The Magic is in the Space Between Conversations

Editor's Note: This is Seth Godin's contribution to our month-long core conversations on "Great Connections Lead to Great Ideas." Seth's thinking and work has had a profound impact on my own and I consider him a mentor-from-afar. His contribution is insightful and edge-working as ever...

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There's no doubt that great conversations can lead to great ideas. But for me, it's the space in between the conversations that are magical. When you breathe the same air as Sir Ken Robinson, or sit quietly next to Jacqueline Novogratz or Ishita Gupta, your game gets raised. Not because there's some mystical piece of hidden information that is imparted to you (I call this the myth of the secret idea). No, great ideas often happen because you realize that you have no choice, not if you want to continue to hang out with others that are in a hurry to make a difference. Instead, sadly, most of us spend our time with those that want to lower the bar, that insist on mediocrity in the name of safety. As Charlie the Unicorn might say, "shun the non believers." As in so many other things, we do our best work when the bar is raised, when others are expecting great work. (click to tweet - thanks!) More about Seth: Seth Godin is the author of thirteen books that have been bestsellers around the world and changed the way people think about marketing, change, and work. Seth's blog is one of the most popular and influential on the web today.

The next contribution in this conversation will be from Carol Roth. Tomorrow, she'll tell us how great minds often don't think alike.