Podcast

SPOS #960 – Seth Godin On Strategy And More Humane Decisions

Welcome to episode #960 of Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast.

It’s not every day you get to sit down with someone who has shaped your professional life in such a profound way. I’ve known Seth Godin for nearly two decades. While I wouldn’t say we’re the kind of friends who text each other about weekend plans, there’s a kinship that comes from two people who respect the craft of ideas, the power of language, and the art of making things better for others. Over the years, Seth has been a generous mentor – not in a formal sense, but in the way his words, books, and insights have seeped into the cracks of my thinking, slowly but surely changing how I approach my own work. Seth’s latest book, This Is Strategy – Make Better Plans (Create a Strategy to Elevate Your Career, Community & Life), feels like a culmination of his ethos. If you’ve read his work before, you know his magic lies in making the complicated feel clear, the overwhelming feel doable, and the intimidating feel… well, fun. This book is no different. It’s a map, not just for businesses trying to navigate a tricky economy or professionals angling for that next promotion, but for anyone looking to build something meaningful – whether it’s a company, a community, or a life. And here’s the thing: Seth doesn’t just teach strategy; he lives it. From the outside, it might seem like his career has been one unbroken string of successes – best-selling books, a groundbreaking blog, iconic projects like The Marketing Seminar and altMBA. But what he really teaches us, and what I’ve seen firsthand, is that strategy is about persistence, adaptability, and the willingness to say, “I made this,” even when you’re not sure how it will land. In this conversation, we went deep into not just the mechanics of strategy but the mindset behind it. Seth has this uncanny ability to get you to question your assumptions while making you feel like you’re capable of anything. It’s a rare kind of mentoring, and I think you’ll feel it too when you listen to this episode. So, if you’re someone who’s wrestling with what’s next – whether it’s a project, a career move, or just a better way to spend your days – I hope you’ll carve out some time for this one. Seth has this way of reminding you that strategy isn’t about being clever; it’s about being clear. And clarity? That’s something we could all use more of. Enjoy the conversation…

Running time: 1:03:00.
Hello from beautiful Montreal.
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Here is my conversation with Seth Godin.
This Is Strategy – Make Better Plans (Create a Strategy to Elevate Your Career, Community & Life).
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This week’s music: David Usher ‘St. Lawrence River’.

Chapters:

(00:00) – The Journey of Influence.
(02:59) – Navigating Public Speaking.
(06:09) – The Impact of AI on Culture.
(08:47) – Understanding Intimacy in the Digital Age.
(11:59) – The Essence of Strategy.
(14:50) – The Role of Story in Strategy.
(17:56) – Status and Affiliation in Marketing.
(20:55) – The Philosophy of Strategy.
(23:59) – Empathy and Systems Change.
(27:06) – The Power of Nostalgia.
(29:59) – The Future of Work and Culture.
(33:00) – The Role of News in Our Lives,
(36:11) – Recommendations and Reflections.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast – Episode #960.

Before you go… ThinkersOne is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

Mitch Joel

Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.