Tribes: Summary Review & Takeaways
This is a summary review of Tribes containing key details about the book.
What is Tribes About?
The book, Tribes, argues that now, for the first time, everyone has an opportunity to start a movement - to bring together a tribe of like-minded people and do amazing things. It emphasizes that there are tribes everywhere, all of them hungry for connection, meaning, and change. And yet, too many people ignore the opportunity to lead, because they are "sleepwalking" their way through their lives and work, too afraid to question whether their compliance is doing them (or their company) any good. This book is for those who don't want to be sheep and instead have a desire to do fresh and exciting work.
Who is the Author of Tribes?
Seth Godin is the author of nineteen international bestsellers that have been translated into over 35 languages, and have changed the way people think about marketing and work. Before his work as a writer and blogger, Godin was Vice President of Direct Marketing at Yahoo!, a job he got after selling them his pioneering 1990s online startup, Yoyodyne.
What are key takeaways from Tribes?
Takeaway #1 Take The Lead
To be a leader you can't be afraid to question the norm, step outside of the box and face change head on. You have to sit up, stand up, and let your voice be heard even if no one around you supports you or believes in you at first. Unfortunately the education system along with society as a whole breeds a lot more sheep rather than it does leaders but if you let your voice be heard and believe in your story and mission, you will find your tribe and from there, great things can happen as you break into new territory and eventually help change the world.
Takeaway #2 You Cannot Be Everything To Everyone
You have to build your tribe of followers carefully. No longer does the marketing mantra of “reach as many people as possible” stand true if you want to create a brand that has meaning, though many companies still don't realise this and continue to pump out products and content for the masses. Most people are no longer content with off-the-shelf ideas, they want to get behind a powerful cause with a meaningful story that they can connect with and introduce to their like-minded friends.
Takeaway #3 Build It & They Will Come
Providing you have the will to lead and a meaningful cause to promote, you only need approximately 1,000 people in order to create a tribe that continues to flourish and move forward. To create a successful movement you must tap into something that people already yearn for, not something that you think they'll want in the future. As a leader your focus needs to be on creating a meaningful story that others want to follow and share, it cannot be about money.
Takeaway #4 Bigger Is Not Better
Most leaders fall into the trap of believing that the more people they have in their tribe, the better and stronger it will become but that's not necessarily true, particularly when just starting out. You need quality tribe members, people who will communicate with other members of the tribe and also introduce their like-minded friends to your cause. You can often strengthen a tribe by creating a feeling of insiders vs outsiders.
Takeaway #5 Communication Is Still Key
Communication has always been key but no longer can it be just between you and them i.e the shopkeeper and the shopper. In today's world, tribe members want to be able to interact with you as well as each other. Social media allows you the space to align your tribe with the common goal whilst still having some ground rules in place.
Book details
- Print length: 151 Pages
- Audiobook: 3 hrs and 42 mins
- Genre: Business, Leadership, Nonfiction
What are the chapters in Tribes?
Chapter One - Tribes
Chapter Two - Long, Strange Trip
Chapter Three - Tribes Used to Be Local
Chapter Four - In Search of a Movement
Chapter Five - Tribes Aren't so Squishy Anymore
Chapter Six - How was That Syrah?
Chapter Seven - The Tribe Inside
Chapter Eight - Reflecting: The Opportunity
Chapter Nine - Something to Believe In
Chapter Ten - Why Should You Lead? And Why Now?
Chapter Eleven - Leadership is not Management
Chapter Twelve - It's Good to be King
Chapter Thirteen - Stability is an Illusion
Chapter Fourteen - Partisans
Chapter Fifteen - Making a Ruckus
Chapter Sixteen - Leading from the Bottom
Chapter Seventeen - The Grateful...and Jack
Chapter Eighteen - The Market Requires Change and that requires Leadership
Chapter Nineteen - What Does It Take to Create a Movement?
Chapter Twenty - Improving a Tribe
Chapter Twenty-One - What Tribes Leave Behind
Chapter Twenty-Two - Anatomy of Movement
Chapter Twenty-Three - Wikipedia
Chapter Twenty-Four -Leading from the Bottom (with a Newsletter)
Chapter Twenty-Five - Crowds and Tribes
Chapter Twenty-Six - Marketing Changes Everything, but It Mostly Changes the Market
Chapter Twenty-Seven - The Difference Between Average and Mediocre
Chapter Twenty-Eight - How Many Fans Do You Have?
Chapter Twenty-Nine - Twitter and Trust and Tribes and True Fans
Chapter Thirty - The Status Quo
Chapter Thirty-One - Initiative=Happiness
Chapter Thirty-Two - Crowbars
Chapter Thirty-Three - Scott Beale's Party
Chapter Thirty-Four - A Brief History of the Factory, Part 1 (the Beginning)
Chapter Thirty-Five - A Brief History of the Factory, Part II (the End)
Chapter Thirty-Six - So Is It Really a "Free Agent Nation"?
Chapter Thirty-Seven - The F Word
Chapter Thirty-Eight - Thinking Your Way Out of the Fear
Chapter Thirty-Nine – The Peter Principle Revisited
Chapter Forty - When It All Falls Apart
Chapter Forty-One - Worth Criticizing
Chapter Forty-Two - Fear of Failure Is Overrated
Chapter Forty-Three - The Cult of the Heretic
Chapter Forty-Four - Should They Build a Statue for You?
Chapter Forty-Five - The World's Best Coach
Chapter Forty-Six - Tighter
Chapter Forty-Seven - Tactics and Tool for Tightness
Chapter Forty-Eight - Discomfort
Chapter Forty-Nine - Followers
Chapter Fifty - Leaning In, Backing Off, Doing Nothing
Chapter Fifty-One - Participating Isn't Leading
Chapter Fifty-Two - Case Studies: CrossFit.com and Patientslikeme.com
Chapter Fifty-Three - Three Hungry Men and a Tribe
Chapter Fifty-Four - Curiosity
Chapter Fifty-Five - The Plurality Myth
Chapter Fifty-Six - The Schoolteacher Experiment
Chapter Fifty-Seven - The Virtuous Cycle Versus the Exclusive Tribe
Chapter Fifty-Eight - Most People Don't Matter so Much
Chapter Fifty-Nine - Does the Status Quo Ruin Your Day (Every Day)?
Chapter Sixty - They Burn Heretics at the Stake
Chapter Sixty-One - The Wrong Question
Chapter Sixty-Two - All You Need to Know is Two Things
Chapter Sixty-Three - The Balloon Factory and the Unicorn
Chapter Sixty -Four - Leaders Are Generous
Chapter Sixty -Five - Don't Forget the Big Mac and the Microwave Oven
Chapter Sixty -Six - Climbing Rocks
Chapter Sixty -Seven - Who Settles?
Chapter Sixty -Eight - Fear, Faith, and Religion
Chapter Sixty -Nine - Take the Follow
Chapter Seventy - The Difference Between Things that Happen to You and Things You Do
Chapter Seventy -One - Permeability
Chapter Seventy -Two - Leaders Go First
Chapter Seventy -Three - Watching the Music Business Die
Chapter Seventy -Four - Don't Panic When the New Business Model Isn't as "Clean" as the Old One
Chapter Seventy -Five - Sleepwalking
Chapter Seventy -Six - How was Your Day?
Chapter Seventy -Seven - The Thermometer and the Thermostat
Chapter Seventy -Eight - Your Micromovement
Chapter Seventy -Nine - That Building Down the Street
Chapter Eight - Every Tribe is a Media Channel
Chapter Eight -One - How to Be Wrong
Chapter Eight -Two - The Timing of Leadership
Chapter Eight -Three -The Reactionary Tribe
Chapter Eight-Four - Possibility of Risk
Chapter Eight-Five - When Tribes Replace What You're Used To
Chapter Eight-Six - Initiative
Chapter Eight-Seven - Stuck on Stupid
Chapter Eight-Eight - Mark Rovnes, Nonprofit Heretic
Chapter Eight Nine - The Posture of a Leader
Chapter Ninety - Switching Tribes
Chapter Ninety-One - Not Now, Not Yet
Chapter Ninety-Two - Understanding the Trick
Chapter Ninety-Three - The Revolution will not be Televised
Chapter Ninety-Four - Criticizing Hope is Easy
Chapter Ninety-Five - The Naked Violinist
Chapter Ninety-Six -Writing Songs that Spread
Chapter Ninety-Seven - The X Prize
Chapter Ninety-Eight - Who Cares?
Chapter Ninety-Nine - The Element of Leadership
Chapter One Hundred - Understanding Charisma
Chapter One Hundred-One - Ronald Reagan's Secret
Chapter One Hundred-Two - The Forces of Mediocrity
Chapter One Hundred -Three – How to Sell a Book (or Any New Idea)
Chapter One Hundred-Four - Hard Just Got Easy
Chapter One Hundred -Five - Which would You Prefer: Trial or Error
Chapter One Hundred -Six – Positive Deviants
Chapter One Hundred-Seven - The Obligation
Chapter One Hundred -Eight - Where Credit Is Due
Chapter One Hundred-Nine - The Big Yes
Chapter One Hundred-Ten - Imagination
Chapter One Hundred -Eleven – Fierce Protection
Chapter One Hundred-Twelve - Belief
Chapter One Hundred -Thirteen - Why Not You, Why Not Now?
Chapter One Hundred -Fourteen – The Perfect Fallacy
Chapter One Hundred-Fifteen - Yahoo and the Peanut Butter Memo
Chapter One Hundred -Sixteen - What Do You Have to Lose?
Chapter One Hundred-Seventeen - Case Study: No Kill
Chapter One Hundred -Eighteen –The Look of the Leader
Chapter One Hundred-Nineteen - What, Exactly, Should You Do Now?
Chapter One Hundred -Twenty - One Last Thing
Chapter One Hundred -Twenty-One –Acknowledgement and the Story of Tribes
What are some of the main summary points from the book?
Here are some key summary points from the book:
- The power of tribes: Godin emphasizes that humans have an inherent desire to belong to tribes or communities, whether it's based on shared interests, values, or goals. Tribes provide a sense of connection, purpose, and identity.
- Leadership in tribes: The book explores the concept of tribal leadership, suggesting that anyone can become a leader by stepping up, providing guidance, and connecting people. It challenges the notion that leaders must hold formal positions and highlights the importance of initiative and influence.
- The need for leaders: Godin argues that in today's rapidly changing world, there is a shortage of effective leaders who can inspire and guide their tribes. He encourages individuals to step up, take risks, and lead their tribes towards positive change.
- Overcoming resistance: Leading a tribe often means challenging the status quo and facing resistance from both internal and external sources. Godin suggests that embracing vulnerability, overcoming fear, and pushing through adversity are essential for successful leadership.
- Building a movement: The book explores how leaders can turn their tribes into movements by sharing a compelling vision, fostering a sense of belonging, and encouraging active participation. Movements create change, and they require leaders who can inspire and mobilize others.
- Leveraging technology: Godin acknowledges the power of technology and social media in connecting tribes and amplifying their messages. He emphasizes the importance of utilizing these tools effectively to reach and engage with the intended audience.
- Empowering individuals: By leading tribes, individuals can empower others to unleash their creativity, share their ideas, and take ownership of their actions. Building a culture of empowerment and collaboration within a tribe can lead to greater innovation and collective success.
What are good quotes from Tribes?
“You can no longer see or identify yourself solely as a member of a tribe, but as a citizen of a nation of one people working toward a common purpose.”
“A tribe is a group of people connected to one another, connected to a leader, and connected to an idea. For millions of years, human beings have been part of one tribe or another. A group needs only two things to be a tribe: a shared interest and a way to communicate.”
“... the reason life works at all is that not everyone in your tribe is nuts on the same day. [pp. 65-66]”
“One secret of life is that the reason life works at all is that not everyone in your tribe is nuts on the same day. Another secret is that laughter is carbonated holiness”
“It takes a tribe to raise a human.”
“When we live in alignment with who we are and how we want to live, we will attract and find like-minded individuals.”
“Go to the community and the locations that have set a sparkle in your psyche. That's how you find your Tribe”
“I may well be bringing fresh notions or concepts that will cause many people to think of me as a bit odd, but I’m okay with that, because maybe I’m just conscious and alive in a batty old world. That said, it doesn’t mean everyone will ‘get’ me, there are a million aromas and zings and zaps and tangs and wallops in the world. We all have a different piquancy. What I do mean, however, is that my tribe can find me.”
“Marilyn Monroe was a Carefree Scamp and she often felt like she didn’t belong, as if she’d somehow landed on the Wrong Planet. Clearly she wouldn’t phrase it that way, but throughout her life she was searching for members of her own tribe”
“You don’t need to change your message, you need to change your tribe.”
“The church… stands as a political alternative to every nation, witnessing to the kind of social life possible for those that have been formed by the story of Christ.”
“My journey to the land of the Shuar tribe had taught me the importance of practical gifts.”
“The secret of leadership is simple: Do what you believe in. Paint a picture of the future. Go there. People will follow.” (Meaning)
― Seth Godin - Tribes Quotes
What do critics say?
Here's what one of the prominent reviewers had to say about the book: "Godin is endlessly curious, opinionated, and knowledgeable on a wide variety of subjects. He is a relentless marketer…and also a clear-eyed visionary." — Miami Herald
* The summary points above have been concluded from the book and other public sources. The editor of this summary review made every effort to maintain information accuracy, including any published quotes, chapters, or takeaways
Chief Editor
Tal Gur is an author, founder, and impact-driven entrepreneur at heart. After trading his daily grind for a life of his own daring design, he spent a decade pursuing 100 major life goals around the globe. His journey and most recent book, The Art of Fully Living, has led him to found Elevate Society.
