Chapter six:
Deep Thoughts
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Story Failure
Recently, I read a very interesting article in The Wall Street Journal on how “…Target Lost Its Way Under Ousted CEO Gregg Steinhafel.” The Target
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous (Brands)
I recently read an essay in The New Yorker by John Suroweiki about the decline of brands. He led with the story of Lululemon, whose
Made for Laughs
The kids, excited to see Despicable Me 2, were a typical rowdy, loud bunch, even as the lights went down in the theater. But then
The Connection Between Strategy and Story
For some time now I’ve been trying to understand how strategy and story intersect most effectively. There are some situations in which business strategy and
Google Mugs Father Christmas
I was just starting my annual letter to Santa when I saw a commercial that threatened my entire system of belief. Santa will have to
Masters of Metaphor
There was an interesting article in Ad Age entitled “What I Learned From Working at P&G,” in which a number of highly placed alums reflect
“Win Games, Sell Tickets”
We were doing Character Camp recently for one of my favorite professional sports teams, digging hard for the truth at the heart of the story
Nike Wins Gold
I was at a five-year-old’s birthday party on this last Sunday of the Olympics. A bunch of the parents were sitting around in the shade
Subject: Crash Testing the Google Car
By now you may already have seen this evocative video of the Google self-driving car in action. If you haven’t, I won’t give it away,
There’s a Zucker Born Every Minute
There’s been a lot of buzz about the Facebook IPO and its underwhelming reception. While there are certainly financial and possibly even legal issues at
Facebook Buys Amway
Just kidding. The whole Facebook/Amway thing is just a metaphor. Years ago, I was at a large family gathering, and my second cousin George was
The Island of Misfit Foods
Over the holidays, my partner Jim heard a story likely to disturb the sleep of a lot of food marketers: A friend of mine told