From “Piece of Junk” to Priceless Gem (What a Story)

I spent the holiday yesterday lounging by the pool and reading a great book: When I Stop Talking, You’ll Know I’m Dead by Jerry Weintraub.

Weintraub was a Hollywood producer, talent agent, and concert promoter whose clients included Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, The Four Seasons, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, and Led Zeppelin. 

His book boils over with entertaining stories and valuable business lessons…

…like this one:

Jerry’s father, Sam Weintraub, was a gem dealer who once returned from an overseas trip with an 287-carat star sapphire.

The sapphire was, according to Jerry, the largest in the world. But it was a milky “piece of junk,” and Sam had no desire to cut it down into smaller gems for sale.

Instead, Sam named the sapphire and made it the star of his roadshow. He called it “The Star of Ardaban.”

Why?

“Because it’s not the gem a person buys. It’s the story behind the gem.”

In the popular 1895 novel, The Other Wise Man, Artaban was a Magi priest, a “wise man” who planned to join three others who greeted baby Jesus. Artaban acquired three gems — including a great star sapphire — to present to Jesus.

He never made it to the manger, and — according to the novel — gave his gems to the needy.

Sam Weintraub leaned hard into this story.

Here’s the account from Jerry (who spells the wise man’s name differently than the novel):

“He had a special case made for the Star of Ardaban, the sort of case you might carry handcuffed to your wrist. He took a trip, traveling with the Star of Ardaban across the country. In each town, he was met at the train station by armed guards, a Brinks truck, and a local reporter. A few days later, after the story appeared in the local paper, he would invite all the jewelers to his hotel room to look at the Star of Ardaban. Then, as they were examining the Star of Ardaban, he was selling them everything else in his jewelry case. At the end of the tour, he donated the Star to the Smithsonian. It’s there to this day.”

Lot’s of lessons in this story. Jerry offers one:

“Though he was selling rubies and sapphires and I am selling Clooney, Pitt, and Damon, the trick is the same: packaging. You might have the greatest talent in the world, but it doesn’t matter if you can’t sell it.”

Wise words, Jerry Weintraub.

And that’s just chapter one.

This is not a “business book.” But it’s a valuable resource for business people. My highlighter is running out of ink as I mark one valuable gem after another in this book.

That’s why Ted Prodromou and I chose it as this month’s selection for The Mastermind Book Club.

Every month, Ted and I choose a book for members to discuss.

The discussion begins in our online clubhouse. (If you’re already a member, here’s the discussion thread.)

Then we meet live on Zoom to discuss the book live. This month, we’ll meet on Thursday, July 20, 2:30 p.m. ET.

The idea: Share insights and discuss how to implement ideas from the book to advance our businesses.

If you’re already a Club member, watch your inbox for emails with event details (including the Zoom link) and/or go to MastermindBook.club to join the conversation.

Not a member? The Club and the live event are free to join. Click the button below to join us. You’ll receive email reminders as the event approaches.