Lesson #1:
Playing it Safe is Not Playing at All
P.T. Barnum

When Barnum was just 19 years old, he started the weekly newspaper, “The Herald of Freedom.” Based in Danbury, Connecticut, the paper was meant to be controversial from the onset. Barnum wanted to use the four-page “Herald” as a platform from which to argue against religious oppression and the militant Calvinism in which he was brought up. On every issue was even printed Thomas Jefferson’s famous saying, “For I have sworn upon the Altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.”

Barnum was pushing the boundaries with his newspaper, so much so that several libel suits were brought against him. However, Barnum was not one to back down. He went to trial and fought back against those who accused him of wrongdoing. His efforts were unsuccessful and Barnum was thrown in jail for sixty days. But, never once along the way did Barnum regret what he had done. It is such willingness to take chances that would characterize Barnum’s entire career.

After a few years of traveling with his road show throughout the American Southwest, Barnum was back in New York City by 1840. He was poor, tired of traveling, and, having exhausted a number of different careers, was left without any prospects. It was then that he heard about the struggling Scudder’s American Museum. With its collection of curiosities, Barnum was determined to buy it. He knew nothing about running a museum but figured it would be an interesting change of direction for his life.

Barnum’s decision to buy Scudder’s was a much easier one than figuring out where he would get the money. After telling a friend about his resolve to purchase the museum, his friend replied, “With what?” Barnum knew it was true that he had little money to his name and would likely not have enough to buy the establishment. Thus, he replied, “Brass, for silver and gold I have none.” In a brash move, Barnum decided to mortgage himself to the building’s owner. He proposed good references and a determination to succeed as collateral. By the end of 1842, the museum was his, and in no less than a year, he had climbed out of debt.

Buying Scudder’s was not the safest move for Barnum. The museum was struggling to turn a profit. How would Barnum, with no experience in running a museum and no money, turn it around? He was not quite sure himself, but he knew he wanted to try. In the end, by adding a considerable number of attractions to the museum and by engaging in a rigorous campaign of self-promotion, the museum would grow to become one of the most popular shows in all of the U.S.

Whether it was with his newspaper, his museum, or his circus, Barnum refused to be conservative. He was daring and he went out on a limb to achieve his goals. Things might not have always gone as planned – indeed, two museum fires would attest to that – Barnum picked right on up and kept going.

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