On Reprieve

When he was about 29 years old, Ogilvy visited Intercourse, an Amish town in Pennsylvania.

He fell in love with the people, the smell of fruit in the breeze and a community that followed its own course, no matter what the outside world insisted was the norm.

And it had outlasted many norms.

Following a few visits and the right real estate opportunity, Ogilvy and his wife moved in. He learned the quaint tongue, made friends and became a tobacco farmer. His retreat into the simpler life totaled almost 10 years.

One day, after realizing he was physically unfit for farm life, he decided to leave the place he loved and start an ad agency. He had $6000, a few "gentlemen with brains" on hand, and a list of the top five companies he eventually wanted to service.

With time he nailed them all, in addition to numerous Departments of Tourism and the most robust American brands then and now. One of his biggest regrets was turning down the business -- and partial ownership -- of a small copy company called Xerox.

Small change in a big jar.