Make an investment in knowledge

Half a lifetime had passed since I'd seen these people. The year was 2003, and the event was our high-school reunion.

Of the 620 students in my class, about 20 percent were there. Half of the rest could not be found. The others, I suppose, weren't interested, or perhaps they felt their stories wouldn't impress anyone.

The people we thought would be successful pretty much were — the couple, married right after high school, who'd both become medical doctors; the guy who's an engineer for NASA; the salespeople who spend all week traveling back and forth across the country; and a certain magazine editor in Germany.

Many stories told around the buffet were not happy ones, though. Some in the IT business had barely survived the collapse of the internet bubble in the late '90s and the recession that had followed it. After being laid off or leaving voluntarily, a number had gone into business for themselves.

Unlike in Germany, it's rude to ask whether someone's business is profitable. You either have to wait for that person to tell his or her story, or you have to listen for clues. The clue I heard most often was: "I'm a consultant." To me, this was code for: "I have valuable experience, but not a full-time job. Still, people pay to hear my advice."

Good advice is worth it

Calling yourself a consultant is a dignified, though difficult, way of coping in hard times. Capitalism is a stern taskmaster, and one is reminded of this every time the German media refer to amerikanische Verhältnisse (American-style conditions) as the probable consequence of not being cautious in business. Sure, you can hire and fire people on short notice, and you can keep their noses to the grindstone by giving them only two or sometimes three weeks' vacation a year. You can make a vast fortune if you know what you're doing; but if you don't, the market, the shareholders, and the customers can be brutal.

That's why consultants do so much business in the U.S. They look at a company's overall strategy and can tell business leaders what they're doing wrong, what they haven't thought of, and what they may have forgotten. Here are some of their golden rules — actually wisdom that's been around for centuries.

• Investments: "If something seems too good to be true, it usually is."
• Advertising: "You have to spend money to make money."
• Innovation: "Find or invent The Next Big Thing."
• Budgeting: "Save for a rainy day."
• Marketing: "Find your customers. Don't wait for them to come to you."
• Sales: "Find a need and fill it."
• Service: "The customer is always right."

Americans know how to promote their products

The booklet we got with everyone's addresses contained several pages of paid advertising for the businesses and services of the classmates who were right there in the room. Americans understand the need for product visibility, corporate identity and studies of consumer behavior. If no one's heard of you, you're a stranger to them, and strangers are the ones who are fed last.

In the April Spotlight, which you will remember to go out and buy, you'll read about Benjamin Franklin, the American inventor who made a nice income from publishing short, witty words of advice. He said:

• "Beware of little expenses. A small leak can sink a great ship."
• "A penny saved is a penny earned."
• "If you know how to spend less than you get, you have the philosopher's stone."
• "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest."
and
• "When in doubt, don't."