Seth Godin: 20x Bestselling Author + Marketer Extraordinarie (ep. 356)

Live Inspired Podcast with John O'Leary

Seth Godin is one of the world’s most renowned marketing experts, 20-time bestselling author, distinguished speaker and writer of one of the most popular blogs on the Internet. Seth is also one of the most humble people I’ve ever spoken with + shared profound yet simple, thought-provoking life reflections I can’t stop thinking about.

Seth’s brilliant insights on life, success, failure, and the “audacity to settle for anything less than remarkable” are a treasure you won’t want to miss.

SHOW NOTES:

• In coaching kid's sports team, Seth found they learned, played and engaged more when losing than if they were winning.
• "If it's easy to measure and easy to gain, it's not a useful measure. And if the measure profits someone else more than it profits you, you're working for them and the measure."
• Stop stealing dreams: On his blog, Seth shares his beliefs in needing to change the current educational system to address the needs of the future, not the needs of the past. Read it here.
• In the year Seth received 800 rejection letters for book proposals, he gained the trust of the editors and learned they wanted to publish books they were proud of.
• Instead of doubting himself while pitching book proposals, Seth asked, "what don't I know that they know," and inspired the idea of The Dip and learning to quit the right stuff.
• "It's important we support those who do work they care about that matters to other people."
• Seth Godin deep-dives into the meanings behind some of his most notable quotes:
  • “Attitudes are skills.”
  • "Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you should set up a life you don't need to escape from."
  • “I define anxiety as experiencing failure in advance.”
  • “How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable?”
• Tuning in via livestream, Seth answered questions from Live Inspired Community members:
  • Abby asked: What is "the work" of yours that you are most proud of?
  • Ethan asked: You’re clearly a well read person. What advice do you have to prioritize being a life-long learner?
• Learn more about Seth Godin on his website or read his daily blog here.

SETH GODIN'S LIVE INSPIRED 7

1. Q. What is the best book you’ve ever read? A. The best, most important book that anyone will ever read is the book they write.
   • [Seth said What to Do When it's Your Turn was his best, most important book.]
2. Q. What is a characteristic or trait that you possessed as a child that you wish you still exhibited today? A. Laughing.
3. Q. Your house is on fire, all living things and people are out. You have the opportunity to run in and grab one item. What would it be? A. The canoe paddle I hand-carved for my wife in 1979.
4. Q. You are sitting on a bench overlooking a gorgeous beach. You have the opportunity to have a long conversation with anyone living or dead. Who would it be? A. My mom and talk about how much I miss her.
5. Q. What is the best advice you’ve ever received? A. Any advice I can give you won't help. My advice would be, "Stop asking for advice."
6. Q. What advice would you give your 20-year-old self? A. I've had lots of professional pitfalls and I wouldn't trade any of them because if I would have skipped any of them, I wouldn't be me. So I'd say, "It's going to be okay."
7. Q. It’s been said that all great people can have their lives summed up in one sentence. How do you want yours to read? A. He made a ruckus.