At Large with Scott Norton #15: Seth Godin - Idea Virus Patient Zero
Years ago, I made a pilgrimage up the Hudson river to visit a guru. Conscientious, soft spoken, and sporting a shiny bald head, he had the profile of a wiseman in eastern philosophy. But in fact, he was a guru in the secular (yet mystical) philosophy of marketing.
Towards the end of our meeting, as I asked for advice on growing our startup Sir Kensington’s, he wrote a note on a piece of torn paper and slipped it across the table. I picked it up and read it: “People Like Us Do Things Like This.”
Huh?
My guest today is Seth Godin, whose work I've followed for nearly 20 years, and has informed both the businesses I've built and how I evaluate companies for investment.
Seth is the poet laureate of modern marketing. His genius lies in his ability to distill complex ideas into clear, actionable insights that resonate in today's attention-scarce world. And in a world addicted to shortcuts and quick wins, Godin’s message is refreshingly real and profoundly human: great work takes guts, vision, and the courage to stand out. As Seth says, "safe is risky."
Today we'll talk about his greatest hits -- though we took this occasion to talk about his brand new book, "This is Strategy" which he simplifies strategy into what he calls "a philosophy of becoming."
In Seth's world, marketing isn't just about selling - it's about making a difference. So if you want to build something consequential, queue up Seth's books on your kindle and please enjoy my conversation with Mr. Seth Godin.
Website Show Notes:
- First, ten blog post https://seths.blog/2009/04/first-ten/
- The Purple Cow https://www.amazon.com/Purple-Cow-Transform-Business-Remarkable/dp/014101640X
- Tribes https://www.amazon.com/Tribes-We-Need-You-Lead/dp/1491514736
- This is Marketing https://www.amazon.com/This-Marketing-Cant-Until-Learn/dp/0525540830/
- This is Strategy https://www.amazon.com/This-Strategy-Better-Elevate-Community-ebook/dp/B0CXWV8G29/
- The Carbon Almanac https://thecarbonalmanac.org/
- Askinosie Chocolate https://askinosie.com/
- Dürer's Rhinoceros https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C3%BCrer%27s_Rhinoceros
- Your business card is crap https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YBxeDN4tbk
- Seth’s dosa recipe https://seths.blog/modern-dosa-cookbook/
📸@swhnorton
🐦@swhnorton
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