66.01 - Brainwashed: Seven Ways to Reinvent Yourself by Seth Godin

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“Years ago, when you were about four years old, the system set out to persuade you of something that isn’t true.

Not just persuade, but drill, practice, reinforce, and yes, brainwash.

The mission: to teach you that you’re average. That compliant work is the best way to a reliable living. That creating average stuff for average people, again and again, is a safe and easy way to get what you want.

Step out of line and the system would nudge (or push) you back to the center. Show signs of real creativity, originality or even genius, and well-meaning parents, teachers and authority figures would eagerly line up to get you back in line.

Our culture needed compliant workers, people who would contribute without complaint, and we set out to create as many of them as we could.

And so generations of students turned into generations of cogs, factory workers in search of a sinecure. We were brainwashed into fitting in, and then discovered that the economy wanted people who stood out instead.

When exactly were we brainwashed into believing that the best way to earn a living is to have a job?

I think each one of us needs to start with that.”

Comments

[Geirber]

An inspiring read.

As always Seth is challenging our established ways of thinking, inserting new ideas into our heads. This one is no exception.

A few statements come close to being provocative (i.e "And so we demand you fail."), but Seth is just trying to make us think, as always.

Risk yields failure. And success. Take risks. Ship.

[Meghan Helbick]

Seth, your post struck a chord with me. Even with the limited time I've had in the real world of jobs, I've come to the same conclusion. After a life time of conditioning to stay in the lines, you're suddenly expected to go outside the box in order to make real progress.

So maybe we just need to crush the box once and for all. Leap out into open space where anything is possible, and nothing is denied simply for the fact that it's never been done that way before.