In his new book, The Icarus Deception: How High Will You Fly?, marketing master Seth Godin shares why he thinks this story is manipulative — because it’s all about obedience and reminding us of the dangers of getting too big for our britches. But Godin asks: why should our most valuable skill be our ability to follow orders? And why shouldn’t we fly really high? In The Icarus Deception, Godin calls for us to think and act boldly. He asks us to go about our work as if it were art — with the idea of “good enough” far from our minds.

As one Amazon reviewer puts it, “It’s not a book that you lay back with in the recliner and ponder, but never act on. Far from it: It’s more like a philosophical splash in the face, guaranteed to wake you up and get you moving.”

Over the years, Seth Godin has given many a TED Talk. After the jump, watch four great talks from Godin, on topics ranging from education to mass media.

In this talk from TEDxYouth@BFS, Godin asks a bold question: what is school for? He worries that it’s about teaching kids obedience and how to hold back. In this talk, Godin calls for education that is about more than Scantron sheets.

In this hilarious talk from the Gel Conference, Godin explains why so many things are broken.

Download the “Behind the TEDTalk” documentary:

+ Zipped MP4
+ Unzipped MP4
+ Unzipped high-def (480p)

Our thanks to the m ss ng p eces team, and to the speakers, thinkers and doers whose interviews tell this story.

If you were a James Bond villain, how would you take over the world? – Andrew Noseworthy

I’d release a pheremone that increases the fear that people have about doing great things. It would only increase it by 3%, but that would be enough to wipe out most competition. I’m convinced someone is already doing this, by the way.

In the age of tribes, will the benefits outweigh the problems? Specifically, if society fractions into increasingly small groups, won’t we wind up with more rules, more conflict, and more difficulty in communicating, as each develops its own norms and goals? Does this internet-enabled tribal age have implications for how we are going to coexist in society as the “other” becomes an increasingly large part of the population? — David Stewart

I think the idea of negative tribal behavior is older than the Cro Magnon man. Tribes online, in work and in communities aren’t going to make us more violent. We don’t run the risk of more us/them conflicts. I think, instead, we’re going to see more movements that benefit all of us. When enough people care about autism or diabetes or global warming, it helps everyone, even if only a tiny fraction actively participate. Remember, it’s the doing, more than what gets done, that defines tribe.

How do you make “limited edition” physical products feel limited? Especially when they’re limited because you don’t have the capability to produce too many — like hand-made clothes. Should you even try? – John-Phillip Johansson

Of course. There’s a real need for scarcity. The question is how you demonstrate it. Berkin bags? Signed prints? TED invites? By exposing the insiders, you create demand among the outsiders.

What have you learned today? – Antonio Ortiz

I learned that a long walk and calm conversation are an incredible combination if you want to build a bridge.

While getting people to support causes (sign petitions, join a group, etc.) on social networking sites like Facebook has been done very successfully, getting them to donate time and money to the same causes has not. Why do you think this is so? – Pavithra Sankaran

I’m not sure that signing petitions does a thing. I think that easy in/easy out is an axiom, and if you want to make change you need to ask people to do more than just nod at you.

How can small business coffee shops survive a Starbucks next door? — Pascal Lacroix

By being not only different, but better in ways Starbucks cannot. You can’t win by imitating them. Consider having a membership fee, or a different social group. Serve a different item, in a different way, at a different price. Emphasize the ‘Cheers’ friendly element over the ‘get in and get out’ mindset. Exclude certain people or practices. Offer clothes or community performances … stuff they can’t do!

Can you offer any dating pointers? – Mark Smith

I’ve tried the Gregorian, but I find the Julian calendar is a lot more useful.

Among my blogging peers in the marketing/PR/social media niche, I often hear people toss around comments like “he’s the next Seth Godin,” or, “My goal is to be the next Seth Godin.” I’m curious what your advice would be to the next generation of emerging thought leaders — especially the ones eyeing your particular seat. – Tiffany Monhollon

I’m still trying to be pretty good at being ‘this’ Seth Godin, so I wish people who want to be the next one a lot of luck. There’s never been a next Elvis Costello or a next Jill Sobule. There wasn’t even a next Chuck Berry or a next Charlie Chaplin … I think the most productive thing to do during times of change is to be your best self, not the best version of someone else.

A marketing guru with eclectic interests and insights, Seth is game for questions on ANY topic you can think of. Be creative!

Watch Seth Godin’s talk on TED.com, where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 400+ TEDTalks.

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“Seth Godin is a marketer who wants to change the world. Specifically, he’d like everyone – Saul, you, and me – to start movements to change the world. And Seth thinks he’s got a formula that lets people make big, disproportionate changes by bringing groups of people together.”

He’s got minute by minute action from Seth Godin on movements worth starting, Al Gore and Ray Anderson on carpet and a green world, Pattie Maes on inventing a sixth sense, Nandan Nilekani on India in ideas and Tim Berners-Lee asking for raw data now.

Get it while it’s hot.

It plans to accumulate content from anyone willing to play where each page (he calls it a lens) is a self-contained piece of expertise on a single topic. Seth believes this will help make searches much more productive and allow an army of individual mini-experts and bloggers to promote their wisdom to the world. About.com meets Wikipedia.

The free e-book accompanying the launch is a great, fast read with real insights, I think, on the future of search. Whether or not Squidoo gets to critical mass, the concept is cool.