Tom Ruwitch

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What a Train Wreck (But I Survived)

By Tom Ruwitch

About five minutes into the online training I was running last night… …I realized I was using the wrong slide deck. I’d opened an old version of my presentation — totally different than the one I intended to deliver. (Uh oh!) 😮 I muddled through — winging it the rest of the way. Doing my…

Tonight Only: Turn Your Expertise Into More Clients

By Tom Ruwitch

Twenty-five years ago last month, I founded an email marketing software company called MarketVolt. This was before most people had heard of email marketing, much less tried it. I ran the software company (and the marketing agency I built around it) for 19 years before selling it in 2019. Then I started my current marketing…

How Predator and Prey Partnered and Prospered (A Business Fable)

By Tom Ruwitch

Weird and wacky news from the wild: Motion-activated game cameras have spotted ocelots (think “little leopards”) walking through the Peruvian rain forest with opossums. Here’s why that’s wacky: Ocelots are carnivores and LOVE opossums. Not in the, “I love you; let’s hang out” kind of way. But in the “Pass the salt and pepper. I…

The Music Didn’t Have to Die (A Business Lesson)

By Tom Ruwitch

It’s February 3. “The day the music died.” In 1959, Buddy Holly and his band had been touring the Midwest — 24 shows in 24 nights. Also on the bill: 17-year-old Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson), and Dion and the Belmonts. They traveled from town to town in beat up school buses which…

RecomMONDAYtions ~ 2026.02.02

By Tom Ruwitch

Recommended Video 🔥How To Fix Your Attention Span (Before It’s Too Late) Your attention is under attack. In this short video, Daniel Pink lays out a simple, science-backed way to get it back before it slips away for good. Five practical steps you can use today to focus longer, think deeper, and actually finish what…

You Don’t Have to be a “Killer” to Grow Your Business

By Tom Ruwitch

A few years back, I met with a prospect about a massive project. The meeting went well. I remember thinking as the meeting moved along, “I’m CRUSHING it.” Before I left, they committed to hire me. I returned to the office, shared the news with my team, and slapped high fives all around. “Way to…

I Needed Help. I Got AI-powered Fakers.

By Tom Ruwitch

Color me stupid. I thought I might find a talented developer in a Facebook group to help me automate a complex business process. Instead, I got hounded by bots and pretenders dishing AI-generated slop. It started on Monday. I posted a detailed summary of what I needed in the Facebook group. Within 10 minutes, I…

Invitation

By Tom Ruwitch

If you’ve written a book… …or you’re thinking about writing one… …join me this evening (Wednesday 1/28) for The Book Profit Plan — 3 Ways to Turn Your Book into More Profits in 2026. I’ll show you how authors use their book to attract leads, land more clients, and boost profits — without tech headaches…

Thomas Edison’s Biggest Flop

By Tom Ruwitch

Fun fact about Thomas Edison: He was obsessed with concrete. Long after he invented the light bulb and phonograph, Edison tried to “reinvent” the American home. Concrete houses. Concrete bathtubs. Concrete cabinets. Concrete furniture. Even concrete pianos. Cost-effective. Durable. Fireproof. Permanent. Edison built prototypes and molds. And then he tried to license the molds to…

RecomMONDAYtions ~ 2026.01.26

By Tom Ruwitch

Recommended Reading 🔥 52 fascinating people reveal the tiny habits that changed their lives Thanks to Austin Kleon for pointing me to this article which I found entertaining, head-scratching, and useful. My favorite on the list: #26. Recommended Tool 🎥 PromptSmart This is my favorite teleprompter app for shooting video with notes or scripts. The…