Outliers are Interesting, But They Rarely Matter Let me say that again: outliers are interesting, but they rarely matter. If you disagree with that statement and have already begun to think of specific examples that would disprove it, thank you for continuing to read. When we hear a surprising, declarative statement such as, “Outliers are […]

“If a man is offered a fact which goes against his instincts, he will scrutinize it closely, and unless the evidence is overwhelming, he will refuse to believe it. If, on the other hand, he is offered something which affords a reason for acting in accordance with his instincts, he will accept it even on […]

“Nations, like individuals, tell stories in order to understand what they are, where they come from, and what they want to be.” “National narratives, like personal ones, are prone to sentimentality, grievance, pride, shame, self-blindness. There is never just one – they compete and constantly change. The most durable narratives are not the ones that […]

“Belief is not a matter of evidence. It is a matter of choice. This is why a person convinced against their will, remains unconvinced, still. Evidence rarely informs our beliefs. More often, our beliefs filter and interpret the evidence. If you believed that elves caused rain, every rainy day would be proof of elves. Objective truth […]

In this painting, we have the Wise Men and their entourage but no Shepherd for the sheep.

“Libraries raised me. I don’t believe in colleges and universities. I believe in libraries because most students don’t have any money. When I graduated from high school, it was during the Depression and we had no money. I couldn’t go to college, so I went to the library three days a week for 10 years.” […]

Milton was pondering our escape 378 years ago. “When once our heav’nly-guided soul shall climb,Then all this earthly grossness quit,Attir’d with Stars, we shall forever sit,Triumphing over Death, and Chance, and thee O Time.”– John Miltonfinal stanza “On Time” (1647)

“Societies in decline have no use for visionaries.”– Anaïs Nin  

Ruth Milligan is the public speaking trainer who was the driving force behind TEDxColumbus where she spent a decade observing good and bad presenters. Today she is helping people improve their presentation skills before large auditorium audiences, intimate groups of employees, and most importantly, customers. Ruth doesn’t tell people what they should talk about. She says […]

“At one pole is the slave as property and nothing else; at the other pole, the perfectly free man, all of whose acts are freely and voluntarily performed. Neither has ever existed. There have been individual slaves who had the bad luck to be treated by their owners as nothing but a possession, but I […]

I was whining to Clay Cary about the interest rate the bank was going to charge me to fund a real estate investment. I felt the percentage was way too high. Clay asked, “Is the deal you’re about to make a good deal? How much money will you make from it?” I answered his question […]

“Japanese is particularly susceptible to discrepancy because it is at once so dense and complex and yet so full of subtlety. It has been suggested, in fact, that it was probably not possible to give accurate simultaneous Japanese – English translations because of the yawning disparity between how the two languages function. To take just […]

Wizard of Ads partner Elliot Stark sent me this photo of him with one of his daughters at the Planet Word museum. It made me remember this reminiscence by Stanley Kunitz: “I loved especially the sounds of words. We were fortunate in our home to have an unabridged dictionary. I explored it every day for […]

There was a marvelous essay by Ismail Muhammad in the June 25, 2025 issue of The New York Times Magazine last week about the video ads we are seeing that promote A.I. This was my favorite paragraph: “The most galling ad features a woman who is hosting a “Moby Dick” book club. It’s unclear whether […]

“There are things in life where the value is precisely in the inefficiency, in the time spent, in the pain endured, in the effort you have to invest. Most of you, if you were students, wrote essays or something like that as undergraduates, right? Fairly confident to say that nobody’s actually kept them? Nobody re-reads […]

There is a slumber so deep that it annihilates time. It is like a fragment of eternity. Beneath its enchantment of vacancy, a day seems like a thousand years, and a thousand years might well pass as one day.It was such a sleep that fell upon Hermas in the Grove of Daphne. An immeasurable period […]

  I bought this painting to give away. Do you like it? It is 5 feet tall and 3 and 1/2 feet wide,an original by J.C. Amorrortuwho was born in Lima, Peru during a time of social unrest. The painting is titled,“Mostly Blue Eyes.” Tell me in exactly 300 words the story of the creature, […]

When you want to know something, ask WIKIPEDIA.

Austin Skyline, 2014 and 2024

  “On the Grand Duke’s desk stood a champagne flute and a brandy snifter. With the lean uprightness of the former looking down upon the square rotundity of the latter, one could not help but think of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza on the plains of the Sierra Morena. Or of Robin Hood and Friar […]

  Jackie Lapin’s passion was for traveling the world and taking photos. But Jackie’s passion has now blossomed into a thriving business with an impressive community of members. She is providing blog posts, photos, curated reading lists, historical insights, and exclusive travel resources with people who share her wanderlust. In this marvelously candid interview with […]

HVAC, Plumbing, and Electrical Contractors in America.  Having gathered data from 64 reputable sources, it can reasonably be estimated that there are about 117,000 companies in the US that provide HVAC services, 132,000 that provide plumbing services, and 252,000 that provide electrical services.  Let’s assume for the sake of this example that those numbers are […]

. Life, so they sayIs but a game and they’d let it slip awayLove, lke the autumn sunShould be dyin’But it’s only just begun   Like the twilight in the road up aheadThey don’t see just where we’re goin’And all the secrets in the universeWhisper in our earsAll the years will come and go,Take us […]

  Steven Gaffney’s client list reads like a “Who’s Who of America’s Best Corporations.” His clients include including Allstate, Amazon, American Express, Best Buy, Booz Allen Hamilton, and BP. And those are just the “A”s and “B”s. Steven Gaffney builds high-achieving teams that set brave goals and then exceed them. In this week’s amazing conversation […]

The wizard recorded this 18 years ago on March 19, 2007.“Do Your Words Make Music?” is an examination of magnetic meter.The guest voice reading the poetry you will hear is the multiple multimillion-copy bestselling author, the late Keith Miller.

Private equity firms are more likely to pay larger multiples of earnings (like EBITDA) for businesses when market conditions are favorable, and when the target company presents strong growth prospects, stability, and opportunities for value creation.  Market Conditions: Bullish Markets: During periods of economic expansion and positive market sentiment, valuation multiples tend to be higher. Investors are more […]

  In the solfege system (Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti, Do), intervals between syllables are determined as follows: • The interval between La and Ti is a major second (M2).• The interval between Ti and Do is a minor second (m2) or half step.  Thus, the interval between La and Ti is a major […]

Listen to the examples in the audio players below. You will hear the same song played two different ways. As you listen, think about each version and how it makes you feel. Did you notice a difference between these two versions of the French folk tune “Frère Jacques”? Chances are the first version struck you […]

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Johnny Molson can explain – in just 2 words – what it takes for an advertising campaign to soar above the campaigns of its competitors. Johnny is one of the elite Wizard of Ads partners. Employing the groundbreaking strategies developed by Roy H. Williams, he and his fellow Wizards of Ads craft powerful brand identities […]

  RHW… adversity makes you reach out to your true peeps and those people who have made a difference in your life… my wee brother David decided to leave us yesterday at 4pm… dropped dead in his living room… I was there… outrageous …the YouTube video of ‘Tom McDowall Plays Guitar in Glasgow’ that you […]

  What is Creativity, Really? In Greek mythology, the Muses were nine goddesses associated with the arts, sciences, and memory. They were considered the source of inspiration for artists, thinkers, poets, dancers, musicians, and philosophers. They were also seen as the goddesses of knowledge, embodying the wisdom and creative power found in poetry, songs, and […]

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“Creative products are always shiny and new; the creative process is ancient and unchanging.” – Silvano Arieti, The Magic Synthesis (1914 – 1981) Sent to us by Wizard of Ads partner Craig Arthur Arieti – a psychiatrist – suggests that the mind is not binary, containing only logic and emotion, but that we sometimes blend […]

Volkswagen’s unique construction keeps dampness out. For years there have been rumors about floating Volkswagens. The photographer claims this one stayed up for about 42 minutes. Why not? The bottom of the VW isn’t like ordinary car bottoms. A sheet of flat steel runs under the car, sealing the bottom fore and aft. That’s not […]

“A strategy has to be more than buzzword-deep. In 2017, a publicly traded beverage company called the Long Island Iced Tea Corp. announced that it was renaming itself Long Blockchain Corp. They gave no justification for the pivot. But based on the name change alone to replace ‘iced tea’ with ‘blockchain,’ their stock price surged […]

“Many pub names have been corrupted over the centuries. The Pig and Whistle is said to have its roots in peg (a drinking vessel) and wassail (a festive drink.) The Goat and Compasses is sometimes said to come from “God Encompasseth Us.” The Elephant and Castle, originally a pub and now a district of London, […]

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. Johnny’s in the basementMixing up the medicineI’m on the pavementThinking about the governmentThe man in the trench coatBadge out, laid offSays he’s got a bad coughWants to get it paid offLook out kidIt’s somethin’ you didGod knows whenBut you’re doin’ it againYou better duck down the alley wayLookin’ for a new friendThe man in […]

Executives often make trade-offs, prioritizing wealth and recognition over family and a grounded life. But are the benefits of these trade-offs worth it? That question prompted Butch Meily to write a memoir about the years he spent as an aide to Reginald Lewis, the first African-American to build a billion-dollar company. Reginald reached extraordinary heights and brought […]

THROUGH THE WINDOW OF THE ALL-NIGHT RESTAURANT across from the gas stationa bus stopped every ten minutesunder the blue streetlightand discharged a single passenger.Never more than one.A one-armed man with a cane.A girl in red leather.A security guard carrying his lunch box.They stepped into the light,looked left, then right, and disappeared.Otherwise, the street was empty,the […]

INTRODUCTION TO POETRY I ask them to take a poemand hold it up to the lightlike a color slide or press an ear against its hive. I say drop a mouse inside the poem’s roomand feel the walls for a light switch. I want them to waterskiacross the surface of a poemwaving at the author’s […]

. Arlo Guthrie made “City of New Orleans” famous in 1972. He is the son of Woody Guthrie, the singer/songwriter who wrote “This Land is Your Land” and whose name is synonymous with American folk music. 

“The printing press, as every school child knows, was invented by Johann Gutenberg. In fact, history may have given Gutenberg more credit than he deserves. There is reason to believe that movable type was actually invented by a Dutchman named Janszoon Koster and that Gutenberg – about whom we know precious little – learned of […]

Q: Just saw a new Dairy Queen TV ad. The ad starts out with the bell sound that the Ring camera makes when someone presses the button.  Which made me look up and watch the ad to make sure it wasn’t my doorbell.  You think someone’s that clever?  What’s your thoughts on a strategy like […]

You arrived naked.You will leave naked.You arrived without goods or money.You will leave without goods or money.Your first bath?Someone washed you.Your last bath?Someone will wash you. This is life. So why so much malice?Why so much envy?Why so much hate?Why so much resentment?Why so much selfishness? Be good to each other.Do the right things.We have […]

My 15-year-old son signed up for every free offer he could find.  But he was careful to use a pseudonym. The people who bought the house we lived in back when my son was 15 called me today to let me know that they are still receiving mountains of mail addressed to BC Williams,Booty C. […]

    Rob Kessler is a talented and ambitious entrepreneur. His company sells a brand of shirts with proprietary collar inserts designed to be worn without ties. Rob is the son of Richard Kessler who worked with the wizard for 35 years and became one of the most famous diamond jewelers in America before he […]

People think an ESOP is, “When you sell the employees the company.” But that’s NOT REALLY what happens in an Employee Stock Ownership Plan. Here is what really happens:1. The employees invest no money. Not a cent.2. The employees take no risk. They don’t have to guarantee the loan.3. The COMPANY is borrowing the money, […]

The strongest brands are the ones with the most distinctive personalities. But even a weak and faded personality is better than none at all. A brand with a personality is an imaginary character in the minds of the customers of that brand. It is similar to the characters in syndicated television shows, bestselling novels, and […]

Johnny, the kitchen sink has been clogged for days, some utensil probably fell down there. And the Drano won’t work but smells dangerous, and the crusty dishes have piled up waiting for the plumber I still haven’t called. This is the everyday we spoke of. It’s winter again: the sky’s a deep, headstrong blue, and […]

  Elmer is trying to get permission to make some modifications on his home from the HOA. I just told him that, “When you’re done with that list, these could be next.”    1    A blood sacrifice, not much, just a few drops from a purebred Himalayan cat.    2    Approval from the neighborhood squirrel council (they’re very territorial).    3    A background check […]

The new “Structural” version is aboveand the original “Gestalt” version is belowand they are both awesome in their own wonderful way. – Hai, little sister of Bali

  Anya Cheng spent 15 years as an executive at Meta, eBay, and Target before launching her own venture. Today she uses AI and personalized styling to rent clothing to men who dislike shopping, but need to look good for professional and social occasions. Her two-year-old company has run a gauntlet of challenges, from limited […]

I found out about Joan. The way she talks, you’d think she was in Who’s Who. Well! I found out what’s what with her. Her husband owns a bank? Sweetie, nor even a bank account. Why that palace of theirs has wall-to-wall mortgages! And that car? Darling that’s horsepower, not earning power. They won it […]

Kameido Bridge by Yoshida, Hiroshi (1927)

These mist-covered mountainsAre a home now for meBut my home is in lowlandsAnd always will be. Someday, you’ll return toYour valleys and your farmsAnd you’ll no longer burnTo be brothers in arms.   Through these fields of destructionBaptisms of fireI’ve witnessed your sufferingAs the battle raged higher And though they did hurt me so badIn […]

“People who love to eat are always the best people.”– Julia Child “If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”– J.R.R. Tolkien, “The Hobbit”, spoken by Thorin Oakenshield “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”– Aesop, “The Lion and The […]

    These words were written 33 years ago: “Experience suggests that if men cannot struggle on behalf of a just cause because that just cause was victorious in an earlier generation, then they will struggle against the just cause. They will struggle for the sake of struggle. They will struggle, in other words, out […]

  Structural and Gestalt are two ways of thinking. Structural thinking is rational, logical, sequential, deductive reasoning. Gestalt thinking is intuitive, aspirational, global, big picture. Structural and Gestalt thinking are not typically considered to be functions of the left and right hemispheres of the brain, but if you are familiar with  hemispherical specialization, there is […]

If you have messed up royally, you might take comfort in Al Lewis’s Substack where he details the boneheaded choices and illegal antics of CEOs and executives. For most readers, Al’s independent newsletter is an opportunity to learn from other people’s mistakes, which is a lot less costly than learning from your own. Al has […]

The Irish tell the story of man who arrives at the gates of heaven and asks to be let in. St. Peter says, “Of course. Just show us your scars.” The man says, “I have no scars.” St. Peter says, “What a pity! Was there nothing worth fighting for?” We are rightly called to find […]

  Tell all the truth but tell it slant —Success in Circuit liesToo bright for our infirm DelightThe Truth’s superb surpriseAs Lightning to the Children easedWith explanation kindThe Truth must dazzle graduallyOr every man be blind.– Emily Dickinson .

  Television is an extension of the human senses. When we watch television, our eyes and ears stretch to other times and places. Television allows us to see, hear, and experience things that are far away. A television recording does not present to us the world as it is. It reflects the sentiments that prevailed […]

“When we watch television, our eyes and ears stretch to other times and places. Television allows us to see, hear, and experience things that are far away. A television recording does not present to us the world as it is. It reflects the sentiments that prevailed during the time it was made. It shows us […]

  A timber-framed cottage was built in Frog Holt, England in the year 1450. Today, 575 years later, that cottage provides an important case study for business owners who are scaling their businesses upward. Douglas Squirrel is a technology leader and business scaling expert. According to Squirrel, if the army of artisans and technicians who […]

  “World class cereal-eating is a dance of fine compromises. The giant heaping bowl of sodden cereal, awash in milk, is the mark of the novice. Ideally one wants the bone-dry cereal nuggets and the cryogenic milk to enter the mouth with minimal contact and for the entire reaction between them to take place in […]

Harry Bosch and his daughter Maddie are sitting in Taylor’s Steak House late at night. Maddie is telling her Dad about the breach in relationship she is experiencing with her partner on the police force. M: “We just drive around in silence most of the time.” H: “You’ll get it back.” M: “I don’t know.” […]

“They came in the spring of the year to tell me you were dead.They spoke of war and pride, and how you’d laughed at fear,And called my name. All the while the sea grew black and still.Now you lie in a distant land, far from the summer dayWhen we left our tracks in the foamy […]

His name was Rab. He died in Bengal, the land of tigers, in 1941. On his way out the door, he said, “Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark.” When Rab was sixteen, he published a book of poetry under the pseudonym Bhānusiṃha, which means “Sun Lion.” Those poems […]