40 Seth Godin Quotes for Entrepreneurs

Seth Godin is an American author, public speaker, and entrepreneur, considered to be one of the most influential minds in modern marketing and business. He wrote 18 international bestsellers, published in over 35 languages. Godin’s insights in leadership and innovation make him the perfect source of inspiration for professionals and entrepreneurs the world over.

Here are 40 Seth Godin quotes on business, marketing, leadership, and innovation:

Business

Godin was born in New York and received a degree in both computer science and philosophy in 1979. He worked at Spinnaker Software while doing his MBA until 1986, when he invested $20,000 of his savings to fund a book packaging business he called Seth Godin Productions. With a keen eye for potential, he sold his company in 1995 and launched Yoyodyne, a ground-breaking firm that provides marketing services to multinational companies.

1. ‘Your business has to work when it’s small in order to survive to the point where it gets big.’
– “Small Is the New Big: and 193 Other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas” by Seth Godin, 2006

2. ‘In unstable times, growth comes from leaders who create change & engage their organizations, instead of from managers who push their employees to do more for less.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

3. ‘The scalable, profitable strategy is to change the game, not to become the most average.’

4. ‘The best time to do great customer service is when a customer is upset.’

5. ‘As an organization grows & succeeds, it sows the seeds of its own demise by getting boring.’

6. ‘Past performance is no guarantee of future success.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

7. ‘Developing expertise or assets that are not easily copied is essential; otherwise you’re just a middleman.’

8. ‘Don’t try to be the ‘next’. Instead, try to be the other, the changer, the new.’

9. ‘Never quit something with great long-term potential just because you can’t deal with the stress of the moment.’
– “The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit” by Seth Godin, 2007

10. ‘One way to think about running a successful business is to figure out what the least you can do is & do that.’

Marketing

Flatiron Partners invested $4 million U.S. dollars in Yoyodyne and with it, Godin became one of the few to realize the potential of the internet. Business leaders began to recognize his genius when he developed the concept of permission marketing and used online games and contests as a means of brand promotion. In 1998, he became Yahoo!’s vice president of direct marketing, and 20 years later, he was inducted into the American Marketing Association’s Marketing Hall of Fame.

11. ‘We drink the can, not the beverage.’
– “All Marketers Are Liars: The Power of Telling Authentic Stories in a Low-Trust World” by Seth Godin, 2005

12. ‘Low price is a great way to sell a commodity. That’s not marketing though, that’s efficiency.’

13. ‘The relentless act of invention & innovation & initiative is the best marketing asset.’
– “Poke the Box” by Seth Godin, 2011

14. ‘Market-driven design builds the success of the product’s marketing into the product itself.’

15. ‘Marketing is the act of telling stories about the things we make—stories that sell & stories that spread.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

16. ‘Selling to people who actually want to hear from you is more effective than interrupting strangers who don’t.’

17. ‘Marketing is the way your people answer the phone, the typesetting on your bills & your return policy.’

18. ‘There are two ways to grow: by stealing from the competition or by growing the market. The first path is slow & painful & difficult. The second path is where the magic of fast growth kicks in.’
– “Small Is the New Big: and 193 Other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas” by Seth Godin, 2006

19. ‘People don’t believe what you tell them. They rarely believe what you show them. They often believe what their friends tell them. They always believe what they tell themselves.’

20. ‘Marketing used to be about advertising & advertising is expensive. Today, marketing is about engaging with the tribe & delivering products & services with stories that spread.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

Leadership

As a public speaker, Godin always talked about the importance of leadership and became a proponent of change. He wrote extensively on this in his book “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” in 2008, where he emphasized how powerful a force one can be if they decide to step up and lead tribes of like minds and shared values. And as if to set an example, Godin announced that he would offer a six-month alternative MBA program at his office in New York in that same year.

21. ‘In a battle between two ideas, the best one doesn’t necessarily win. No, the idea that wins is the one with the most fearless heretic behind it.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008”

22. ‘What most people want in a leader is something that’s very difficult to find: we want someone who listens.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

23. ‘Leaders who set out to give are more productive than leaders who seek to get.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

24. ‘Leadership is scarce because few people are willing to go through the discomfort required to lead.’

25. ‘Reject the tyranny of picked. Pick yourself.’
– “Poke the Box” by Seth Godin, 2011

26. ‘How was your day? If your answer was ‘fine,’ then I don’t think you were leading.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

27. ‘The secret of leadership is simple: Do what you believe in. Paint a picture of the future. Go there. People will follow.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

28. ‘What people are afraid of isn’t failure. It’s blame. Criticism.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

29. ‘Leaders lead when they take positions, when they connect with their tribes & when they help the tribe connect to itself.’
– “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin, 2008

30. ‘If you can’t state your position in eight words, you don’t have a position.’

Innovation

Godin was always looking for upbeat innovative ideas to encourage people in the field of marketing. He wrote numerous books on the subject, always with a challenge for marketing professionals to think out of the box. Some of his popular works include “Purple Cow” in 2003 and “All Marketers Are Liars,” published in 2005. He also started a podcast in 2012, which followed him as he guided 30 aspiring entrepreneurs.

31. ‘How can I create something that critics will criticize?’
– “Small Is the New Big: and 193 Other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas” by Seth Godin, 2006

32. ‘How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable?’
– “Small Is the New Big: and 193 Other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas” by Seth Godin, 2006

33. ‘That’s your opportunity—to approach your work in a way that generates unique learning & interactions that are worth sharing.’
– “Poke the Box” by Seth Godin, 2011

34. ‘Today, not starting is far, far worse than being wrong. If you start, you’ve got a shot at evolving & adjusting to turn your wrong into a right. But if you don’t start, you never get a chance.’
– “Poke the Box” by Seth Godin, 2011

35. ‘You have everything you need to build something far bigger than yourself.’

36. ‘If you are deliberately trying to create a future that feels safe, you will willfully ignore the future that is likely.’
– “Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?” by Seth Godin, 2010

37. ‘The people who skip the hard questions are in the majority, but they are not in demand.’
– “The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit” by Seth Godin, 2007

38. ‘The challenge is to focus on the work, not on the fear that comes from doing the work.’
– “Poke the Box” by Seth Godin, 2011

39. ‘Art is never defect-free. Things that are remarkable never meet spec, because that would make them standardized, not worth talking about.’
– “Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?” by Seth Godin, 2010

40. ‘The best way to be missed when you’re gone, is to stand for something when you’re here.’

Bottom Line

Having made a career out of inspiring others, Seth Godin is a brilliant motivator. His quotes remind every aspiring business person to push boundaries, test ideas, stay true to one’s self, and dare to be different. Spend time reading them each day, and allow them to inspire and challenge ideas that limit your potential and guide you to the path of success.

What’s your favorite Seth Godin quote? Share them with us in the comments.