Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us | 
| Author: Seth Godin
Publisher: Portfolio Hardcover
Category: Book
List Price: $19.95
Buy New: $10.99
You Save: $8.96 (45%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  53 reviews
Sales Rank: 339
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 160
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.8
ISBN: 1591842336
Dewey Decimal Number: 658.4092
EAN: 9781591842330
Publication Date: October 16, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
A tribe is any group of people, large or small, who are connected to one another, a leader, and an idea. For millions of years, humans have been seeking out tribes, be they religious, ethnic, economic, political, or even musical (think of the Deadheads). Its our nature.
Now the Internet has eliminated the barriers of geography, cost, and time. All those blogs and social networking sites are helping existing tribes get bigger. But more important, theyre enabling countless new tribes to be borngroups of ten or ten thousand or ten million who care about their iPhones, or a political campaign, or a new way to fight global warming.
And so the key question: Who is going to lead us?
The Web can do amazing things, but it cant provide leadership. That still has to come from individuals people just like you who have passion about something. The explosion in tribes means that anyone who wants to make a difference now has the tools at her fingertips.
If you think leadership is for other people, think againleaders come in surprising packages. Consider Joel Spolsky and his international tribe of scary-smart software engineers. Or Gary Vaynerhuck, a wine expert with a devoted following of enthusiasts. Chris Sharma leads a tribe of rock climbers up impossible cliff faces, while Mich Mathews, a VP at Microsoft, runs her internal tribe of marketers from her cube in Seattle. All they have in common is the desire to change things, the ability to connect a tribe, and the willingness to lead.
If you ignore this opportunity, you risk turning into a sheepwalkersomeone who fights to protect the status quo at all costs, never asking if obedience is doing you (or your organization) any good. Sheepwalkers dont do very well these days.
Tribes will make you think (really think) about the opportunities in leading your fellow employees, customers, investors, believers, hobbyists, or readers. . . . Its not easy, but its easier than you think.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 48 more reviews...
 Band of Hunter-Gatherers December 2, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Seth Godin fails to provide insight into: (1) essential leadership responsibilities such as cultivating, nurturing and developing the tribe and its members; (2) description and assessment of other key tribal job functions; and (3) suggested application of tribal knowledge to benefit our fellow man. I'm left with the impresson that being a tribal leader is both a means and an end in itself.
 Marketing Leadership December 1, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Seth Godin is a great marketer. In Tribes, he sets on the challenge of convincing readers that they should start leading.
To start with, Seth shares an argument that people are organized in tribes, and tribes need leaders. He defines tribe as a group of people with a shared interest and a way to communicate. This is best exemplified in the case of blogs - any blog has an author (the leader), readers (the tribe) and a comments section (the way to communicate). While the author claims that the technology (blogs, Twitter, Facebook) is only the tool, it is easy too see how this book is inspired by Web 2.0 concepts.
Furthermore, we can read about how the world has become heretic-friendly. I haven't read Purple Cow, another book by Seth Godin, but I think it builds on the same concept of becoming different, going for the innovative, wild ideas. The author praises passionate, energetic leaders that come up with a new way of saving environment, running charity or leading a software company. This part of the book contains a critique of the factory model of production, or the management paradigm, which according to author should be replaced by a tribal approach, or the leadership paradigm.
Finally, Seth Godin tells us what it takes to be a leader. The tips range from overcoming your fear, focusing on people that are your followers, telling a story, or tightening the tribe. Most of them are illustrated by stories of average people that became great "tribe leaders".
The book is written in a sermon-like style. Seth begs us to overcome our fear, to dream big, to believe. Every idea is pictured by a vivid story which makes the book an easy read. While you shouldn't expect a handbook or reference on leadership, I would recommend reading this book during a flight or train trip, and you can also get a free audio version via Audible.
 More Seth, How can you go wrong? December 1, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I loved this book and found myself inspired several times over. Well written and easily understood as all Seth books are. (I am a fan in case you can't tell.) If you feel "stuck" in the system and want a little nudge to help you along, this book can do just that. On the other hand, if you have no intentions of being a leader of any sort...this book will probably scare you.
If Maslow had read this book, it would be 2nd on the heirarchy of needs December 1, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Reading this book is like drinking water, or eating chicken. If you don't do it regularly, you'll probably die.
Seriously, though, if you are a young person like me this book is likely to blow your mind. I know I'll be buying it for some people!
Judging by the negative reviews, it seems that those who already consider themselves great leaders may be offended by the book. So read at your own risk!
 Small Book, Snappy Title .. But Not Easy November 30, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is my first Seth Godin read - and it is not an easy one. I keep gleaning small tidbits, lots of repetition, and trying to get to something larger. It's a bit frustrating, I am curious and want to get some new neuropathways going in this older noggin' of mine - so oddly enough, in spite of the frustration, I stay with it. Maybe I am expecting too much here, because of the author's fame and popularity??
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