Yesterday the Australian Businesswomen’s Network hosted a webinar with Seth Godin on his new book, Linchpin: Are you indispensable?

Although the book mostly markets itself to workers keen to stand out within an organization, there are important transferable messages for entrepreneurs.

In Linchpin Seth introduces a new way of thinking around artistry. An artist, he says, is not just someone who creates works with paint, clay or photos. An artist can be anyone, in any industry. What makes them an artist is the passion and ambition with which they work. If you adopt this artist mindset and approach, you eventually become a linchpin (and, as Seth argues, successful).

Entrepreneurs are, in many ways, artists by definition – wanting to create something new and different. But as we know, there are successful entrepreneurs and unsuccessful ones. So what’s the difference? Seth discuss some fundamental attributes:

Artists ship their ideas out early and often
Successful workers don’t get to where they are by being perfectionists. They launch early, fail fast and learn even faster. They aren’t afraid of getting laughed at.

Artists say No to the Resistance
The Resistance (image below) is the little voice in the back of your head which talks you out of doing something. Successful people have the guts to say no to the resistance, and take the leap.

Artists choose to do the work
Artists have control over their work. They’re the ones that put in the 10,000 hours. They’re the ones who decide to make sacrifices in order to get the work done.

Artists give gifts
They know it’s the little unasked extras which make the difference between a good service and a great one. People like extras. They’ll come back wanting more. And one day, they’ll pay for your services, and even wait in line.

Artists do things differently
Artists aren’t cookie-cutter compliant. They respectfully challenge the rules, and dare to live outside the square.

And in the end, this is Seth’s main point. He urges you to stand out. Don’t be scared to be different – from your friends, your colleagues, your family. Give your startup its best chance of success, and put it out there. You never know, you might just succeed.

Have you read Linchpin? What are your thoughts?

And for more on this approach, download Seth’s manifesto Brainwashed: Seven Ways to Reinvent from Change This.