It’s time to take this show on the road. I’ll be tearing up the Public Relations Society of America Conference with a talk on this Sunday, October 23 at 2:45 PM (room “White River E”). Given all the press releases I’ve ripped apart on this blog and my recent exhortation to give them up, this should…
The New York Times published an article about Trump sexually assaulting two women. Trump threatened to sue for libel. The letter that the Times‘ lawyer sent in response really hits you smack on the forehead, because it’s so different from anything else you read in the paper. I’ll analyze. There are three kinds of things you…
A groundswell occurs when a large number of people each do something very small. Those people don’t even realize they’re part of a movement until they see something to get behind, and to share. If you’re against bullshit, I’d like to give you something to get behind, and a way to make a difference quickly. Here’s…
David Ortiz, “Big Papi,” played his final game last night. The warmth I feel about this player has no limits. Why? How did I come to admire a black man from the Dominican Republic with a heavy Spanish accent? What could I possibly have in common with this man? And why is Ortiz so popular with so…
The US Census Bureau released figures yesterday showing that, in 2015, the median annual household income in America increased by 5.2% over a year earlier. That’s an increase of $2,798, to $56,516 per year. Why talk about the “median” and how is that different from an average? I’ll explain. Put simply, when you’re talking about income, the…
Eighteen months ago, I started working on a book about writing. Today you can buy it, in bookstores or online. Please consider getting a copy, or if you already have one, reviewing it on Amazon or elsewhere. I designed “Writing Without Bullshit” so you can get a lot out of it. Whether you write emails,…
My book publishes tomorrow. This is the first book I’ve written without coauthors and a company behind me. How did I get here? Why a book on this topic? I received 10,000 press releases in my 20 years at Forrester. I estimate that 2% of those had any relevance at all. In the ones that…
Friday’s post about the Donald Trump statues got quite a reaction. Surprisingly, it restored my faith in the Internet as a place for discourse. My objective was simple: get people to think twice about whether we’re ready to accept public, naked, exaggerated depictions of our political candidates as part of the dialogue. And I think…
When I work with clients, we sometimes trade contracts written in legalese. Both sides have a pretty good idea what we want. So why not just say it? Just for reference, here’s what I do: I help authors with book ideas. I help authors write book proposals. I run clear writing workshops for companies. I…