A tribute to Seth Godin's new book Linchpin. There comes a time when marketers can continue to be cube dwellers or become indispensable to brands and companies. It's time for all of us to make that decisions and become Linchpins.

1. Linchpin
Rich
Meyer

2. “Today
I
had
the
choice
of
doing
something
important
that
no
one
would
ever
Linchpin
realize…or
doing
something
that
would
seem
like
an
accomplishment.
So
I
a>ended
mee?ngs
un?l
I
could
no
longer
appreciate
the
difference”
Dilbert

3. Welcome
to
the
new
world
of
work
• We
are
surrounded
by
bureaucrats,
note
takers,
literalists,
TGIF
employees,
map
followers,
and
people
afraid
to
speak
up.
Linchpin
• We
are
oGen
led
by
managers
who
do
what
is
best
for
themselves,
not
what
is
best
for
your
customers
or
your
brand.
• Processes
are
too
oGen
aligned
around
what
is
best
for
the
company,
not
your
customers.
• We
spend
way
too
much
?me
in
mee?ngs,
and
doing
and
re-­‐doing
Power
Point
presenta?ons.
• We
try
too
hard
to
be
liked
by
business
colleagues
because
we
are
oGen
graded
on
how
well
we
“get
along”
with
others.

4. How
did
we
get
here
?
• The
economy
and
high
unemployment
rate
have
led
to
fearful
employees
who
will
do
Linchpin
anything
to
keep
their
jobs.
• Matrix
organiza?ons
spread
decision
making.
Agreeing
with
the
crowd,
even
if
they
are
wrong,
is
oGen
the
only
course
of
ac?on.
• Too
many
employees
are
evaluated
on
how
they
“get
along”
with
others
within
their
organiza?on.
This
includes
Resistance
Leaders
and
Lizard
Brains.

5. On
top
of
all
this,
consumer
behavior
also
is
changing
• Consumers
have
changed
their
behavior
as
a
result
of
the
Linchpin
recession.
• They
are
not
loyal
or
cheap
commodi?es
any
more.
• They
have
become
more
skep?cal
of
tradi?onal
marke?ng
and
have
more
power
than
marketers
realize
or
give
them
credit
for.

6. And
all
this
is
happening
when
more
employees
are
saying…
“It’s
not
my
job”
Linchpin
• Employees
who
want
to
clear
projects
from
their
desks
and
get
them
done
even
if
it
means
not
doing
them
right.
• The
Resistance
loves
processes
and
following
rules.
• Consumers
know
which
brands
value
them
as
people
and
which
ones
see
them
as
“profit
centers”.

7. The
irony
of
all
this
is
• What
companies
desperately
need
now
are
indispensable
employees
who
are
Linchpin
original
thinkers,
provocateurs,
and
people
who
care
about
what
they
do
and
how
it
impacts
customers.
• We
need
marketers
who
can
lead,
salespeople
who
are
willing
to
make
a
human
connec?on,
passionate
change
makers
willing
to
be
shunned
to
make
a
point.
Down
with
the
Resistance
!!!!!

8. Working
in
corporate
America
can
be
challenging
today
The
working
middle
class
is
suffering
right
now:
Linchpin
• Wages
are
stagnant
• Job
security
is
gone
• More
work
with
less
people
equals
more
stress
• It’s
easier
for
companies
to
turn
employees
into
replaceable
cogs
in
a
vast
machine.
• The
easier
people
are
to
replace,
the
less
they
need
to
be
paid.

9. The
only
way
to
stand
out
is
to
become
indispensible
• The
only
way
to
get
what
you
are
worth
is
to
stand
out,
to
exert
emo?onal
labor,
to
be
seen
as
indispensible,
and
to
produce
interac?ons
that
organiza?ons
and
people
care
about.
Linchpin
If
you
want
a
job
where
it’s
okay
to
follow
the
rules,
don’t
be
surprised
if
you
get
a
job
where
following
the
rules
is
all
you
get
to
do.
Seth
Godin,
Linchpin

10. But
by
becoming
indispensable,
you
may
not
be
loved
Linchpin
It’s
enGrely
possible
that
once
you
chose
to
become
indispensible,
you
will
no
longer
be
loved.

11. So
the
ques?on
becomes,
Do
you
really
want
to
be
a
Linchpin
?
Linchpin

12. Linchpin
What
is
a
Linchpin
?

13. Law
of
Linchpin
Leverage
The
more
value
you
create
in
your
job,
the
fewer
clock
minutes
of
labor
you
actually
spend
creaGng
that
value.
Linchpin
hours
of
effort/day
follow instructions
“most
of
the
Gme,
you’re
not
being
brilliant”
insights
pay

14. Fearless,
reckless,
and
feckless
Organiza?ons
go
out
of
their
way
to
seek
out
people
who
are
fearless,
but
they
also
go
out
of
their
way
to
weed
out
the
reckless.
• Fearless
means
“unafraid
of
things
that
one
shouldn’t
be
afraid
of,”
like:
Linchpin
– Giving
a
presenta?on
to
an
important
customer
without
losing
a
night’s
sleep.
– Taking
intellectual
risks
and
forging
new
paths.
• Reckless
means
rushing
into
places
that
only
a
fool
would
go.
– It
leads
to
big
problems
and
can
cost
your
company
a
lot
of
money.
– Reckless
is
what
led
to
the
mortgage
and
liquidity
crisis.
• Feckless
is
ineffec?ve,
indifferent
and
lazy.
– “I’ll
do
just
what
my
job
requires
me
to
do
even
though
I
could
do
be>er”
– “I
don’t
care,
it
will
never
work
anyway”

15. Do
you
have
the
?me
to
be
perfect
?
Linchpin
Quan?ty
Quality
Do
you
spend
all
day
trying
to
be
perfect
(avoiding
mistakes)?
If
so,
you’ll
never
catch
up
and
have
?me
to
really
think
about
what
you’re
doing.

16. Because
you
shouldn’t
be
afraid
of
failure
Failure
is
only
the
opportunity
to
begin
again
more
intelligently.
Henry
Ford
Linchpin
You
can't
have
any
successes
unless
you
can
accept
failure.
George
Cukor
Nothing
fails
like
success
because
we
don't
learn
from
it.
We
learn
only
from
failure.
Kenneth
Boudling

17. But
beware
the
Resistance,
they
want
to
assimilate
you
Linchpin

18. The
Resistance:
Your
Lizard
Brain
• The
Lizard
Brain
is
hungry,
scared,
angry,
and
wants
to
eat
to
be
safe.
Linchpin
• The
Lizard
Brain
will
fight
you
at
every
turn
and
would
rather
run
away
or
remain
with
the
status
quo.
• The
Lizard
Brain
is
more
concerned
with
what
everyone
else
thinks,
because
status
within
the
tribe
is
essen?al
to
survival
and
promo?ons.

19. The
Resistance
is
not
to
be
taken
lightly
• The
Resistance
(lizard
brain)
can
wreck
people,
teams,
and
brands.
Linchpin
• The
Resistance
is
nefarious,
clever
and
is
always
in
mo?on.
• It
creates
procras?na?on
&
ra?onaliza?on.
• “You
can’t
beat
it,
so
you
must
seduce
it.”
Keep
your
friends
close,
but
your
enemies
closer.
Don
Corleone,
The
Godfather

20. The
Resistance
is
strong
“See,
I
told
you
it
would
never
work.”
• The
Resistance
loves
school
Linchpin
because
school
is
obedience
and
they
can
be
soothed
by
thinking
more
obedience
is
be>er
work.
• At
work,
the
Resistance
plays
devil’s
advocate
in
mee?ngs,
they
follow
the
rule
book
and
processes
even
if
they
are
not
applicable.

21. The
reason
the
Resistance
can
win
at
work
is
because
“you
might
fail”
Sure,
you
might
fail,
but
successful
people
think
of
failure
differently.
Linchpin
• Successful
people:
– learn
from
failure
– learn
that
the
tac?cs
they
used
didn’t
work
or
that
the
person
they
used
them
on
didn’t
respond.
• You
become
a
winner
because
you
are
good
at
losing.
In
their
quest
for
for
job
safety,
the
Resistance
is
laying
the
groundwork
for
their
own
eventual
demise.

22. Sure
you
can
fail
but
Linchpins
turn
failure
into
success
and
build
on
it
Linchpin
By
using….

23. Linchpin
The
7
abili?es
of
a
Linchpin

24. Provide
a
unique
interface
between
members
of
the
organiza?on
• Help
lead
and
establish
human
connec?ons.
Linchpin
• Provide
a
link
between
your
customers
and
key
influencers
within
the
organiza?on
so
they
can
hear
what
consumers
think
and
feel
when
it
comes
to
your
brand
and
products.

25. Deliver
unique
crea?vity
• Be
passionate
enough
to
Linchpin
risk
rejec?on
by
bringing
new
thinking
to
problems.
• Stay
away
from
spreadsheet
“analysis
paralysis”
because
your
compe?tors
are
using
the
same
spreadsheets.

26. Manage
a
situa?on
or
organiza?on
of
great
complexity
• Linchpins
make
their
Linchpin
own
maps
and
blaze
new
trails
because
there
is
no
manual
for
rapidly
changing
business
environments.
• By
developing
new
processes
and
trails,
you
become
more
valuable
to
the
organiza?on.

27. Lead
customers
• Consumers
are
seeking
to
connect
more
and
Linchpin
more.
• The
new
model
is
interac?ve
and
decentralized
with
people
who
can
solve
customer
problems
without
requiring
tons
of
mee?ngs.

28. Inspire
Staff
• Understand
your
job
is
to
make
things
happen.
Linchpin
• Destroy
the
“it’s
not
my
job”
agtude.
• Make
people
feel
they
are
part
of
the
greater
good
that
makes
things
happen.

29. Provide
deep
domain
knowledge
• Understand
the
issues
from
“what”
to
“why”
and
you’ll
Linchpin
be
able
to
provide
be>er
solu?ons
that
meet
your
customer
needs.
• Don’t
rely
on
data
alone,
always
ask
“what
is
this
telling
us
?”

30. Possess
a
unique
talent
• The
more
unique
your
talent,
the
more
Linchpin
indispensable
you
are.
• Always
keep
learning
and
acquire
new
skills
and
talents.
• Be
thought
of
as
an
“expert”
in
certain
capabili?es.

31. Remember,
not
every
ar?st
creates
“a
work
of
art”
“Most
arGsts
can’t
draw,
but
they
can
see”
• An
ar?st
is
someone
who
uses
bravery,
insight,
crea?vity,
and
boldness
to
challenge
the
status
quo.
• Art
is
a
personal
act
of
courage,
something
that
one
human
does
that
creates
Linchpin
change
in
another.

32. Are
you
willing
to
follow
your
passion
?
Following
your
passion
is
much
more
desirable
than
watching
the
clock
Linchpin
• Passion
is
the
desire,
insistence,
and
willingness
to
give
of
yourself
to
make
others
around
you
be>er.
• Passion
isn’t
making
money...it’s
making
a
difference.
• Passion
isn’t
project
specific,
it’s
people
specific
.
• People
with
passion
look
for
ways
to
make
things
happen.

33. Today
could
be
a
turning
point
“Today
is
a
turning
point,
a
once-­‐in-­‐a-­‐
life?me
moment
in
?me
when
you
get
to
Linchpin
make
a
choice.
Instead
of
focusing
on
complying
with
management
as
a
long-­‐
term
strategy
for
gegng
more
stuff
and
being
more
secure,
we
have
a
chance
to
describe
a
powerful
vision
for
our
future
and
to
actually
make
it
happen.
The
new
dream
isn’t
about
obedience,
it’s
about
vision
and
engagement”
Seth
Godin
Linchpin

34. Sooner
or
later,
we
all
have
to
make
a
tough
choice
Linchpin
“Sooner
or
later,
marketers
have
to
make
a
choice
between
following
the
crowd
and
being
loved,
or
making
yourself
indispensible
by
doing
what
is
best
for
your
customers
and
your
brand.”
Richard
Meyer
Passionate
Marketer

35. Linchpin
Don’t
let
it
go…
because
when
you
do,
you
slowly
lose
your
passion
and
work
becomes
a
job
where
you
are
more
interested
in
watching
the
clock
and
waiGng
for
the
weekend.

36. About
me
• Richard
Meyer
• My
resume
h>p://www.richardameyer.com
• My
marke?ng
BLOG
h>p://www.richsblog.com
• MY
DTC
BLOG
h>p://www.worldofdtcmarke?ng.com
Linchpin
h>p://www.twi>er.com/richmeyer
h>p://www.facebook.com/richardameyer
h>p://www.linkedin.com/in/richardameyer

37. Linchpin
This
presenta?on
is
dedicated
to
Seth
Godin.
Linchpin
You
have
led
me
to
rethink
all
that
I
learned
and
I
use
your
books
as
a
reference
tool
to
apply
what
you
teach.
Thank
you
If
there
is
one
book
that
you
need
to
read,
this
is
the
book.
Purchase
it
here
at
Amazon