Talk:Ivy Lee/Archives/2014

Disputed

Is there any evidence that Ivy Lee was paid $25,000 by Charles Schwab for the "six things a day" advice? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.112.141.212 (talk) 18:47, 8 April 2010 (UTC)

That often told story appears in a number of books. The oldest I've found and verified are Michael LeBoeuf's "Working Smart" (1979), and Alec Mackenzie's "The Time Trap" (3rd ed., 1997). It's quite possible that it also appeared in previous editions (1972, 1990) of Mackenzie's book; his 1972 edition is older than LeBoeuf's book. Mackenzie's version in the 3rd edition is:

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The following story is a classic, but so important, it deserves to be retold so that old and new readers alike can reap its benefit.

When Charles Schwab was president of Bethlehem Steel, he confronted Ivy Lee, a management consultant, with an unusual challenge. "Show me a way to get more things done," he demanded. "If it works, I will pay you anything within reason."

Lee handed Schwab a piece of paper. "Write down the things you have to do tomorrow." When Schwab had completed the list, Lee said, "Now number these items in the order of their real importance." Schwab did, and Lee said, "The first thing tomorrow morning, start working on number one and stay with it until it's completed. Then take number two, and don't go any further until it's finished or until you've done as much with it as you can. Then proceed to number three and so on. If you can't complete everything on schedule, don't worry. At least you will have taken care of the most important things before getting distracted by items of less importance.

"The secret is to do this daily. Evaluate the relative importance of the things you have to get done, establish priorities, record your plan of action, and stick to it. Do this every working day. After you have convinced yourself that this system has value, have your people try it. Test it as long as you like, and then send me a check for whatever you think the idea is worth."

In a few weeks, Schwab mailed Lee a check for $25,000. He later said this was the most profitable lesson he'd learned in his entire business career.

If you take nothing else away from this book, remember the following highly important principle: Identify your number-one priority and get it done first!

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And about the first origin of this story, it's often attributed to Napoleon Hill. However, I have not found it in his well-known book "Think and Grow Rich" (1937), but Hill's lectures are also mentioned as the source. Given that Hill researched extensively the life and methods of Charles Schwab, it's indeed possible that he was the first one to make the story known. If someone wants to verify this possibility, see Rare Recordings of Napoleon Hill (The Internet Archive, public domain audio), probably the lectures of 1954 in Chicago. They are nine recordings with a total of over ten hours, although reviewed as remarkably interesting, for example by Amazon customers, etc. Juan M. Gonzalez (talk) 01:29, 1 January 2013 (UTC)

After writing the above, I've seen mentioned in a number of places another early version of that Charles M. Schwab (1862-1939) and Ivy Lee (1877-1934) story, included in the session 11 -"Today’s Greatest Adventure"- of the unabridged audio program Lead the Field (1960) by Earl Nightingale (1921-1989), who was mainly inspired for his various works by Napoleon Hill (1883-1970), well-known researcher and interviewer since 1908 of, among others, Charles M. Schwab. The story is often attributed to Hill, who knew both Charles M. Schwab and Ivy Lee (see How To Sell Your Way Through Life, by Napoleon Hill). So, it's not completely verified, but possible that the story's main transmission chain, apart from possible branches, was similar to: Charles M. Schwab (interview, between 1908 and 1939?) -> Napoleon Hill (lectures, 1954?; or conversation, between 1949 and 1960?) -> Earl Nightingale ("Lead the Field", 1960) -> Alec Mackenzie ("The Time Trap", 1st ed. 1972?) & Michael LeBoeuf ("Working Smart", 1979) -> other authors. Juan M. Gonzalez (talk) 18:05, 3 January 2013 (UTC)

There is a discussion on this topic (Ivy Lee priority task lists) with additional data and references at Internet Sources (and something on efficiency). Juan M. Gonzalez (talk) 10:00, 5 January 2013 (UTC)

William Dodd's diary calls him a facist

I'm reading William Dodd's (the ambassador to Berlin from '33 to '38) diary, and it says, "At 1:30, Ivy Lee and his son James came to lunch. Ivy Lee showed himself at once a capitalist and an advocate of Facism," on page 74 of the first edition printing.

68.80.249.86 (talk) 14:52, 27 April 2011 (UTC)Quba Osman

The following is an extract from Antony C. Sutton, Wall Street and the Rise of Hitler (New York: Buccaneer Books, 1976), pp.42-45:

"This miserable picture of pre-war military preparation was known abroad and had to be sold — or disguised — to the American public in order to facilitate Wall Street fund-raising and technical assistance on behalf of I. G. Farben in the United States. A prominent New York public relations firm was chosen for the job of selling the I.G. Farben combine to America. The most notable public relations firm in the late 1920s and 1930s was Ivy Lee & T.J. Ross of New York. Ivy Lee had previously undertaken a public relations campaign for the Rockefellers, to spruce up the Rockefeller name among the American public. The firm had also produced a syncophantic book entitled USSR, undertaking the same clean-up task for the Soviet Union — even while Soviet labor camps were in full blast in the late 20s and early 30s.

From 1929 onwards Ivy Lee became public relations counsel for I. G. Farben in the United States. In 1934 Ivy Lee presented testimony to the House Un-American Activities Committee on this work for Farben.15 Lee testified that I.G. Farben was affiliated with the American Farben firm and "The American I.G. is a holding company with directors such people as Edsel Ford, Walter Teagle, one of the officers of the City Bank .... " Lee explained that he was paid $25,000 per year under a contract made with Max Ilgner of I.G. Farben. His job was to counter criticism levelled at I.G. Farben within the United States. The advice given by Ivy Lee to Farben on this problem was acceptable enough:

In the first place, I have told them that they could never in the world get the American people reconciled to their treatment of the Jews: that that was just foreign to the American mentality and could never be justified in the American public opinion, and there was no use trying.

In the second place, anything that savored of Nazi propaganda in this country was a mistake and ought not to be under. taken. Our people regard it as meddling with American affairs, and it was bad business.16

The initial payment of $4,500 to Ivy Lee under this contract was made by Hermann Schmitz, chairman of I.G. Farben in Germany. It was deposited in the New York Trust Company under the name of I. G. Chemic (or the "Swiss I.G.," as Ivy Lee termed it). However, the second and major payment of $14,450 was made by William von Rath of the American I.G. and also deposited by Ivy Lee in New York Trust Company, for the credit of his personal account. (The firm account was at the Chase Bank.) This point about the origin of the funds is 'important when we consider the identity of directors of American I.G., because payment by American I.G. meant that the bulk of the Nazi propaganda funds were not of German origin. They were American funds earned in the U.S. and under control of American directors, although used for Nazi propaganda in the United States.

In other words, most of the Nazi propaganda funds handled by Ivy Lee were not imported from Germany.

The use to which these American funds were put was brought out under questioning by the House Un-American Activities Committee: Mr. DICKSTEIN. As I understand you, you testified that you received no propaganda at all, and that you had nothing to do with the distribution of propaganda in this country? Mr. LEE. I did not testify I received none Mr. Dickstein. Mr. DICKSTEIN. I will eliminate that part of the question, then. Mr. LEE. I testified that I disseminated none whatever. Mr. DICKSTEIN. Have you received or has your firm received any propaganda literature from Germany at any time? Mr. LEE. Yes, sir. Mr. DICKSTEIN. And when was that? Mr. LEE. Oh, we have received — it is a question of what you call propaganda. We have received an immense amount of literature. Mr. DICKSTEIN. You do not know what that literature was and what it contained? Mr. LEE. We have received books and pamphlets and newspaper clippings and documents, world without end. Mr. DICKSTEIN. I assume someone in your office would go over them and see what they were? Mr. LEE. Yes, sir. Mr. DICKSTEIN. And then after you found out what they were, I assume you kept copies of them? Mr. LEE. In some cases, yes: and in some, no. A great many of them, of course, were in German, and I had what my son sent me. He said they were interesting and significant, and those I had translated or excerpts of them made.17 Finally, Ivy Lee employed Burnham Carter to study American new paper reports on Germany and prepare suitable pro-Nazi replies. It should be noted that this German literature was not Farben literature, it was official Hitler literature: Mr. DICKSTEIN. In other words, you receive this material that deals with German conditions today: You examine it and you advise them. It has nothing to do with the German Government, although the material, the literature, is official literature of the Hitler regime. That is correct, is it not? Mr. LEE. Well, a good deal of the literature was not official. Mr. DICKSTEIN. It was not I.G. literature, was it? Mr. LEE. No; I.G. sent it to me. Mr. DICKSTEIN. Can you show us one scrap of paper that came in here that had anything to do with the I.G.? Mr. LEE. Oh, yes. They issue a good deal of literature. But I do not want to beg the question. There is no question whatever that under their authority I have received an immense amount of material that came from official and unofficial sources. Mr. DICKSTEIN. Exactly. In other words, the material that was sent here by the I.G. was material spread — we would call it propaganda t by authority of the German Government. But the distinction that you make in your statement is, as I take it, that the German Government did not send it to you directly; that it was sent to you by the I.G. Mr. LEE. Right. Mr. DICKSTEIN. And it had nothing to do with their business relations just now. Mr. LEE. That is correct. ..."

His source is the U.S. Congress, House of Representatives, Special Committee on Un-American Activities, Investigation of Nazi Propaganda Activities and Investigation of Certain other Propaganda Activities. 73rd Congress, 2nd Session, Hearings No. 73-DC-4. (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1934), Volume VIII, pp. 178, 183. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 124.148.139.169 (talk) 08:14, 18 August 2012 (UTC)