Seth Godin: Writing Every Day

North Star Podcast

My guest today is Seth Godin, the author of nineteen international bestsellers that have been translated into more than 35 languages. My all-time favorite is Purple Cow, which I discovered in college and became my nickname. This is my second interview with Seth, who has published an article every day now for more than a decade. If you want to be a prolific creator, Seth is one of the best teachers you can possibly find.

This interview is all about his writing practice. Seth calls himself a “professional noticer” so we talked about how he finds and validates new ideas. On the topic of shipping creative work, we spoke about the root of imposter syndrome and why Seth likes writing on airplanes, and how his book The Practice was inspired by one of his workshops. We also discussed his tactics for effective public speaking, how to improve the education system, and what we've learned by running online schools — his AltMBA and my Write of Passage.

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Show Notes

2:32 - What inspired Seth to start his now 20+ year daily writing streak.

6:00 - The root of impostor syndrome and why Seth thinks it's not only normal but just true.

8:14 - The evolution of an idea or a blog post into a full book.

10:50 - Why it is important to ship as a creative worker and what it means to ship your content.

13:50 - Why certain conditions make it easier for people to create than others.

16:59 - What Seth learned about creating inspiration from hard science fiction writer Isaac Asimov.

20:22 - How Seth developed his unique video style and the unique way he utilizes his slides.

23:25 - What the best future of education looks like to Seth and why he believes in the dream of public schooling.

29:48 - Why the standard lecture model of the current education system is missing the point of education.

33:53 - The difference between online education and online learning and why Seth sees them as almost polar opposites.

39:35 - Why there must be space for surprises in online learning.

41:31 - How capitalism has caused certain schools to flourish less through their educational prowess and more as a pipeline to various jobs.