You have to get out and on the road (10/7/14)
Seth Godin talks about society moving from the industrial age to the age of connection. He talks about a massive shift taking place that is getting away from processes, procedures and being picked by someone else and gravitating to a point of choosing yourself, and creating things that matter.
One of the great things about my book tour is that I have been meeting people all over the place. Some cities I get to reconnect with old friends and some I’m lucky to meet new ones like in Nashua where I met Scott, Shauna, Michael, Don, and about 30 more people. What I have enjoyed is the possibility of learning from them, and in some way connecting and contributing to their lives. For example Michael recognizes that he has at least one great book in him, but there has always been something that has gotten in the way. More than anything from personal experience I think he just needs some positive reinforcement. So I said call me whenever you want or need to talk.
When I went out to dinner with Scott and Shauna I came to understand that Shauna and I have lived nearly identical lives. We had an amazing connection based on shared life experiences, and as a result we had nearly identical mindsets.
However, if I wasn’t willing to get on the road and out of my comfort zone I never would have had the opportunity to meet any of them. That lack of desire to be a part of life is one of the biggest problem’s I have noticed when communicating with people, and that belief system is something Don and I had in common. I’ve got a bag full of stories about the way things used to be. Those stories are kind of like the ones your grandparents would tell you about walking uphill to and from school in twelve feet of snow with only one shoe. Most of the time there might be just a little embellishment involved, but those stories are all based on some degree of truth.
To be perfectly honest I hope Seth is right because if he is there will be a drastic shift in attitudes from the way things are currently. With all of the advancements we have seen in recent times there has also been a great deal of regression in basic values. An entitlement attitude has replaced hard work. I remember day one at a new job, and the first thing I was told was, “Don’t work too hard it doesn’t get you anywhere at this place.” Morals and values have been replaced with entertainment. Just turn on the TV and you’ll see countless shows that are little more than carbon copies of each other that serve as little more than mind numbing distractions. Part of what Seth talks about is getting away from this uniform widget mentality that has been the predominant cause of our societal deterioration, and in order to do that people will have to rediscover some of those long lost values. Only time will tell, but I’m hoping Seth is a modern day Oracle.
