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Schulzke Dot Com

My name is Mario. Last name Johnson. I kid. Last name Schulzke.

I started IdeaMensch to share 8,000+ founder stories, cut my teeth in advertising running big-brand campaigns up and down the West Coast, spent a decade as a CMO, and now am the COO at Pathlabs, while teaching marketing at the University of Montana.

I am an immigrant (indigenous German), a grandson of refugees, a (slow)Ironman, and a Costco Exec member. My life mates are a curly-haired wife, a kid who won't nap, an overly affectionate cat named Walter, and a vindictive, long-haired wiener dog.

Recent Posts

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Reps Then Hacks

You need volume first, then you optimize. Too many people try to optimize before there’s anything worth optimizing. They tweak systems, tools, and routines when the real issue is simple: not enough reps. When I needed to pay for college, there was nothing to negotiate. I cleaned toilets. That

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Vinyl

Last year, I somehow got into vinyl, which is odd because I don’t really like music that much. I still don’t really like music that much, especially since I don’t understand the lyrics of most English songs anyway. Half the time, I’m just nodding along, pretending.

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Books of 25

Many of you read this site exclusively via email. That’s totally fine. Beats the fax subscribers. But you might have missed the book page I launched, where I listed all the books I read in 2025. I’ll be doing the same kind of recap this year—hopefully surpassing

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Minimum Viable

In marketing, "minimum viable audience" means serving the smallest group of people who truly need what you offer. It's efficient, effective, and deeply human — because you’re solving a real problem for people you understand. But what if we applied that same thinking to other areas

Minimum Viable
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Once

Most of us have a million things running through our minds at any given time. It’s certainly the case with me, though it has improved somewhat with age. Or maybe that’s just my brain slowing down—which isn’t necessarily wonderful in other regards. Whatever happens in our

Once
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