About Barry Maher

Barry Maher

Barry Maher

Barry Maher is a product of the University of Notre Dame, the Graduate Journalism Program at U.C. Berkeley and five confused weeks at The Whopper College of the Burger King Corporation. In his misspent youth, he was an award-winning poet (the award was seven copies of a xeroxed "literary" publication). His non-fiction appeared in perhaps a hundred different publications, and in order to eat, he held nearly that many different jobs. Sometimes he lived on the beach. Not in a house on the beach. On the beach. With the sand and the seagulls.

Then he started his own marketing business. He turned out to be good at it. Soon, he was an executive in a Fortune 100 conglomerate. Companies started asking him to consult. They started paying him to speak at their meetings. To his great surprise, nobody asked for their money back. He built a multimillion-dollar business telling stories to business and non-business audiences across the country and around the world, his client list a Who’s Who of multi-national corporations and leading associations.

You may have seen Barry on The Today Show, NBC Nightly News or CNBC, and he’s been featured in publications and websites ranging from The New York Times, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal to, his personal favorite, Funeral Service Insider.

We should also mention Barry’s been incarcerated twice. Once for not making a lefthand turn out of a lefthand turn lane, and once for aiding and abetting a loiterer. He’s deeply repentant.

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The Adventures of Cuddly Face Aug 29, 2025

I'd agreed to host a table at the company's awards banquet the evening after I did the opening keynote. With a noisy ballroom and eight people at each table, conversation could be difficult. But the woman on my right started talking at me even before... Read More

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Start-ups and Stupid Stuff Aug 22, 2025

"I'm going to make you a billionaire," Benito Mussolini said. That would certainly come in handy. He'd read one of my marketing books. Since Bill Gates contributed a chapter, Mussolini probably thought we were pals. Bill Gates wouldn't know me if I b... Read More

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Don't Bank on It Aug 15, 2025

Remember the olden days when banks were friendly? When they gave you a toaster to open an account and paid you 4% interest. No? It's been a while. I wanted to close my Bank of America checking account for reasons that probably wouldn't surprise anyon... Read More

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Control: Remote and Very Remote Aug 08, 2025

Warning: This column begins as slightly off-kilter, but it ends up flat-out weird. I think it's safe to say that it is the weirdest column ever written about divorce, TV remotes, funeral practices and interior decorating. Just be thankful I edited ou... Read More