Tribes - by Seth Godin

I just read a remarkable little book - Tribes: we need you to lead us by Seth Godin. It has no chapters and is only 147 pages long. There is a new subheading approximately every page. It feels like a book of quotes and yet you feel pulled through it page after page almost as if it had a flow. Actually, it does have a flow, just not in the traditional sense. But there isn't much traditional about this book or its author.

Let me give you a flavor of the content:

• Change isn't made by asking permission. Change is made by asking forgiveness, later.
• It's easy to hesitate when confronted with the feeling that maybe you're getting too much attention. Great leaders are able to reflect the light onto their teams, their tribes. Great leaders don't want the attention, but they use it. They use it to unite the tribe and to reinforce its sense of purpose.
• Challenging the status quo requires commitment, both public and private. It involves reaching out to others and putting your ideas on the line. (Or pinning your Ninety-five Theses to the church door.)
• The factory is part of the fabric of our lives. It's there because it pays, and it's there because it's steady, and it's there because we want it. What you won't find in a factory is a motivated tribe making a difference. And what you won't find waiting outside the factory is a tribe of customers, excited about what's to come.
• As the ability to lead a tribe becomes open to more people, it's interesting to note that those who take that opportunity (and those who succeed most often) are doing it because of what they can do for the tribe, not because of what the tribe can do for them.
• The art of leadership is understanding what you can't compromise on.
• Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you ought to set up a life you don't need to escape from.
• The secret of leadership is simple: Do what you believe in. Paint a picture of the future. Go there. People will follow.
• Being charismatic doesn't make you a leader. Being a leader makes you charismatic.

This book is a call to have faith and follow your passion - your tribe will coalesce and follow you. In the last subheading, I was invited to share this book with you. Will you read it?