Seth Godin
31 quotes
Biography
Seth W. Godin, also known under his pen name as "F.
"People don't believe what you tell them.They rarely believe what you show them.They often believe what their friends tell them.They always believe what they tell themselves."
"Soon is not as good as now."
"The media wants overnight successes (so they have someone to tear down). Ignore them. Ignore the early adopter critics that never have enough to play with. Ignore your investors that want proven tactics and predictable instant results. Listen instead to your real customers, to your vision and make something for the long haul. Because that's how long it's going to take, guys."
"The problem with competition is that it takes away the requirement to set your own path, to invent your own method, to find a new way."
"The second person to write a story about a young boy and an escaped slave on the Mississippi wasn't a novelist, he was a typist."
"In a crowded marketplace, fitting in is a failure. In a busy marketplace, not standing out is the same as being invisible."
"Being aware of your fear is smart. Overcoming it is the mark of a successful person."
"The way to work with a bully is to take the ball and go home. First time, every time. When there's no ball, there's no game. Bullies hate that. So they'll either behave so they can play with you or they'll go bully someone else."
"The future of publishing is about having connections to readers and the knowledge of what those readers want."
"The way to work with a bully is to take the ball and go home. First time, every time. When there's no ball, there's no game. Bullies hate that. So they'll either behave so they can play with you or they'll go bully someone else."
"The way to work with a bully is to take the ball and go home. First time, every time. When there's no ball, there's no game. Bullies hate that. So they'll either behave so they can play with you or they'll go bully someone else."
"Change almost never fails because it's too early. It almost always fails because it's too late."
"Art is what we call...the thing an artist does.It's not the medium or the oil or the price or whether it hangs on a wall or you eat it. What matters, what makes it art, is that the person who made it overcame the resistance, ignored the voice of doubt and made something worth making. Something risky. Something human.Art is not in the ...eye of the beholder. It's in the soul of the artist."
"Artists think along the edges of the box, because that's where things get done. That's where the audience is, that's where the means of production are available, and that's where you can make an impact."
"Anxiety is experiencing failure in advance. Tell yourself enough vivid stories about the worst possible outcome of your work and you’ll soon come to believe them. Worry is not preparation, and anxiety doesn’t make you better."
"Every single important thing we do is something we didn't use to be good at, and in fact, might be something we used to fear."
"Do extremely difficult work.That seems obvious, right? If you do something that's valued but scarce because it's difficult, you're more likely to be in demand and to be compensated fairly for what you do.The implication is stunning, though: When designing a project or developing a skill, seek out the most difficult parts to master and contribute. If it's easy, it's not for you."
"When you work under the cloud of anxiety, the best strategy is to play it safe, because if (when!) it fails, you’ll be blameless."
"The thing is, incremental daily progress (negative or positive) is what actually causes transformation. A figurative drip, drip, drip. Showing up, every single day, gaining in strength, organizing for the long haul, building connection, laying track — this subtle but difficult work is how culture changes."
"Anyone who says failure is not an option has also ruled out innovation."
"Don’t be different just to be different. Be different to be better."
"I think the most productive thing to do during times of change is to be your best self, not the best version of someone else."
"And it turns out that tribes, not money, not factories, that can change our world, that can change politics, that can align large numbers of people. Not because you force them to do something against their will. But because they wanted to connect."
"Permission marketing turns strangers into friends and friends into loyal customers. It's not just about entertainment - it's about education. Permission marketing is curriculum marketing."
"Success comes from doing the hard part. When the hard part is all you've got, you're more likely to do it.And this is precisely why it's difficult to focus. Because focusing means acknowledging that you just signed up for the hard part."