Part of the MFA Interaction Design Weekly Thesis Blog series - 10 of 64
“Pick Yourself” was the theme of Seth Godin’s all day seminar last Wednesday, which I had the privilege to attend because I was a student volunteer. It echoed many of the themes of last semester’s entrepreneurial design class, with a slightly more personal twist.
Seth’s premise is similar to Gary and Christina’s; the world is changing from an industrial based economy to a networked based economy. The nature of scale is changing, and the barriers to making a dent in the world is lowering. Power of the traditional gatekeepers are growing weaker. Therefore, don’t wait for a gatekeeper to give your permission, don’t clamour for a kingmaker to crown you. Pick yourself.
Pick yourself
From here, Gary and Christina asked us to think entrepreneurially. That involves running experiments, proving out ideas, and putting yourself out there. At “Pick Yourself” Seth focused more on the psychology of getting started, and the power of a compelling story in a connection-based world. Here are my big take aways from Seth’s seminar.
Confront the Lizard Brain
Seth referred to the pitfalls of our lizard brain, that part of our brain that whispers our doubts and fears. Humming and hahing and delaying decisions using seemingly rational excuses. We fight back by asking the obligating question. Is there an objection which, when answered, will compel you to actually start working? Or will you simply find another objection to hang on to? The obligating question clarifies whether we have legitimate concerns, or whether we are simply fearful. Seth emphasized that it is ok to fear, but we ought to recognize it, and evaluate it clearly. Mistaking fear for rationality won’t do.
Be Un-well-rounded
With the internet, you can broadcast to almost the entire world. To get your idea off the ground though, you only need the support of a small group. You do, however, need their fervent support. That requires a compelling, outstanding and genuine story. Your story must bring together a dedicated following - what Seth refers to as your tribe. The idea therefore is to be yourself; the most outstanding, undeniable version of yourself that brings together your tribe, even if it repeals some others. After all, you don’t need the world to love you to succeed.
Reflections
With regards to “Be Un-well-rounded” he’s essentially advocating for us to become the embodiment of the ideal we are most passionate about. Seth laid out a very convincing case for why that is powerful in a networked world, and Seth himself is a testimony of the power of that approach. Nonetheless I think it requires a level of dedication and sacrifice that is extraordinary, and shouldn’t be taken on lightly. I am not sure it works for everyone.
The idea of confronting the lizard brain and picking yourself, however, I find very appealing. It gets at in a much clearer way what I want to advocate in my thesis proposal - that everyone ought to take responsibility for their own lives, no matter the circumstance. Our new tools and networks are making this easier everyday, and we have fewer and fewer excuses not to pick ourselves.
Post script
This reminds me of a blogpost I have yet to write. A friend challenged this idea that “everyone should take responsibility for their own lives, no matter the circumstance” as being a very privileged point of view. I wanted to argue, but I had no good answers for that one. I still don’t, because I know that I am indeed very privileged.
Not sure what to think about it yet. What do you think?
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