Inspiration. It’s something we all thrive on, and yet much of the time it’s like a unicorn–elusive, mythology, or just plain non-existent.
Other times, inspiration hits you in the face like a well-aimed brick.
The latter happened to me the other day when I headed to my usual haunt to try and scrounge up a topic for a blog post. That’s when I ran into V is for Vulnerable, by Seth Godin. A pithy, light-hearted, and violently purple little book, it’s reminiscent of a cartoon-ish ABC children’s book, with the classic “A- is for…” with words of inspiration, encouragement and humor.
Knowing Godin’s past work to be a source of drive and inspiration for me, I thought this would be a good warm-up to get started, so I grabbed the book and my beverage and sat down, hoping to glean a bit of creativity for this post.
The book was FANTASTIC, and completely hijacked this post from my original topic. V is for Vulnerable took me less than ten minutes to read. It’s a refreshing change of pace, harkening back to the days of reading Dr. Seuss’ life lessons. The book is delightful in its simplicity, almost innocent in the way it looks at art, success, creativity and limitations. In 26 pages, Godin speaks to all of our inner fears, insecurities, sufferings, dreams, desires and success. Whether you’re an artist, entrepreneur, parent, writer, leader, marketer, or whatever, this book speaks to everyone who creates.
And we all create, in one way or another.
This book spoke to me in ways that absolutely shocked me. I almost felt like the author knew all of my soft spots and called me out on them in the pages of his book. Not in a hurtful way, but in a way in which I could examine these qualities in myself and use them to create joy and success in my life. Godin understands the inner struggle with shame (S-is for Shame), anxiety (A-is for anxiety) and of course, vulnerability (you get the idea) for people trying to create a product, service or art.
I highly recommend this to EVERYONE who struggles with vulnerability, and even those who think they don’t. It speaks to all of our inner demons, our fears that come with sharing our creations with others. This is a book for grown-ups everywhere to inspire their work with creativity, success and sense of fulfillment.
Hartman Web and Design 