Eureka. Something clicked. It had been staring at me for years. I have always hated marketing and communications, but like Seth Godin. It didn’t add up until I named my fear of sharing publicly.
Marketing and communications meant one thing to me: PR. Public Relations: the art of manufacturing consent at scale, coined by Edward Bernays, who loved propaganda but knew he couldn’t use that word coming out of WW2. If you don’t know Bernays, look up his book or watch this BBC documentary. It’s unsettling.
Everyone calls Seth Godin a marketing guru. Yet he strikes me as honest and authentic. How can you be honest in an industry where you are supposed to fabricate desire? I never resolved that question. I just held both truths at once.
Today I did. Seth Godin’s blog is not self-promotional. It is generous. His word. It finally lands. He is having a conversation in public, with people who know him or don’t, who share his ideas or don’t, free to engage however they choose. That is not selling. The two look similar. They are nothing alike.
I’ve heard him talk about generosity many times. Only today do I understand what he actually means.
Next time I hesitate, I will ask one question: am I not just being generous with my thoughts? It is a small test with two sides. One keeps me honest: am I sharing, or selling? The other keeps me moving: is fear the only reason I am staying quiet?