America’s 13 Colonies were  like 13 countries, each with its own government and culture and sense of superiority. This flag said, “We better figure out how to come together or England is going to own all of us.” I think the wizard was saying something like that in today’s Memo, don’t you? If we don’t […]

. Your lipstick stainsOn the front lobe of my left side brainsI knew I wouldn’t forget youAnd so I went and let you blow my mind.Your sweet moonbeamThe smell of you in every single dream I dreamI knew when we collidedYou’re the one I have decided who’s one of my kind. Hey, soul sisterAin’t that […]

How would Walt Disney run your company? Even though he died in 1966, his company and his disciples continue to spread his beliefs. Among these disciples is Brian Collins, a former Disney Imagineer who helped create the magic for many of the world’s most beloved theme parks and is today teaching brainstorming and innovation and […]

Now that she’s back in the atmosphereWith drops of Jupiter in her hair She acts like summer and walks like rainReminds me that there’s a time to change.   Since the return of her stay on the moonShe listens like spring and she talks like June.   But tell me, did you sail across the […]

“The truth is I learned to live without hope as well as I could, almost happily, in the despoiled and radiant now.”– Stephen Dunn, Different Hours

“This sentence is made of lead (and a sentence of lead gives a reader an entirely different sensation from one made of magnesium). This sentence is made of yak wool. This sentence is made of sunlight and plums. This sentence is made of ice. This sentence is made from the blood of the poet. This […]

“The difference between misery and happiness depends on what we do with our attention.”– Sharon Salzberg

Les Binet and Peter Field are the data scientists the Wizards of Ads respect the most. The other big thinkers we respect in Advertising are Bob Hoffman and Mark Ritson. And the guys at System One are pretty awesome, too. The short video below with Les Binet is one you definitely want to see. – […]

Here is Les Binet again, making a new point in a much shorter video. – Indy “So many people think that if they just hire somebody with the appropriate labels they can do something very difficult. That is one of the most dangerous ideas a human being can have. All kinds of things just intrinsically […]

“My son wrote an essay about how much he hates mayonnaise, and it begins, ‘As a scribe, I see fit to write down all my troubles,’ and ends, ‘I fell to the ground and moaned for the next few hours, lying in the moonlight, wishing to die.’”– Bronwen Tate

Some people relax by listening to classical music, or opera, or smooth jazz, or light rock.  But when the wizard and I want to chill, we watch Andrew, the Desert Drifter. Now before you tell us about all the other channels that feature similar explorers investigating ancient wonders, let me say that we’re not unaware. […]

Eric Savitz knows Business Technology inside and out. He spent 24 years as the “Investing and Technology” reporter for Barron’s magazine in New York and Silicon Valley. He served as a partner at Brunswick Group, an international consulting firm where he had an “up close and personal view” of some of the world’s most important […]

January, 2025: An Unstructured Adventure with the Wizard of Ads

I don’t claim to speak for anyone but myself, and maybe it’s a generational thing, but America, to my way of thinking, is less of a place and more of a belief system; a way of looking at the world and the people in it. Americans believe in opportunity and equality. Americans believe, “Treat others […]

All of us, to some degree, present ourselves to the social world in the guise of Character. We are all actors. The Digital world allows us to distort our image … create an artificial version of our lives … and hide our authentic identity behind digital walls; giving us the cloak of anonymity … which […]

Austen Allred, CEO@Bloomtech, reported a handful of lines comedian John Mulaney used when he closed out the San Francisco conference for Salesforce last week: “If Al is truly smarter than us and tells us that [humans] should die, then I think we should die,” he said, looking out to the crowd from center stage. “So […]

    “There is an oft-quoted passage in Walden, in which Thoreau exhorts us to find our pole star and to follow it unwaveringly as would a sailor or a fugitive slave. It’s a thrilling sentiment – one so obviously worthy of our aspirations. But even if you had the discipline to maintain the true course, the […]

    “Find your corporate mission statement, take it outside into the sunlight, lift it high up to the sky, then lay it down on the sidewalk and set it on fire. When it is finished burning, sweep the powdery ashes into the grass. Paper ash is an excellent source of lime and potassium. This […]

Many of the people close to you are neurodiverse and face challenges that are not immediately visible. In fact, about one in five Americans is neurodiverse, which includes conditions such as Autism, ADHD, OCD, Dyslexia, and Tourette’s syndrome. Dr. Matthew Zakreski is recognized as an expert on neurodiverse employee/employer relations, and is an advocate for […]

A thing is “remarkable” when people remark about it. Does it surprise you that people are remarking about this food trailer?– Indy Beagle

You were warned.© 2024, Roy H. Williams, Tuesday, Sept. 17 Seven Secrets of Sales Activation (Part Two) 1. Credible urgency is essential. “Why is this offer being made?” 2. You must make yourself vulnerable by disclosing your motive. 3. If a person can remember the last time you held an event like this one, your […]

“Someone once told me that Time was a predator that stalked us all our lives. I rather believe that Time is a companion who goes with us on the journey and reminds us to cherish every moment, because it will never come again. What we leave behind is not as important as how we’ve lived. […]

“We are the people, and this is our spot, and we will celebrate it, expand it, and defend it with our lives. The soil we stand upon and the blood in our veins unites us.” Community pride –”We are the people, and this is our spot” – brings people together for the common good. “We […]

Callie’s Cards is a ridiculously fun new business currently being launched by the adolescent daughter of Brian Brushwood, one of the Wizard of Ads partners. He shot this video with Callie in the tower at Wizard Academy. Here is what Brian says: Callie Brushwood is fierce, fearless, and, best of all, funny. She has the […]

Sept 4, 2024: Overlooking the island from the top of a mountain in Bali, this fabulous facility is a meeting place and a school for like-minded people. Sound familiar? This project has been a 12-year labor of love for Wizard Academy graduates Ron and Janine Parrish, the founders of a non-profit NGO in Indonesia. Celebrate! […]

During my Sirius Radio days in NYC, I walked past this station every morning from Port Authority.   It was dark outside, as I was on my way to the gym before work. There were usually a couple of firefighters standing out front, talking.  I never spoke to them. Until one winter morning. As I passed them, […]

More than half of all customers are willing to pay more for the same product or service if the seller also provides a single intangible: trust. Natalie Doyle Oldfield studies the dynamics that drive customer loyalty and business growth, and “Trust,” she finds, “is the critical value that top companies rely on to secure their […]

  Two thousand years ago, Confucius was as old to the people of China as Christopher Columbus is to us today. Five hundred and thirty-two years before the wise men followed the Christmas star to Bethlehem, Confucius wrote, “By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by contemplation, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is […]

How to Make a Fortune using Involuntary, Automatic Recall A musician who has mastered their instrument can play magnificently without having to think of the finger positions required to play each note. We can type without thinking of the locations of the letters on the keyboard. Without thinking, you lift your foot from the gas […]

Sittin’ in the mornin’ sunI’ll be sittin’ when the evenin’ comes,Watching the ships roll inAnd then I watch ’em roll away again, yeah I’m sittin’ on the dock of the bayWatching the tide roll awayI’m just sittin’ on the dock of the bayWastin’ time I left my home in GeorgiaHeaded for the ‘Frisco bayI’ve had […]

The road is longWith many a winding turnThat leads us to who knows where.Who knows where?But I’m strong,Strong enough to carry him.He ain’t heavy; he’s my brother. So on we go.His welfare is of my concern.No burden is he to bear.We’ll get there.For I knowHe would not encumber me.He ain’t heavy; he’s my brother. If […]

Sometimes in our lives,We all have pain,We all have sorrow.
But if we are wise,We know that there’s always tomorrow. Lean on meWhen you’re not strongAnd I’ll be your friend,I’ll help you carry on,For it won’t be longTill I’m gonna need somebody to lean on.
 Please swallow your prideIf I have things you need to borrow.For […]

Dutch explorers in 1625 found a forested island between the East and Hudson rivers known to the Lenape Indians as “Manhattan.” Every square inch of that island was developed in the ensuing 400 years except for a 6.7-acre plot of land 3 blocks south of the United Nations building. That land is owned by the […]

“One day that autumn, a staff sergeant who had written some short stories knocked on the door of Hemingway’s hotel room. He had never met Hemingway and didn’t how he’d be received. But he was ushered in and given a drink. Hemingway had seen one of his published stories, asked to see another, liked it, […]

   My Advice if You’re a Leader Leadership = Energy + Direction Direction = Vision + Courage Therefore, leaders are people of Energy, Vision, and Courage. If you are a person of energy, vision, and courage: (1.) I have noticed that people like you often become surrounded by wanderers who are looking for a leader. […]

To Set the Record Straight:The guys who “don’t give a damn about any trumpet-playin’ band” in Sultans of Swing (1978) were “dressed in their best brown baggies and their platform soles,” an affliction from which the wizard and I have never suffered. Having never been thus attired at any time in our lives, we are […]

“I was in Iraq 05-06 with the United States Army. And after a long day of fighting we settled down with some Iraqi soldiers for a few hours. One of the Iraqi soldiers asked me and few other US soldiers if we liked this song. Here I was thousands of miles from home in a […]

  “Then a crowd a young boys they’re foolin’ around in the corner,Drunk and dressed in their best brown baggies and their platform soles,They don’t give a damn about any trumpet playin’ band.It ain’t what they call Rock and Roll.”– Dire Straits, Sultans of Swing

“If you say that there are elephants flying in the sky, people are not going to believe you. But if you say that there are four hundred and twenty-five elephants flying in the sky, people will probably believe you. One Hundred Years of Solitude is full of that sort of thing.” – Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Pickin’ Up RocksWoody Justice is the friend the wizard wrote about in today’s memo. – Indy Does It Seem Cold in Here? Are You On the Ball?

Riding Rockets & Shooting Stars Riding this rocket toward my 67th birthday, memories of my life flicker in the twilight of my mind like shooting stars in the night. My gaze lingers on a long-ago day when I began writing ads for a jeweler. I saw the cover of a book that said, “Follow Your […]

The brand of Tommy Cool, by Matthew Burns with Ryan Chute(Notice how the radio ads don’t sound like ads. In just 3 minutes, you feel like you know Tommy Cool.) When your logo, your color palette, and your visual style guide work together to reinforce your story and your personality – as they do for […]

“Tell me, what’s troubling you?” “Profits are down. Our employees are unhappy. And I don’t know where I should be going.” The client is not a person, but the therapist is real. Dr. Nikki Blacksmith uses data analysis to help companies diagnose the business personality traits that are preventing them from achieving their goals.  Dr. […]

Michele Miller        Dennis Collins        Leah Bumphrey         Vi Wickam

Twenty-four hours a day, the north star – Polaris – hovers just above the hilt of this sword when you are standing on the Laughlin Stone in the causeway of the tower at Wizard Academy. You should see it sometime. – Indy Beagle

“Average people are afraid of looking stupid. This is what holds them back. It is only by attempting the ridiculous that we can accomplish the miraculous.” – Roy H. Williams

“As to the quality of the beer we cannot testify – perhaps a taste of it today would leave us sadder Budweiser – but when it came to perfumery, the monks were not inexpert.” “Their quarreling chewed through  the curtains, pierced the casements, and rattled over the cobblestones outside. How strange it must have sounded, […]

      “No one wants to be a leader anymore. Everyone wants to be a commentator. You want to know how to identify a leader? Just look for the person who’s making the decisions.”– Manley Miller, New Orleans

You are inside your business, looking out. The customer is outside your business, looking in. Your inside-out perspective makes you blind in one eye. Confirmation bias makes you blind in the other eye. You cannot see yourself the way your customer sees you. You imagine how they see you based on your mission statement, your […]

株式会社金剛組 Kabushiki Gaisha Kongō Gumi is a Japanese construction company founded in 578 A.D., making it the world’s oldest documented company. The company mainly works on the design, construction, restoration, and repair of shrines, temples, castles, and cultural heritage buildings.

She served as an FTC Commissioner and as staff director of Ronald Reagan’s Council of Economic Advisers. Her name is Margot Machol Bisnow. In her post-government career, Margot is guiding parents on how to grow their children into successful business owners. In essence, Margo is an evangelist for entrepreneurism. Although she focuses on kids, teens, […]

“We are suspended in that eternal moment between the past and the future.”– RHW, July 5, 2022 “It seems to me that most animals have this superb economy of motion. The instinctual notion of how much energy to expend, the ability to do a thing thoughtlessly and do it right, is a quality that I […]

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“Christianity is not a religion. Christianity is the proclamation of the end of religion, not of a new religion, or even of the best of all religions.” “If the cross is the sign of anything, it’s the sign that God has gone out of the religion business and solved all of the world’s problems without […]

   

    “The thing about learning the correct pronunciation of a word l’ve been saying wrong for 30 years is that instead of pronouncing it correctly moving forward, I will simply never say it again. Nothing is macabre or hyperbolic. Segues are transitions. The river in London has no name.”– Alix E. Harrow

Your business needs three strategies because your business has an inside and an outside and an engine. This is why every successful company has a Mother and a Trumpet and a CEO. The CEO choses a destination and builds a machine to take us there.The Mother looks inward to the people in the company. The […]

Below is the story behind the story.

Five hundred years ago, the Ottoman poet Latifi said each of the books in his library was, “a true and loving friend who drives away all cares.” What makes a library a reflection of its owner is not merely the choice of the titles themselves, but the mesh of associations implied in the choice… A […]

  Dr. Laura Gabayan is an emergency medicine doctor and associate professor at the UCLA School of Medicine, and for many years she has conducted a scientific study of wisdom, including how to define it and cultivate it. Dr. G., as she is known, recently published her findings and is sharing them today with roving […]

“The house has grown into a knowledgeable witness. It has been party to early seductions, it has watched homework being written, it has observed swaddled babies freshly arrived from hospital, it has been surprised in the middle of the night by whispered conferences in the kitchen. It has experienced winter evenings when its windows were […]

“My town had grown and changed and my friend along with it. Now returning, as changed to my friend as my town was to me, I distorted his picture, muddied his memory. When I went away I had died, and so became fixed and unchangeable. My return caused only confusion and uneasiness. Although they could […]

“The hunter who wanders through these lands sees sights which ever afterward remain fixed in his mind…. Apart from this, yet mingled with it, is the strong attraction of the silent places, of the large tropic moons, and the splendor of the new stars; where the wanderer sees the awful glory of sunrise and sunset […]