Matt Peterson, Author at Tweak Your Biz

Technology

When BlackBerry controlled nearly half of the US smartphone market, its leaders saw the iPhone’s flaws clearly — and still missed the shift that would erase its lead

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 16, 2026

Before Zappos sold to Amazon for $1.2 billion in 2009, CEO Tony Hsieh offered every new hire $2,000 to quit after their first week of training — roughly two percent took the money, and Hsieh said the ones who stayed were worth the cost of the ones who left

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 16, 2026

When Listerine launched as a mouthwash in 1920, the word ‘halitosis’ had been buried in a medical journal for 47 years — Lambert Pharmacal pulled it out, put it on streetcar posters, and grew annual revenue from $115,000 to $8 million in seven years

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 16, 2026

In 1964, a 25-year-old Phil Knight sold Japanese running shoes out of the trunk of his green Plymouth Valiant at high school track meets across the Pacific Northwest — the $8,000 in first-year sales became the foundation of what is now Nike

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 16, 2026

Business

When Kodak engineer Steven Sasson built the first digital camera in 1975, it weighed eight pounds, took 23 seconds to capture a black-and-white image, and executives told him to bury the project because film was the company’s profit engine

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 16, 2026

Finance

When Hershey’s founder Milton Hershey tried to board the Titanic in April 1912, he paid a $300 deposit on a stateroom but cancelled at the last minute for a business meeting — the check he wrote still exists in the company archives, never cashed

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 16, 2026

Growth

When IBM let Microsoft keep the licensing rights to MS-DOS in their 1980 contract, the lawyers thought the operating system was a throwaway detail — that single clause routed roughly $100 billion in eventual value away from IBM over the next 15 years

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 16, 2026

Management

In 1943, Lockheed engineer Kelly Johnson built the P-80 fighter jet in 143 days using a team of 23 engineers working inside a rented circus tent next to a plastics factory — the operating rules he scribbled became the 14 principles still taught in MBA programs as Skunk Works

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 15, 2026

All Articles by Matt Peterson

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 15, 2026

In 1998, Pixar nearly lost Toy Story 2 after a delete command erased months of work — and a maternity-leave backup became the only thing that saved it

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 15, 2026

Ray Kroc didn’t found McDonald’s — he was a 52-year-old milkshake machine salesman who visited the McDonald brothers’ San Bernardino stand in 1954, franchised their system, and bought them out for $2.7 million in 1961, after a reported handshake royalty deal they never collected

Portrait of a fearful woman in a gray tank top with hands pushed forward against a gray background.

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 14, 2026

There’s a difference between being humble and being unable to take a compliment — one is about restraint, the other is about not believing the words

Elegant black and white image of engagement and wedding rings on textured background, symbolizing romance and commitment.

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 12, 2026

When De Beers hired N.W. Ayer in 1938, only about 10 percent of engagement rings contained a diamond — the four-word slogan Frances Gerety wrote in 1947 helped push that number to 80 percent by 1990

Close-up of a woman using a smartphone indoors, focusing on hands with red nails.

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 12, 2026

People who reread the same text message five times before sending it aren’t being careful — they may be managing an old fear of being misunderstood

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 12, 2026

In 1984, Michael Dell sold custom-configured PCs from his University of Texas dorm room by cutting out the retailer and shipping direct — the $80,000-a-month side business he ran between classes quietly proved that buyers would wait two weeks for a computer if it meant paying 15 percent less

Moody office interior reflecting the evening cityscape through large windows.

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 12, 2026

When Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy on September 15, 2008, the firm had $639 billion in assets and $613 billion in debt — the largest bankruptcy in US history was triggered by a $4.5 billion shortfall the Fed refused to bridge over a weekend

Illuminated casino sign glowing with bright lights during nighttime in a bustling city setting.

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 11, 2026

In 1973, FedEx founder Fred Smith took the company’s last $5,000 to a Las Vegas blackjack table after a fuel payment was denied, won $27,000 over the weekend, and kept the planes flying long enough to close the funding round that actually saved the company

Intense lightning strikes during a storm over a countryside landscape with power lines.

Tweak Your Biz Editorial Team June 6, 2026

The Bootleg Fire that burned across Oregon in 2021 grew so large and intense that it began generating its own weather, including towering fire clouds capable of producing lightning miles ahead of the main front

Matt Peterson Articles

Latest Articles

When BlackBerry controlled nearly half of the US smartphone market, its leaders saw the iPhone’s flaws clearly — and still missed the shift that would erase its lead

Before Zappos sold to Amazon for $1.2 billion in 2009, CEO Tony Hsieh offered every new hire $2,000 to quit after their first week of training — roughly two percent took the money, and Hsieh said the ones who stayed were worth the cost of the ones who left

When Listerine launched as a mouthwash in 1920, the word ‘halitosis’ had been buried in a medical journal for 47 years — Lambert Pharmacal pulled it out, put it on streetcar posters, and grew annual revenue from $115,000 to $8 million in seven years

In 1964, a 25-year-old Phil Knight sold Japanese running shoes out of the trunk of his green Plymouth Valiant at high school track meets across the Pacific Northwest — the $8,000 in first-year sales became the foundation of what is now Nike

When Kodak engineer Steven Sasson built the first digital camera in 1975, it weighed eight pounds, took 23 seconds to capture a black-and-white image, and executives told him to bury the project because film was the company’s profit engine

When Hershey’s founder Milton Hershey tried to board the Titanic in April 1912, he paid a $300 deposit on a stateroom but cancelled at the last minute for a business meeting — the check he wrote still exists in the company archives, never cashed

When IBM let Microsoft keep the licensing rights to MS-DOS in their 1980 contract, the lawyers thought the operating system was a throwaway detail — that single clause routed roughly $100 billion in eventual value away from IBM over the next 15 years

In 1943, Lockheed engineer Kelly Johnson built the P-80 fighter jet in 143 days using a team of 23 engineers working inside a rented circus tent next to a plastics factory — the operating rules he scribbled became the 14 principles still taught in MBA programs as Skunk Works

All Articles by Matt Peterson

In 1998, Pixar nearly lost Toy Story 2 after a delete command erased months of work — and a maternity-leave backup became the only thing that saved it

Ray Kroc didn’t found McDonald’s — he was a 52-year-old milkshake machine salesman who visited the McDonald brothers’ San Bernardino stand in 1954, franchised their system, and bought them out for $2.7 million in 1961, after a reported handshake royalty deal they never collected

There’s a difference between being humble and being unable to take a compliment — one is about restraint, the other is about not believing the words

When De Beers hired N.W. Ayer in 1938, only about 10 percent of engagement rings contained a diamond — the four-word slogan Frances Gerety wrote in 1947 helped push that number to 80 percent by 1990

People who reread the same text message five times before sending it aren’t being careful — they may be managing an old fear of being misunderstood

In 1984, Michael Dell sold custom-configured PCs from his University of Texas dorm room by cutting out the retailer and shipping direct — the $80,000-a-month side business he ran between classes quietly proved that buyers would wait two weeks for a computer if it meant paying 15 percent less

When Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy on September 15, 2008, the firm had $639 billion in assets and $613 billion in debt — the largest bankruptcy in US history was triggered by a $4.5 billion shortfall the Fed refused to bridge over a weekend

In 1973, FedEx founder Fred Smith took the company’s last $5,000 to a Las Vegas blackjack table after a fuel payment was denied, won $27,000 over the weekend, and kept the planes flying long enough to close the funding round that actually saved the company

The Bootleg Fire that burned across Oregon in 2021 grew so large and intense that it began generating its own weather, including towering fire clouds capable of producing lightning miles ahead of the main front

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Matt Peterson Articles

Latest Articles

When BlackBerry controlled nearly half of the US smartphone market, its leaders saw the iPhone’s flaws clearly — and still missed the shift that would erase its lead

Before Zappos sold to Amazon for $1.2 billion in 2009, CEO Tony Hsieh offered every new hire $2,000 to quit after their first week of training — roughly two percent took the money, and Hsieh said the ones who stayed were worth the cost of the ones who left

When Listerine launched as a mouthwash in 1920, the word ‘halitosis’ had been buried in a medical journal for 47 years — Lambert Pharmacal pulled it out, put it on streetcar posters, and grew annual revenue from $115,000 to $8 million in seven years

In 1964, a 25-year-old Phil Knight sold Japanese running shoes out of the trunk of his green Plymouth Valiant at high school track meets across the Pacific Northwest — the $8,000 in first-year sales became the foundation of what is now Nike

When Kodak engineer Steven Sasson built the first digital camera in 1975, it weighed eight pounds, took 23 seconds to capture a black-and-white image, and executives told him to bury the project because film was the company’s profit engine

When Hershey’s founder Milton Hershey tried to board the Titanic in April 1912, he paid a $300 deposit on a stateroom but cancelled at the last minute for a business meeting — the check he wrote still exists in the company archives, never cashed

When IBM let Microsoft keep the licensing rights to MS-DOS in their 1980 contract, the lawyers thought the operating system was a throwaway detail — that single clause routed roughly $100 billion in eventual value away from IBM over the next 15 years

In 1943, Lockheed engineer Kelly Johnson built the P-80 fighter jet in 143 days using a team of 23 engineers working inside a rented circus tent next to a plastics factory — the operating rules he scribbled became the 14 principles still taught in MBA programs as Skunk Works

Signup for the newsletter

All Articles by Matt Peterson

In 1998, Pixar nearly lost Toy Story 2 after a delete command erased months of work — and a maternity-leave backup became the only thing that saved it

Ray Kroc didn’t found McDonald’s — he was a 52-year-old milkshake machine salesman who visited the McDonald brothers’ San Bernardino stand in 1954, franchised their system, and bought them out for $2.7 million in 1961, after a reported handshake royalty deal they never collected

There’s a difference between being humble and being unable to take a compliment — one is about restraint, the other is about not believing the words

When De Beers hired N.W. Ayer in 1938, only about 10 percent of engagement rings contained a diamond — the four-word slogan Frances Gerety wrote in 1947 helped push that number to 80 percent by 1990

People who reread the same text message five times before sending it aren’t being careful — they may be managing an old fear of being misunderstood

In 1984, Michael Dell sold custom-configured PCs from his University of Texas dorm room by cutting out the retailer and shipping direct — the $80,000-a-month side business he ran between classes quietly proved that buyers would wait two weeks for a computer if it meant paying 15 percent less

When Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy on September 15, 2008, the firm had $639 billion in assets and $613 billion in debt — the largest bankruptcy in US history was triggered by a $4.5 billion shortfall the Fed refused to bridge over a weekend

In 1973, FedEx founder Fred Smith took the company’s last $5,000 to a Las Vegas blackjack table after a fuel payment was denied, won $27,000 over the weekend, and kept the planes flying long enough to close the funding round that actually saved the company

The Bootleg Fire that burned across Oregon in 2021 grew so large and intense that it began generating its own weather, including towering fire clouds capable of producing lightning miles ahead of the main front