Good Examples
There’s an old legend about the great mystery writer John D. McDonald. When he was just getting started, he heard writers don’t get “good” until after they write their 10th novel. That seemed like a long road to get to “good…” So…he put it in gear and wrote 10 novels in ONE year. In no…
Read More
Last month, I saw Richard Thompson at the Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis. He’s one of my favorites. A great singer and songwriter and — maybe — the best guitarist I’ve ever heard. During the concert, I turned to my friend John and said: “Close your eyes and listen. It sounds like he has a separate…
Read More
I’m about to tell you a story about a hockey game. Not a hockey fan? No worries. Stick with me. The story is not really about sports. It’s about marketing and mindset. Last night, I went with my son, Jake, to a hockey game. Here in St. Louis, we love the St. Louis Blues. The…
Read More
Yesterday, I interviewed A-List copywriter Jack Turk for an upcoming episode of my podcast, The Story Power Marketing Show. Wow! Jack delivered the goods! So many gold nuggets about how to create great, client-attracting content without getting stuck. I’ll let you know when the episode goes live (later this week). For now, a sneak peek… We…
Read More
I just started reading a book called “Bandersnatch.” It’s about the writers C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien and their relationship as colleagues and competitors. In the 1930s and 40s, Lewis and Tolkien were members of a literary club called The Inklings at Oxford University. Members critiqued one another’s works-in-progress. “Bandersnatch” explores how Lewis and Tolkien…
Read More
I live in St. Louis, Missouri, USA where baseball is a big deal. Earlier this week, the St. Louis Cardinals tapped Oliver “OIi” Marmol to manage the club. He’s 35. That makes him the youngest manager in Major League Baseball. He’s younger than a few of the players he’ll manage. So, naturally, reporters asked Oli…
Read More
Maya Angelou once said, “People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel.” She was a civil rights activist and poet — not a marketing consultant. She didn’t say that to help you and me grow our businesses. But take her words…
Read More
Soon after I began the shelter-from-home thing back in 2020, a friend invited me to join Clubhouse. It was a new app that allowed people to converse in audio chat rooms. He said it was THE NEXT BIG THING. I didn’t sign up right away. But I kept hearing the Clubhouse BUZZ… ….The usual stuff…
Read More
Last week, I toured EPCOT at Walt Disney World with my friend Vance Morris who used to work there and now is the planet’s leading expert on how to “Disnify” your business. As a surprise, Vance invited his pal Dave to share some insider secrets about how Disney World operates today. Dave is a top-dog at Disney.…
Read More
I came across this quote from Bill Gates the other day that makes a ton of sense: The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency. For 19…
Read More