Thoughts on Life and Advertising

In and around a distinguished media career, Hugh Salmon has faced unusual life experiences, meeting new challenges and interesting people along the way. In the 1990s, his career was interrupted by his discovery of financial irregularities at an advertising agency of which he was managing director. When he reported this to his head office, an American company quoted on the New York Stock Exchange, his chairman and the company not only dismissed him but told lies about him to cover up the fraud. In a pioneering legal action, Hugh’s well-publicised, five-year battle to clear his name and recover his reputation led to a ‘spectacular victory’.

In the 2000s, Hugh discovered he was suffering from a broken back caused by a long term rugby injury and experienced at first hand the realities that disabled people are forced to endure. He realised the understanding of human behaviour and creativity he had worked with in advertising could be better applied to improving society as a whole.

Hugh Salmon’s challenging observations on life and human behaviour have featured in a blog on the marketing website Brand Republic and on The Huffington Post. Thoughts on Life and Advertising is a compilation of some of these blog posts and is accompanied by his ebook Ideas for Britain.

From stories about the young man who was the most useless person on the planet to leadership lessons from the Queen; from government blunders to corporate corruption; from office politics to sport and music; from kindness to selfishness; spiced with creative insights, empathy and common sense, Thoughts on Life and Advertising exposes characteristics of human behaviour that will inspire young people – and students of life at any age.

Hugh Salmon’s advertising career began at Ogilvy & Mather in London. At the age of 31, Ogilvy appointed him to manage O&M Thailand, an office of nearly 400 people. He has been recognised as ‘respected throughout the industry’ in Campaign magazine’s ‘A List of Who’s Who in Marketing and Advertising’.