Author archives: charlie

Last week I mentioned I’ve always had an interest in the Tudors. I’ve learned an enormous amount about them… …And I’ve also discovered that some of the things I believed for many years are absolutely untrue! For example, Walter Raleigh didn’t introduce tobacco to the UK in 1586 – a fun fact I had learned […]

I’ve always been interested in the Tudors – and over the past few months, I’ve been learning a lot more about them. It’s because I spend a lot of time listening to podcasts in the car – I still do most of my reading when I’m driving! And I was looking for a subject that […]

Did you know that only 53 companies have been on the Fortune 500 list since it was established in 1955? That means that 89% of the largest companies in 1955 have gone bankrupt… Merged… Been acquired by another firm… Or perhaps they still exist, but have shrunk to the point where they’re no longer on […]

More than a decade ago, we were working with a consultant on our growth plans. He asked me who our competition was. “Oh, we don’t really have any,” I answered confidently. He told me I was completely wrong… True, at the time – and to an extent, even today – there were very few companies […]

I was talking to a prospective client recently about what they charge their customers… He’s in a highly competitive industry with tight margins. And he really struggled to keep his prices in line with his competitors’. “I’m sure that if I charge much more, I’ll lose half my business. There’s a lot of choice in […]

One of the secrets to Walt Disney’s success? While he came up with grand ideas, his lesser-known brother, Roy Disney, managed the company’s finances and kept the business stable. “If it hadn’t been for my big brother, I swear I’d have been in jail several times for cheques bouncing,” Walt once confessed. “I never knew […]

Recently, one of my readers forwarded me an email they had received from someone called David Perell. I’d never heard of him before, but he turned out to be a pretty insightful guy who writes about the craft of writing. Every Monday, he also sends out an email full of the most interesting ideas he’s come […]

Last July, I treated myself to a new electric car. I absolutely love it – it’s the future – except for one little issue… In the 9 months I’ve owned it, it’s been off the road for 3 months! You see, it’s had two very small failings which in normal times could be fixed in […]

Every year, a total of 380 matches take place in the Premier League. And if you’ve watched even a handful of them, you’ll have noticed one constant… The best teams don’t win simply by playing offence. They play very strong defence too. They win because they’re not just thinking about getting the ball into their […]

Clients regularly ask me, “Garry, what should I charge for X?”… …X being their flagship product or brand-new service. I think they expect me to peer into their accounts – almost like looking into a crystal ball – and come up with the “correct” answer. I hate to disappoint them… There is no formula that […]