Seth Godin has a podcast called Akimbo. The episodes are in two parts – in the first part Seth talks about what he wants to talk about. The second part is where he answers questions from his listeners. In one of the episodes, a listener asked a very interesting question – “how do you decide which book is worth re-reading? Or simply, which book to reread?”

Seth’s answer was quite an interesting one. He said that there are some books which give you that Aha! moment when you read them the first time. The emotional fulfilment of a mystery revealed, an insight gained, or general surprise is there only when you encounter it for the first time. Second time around, you won’t find them as satisfying. But then there are some books which are not just books, they are tools. You learn something by reading them and when you need them you can go back to refer to them again. The books which are tools are worth re-reading whenever you need them. He also mentioned that as he reads more and more books each year, his collection of these tools has grown and he has more and more to re-read available.

I like the way he has created this argument. But I also have a slight disagreement. I think there is a third category, where the book gives you an insight and you go back to re-read the book to just cement the insight for yourself. I still recall my first reading of books like The Alchemist or Jonathan Livingstone Seagull. They were revelatory to me, opening up a new way of thinking in the art of limitations and possibility. I have read them probably more than ten-times, just to make sure that the art stays relevant in my mind. We are in an age where information has a tendency to overwhelm our thinking. It’s good to have ready reckoners to hold us to our centre.

After writing my last paragraph, I have a feeling that Seth will categorize these two books as tools for me as well. So then, there are books which have such rich language or characters that I have read them multiple times and enjoyed every time. Sometimes, much more than when I read them for the first time. Raag Darbari (English and Hindi) is one such.

Seth then said that when he writes books, he writes them with the intent of writing tools. Something that helps you over and over during the years to come. I agree with him on this. He has great advice on a variety of topics and his books are marvelous tools. He has written quite a few books, but when I thought about the best tool he has written, Linchpin came at the top. Maybe this was because I had recently spoken about this book at my workplace. Linchpin is typical Seth. Short sections filled of advice and insights and thus very difficult to create a summary that captures the entire essence.

But, like all the brilliant books it leaves an impression. An impression about the central idea and about some themes that you would want to implement once you finish reading. I will talk about the themes that stayed with me after reading it for the first time, and now I think its time for a re-read.

Central proposition – The first one is about the why. The world has changed. People get hired in a frenzy and then get fired in a frenzy. Almost as if the large corporations are dealing in commodities. How do you stop being a commodity? By becoming a linchpin. Seth defines a Linchpin as –

The indispensable employee brings humanity and connection and art to her organization, She is the key player, the one who is difficult to live without, the person you can build something around.

You reject whining about the economy and force yourself to acknowledge that the factory job is dead. Instead, you recognize the opportunity to become indispensable, highly sought after, and unique.

Seth here is talking about the role that each of us can play in whatever we do if we just care enough. If we are able to see things from the perspective of “this will be my life’s work”. This lens on anything gives a sense of holiness, for lack of a better word, to anything that you do. The book is about your professional life, and the choice is between meeting expectations or creating something worthwhile.

The changing economy – The next one is about why this perspective matters. The economy has changed, this book was first published in 2010, and even more than a decade ago Seth recognized that the economy has moved away from the industrial one to the knowledge one. More and more work is getting automated and with automation the ask on the Linchpin is to make contributions of a different order.

Your work as art and the real artists ship – How do you make the contributions of a different order? You become an artist. Whatever you do, once you look at your work as an art it can bring a certain reverence to the things you do. You want to give a bit more to your creation. Writing a memo to creating an excel sheet – mundane tasks. But if you look at them with the eyes of an artist, you can recognize what else to do, what to add/remove so that it is not just something that meets the specs. Long ago, I read about a rule called 10% more. Now I can’t recall where, but the essence is – do what is asked and then do 10% more.

The art is not art if its is not shipped. Real artists ship. I need to be hit by this line probably several times a day. And I am grateful that this line exists.

The importance of gifts – When you create your art, don’t give it to your organization, boss, colleagues with an expectation of getting something in return. Give it as a gift. It’s a gift to the world from you. There aren’t many people who are gifting their abilities and art, if you do so – you are a linchpin.

The resistance – This is a large section. And anyone who has struggled with any creative pursuit knows what this is. I had restarted this blog in 2021 with a post on The war of art – the greatest book on this enemy of an artist, the resistance. You will always have resistance for anything worthwhile. The trick is to know about how to go past the resistance. Seth has relied heavily on the Pressfield’s book.

Choose to contribute with the best you have – You don’t need to have some otherworldly genius or art or other such stuff that we generally think only the others have. Whatever you have, if you treat is as art and are ready to gift it, you can become the linchpin.

So that’s the post. Please let me know what books you think are worth going back to in the comments. May we keep inspiring each other.