There are only three pure colors -- red, blue and yellow -- but look at what Michelangelo did with those three colors. There are only seven notes, but look at what Chopin, Beethoven and Vivaldi did with those seven notes. President Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address contained fewer than 275 words, and most of them had one syllable. Think of the impact those simple, direct words have had on our society. There are only 10 numerals, but look at what Bernie Madoff did with them. Never mind ... that was way too creative.

My point is that creativity is very basic, incredibly necessary and all too rare in business.

The American Marketing Association did a study several years back, asking 500 CEOs and company presidents: What do you have to do to survive the next five years? A whopping 81% said creativity and vision. Now get this: Of the 500 surveyed, 81% of them said that their company was not doing a good job at it.

When I speak publicly, my first lesson is always creativity. I feel it is that important. There is no correlation between IQ and creativity. Every single person reading this column can become much more creative than they ever imagined.

Statistics indicate that between the ages of 5 and 17, there is an extreme decline in a person’s creativity level. And as we age, our creativity drops even more. Don’t let it. Get rid of that “we-are-not-creative” attitude.

As Dr. Seuss said: “Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think if only you try!”

I love to study creative companies. My theory is that they have what it takes to be successful because their customers appreciate the thought that goes into their products and services. Wouldn’t these creative signs for businesses attract your attention?

A tire shop in Milwaukee advertises: “Invite us to your next blowout.”

A towing company claims: “We don’t charge an arm and a leg. We want your tows.”

At a car dealership: “The best way to get back on your feet: miss a car payment.”

Outside a muffler shop: “No appointment necessary. We’ll hear you coming.”

On a plumber’s truck: “We repair what your husband fixed.”

Print shop sign: “Price, quality, delivery ... pick two out of three.”

At an optometrist’s office: “If you don’t see what you’re looking for, you’ve come to the right place.”

On a maternity room door: “Push ... Push ... Push.”

In a veterinarian’s waiting room: “Be back in 5 minutes. SIT!!! STAY!!!”

In a podiatrist’s office: “Time wounds all heels.”

At an electric company: “We would be de-lighted if you pay your bill on time. However, if you don’t, you will be.”

On a taxidermist’s window: “We really know our stuff.”

Let me tell you about one of the most creative people I’ve ever met. On a trip to New York, I was shocked to get into a shiny, clean cab, with a stereo playing beautiful music. The smartly dressed driver handed me a laminated card and said: “Hi, I’m Wally, your driver." On the card was his mission statement. A mission statement! It said he was going to get me to my destination in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible, in a friendly environment.

As we pulled away, he asked me if I was hungry. As I recall, he had an apple, banana and a Snickers candy bar. Then he asked if I would like to read something, and he had that day’s editions of The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and USA Today laid out on the seat.

A short while later, he asked me if I had a favorite kind of music I would like to listen to -- symphony, Broadway, rock and so on. As if that weren’t enough, Wally asked if the temperature was comfortable for me.

By now, I was going crazy. I asked Wally how long he had been doing this, and he said a couple years. I asked him where he learned to do all this, and he said he heard it on TV from a self-improvement guru.

It was none of my business, but I had to ask Wally how much extra he gets in tips each year because of all his efforts. He said $20,000 to $25,000.

Trust me, creativity like that is priceless!

Mackay’s Moral: If necessity is the mother of invention, creativity is the fairy godmother.

Of all the creatures that came to the watering hole, Frog was the only one that did not have a tail. The other animals taunted him over it, making him feel inferior and ugly. So Frog visited the Sun God and asked him for a tail. The Sun God granted Frog his wish, on the condition that Frog watch over the Sun God’s special lagoon. Frog agreed.

Soon, a terrible drought seized the area, and the Sun God’s lagoon was the only watering hole available for many miles. Creatures from all over the land came to Frog’s new home in need of water. But Frog was very full of himself with his new long tail and his powerful position as keeper of the only watering hole. And because he had never forgotten how the other creatures teased him, he turned away every animal from the lagoon without giving them so much as a sip.

After a while, word of Frog’s antics reached the Sun God, who decided to verify this behavior firsthand. He found Frog swishing through the water, gleefully flaunting his tail. As the Sun God approached the water’s edge, he heard Frog shout, “Whoever you are, move along! This water is not for you! This special lagoon is mine to do with as I please because I am the most beautiful of all creatures.”

Angered, the Sun God exiled Frog and cursed him for the rest of his days. Now, every spring Frog is born a tadpole with a long tail. As he grows, the tail shrinks until it disappears -- to remind Frog that the only reward for spiteful and arrogant behavior is the loss of things one truly cherishes in life.

This folktale is all about staying humble, which can be hard to do in a culture that encourages competition and individuality. Ideally, we are expected to succeed and yet stay humble. That is easier said than done for some people.

Thomas J. Watson Jr., former chairman of IBM Corporation and ambassador to Russia, said his father frequently used to say, “Everyone should take a step backwards every once in a while and watch himself walk by.”

Staying humble is an important virtue. Even if you think you excel at something, there is probably someone who is better. Remember that there are many things that you cannot do. Recognize and accept your limitations. And while we all have talents, everyone also has defects.

I remember when I was first starting out in business, after college. I’ve always said, I thought I would start at the top and work my way up. I had chapped lips from kissing the mirror too much. But did I learn quickly about being humble!

When people ask me now to describe myself in one word, that word is grateful. I know that many people helped me along the way, from supportive parents to mentors and friends. Many people helped shape who I have become. I wish I could take all the credit, but experience has taught me that my life would be markedly different without all that valuable support. Seeing what all those folks have contributed reminds me that I could never have managed alone.

Whenever I speak to corporate audiences I say, “Anyone who thinks he or she is indispensable should stick their finger in a bowl of water and notice the hole it leaves when they pull it out.” No one is irreplaceable, no matter what they think.

Truly humble people also understand they need to avoid bragging, no matter what their talents or status. I’m all in favor of a healthy self-esteem, but you don’t need to continuously bring attention to your achievements.

That’s what humorist Will Rogers meant when he said, “Get someone else to blow your horn and the sound will carry twice as far.” I couldn’t agree more.

One of my favorite baseball players was Boston Red Sox Hall-of-Famer Carl Yastrzemski. As he approached hit number 3,000, reporters hounded him with questions. One reporter asked, “Aren’t you afraid of all this attention going to your head?”

Yastrzemski said, “I look at it this way. I’ve been at bat over 10,000 times. That means I’ve failed 7,000 times at the plate. That fact alone will prevent me from getting a swollen head.”

Mackay’s Moral: Humble pie is nourishment for a big ego.

Harvard Business School surveyed 600 CEOs recently and asked them what keeps them awake at night during this global pandemic. The results found that almost every aspect of doing business must be completely rethought for both short-term survival and long-term success.

The issues cited fall into three main categories:

1. Continuous learning and integrating new information.

2. Making complex decisions and plans quickly and solving problems.

3. Empathy, maintaining wellness and focus.

I'm a big believer in lifelong learning. You don't go to school once for a lifetime; you are in school all of your life. Companies need to create a corporate culture that strives for continuous improvement.

In his 1995 book "Managing in a Time of Great Change," Peter Drucker, the late, great management guru, wrote: "It is a safe prediction that in the next 50 years, schools and universities will change more and more drastically than they have since they assumed their present form more than 300 years ago when they reorganized themselves around the printed book.

"What will force these changes is, in part, new technology; ... in part, the demands of a knowledge-based society in which organized learning must become a lifelong process."

Students and teachers at all levels have had to adjust to remote learning, and that will most definitely not be just a passing fad. With a majority of people now working remotely, new systems have been developed in short order. I don't expect that to change as companies and employees recognize the benefits of working from home.

Many decisions were made within hours of lockdown announcements. Anyone who has management responsibilities understands that decision-making can be precarious. After you've done all your homework, when making decisions, I've found that you have to trust your gut. If I'm not sure, I check with people I trust to give me the knowledge on all sides.

As for planning, I like to say people don't plan to fail; they fail to plan. Things no longer rest on a predictable base.

Companies spend days, if not weeks, agonizing over their mission statements and business plans. Get the business model right. Then accessorize it with the details. You may not need more than a few action plans focused on very restricted areas.

It's not the sheer magnitude of the preparation that matters. It's the relevance of what you do. Is it clear? Will it change behavior?

A basic principle in the sales and marketing world is that people don't usually buy products and services. They buy solutions to problems. Successful salespeople and marketers tailor their products and services to meet a demand that is not necessarily immediately evident, but nonetheless very real. They identify problems in terms of solutions and anticipate problems long before they become apparent. They must be empathetic to their customers' needs.

Empathy is an emotion that is a sense of shared suffering, most often combined with a desire to alleviate the suffering of another and to show special kindness to them. Compassionate acts attempt to alleviate that suffering as if it were one's own.

Where, you might ask, does compassion fit in business? Will it hurt the bottom line? Will it make our company look soft or like a pushover?

The answers are: at all levels, no, and definitely not. Compassion and profitability are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, companies that are perceived as people-oriented and good corporate citizens have a far better chance of succeeding than those that put profits ahead of people. In times like these, empathy will win the day.

As for wellness, personal health is important for corporate health. Exercise is good for your mind as well as your body. Corporate America has long endorsed fitness and physical health, but it's done a mediocre job getting employees to buy into the whole program.

Maintaining focus may be challenging right now, but if you can focus fully on the task at hand, and shut out everything else, you can accomplish amazing things.

Focus is a topic I hear about frequently in business. The most common complaints? Too many projects spinning at one time. Too many interruptions. Too many phone calls and emails. Too many things to do. Too little time. Too many schedules to balance. Too much uncertainty about the future.

Stay focused as best you can, and don't let things happen to you -- not when you can make things happen.

Mackay's Moral: It's not about what you can't control; it's about what you can control.