"it's the easier and to a certain extent the safest" I think that's half his point. That's what average is, right? Easy and safe such that everyone can do it.

"it's the easier and to a certain extent the safest" I think that's half his point. That's what average is, right? Easy and safe such that everyone can do it. Perhaps it's not being brainwashed, but the net effect of all human interactions will ultimately be average, so it's important that anyone wishing to achieve better must work a little harder to get nudged above it. This reminds me of the language blub (ironically in an essay titled, "Beating the Averages"), except PG was very careful to prepare the reader for what he was about to say, "I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings, so to explain this point I'm going to use a hypothetical language called Blub." Perhaps Godin could've done the same, but that's not his style.