The Icarus deception : how high will you fly?

The Icarus deception How high will you fly?

Seth Godin

Book - 2012

Everyone knows that Icarus{u2019}s father made him wings and told him not to fly too close to the sun; he ignored the warning and plunged to his doom. The lesson: Play it safe. Listen to the experts. It was the perfect propaganda for the industrial economy. What boss wouldn{u2019}t want employees to believe that obedience and conformity are the keys to success? But we tend to forget that Icarus was also warned not to fly too low, because seawater would ruin the lift in his wings. Flying too low is even more dangerous than flying too high, because it feels deceptively safe. The safety zone has moved. Conformity no longer leads to comfort. But the good news is that creativity is scarce and more valuable than ever. So is choosing to do somethi...ng unpredictable and brave: Make art. Being an artist isn{u2019}t a genetic disposition or a specific talent. It{u2019}s an attitude we can all adopt. It{u2019}s a hunger to seize new ground, make connections, and work without a map. If you do those things you{u2019}re an artist, no matter what it says on your business card.

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Subjects
Success in business.
Creative thinking.
Published
New York : Portfolio/Penguin 2012.
Language
English
Main Author
Seth Godin (-)
Physical Description
xiv, 241 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm
ISBN
9781591846079
  • Introduction
  • Part 0. Art, the Comfort Zone, and the Chance of a Lifetime
  • Art is the truly human act of creating something new that matters to another person. The only refuge left, the only safe path, is to be the one who makes art.
  • Part 1. The Connection Economy Demands That We Create Art
  • The industrial age had little use for art because it decreased productivity for the organized factory. That age is ending, and we need to clean out the cruft it leaves behind and build something more valuable in its place.
  • Part 2. Myths, Propaganda, and Kamiwaza
  • The gods are us, yet we've been fooled into thinking we have no right to act as they do.
  • Part 3. Grit and Art and the Work That's Worth Doing
  • The path available to us is to gum up the works, stand firm, and pick ourselves.
  • Part 4. Shame, Vulnerability, and Being Naked
  • Of course it's difficult and frightening. When we do art, we put ourselves at risk, because risk is part of what makes it art.
  • Part 5. To Make Art, Think Like an Artist. To Connect, Be Human.
  • More than eighty-seven ideas to chew on.
  • Appendix 1. True-Life Stories of Fourteen Real Artists
  • Could be you.
  • Appendix 2. V Is for Vulnerable: An Artist's Abecedary
  • An alphabet for artists.
  • Acknowledgments
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

The latest of Godin's cheerleaderly books is written in bumper sticker fashion, urging readers to overcome "brainwashing" and release the artist within. Unfortunately, this means Godin (Poke the Box) doesn't offer anything that hasn't been espoused by every generation since Socrates: "Art is what we do when we are truly alive." "Fly closer to the sun." "Art has no right answer." "We don't need more stuff; we need more humanity." Art is about breaking out of the box, not being a cog in the system; it's standing up to authority. But only once does Godin mention that this might result in a lack of ability to pay the rent. In that case, art should be arrived at in little steps. He gives tips to becoming an artist: notice, don't be afraid of humiliation, and "when art fails, make better art." Perhaps smarting from comments on previous books, he warns against critics: "Shun the nonbelievers." He pushes readers to connect with the world, to be human; at the same time he suggests that they are above the masses and need to follow their own paths. The truth is that artists don't need a book to tell them what to do; they are already doing it. (Jan.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Review by Library Journal Review

Godin (Tribes; Linchpin) here challenges listeners to focus on innovation and trust and to consider their work as art. Instead of offering the old advice of not flying too close to the sun (trying to excel), nor flying too close to the ground (taking it safe), Godin explains his view of the new "safety zone" in life and business. According to the author, conformity no longer leads to comfort, while creativity has become scarce, thus making it important to be unpredictable and brave by creating art out of a chosen career and everyday experiences; today's economy will reward the risk-takers. His theory portrays artistic effort as an attitude anyone can adopt, an approach to life that seizes new territory, makes new connections among personalities, and highlights working without a map. The author's own soothing, steady-paced reading nicely conveys the importance of this material. VERDICT This work demands serious consideration by erudite listeners interested in self-improvement. ["Godin attempts to soar, exhorting people to create art, then to create better art, and be inspired by other artists. Unfortunately, this loose collection of thoughts doesn't quite get off the ground. Godin has written more readable books, but his fans will love this, regardless," read the less ebullient review of the Portfolio Pr. hc, LJ Xpress Reviews, 12/21/12.-Ed.]-Dale -Farris, Groves, TX (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

Popular business writer Godin (Whatcha Gonna Do with that Duck?: And Other Provocations, 20062012, 2012, etc.) offers a self-help guide to surviving and thriving in the new, postindustrial economy. "We are all artists now," writes the author. Making art is not the purview of a select few, but rather a defining act of being human: "Anyone who cares and acts on it is performing art." Entrepreneurs and freelancers are as much artists as painters or writers. Further, making art is no longer a choice but a necessity. The new connection economy rewards the risk-taker, the rebel, the person who understands that success now lies in "creating ideas that spread and connecting the disconnected...." Yet many are intimidated and fearful of this new world, which has few rules or sure rewards. We have, however, been brainwashed to fear making art. The "ruling class" of the now-waning industrial age taught us "to dream about security and the benefits of compliance." We are expected to fit in, not stand out, and defying such conformity creates fear and internal resistance. Still, conformity no longer rewards, and the fear we face can be acknowledged while still understanding it as learned behavior. This is a worthy yet not wholly original message--Norman Vincent Peale, Tony Robbins and many others have preached the same self-help mantra. Occasionally, readers may feel they have walked into a movie that's already started, as explanation too often gives way to appealing aphorisms and banal bromides ripe for Dilbert parody--e.g., "Seek out questions, not answers"; "Who is the self in self-control?"; "shame is a choice." Enjoyable, if not particularly enlightening, take on the new economy.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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