The Leader of Leads

 

Who said the best defense is a good offense? 

The exact origin of the phrase is unknown, but it has been popularized by American heavyweight boxing champion Jack Dempsey. Here are the most notable figures associated with the sentiment:

Jack Dempsey: The boxer made the exact phrasing famous in the sports world, stating it was his primary strategy.

George Washington: He expressed a similar sentiment in 1799, writing that "offensive operations, often times, is the surest... means of defense".

Sun Tzu: Centuries earlier, the Chinese military strategist wrote in The Art of War that "Attack is the secret of defense; defense is the planning of an attack".

Carl von Clausewitz: The famous Prussian military theorist wrote a nearly identical concept: "The best form of defense is attack". 

I have spent my entire career selling. I started selling 'Car Phones' when the NYNEX Mobile System first went live in the NY CGSA (Cellular Geographic Service Area) back in the 80s. There were only 9 Cell Sites at the time, service was spotty (and expensive!) and the phones themselves were a few thousand dollars. Want one? 

Way back then I ran a TV Ad on our local Cable station that cost me $900 for the month. At the time, I think I had $995 in the bank. My first 'lead' was the guy that ran UPS for the Northeast. He lived in Budd Lake, New Jersey and drove to Secaucus, NJ every day. I have blogged on this story in the past. That one initial sale led to thousands of 'car phones' in the UPS trucks (and Executives Cars) in the Northeast. And then, nationwide. Do you think that the guy that ran UPS from Maine to Virginia could give me any referrals? 

After 40+ years in sales and marketing, I can honestly say that generating high quality LEADS is the most important thing in business. Nothing happens until someone sells something. And you cannot sell anything to anyone if they do not ENGAGE with you. And to get them to engage you need to win their ATTENTION. So it goes...

Attention > Engagement > Adoption > Utilization. 

1983 - 2026. Because I run the (now) Global Distance Learning Association (GlobalDLA.org) I get to interview hundreds of people from the top Schools of Business around the world. We have all 8 Ivy League Schools, and 174K+ K-20 schools in the NYDLA | NADLA ecosystem. And we have access to the ALUMNI of these schools. 

I owned the CLOdepot.com domain for many years, which originally stood for Chief Learning Officer. I was going to (planned to) build out a new business (like a riff on Home Depot) to service the Learning Officers of the world. You have CEOs, CFOs, CTOs, CIOs, CMOs and there are now CLOs. 

But I have changed my mind. CLOdepot.com is going to be dedicated to the Chief Leads Officer. 

For the first time in history, Penn State World Campus has more people paying them tuition than Penn State. Purdue University Online has more paying students than Purdue University. Rutgers University has 615K+ living alumni, with 380K+ of them living in New Jersey (like me!). 

2026: all of these 174K+ K-20 schools are now competing with each other. If you attend Stanford Online you are not going to ALSO attend MIT Online. If you go to UCONN online, you will not ALSO attend Quinnipiac Online. So all of these 174K+ schools are competing for you attention. They are all competing for your tuition dollars. 

Right now, today I could use tools like Adobe to send a 100% opt-in, zero spam campaign (email, mail, phone calls, SMS) to the 174K+ online schools serviced by the NYDLA | NADLA. If 10% engaged:

• That is 17,400 MQLs (Marketing Qualified Leads)
• And if 10% of the engage that is 1,740 SQLs (Sales Qualified Leads)
• And if 10% of the the SQLs BUY that is 174+ sales. REVENUE! 

10% of 10% of 10% is being very conservative. I like to under promise and over deliver. And over time, those MQLs and SQLs will ALSO convert, as we continue to nurture the leads via our marketing automation tools. Oh right - we also service THE ALUMNI of our 174K+ DLA schools. 

So the big lesson that I have learned in my 40+ year career in SALES and MARKETING is this: he who has the best leads wins. 

Who needs some help with generating lots of HIGH QUALITY leads? I'm teaching everything I know. TomCapone.com is the 'Selling CEO' and I work for you, our members. 

www.joinNYDLA.org

The New York METRO Distance Learning Association

Something cool happened to me (for me?) last week. Without my knowledge - out of the blue - one of our vendors sent me a DRAFT copy of my new book. A book that that was written for me (about me) by AI.

Basically, the AI bot read every one of (these) Sunday Blogs since 2010. It also read all of my NYDLA.org Tom's Tome posts (since 2025) and all of my social media posts. 

All of them. 

And then in less than an hour, it created a DRAFT of a 'book' written in my voice. If you want to see it, you can click here: NYDLA.org/AI_Book_Draft 

Now as I write THIS Sunday Blog, I don't know what to think (or feel) about this. I am both impressed and also terrified. I did not ask for this to be done, so I certainly did not know about this (or pay for this). The AI bot did not get everything correct. For example, it thinks I have two brothers (I have a sister) and it was a little sloppy with some of the facts. But for the most part, it was pretty accurate. And again, this was completed at no cost in less than an hour, in total. 

The New York METRO Distance Learning Association was born in the 5 boroughs of NYC in 1983. Pre-Internet. As of today, the NYDLA.org | NADLA.org services 174K+ K-20 online schools across North America. It's Kindergarten through 20 as in Grad School, Med School, Law School. We service all 8 Ivy League Schools. And amazing schools like PURDUE University Online with 600K+ alumni. Penn State World Campus with 800K+ alumni. RUTGERS with 615K+ alumni (380K+ alumni live in New Jersey - like me!). Many of these online schools have online courses that you can take from anywhere in the world. Courses on Sales, Marketing, Accounting, even Law School. PURDUE makes a point that the degree that you can earn from PURDUE University Online is the exact same education (degree) that you can earn from their campus in West Lafayette, Indiana. Now, from anywhere in the world. 

And now I am thinking this: if AI can do this for 'a book' can it not also do this for an online course?

Hey AI bot: go read all of the books in the New York Public Library on Cybersecurity and write me a new book on Cybersecurity. You can access the New York Public Library from anywhere in the world. 

Hey AI bot: go TAKE a dozen courses online on Cybersecurity and make me a new course on Cybersecurity. 

If this was done (my book) and I was not even aware that it was happening, could the same not be happening right now for online courses, or for any media that you can find online? And would anyone even know that this was happening? 

Hey AI bot: go read all the books on Cybersecurity and go take all the online courses on Cybersecurity and then create a new Cybersecurity course (with a book) written in the voice of... Morgan Freeman. Let me know when you are finished. I would like it by end of of the day, please. 

Oh, AI bot: check to see if this is legal before you get started. Start by checking with Harvard Law School and Yale Law School. Heck, check with ALL the Law Schools. And first check all the posts online about copyright law and whatnot. 

TomCapone.com wrote this Sunday Blog. No AI Was involved. {ah, but how would you know???} 

Plug In

 

I'm on my first road trip with an EV. And I'm having flashbacks.

I was born in 1960 so I have seen many 'firsts'. I remember getting a Color TV when that was a big deal. I remember having one of the first radio controlled garage doors when living in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. That was magic. My dad loved new stuff, we called them 'gadgets' back then.

In 1960, one in five American households didn’t have a car. 2025: There were 20.5 million EV cars sold, world-wide. 

Think about all the TV antennas on the rooftops across the USA. We had channels 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13 when I was growing up. And then came Cable TV. And then Satellite TV. And then the Internet. 

The only constant in life is change. 

I learned to drive during the 'Gas Crisis' in the 70s. I watched as President Carter spoke to the nation on TV, as he made the National Speed Limit 55 across the USA. I felt so cheated! Just in time for me get my driver's license, we had gas rationing. I also remember when President Carter placed Solar Panels on the White house. 

And I remember when President Reagan promptly took them down. 

When I drove to and from PURDUE from my home in New Jersey in the 70s gas was around $0.85 a gallon. There was talk that gas might cost more than $1 per gallon one day soon. Many said that would never happen. There were many 'muscle cars' on campus, no one really cared about MPG back then. During my days at PURDUE we had Americans being held hostage in Iran. Now in 2026 our cars and trucks are being held hostage. We really don't seem to learn, do we?

I can charge my EV at home, during off peak hours. It takes around 5 to 7 hours to get a full charge from home. From the road, it takes 10 to 20 minutes to top off to 80% of a charge, which can get me 250 to 350 miles. The app in the car (and in my phone) will find a charger for road trips. My son has an EV so when we visit him in Connecticut I charge up in his driveway. 

Solar (and wind) technology has changed a lot since the 70s. I wonder where we would be as a country if we kept the solar panels on the White House. If we made the alternative energy industry cool. If we changed from 'muscle cars' to electric. The 'gas crisis of the 70s should have been a lesson for all of us, right? 

We were warned. Big money wanted to keep the game the same. And climate change was a hoax, right?

I remember making that college drive from New Jersey to Indiana, and looking at all the land. The open spaces. Farmland, and cornfields. Farms, farms, farms as far as the eye can see. Why not Wind Farms and Solar Farms? 

Dozens of countries operate electrified or battery-electric (EV) trains, with widespread adoption across Europe, Asia, and expanding rapidly in Australia and the Americas. The majority utilize traditional electrified overhead wires or third rails, while others are pioneering battery-electric or hydrogen-powered train technologies for cleaner transit.

Leading countries utilizing electrified (EV) and battery-electric trains include:

Switzerland: Operates a 100% electrified national railway network, featuring heavily utilized electric passenger and freight trains.

The Netherlands: The first country to run its entire national railway on 100% wind-powered electricity.

Japan: Operates one of the world's most extensive electrified networks (roughly 75% electrified), famous for its high-speed electric Shinkansen bullet trains.

India: Aiming for full network electrification, with nearly 90% of its rail routes electrified using heavy electric locomotives for both freight and passenger travel.

China: Boasts the world's largest high-speed rail network and one of the largest overall electrified networks in the world.

Spain: Leads Europe in high-speed rail and is pioneering zero-emission electric and hydrogen-powered high-speed trains.

Australia: Expanding commercial battery-electric freight locomotives, using massive onboard battery banks and regenerative braking to haul heavy mining loads without overhead lines.

My grandchildren will never know a world without EV trains, cars, trucks. Probably EV ships and aircraft, too. Fossil fuels will be like having thousands of horses in the city, pulling wagons and buggies. 

That must have really been something, manure as far as the eye can see on city streets. Here's to hoping that we have sunny (and windy) times ahead. Like the rest of the civilized world. 

Democratizing Education

 

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Thomas Edison invented the first phonograph in 1877, creating the first machine capable of both recording and reproducing sound. He announced the invention on August 12, 1877, and produced the first audio recording, "Mary Had a Little Lamb," using tinfoil wrapped around a rotating cylinder at his Menlo Park, NJ laboratory ( around 15 miles from my home ).

Key details about the 1877 invention

• The Process: Edison's initial phonograph used a stylus to indent sound vibrations onto a tinfoil sheet wrapped around a cylinder.
• Initial Purpose: It was designed to record telephone messages and dictation.
• Inspiration: The invention was born out of his work on telegraphy and an improved telephone transmitter.
• Patent: Although the device was demonstrated in 1877, the patent was filed on December 24, 1877, and issued in early 1878.

And so: Thomas Edison invented the phonograph in 1877 to record and reproduce sound, initially intending it as a business machine to record telephone messages and dictation. While working on telegraph transmitters, Edison discovered a way to emboss sound vibrations onto tin foil, creating the first machine capable of playing back recorded audio. 

Did Thomas Edison invent distance learning?

No, Thomas Edison did not invent distance learning.

Distance learning (also called distance education or correspondence education) refers to structured learning where students and instructors are separated by time and/or distance, often using mail, media, or technology for delivery and feedback. Its origins predate Edison by decades or even centuries.

Key Historical Timeline

• 1728: One of the earliest recorded examples was in Boston, where Caleb Phillips advertised shorthand lessons via mailed correspondence in the Boston Gazette.
• 1840s: Sir Isaac Pitman in Britain is widely credited with the first modern correspondence course. He taught shorthand by mailing transcribed texts on postcards and receiving student work back for correction. This was enabled by cheap, uniform postage (the Penny Post). It included two-way feedback and scaled successfully.
• 1858: The University of London began offering distance learning degrees through its External Programme, making higher education accessible worldwide.

Later developments included U.S. correspondence programs in the late 1800s, radio/TV-based education in the 20th century, and eventually online learning.

The New Jersey Edison Connection

Edison (1847–1931) was largely homeschooled by his mother after a brief, unsuccessful time in formal school (his teacher reportedly called him "addled"). He was a voracious self-learner through reading and experimentation, which some stories romanticize as early "learning at home."

He did engage with educational technology later in life. In 1913, he predicted that motion pictures would transform schools within a decade, saying something like "Our school system will be completely changed." He produced educational films, but this was about using media in (or alongside) education, not inventing remote/distance learning itself.

In short, Edison was a brilliant inventor and self-taught individual whose mother facilitated his early education at home, and he later championed visual media for teaching but distance learning as a concept and practice existed long before him. 

The "founding father" of modern correspondence/distance education is typically Pitman.

Key Broadcasting Milestones

• 1895–1897: Guglielmo Marconi conducted the first successful wireless transmissions (Morse code/dot-dash signals), including the first over open water in 1897. These were not audio broadcasts but point-to-point communication.
• December 24, 1906 (Christmas Eve): Reginald Fessenden (a Canadian inventor) made what is widely regarded as the first radio broadcast of audio - human voice and music. From Brant Rock, Massachusetts, he transmitted violin playing (O Holy Night), a Bible passage, and possibly a phonograph record. Ships at sea (as far as Virginia) picked it up. This is often cited as the birth of voice and music broadcasting. { around 120 years ago }

1919–1920: The start of regular/scheduled broadcasting.

• November 6, 1919: Hanso Idzerda's PCGG station in The Hague, Netherlands, began regular entertainment broadcasts.
• August 20, 1920: 8MK (later WWJ) in Detroit broadcast regularly.
• November 2, 1920: KDKA in Pittsburgh (Westinghouse) broadcast the U.S. presidential election results (Harding vs. Cox). This is frequently called the first commercial radio broadcast or the start of the broadcasting era in the U.S.

2026: The Distance Learning Association via Global Satellite High Speed Internet delivers K-20 Education to every location in the word. And Telemedicine. And Ecommerce. And of course, entertainment. 

Ever watch a TED.com talk? How about a Netflix documentary? Or have you ever attended a class (or a meeting) via Zoom? 

Yeah, I love my job. We are all living, learning, working, playing, teaching, training, coaching, mentoring in the GLOBAL Cloud COMMUNITY. 

Yours and mine.