Seth's Blog

本頁 50 篇

• The Hallmark dilemma

  The slogan is “when you care enough to send the very best.” But more accurately, it’s “when you don’t care enough to be on the hook.” For a low-stakes social interaction, the Hallmark card is a convenient and safe solution. Low-risk, it gets the job done. People don’t blame you for letting someone from Kansas […]

  2026/10/31 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/the-hallmark-dilemma/

• Cooperation (the fall book list)

  Last week’s book list was a success, and I realized that it would work even better with others. Bookstores work precisely because they stack the books right next to each other. Even though each of these authors has a book out this fall, they’re not my competition. Too often, we avoid cooperation because we’re embracing […]

  2026/10/30 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/cooperation-the-fall-book-list/

• Explaining funny

  This is one of the most famous comedy bits of all time: But why is it funny? The disconnect between experiencing it and explaining it represents one of the challenges of teaching. It’s also at the heart of leadership, marketing and culture. Design, good taste, genre, communication style–these are all human endeavors that inform our […]

  2026/10/29 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/explaining-funny/

• Be careful what you wish for

  At a recent Q&A, a small businessperson asked how to get clients to be more alike, willing to engage in systemic work that would be easier to deliver and offer a simpler path to getting the job done. Of course, once there’s a manual, anyone can do the work, and anyone will. It might be […]

  2026/10/28 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/be-careful-what-you-wish-for-2/

• The half-life of disappointment

  When things don’t turn out the way you pictured, how long does it take for you to move on? Reducing this window of disappointment unlocks the path to creativity and leadership. People who get over disappointment more quickly aren’t less excited about the project than the others. They realize that getting attached to an outcome […]

  2026/10/27 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/the-half-life-of-disappointment/

• Is our attitude up to us?

  If the stakes are high enough and the duration you need to keep it together is short enough, can you control your response? Because if we can do it then, we can learn to do it now. Acknowledging that it’s a choice is difficult, because choices come with responsibility. “I’m not a patient person,” is […]

  2026/10/26 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/is-our-attitude-up-to-us/

• Hospitality in the mirror

  Danny Meyer and Will Guidara have each written fabulous books about hospitality. They missed one thing. The customers who get the most authentic and lasting hospitality are the ones who deserve it. And the ones who deserve it actually enjoy it the most. Extraordinary hospitality offers someone more human effort and delight than they expect. […]

  2026/10/25 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/hospitality-in-the-mirror/

• Caveman leadership and the CDO*

  We don’t have written records, but I’m imagining that groups of cavemen made decisions around the fire in largely the same way we run sophisticated organizations today. About a hundred years ago, three disciplines helped create the modern world: Scientific management used a stopwatch and the assembly line to relentlessly improve the productivity of the […]

  2026/10/24 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/caveman-leadership-and-the-cdo/

• The relentless math of bandwagoning

  It often seems that everyone is talking about what everyone is talking about. No one cares about a song or a movie or a political issue–and then they do. Then it’s everywhere. But of course, that’s precisely why. Most people feel safe when they’re engaging within the expected social norms. It’s easier to fit in […]

  2026/10/23 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/the-relentless-math-of-bandwagoning/

• The hotlist

  I just built a page containing many of my books. Click on any one of them and it’ll take you to a directory of where you can get a copy. And the page then re-indexes based on which ones get the most clicks. https://hotlist.sethgodin.com Thanks for reading.

  2026/10/23 04:30Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/the-hotlist/

• The age of initiative

  We’re unprepared. In high school, the quarterback isn’t allowed to call the plays, the actor isn’t allowed to write the lines and the math whiz isn’t allowed to choose what to prove. We all grew up in the age of compliance (and indoctrination). The long tail of the internet and the astonishing leverage of AI […]

  2026/10/22 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/the-age-of-initiative/

• Toward depth

  Juan Tamariz and Wendell Berry recently passed away. Between them, they had more than 170 years of generous contribution. Juan was a card magician. His students are generally considered the best working in the world today. Wendell was a farmer and a writer. His essays on non-industrial farming and community-building will resonate for generations. What […]

  2026/10/21 17:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2026/10/toward-depth/

• Destinations, risks and journeys

  Where are you headed? The choices you’re making, the effort, the sacrifices—where is the destination? We make choices every day about our destination. And because of those choices, we go on a journey. Along that journey, we take risks but we also experience an internal narrative about those risks. And so, destinations, risks (perceived and […]

  2020/8/28 16:04Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2020/08/destinations-risks-and-journeys/

• Are we part of us?

  Liberty is a state of mind. It can be seen as a chance for freedom, or a promise made but not kept. We can choose to be part of something or choose to be apart. Liberty is the offer and promise and requirement of responsibility. A willingness to connect and to offer dignity in response […]

  2020/7/4 17:54Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2020/07/are-you-part-of-us/

• You are your clips

  A divisive radio personality, asking for forgiveness, says to his critics, “don’t judge me by my clips.” Why not? The things we say and the projects we do are our clips. Taken together, they are our contribution. If you don’t want to be judged by a clip of something you said or did, the path […]

  2020/3/24 17:50Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2020/03/you-are-your-clips/

• The dominant media narrative of the day

  The thing the media is talking about, in heavy rotation. The breaking news, the one you’re required to give an opinion on. The thing is, if it’s not for you, about you, or something you need to engage in, then who put it on your agenda? The media benefits from turning you into their product, […]

  2020/1/12 18:59Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2020/01/the-dominant-media-narrative-of-the-day/

• A year from now…

  Will today’s emergency even be remembered? Will that thing you’re particularly anxious about have been hardly worth the time you put into it? Better question: What could you do today that would matter a year from now?

  2019/11/2 17:42Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/11/a-year-from-now/

• Which change?

  You can change the way people get the things they want. Or you can change what they want. Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates are two of the wealthiest people in history. They got that way by changing how people used tools to find new ways to get what they already wanted. Nelson Mandela and Jacqueline Novogratz […]

  2019/10/31 17:51Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/10/which-change/

• Ways to grow

  A checklist to get you started—you can either do the same thing or a different thing… More of the same Persist Get the word out Doing something different Change an element of what you do Raise your prices Lower your prices Make it better Tell a different story Serve a different customer Enter […]

  2019/9/28 18:24Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/09/ways-to-grow/

• Ask a busy person

  You might know one. The busy person has a bias for action, the ability to ship, and a willingness to contribute more than is required. The busy person is wrong more than most people (if you get up to bat more often, you’re going to have more hits and more strike outs, right?). Those errors […]

  2019/8/21 17:48Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/08/ask-a-busy-person/

• Judging a day by the weather

  It seems more productive to judge tomorrow by something more relevant, useful and in our control than whether or not it’s raining, doesn’t it? We can judge a day by how many tools we get to use, how many people are open to hearing from us, how many problems are available to be solved. Weather, […]

  2019/7/15 17:40Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/07/judging-a-day-by-the-weather/

• Principles and being let off the hook

  Principles that we suspend during difficult times aren’t really principles. Principles really count when they’re difficult to maintain. That’s not the same thing, though, as refusing to consider the edge cases. “Free speech,” is a fine principle, one to live by. But shouting “fire” in a crowded movie theater isn’t allowed, for good reason. The […]

  2019/7/13 16:12Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/07/principles-and-being-let-off-the-hook/

• The irony of close competition

  The easiest way to get someone’s attention is to compare them to someone else. When people compete on the same metrics (how many followers, how much income, how many points scored) the focus gets very tight. With a simple metric, there’s no confusion at all about how to earn more status. The irony is that […]

  2019/7/6 17:34Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/07/the-irony-of-close-competition/

• Of course it could be better

  That’s not the question, not really. The question is, “what are you going to do about it?” And, to follow up, “what effort are you willing to put in to make it better?” If you’re not willing to make it better, it’s probably going to stay the way it is. The first day of summer […]

  2019/6/19 16:43Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/06/of-course-it-could-be-better/

• Blockbusters vs. building blocks

  It’s the blockbusters that get all the hype. The home runs, the viral videos, the hits. It’s the sudden shifts, the ideas that change everything, the fell swoops. Fell swoops seem like they’re worth chasing, but a hit isn’t a strategy, it’s an event. Nice work if you can get it, but hard to plan […]

  2019/5/22 17:34Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/05/blockbusters-vs-building-blocks/

• On finding something to say

  The throughline of the last twenty years of tech has been new ways to speak up and connect. We’ve built platforms for email, video, writing, short fiction, daily updates, chat, discussion, classes… But what if you don’t have anything to say? It’s difficult to find a tech solution for this problem. It might be that […]

  2019/4/25 17:14Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/04/on-finding-something-to-say/

• Mind the gap(s)

  There are two kinds of marketing, and the gap between them keeps widening. You’ll need to choose. Do marketing to people or with them… Actually, there are a few other gaps worth considering: Average stuff vs remarkable edge cases Brand vs. direct Unmeasured vs. measured Largest imaginable market vs. smallest viable audience. And… Attention as […]

  2019/4/8 18:01Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/04/mind-the-gap-2/

• Data into information

  It takes discernment to do this. Most problems don’t require more data. They require more insight, more innovation and better eyes. Information is what we call it when a human being takes data and turns it into a useful truth.

  2019/3/24 16:29Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/03/data-into-information/

• Unexpected yet totally plausible

  That is where breakthroughs lie. If you keep poking around the expected, it’s unlikely you’ll be surprised by what you find.

  2019/3/15 18:33Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/03/unexpected-yet-totally-plausible/

• People who don’t care…

  …doing things that they don’t understand, for managers who have no sense of strategy, in an organization that measures all the wrong things. Everyone involved unable to honestly answer the simple question: “Why?” Why are we doing it this way? Why is it like this not like that? “Because I said so,” is no way […]

  2019/3/10 18:18Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/03/people-who-dont-care/

• Everyone and no one

  Rarely true. “Everyone loves it.” “No one wants to be my friend…” More effective and accurate to replace these words with, “someone.”

  2019/3/9 18:24Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/03/everyone-and-no-one/

• “We meet all Federal regulations”

  The excuse made by large corporations for the impact of what they produce is that they simply follow the rules. Of course, at these companies, there’s often a different department in charge of lobbying to change the rules so that they can increase short-term profits while being less beneficial to customers and communities. It would […]

  2019/3/4 18:15Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/03/we-meet-all-federal-regulations/

• The practical de-escalation of worry

  In order to maintain its power, common anxiety (sometimes called worrying) needs your help. Constant reminders, moments of conflict and concrete examples all pitch in to keep our worry on the warpath, amplifying it and further frazzling us. The feeling of experiencing failure in advance happens to many of us. But with active encouragement we can […]

  2019/2/17 18:37Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/02/the-practical-de-escalation-of-anxiety/

• Productive choices (which?)

  When you’re doing scary creative work, or work that requires emotional labor, it’s natural to want to walk away a bit. To distract yourself. To go shave a yak, mindlessly eat or bother someone in the next cube. This is the main activity online, actually. People avoiding the real work. One useful practice is to […]

  2019/2/9 19:05Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/02/productive-safe-harbors/

• Digital peer pressure

  “You’re using it wrong.” That’s how culture develops, of course. That’s why no one uses ALL CAPS IN THEIR EMAIL ANY MORE. Culture develops online at the speed of light. Every interaction tool comes with peers to interact with, and quickly, those tools establish the norms of interaction. As a result, there are a ton […]

  2019/2/7 18:28Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/02/digital-peer-pressure/

• The honor code

  Does introducing an honor code presume that the people involved have honor, or is it designed to create a space where honor can develop? An honor code: The simple expectation that we trust you, that you call your own fouls, that you act honorably even if you think no one is watching… As we think […]

  2019/2/2 17:55Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/02/the-honor-code/

• Are you selling to a professional or an amateur?

  A professional is going to buy from someone like you. They’re going to have a process to review the process, a method, an experienced approach to obtaining what they need. A professional isn’t going to think she can do it herself and isn’t going to make it an emergency. An amateur, on the other hand, may […]

  2019/1/31 18:02Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/are-you-selling-to-a-professional-or-an-amateur/

• The job interview approach

  That meeting on your calendar, the one scheduled for tomorrow. What if it were the final interview for a job you care about? Would you show up on time? Where would you sit? What sort of questions would you ask? What would you wear? Would you reschedule it at the last minute? Why is it […]

  2019/1/23 18:42Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/the-job-interview-approach/

• How to be honorable

  Honorable men (at least that’s what they called themselves) used to settle their disputes with dueling pistols. Honorable women used to bind their feet and shame others that didn’t. Honorable humans used to own slaves. “Honorable” has always been measured against the current culture, not an absolute of what we’re capable of. Over time, then, […]

  2019/1/17 19:25Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/how-to-be-honorable/

• Asserting anthropomorphism

  We’ve been doing it for a long time. “The Gods must be crazy.” The easiest way for a human to deal with a complex system (an AI that plays Scrabble, the traffic, the weather) is to imagine that there’s a little man inside, someone a lot like us, pulling the levers, getting annoyed, becoming frustrated, […]

  2019/1/15 18:42Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/asserting-anthropomorphism/

• Should you say ‘please’ to an AI?

  There are two reasons we say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’. The first is pretty obvious. It gives the other person dignity. It acknowledges their humanity. It implies that at some level, this engagement is voluntary. But of course, none of this is true when we’re talking to Siri or Alexa. There’s a second reason. It […]

  2019/1/13 18:03Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/should-you-say-please-to-an-ai/

• The instigator

  In The Wizard of Oz, we meet a powerful heroine. Dorothy is resolute, focused and honest. A generous partner, leading her friends to where they seek to go. “C’mon, let’s go,” is a great sentence, worth using more often. It doesn’t require a permit, a badge or a degree. It’s simply the work of someone […]

  2019/1/12 18:53Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/the-instigator/

• The thing about arguments

  When two people have a heated discussion about an issue, one of three things could be happening: One of them is wrong. At the moment, each of them are sure that the other person is the one who’s wrong. Neither of them is wrong. They’re arguing about something where right and wrong are relative, based on perspective. […]

  2019/1/8 18:30Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/the-thing-about-arguments/

• Meaningless

  There are words that now have no meaning at all. Literally no meaning. We write them to take up space. To make ourselves seem more serious or smarter. We speak them to give ourselves a pause, a moment to catch up to our riff. ‘Well’ and ‘so’ have been doing this work for a long time, […]

  2019/1/7 18:48Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/meaningless/

• Does an orchestra need the oboe?

  For most pieces, for most audiences, most of the time, you wouldn’t miss it if it were gone. But take away one more instrument, and then another, and pretty soon, we’ll stop listening. The little fillips, the extraneous extras, the dispensable nice bits–they count for more than we know.

  2019/1/4 18:52Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2019/01/does-an-orchestra-need-the-oboe/

• We are all poets now

  Poets use words (and silence) to change things. They care about form and function and most of all, about making an impact on those that they connect with. Every word counts. Every breath as well. In a world filled with empty noise, the most important slots are reserved for the poets we seek to listen […]

  2018/12/25 19:20Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2018/12/we-are-all-poets-now/

• Our fundamental attribution error

  When someone else screws up, it’s because of who they are, their race, their upbringing… a glimpse into their true character. When we do something, it’s because the situation we’re in caused it to happen. The fundamental attribution error is based on a glitch in the way we understand causation and statistics, and it’s fueled […]

  2018/12/19 20:25Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2018/12/our-fundamental-attribution-error/

• The 10x lesson

  The 10x programmer, the 10x strategy expert, the 10x surgeon. This is something we are always in search of. The human who is playing at a different level, generating work that changes everything. The thing is: a 1x contributor can’t become a 10x merely by working ten times as hard. The physics of time won’t […]

  2018/12/18 18:33Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2018/12/the-10x-lesson/

• Better enough

  It’s entirely possible that you’re better. Better by some axis you’ve invented, fallen in love with and decided is the most important thing to be better at. But if people aren’t choosing you, talking about you, asking you for more… it’s either because you picked the wrong axis, or because you’re not better enough. Not […]

  2018/12/2 18:05Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2018/12/better-enough/

• “But he paid extra”

  We come up with lots of reasons to work with jerks. We take an investment from a jerk investor instead of a kind one. We accept a job from a bully instead of someone who will nurture and challenge us with worthwhile work. And we take on a customer who denigrates our team and our […]

  2018/11/30 18:50Seth Godinhttps://seths.blog/2018/11/but-he-paid-extra/