Which Tribe Are You IN? Do you lead, follow or get in the way?

I want to recommend Seth Godin’s new book Tribes.  Here’s my book report.

It’s a quick easy to read read.

Seth talks about how our personal worlds are networked in “Tribes”.  Tribes at work, at play, at worship, Tribes, Tribes, everywhere Tribes. Tribes need leaders.  Seth encourages us to lead our Tribes.

As a real estate agent, one of your Tribes would be anyone who might employ or recommend your services.  (example: personal network/past clients/current clients/friends/ neighbors/suspects and prospects)

A few snippets from Seth’s Book plus my three cents:

Seth Godin, “Managers make widgets, leaders make change.(pg. 14)”  Ken Brand, “If you’re doing it the way you’ve always done it or others have always done it, you’re not a leader, you’re a commodity/widget…your Tribe desires leaders.”

Seth Godin,  ”Today, marketing is about engaging with the tribe and delivering products and services with stories that spread. (pg. 16)”  Ken Brand, “If you’re ordinary and boring and doing the same things the same-way as last year or two years ago or four years ago, you’re doomed.  Time to amp some things up, maybe introduce some social media into the mix…start with Facebook and Twitter.”  Amp your marketing power by usingWhamMobile.com”

Seth Godin,  ”Leaders make a rukus. (pg. 19)”  Ken Brand, “Ummmm what do people say about you?  If they don’t say anything good or bad, you aren’t making a ruckus, you’re invisible.  You can energize your visibility by havingmore daily conversations, listening hard and following up with solutions of every kind.”

Seth Godin,  ”Two different things:  A crowd is a tribe without a leader.  A crowd is a tribe without communication. (pg. 30)”  Ken Brand, “How often and in how many ways do you communicate (in person, by phone, text message, email, eCards, eNewsletters, blog, direct mail, Twitter, Facebook, etc.) and what do you say to your Tribe?  Your message should be frequent, relevant, candid, interesting, valuable and not about you…it’s about them.”

Seth Godin,  ”If you want us to follow you, don’t be boring! (pg. 31)”  Ken Brand, “How not to be boring = Change/Enhance/Improve the way you look/your image.  Brighten your attitude.  Smile bigger, more often.  Follow-up faster.  Anticipate.  Deliver what you promise.  Have fun, lighten up.  Change what you say and how you say it (think conversational, attractive responses to objections and questions like, “how’s the market?, your online presence (think Facebook, Twitter, Trulia, Zillow, Blog and website) and your marketing/listing/buyer presentations).  Want a wake up call?   Ask a savvy youngster to evaluate what you’re doing in print and online…ask them if you’re boring?”

Seth Godin,  ”The art of leadership is understanding what you can’t compromise on. (pg. 79)”  Ken Brand, “You’re competing with 1,000s of real estate agents, many say they will do “this” and then deliver an “underwhelming that”.  Know what you stand for and against.  Define your angle of approach.   Be consistent and faithful.   Don’t tell, share your unique story.  Don’t be mushy milk-toast, mushy is like being invisible and unremarkable.”

Seth Godin:  On pg. 88 Seth talks about a speech he gave at a Real Estate conference. He shared that a difficult market drives the posers and pretenders out of the business, leaders stay and thrive.  I wrote a blog post about this as well.

Seth Godin:  Sheepwalking = people who are raised to  be obedient and fearful enough to stay inside the lines (pg. 96).  Ken Brand, “Don’t be a sheepwalker, or a clucker.  duh!”

Seth Godin:  Stuck on Stupid. “But when the world changes, the rules change.  And if you insist on playing today’s games by yesterday’s rules, you’re stuck.  Stuck with a stupid strategy. (pg. 114)  Ken Brand, “Keep your bright eyes open, your attention on swivel and scan, your imagination engaged and understand that to succeed tomorrow will require you to be a life long learner today. What new things have you learned to do this week?”  You can get some great ideas here:  Agent Genius Blog or Blood Hound Blog. 

Seth Godin:  One Last Thing.  ”May I ask you a favor?  If you got anything out of this book, if you highlighted or circled or post-it-ed, I’m hoping you’ll do something for me:  Give this copy to someone else.  Ask them to read it.  Beg them to make a choice about leadership.  We need them.  We need you.  Spread the word. (pg. 147)”  

My friends, thanks for reading this post, read the book, lead, make changes, be outrageous, get started today. Rock on.”

Ken