Lynchpin is a different kind of book. As with Poke the Box, Godin is provoking his readers to reconceptualize their approaches to work.
 
What is a Lynchpin?
Lynchpins are the indispensable parts of machines that hold them together. With the lynchpin, the machine does not work. In an organization, lynchpins are the people who hold the organization together. These are not necessarily the leaders or the faces of the organization, but those who bring excellence to work. They are those who do their art.
How Do You Become A Lynchpin?
Godin sings familiar refrains when he discusses the difference between the job and art. He wrote:
The job is what you do when you are told what to do. The job is showing up at the factory, following instructions, meeting spec, and being managed.
Someone can always do your job a little better or faster or cheaper than you can.[i]
In contrast, he wrote:
Your art is what you do when no one can tell you exactly how to do it. Your art is the act of taking responsibility, challenging the status quo, and challenging people.
I call the process of doing your art ‘the work.’ It’s possible to have a job and do the work, too. In fact, that’s how you become a lynchpin.
The job is not the work.[ii]
How Do You Become a Lynchpin?
You become indispensable by bringing your art to your work, doing great work, and finishing your work. Lynchpins do not need to be told what to do. They want to do their art. They add value. They overcome the resistance and most importantly, they ship.
What About You?
Be very specific: What have you done to become a lynchpin where you work? How do you do your art in such a way that you have become indispensable?
References
[i] Godin, S. (2010). Lynchpin. Are you indispensable? New York: Portfolio.
[ii] Godin, S. (2010). Lynchpin. Are you indispensable? New York: Portfolio.
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Dr. Darin Gerdes is a tenured Professor of Management in the College of Business at Charleston Southern University. All ideas expressed on www.daringerdes.com are his own.
This post was originally created for Great Business Networking (GBN), a networking organization for business professionals where Dr. Gerdes is the Director of Education.
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