a linchpin. He creates useful and enlightening written content. He covers business, marketing, personal growth, and career success with a single brush stroke. He's a marketing guru, a public persona, a sage.
He also defies simple explanation.
That very characteristic-using a combination of attributes to become indispensable at what you do-is a key feature of linchpins. A linchpin is a person with a unique skill set and way of doing things. Their combination of skills, talents, and abilities, which Godin defines in his book, make them indispensable.
If a linchpin works in a company, they are the person a company can't live without. Well-known corporate linchpins include Steve Jobs or Google's Marissa Mayer.
Linchpins that don't work for companies are indispensable, too. They provide something so economically valuable that they're changing their industry. Jay Parkinson is an example. Many affect large numbers of people in a positive way. Like your favorite barista at the coffee shop-the one you look forward to seeing every time you visit. Whether corporate or not, because of their unique abilities, no linchpins want for contacts or jobs.
In his new book, "Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?," Seth Godin makes the case that the world needs more linchpins. He gives you background on why linchpins are so valuable right now. He makes it clear how linchpins operate, who they are, and why you need to be one.
Companies Need Linchpins
Mediocrity, just showing up to work and doing what you're told, used to guarantee you a paycheck. It won't anymore, writes Godin. Today, our economy rewards the people without whom the company can't function. You guessed it-linchpins.
Some businesses have a model of hiring "cheap drones (they) can scale, replace, and disrespect." But that, claims Godin, won't lead to customer loyalty or growth. It's not a good strategy; it's survival and maintenance. In order to flourish, a company needs linchpins. What's good for the individual (being indispensable) is good for the company, too.
Content
In his book, Godin doesn't tell you how to be a linchpin. Instead, he gives you an aggregate picture of who linchpins are, what they do, and why they're so coveted.
Godin starts the book by setting the stage for today's work world. Many previously white-collar projects can now be done for free, either by crowds or by machines. Obedience and just showing up to work are passé. Unfortunately, school and the media have indoctrinated people to be factory workers. As a result, we automatically buy into a career system constructed on fear: Obey the boss or be fired.
Godin emphasizes that we need to cast that aside. He details what you need to do in order to change your factory-worker mentality. Instead of just sitting down and blankly following orders, you have to bring your soul to work. You have to stay human and be brave. You need to create, connect, and invent in your work. And, of course, you have to work hard.
If being remarkable feels threatening, Godin explains why in following chapters. The amygdala, or lizard brain, will try to sabotage your best efforts, he says. If the lizard brain perceives something as being too risky, it tries to stop. It does this by making you hesitate, compelling you to overdo things, and undermining your confidence. After showing you how the lizard brain tries to stop you, Godin tells you how to thwart it.
Subsequent chapters define the qualities and abilities of a linchpin. Linchpins are artists, per a definition that Godin puts forth in the next chapter. They bring emotional labor to their work. They are generous, giving without expectation of reciprocity. This is an essential quality in an economy that has integrated a culture of gifts, according to the author.
Linchpins also don't wait for instructions. They figure out how to create value, then go do it. If you want to be a linchpin, make your own map. If this scares you, make the choice to be bigger than your lizard brain.
Now you've decided to be a generous, self-motivated, fear-accepting artist. There's more. In order to be a linchpin, you must be socially intelligent. You connect with other people through genuine human interactions. This connection helps make you indispensable.
The linchpin picture is almost complete. Towards the end of the book, Godin adds a few more details to round it off. Besides bringing emotional labor to work and making their own maps, linchpins interact with customers, staff, and members of their organization. They possess a unique kind of creativity and talent. They use their internal map-making skills and judgment to manage complexity. Good judgment and generosity, combined with deep knowledge of your field, is yet another ability.
He concludes the book with a qualifier. Putting your heart and soul into your art doesn't always monetize. If this is the case, continue to be a generous artist. Learn from your previous experience. The compromise, if you can call it that, is to learn "how to love what you do to make money."
Remarks
Linchpin read like a series of blog posts. The writing style leaves latitude for personal interpretation. Depending on your experience and situation, Linchpin's messages will hit you on a personal level, more so than other business books. Here's what I took away.
As an entrepreneur, I didn't find the first six chapters groundbreaking. I already have my suspicions about the effectiveness of the factory model, schooling, and "just showing up" to work. It was pleasant to affirm my beliefs by reading what Godin had to say, but that's all.
I loved the second half of the book, however. My favorite chapter was called "The Resistance." It focuses on thwarting the overprotective tendencies of the amygdala, or lizard brain. The chapter explains how fear manifests and how to effectively accept it while staying in charge. Personally-and the book is personal-I found this to be the most useful chapter.
Following chapters let me piece together a picture of what a linchpin looks like. I didn't find a roadmap on how to be one (I guess I'm supposed to make my own map), but I found enough descriptions for a clearer mental image of a linchpin.
Some je ne sais quoi in Godin's writing also inspired me to try to be a linchpin. The mental picture of a linchpin, combined with the inspiration to try to fit that image, settled over me subtly, like a blanket. Something permeated. I do not know how it will manifest.
By the end of the book, I had absorbed the following message: Society rewards you for standing out, giving gifts, making connections, and being remarkable. I was motivated to try.
I'll keep this book around because I want to sustain that inspiration, not just go back to old routines and let the book's message fizzle out. Some might find this book mind-blowing--it depends on how you think and your personal situation. I recommend it for everybody. I would especially encourage you to read it if you're in a disappointing job, discouraged about work, or feel stuck in your business or career. Linchpin has a magic about it. Don't miss it.
(Book review by Drea Knufken)
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