The year was 1996, the place was Stacey’s Books on University Avenue in Palo Alto, California, and the people were me, my wife, and Scott Adams.
Stacey’s Books closed in 2000, and now Scott Adams, creator of the cartoon character Dilbert, is also gone. He passed away on January 13 (Tuesday of this week) after a months long battle with Stage 4 prostate cancer. He was 68.
How that brief but memorable meeting came to pass thirty years ago was this. My wife and I lived in Palo Alto about a two mile walk from downtown. We liked to walk and we liked downtown, and often put the two together. As we were wandering along University Avenue (so called because it leads directly into the campus of Stanford University), we walked by Stacey’s Books. There was a sign in the window with a large version of the cover of a new book called The Dilbert Principle, along with an announcement that the author, Scott Adams, was doing a book signing that day.
Dilbert had been around in papers since 1989, but by 1994 it was being published in 400 newspapers. Because it fit the whole high-tech world of Silicon Valley, papers in the San Francisco Bay Area carried it, and we read it. Having already been in management for several years, and in high-tech at that point for about three years, I loved it. Everyone at our little company loved it, including our boss who was decidedly not like the pointy-haired boss in Dilbert.
So it was an easy decision for us to stay downtown and wait for the book signing. In fact we assumed a lot of people would be there, so we returned to Stacey’s Books perhaps 30 minutes before the time. From then until the opening of the doors for the signing, no one else showed up. When we went in, there was Scott, the perfect model for his creation, sans the white shirt and tie.
We chatted for a bit, telling him how much we liked his work and his sense of humor, and he was genuinely pleasant and kind. I have a copy of The Dilbert Principle beside me as I write, but it is not autographed. Apparently we did not actually buy a book at the book signing, or if we did we lost it and replaced it. But it is still a classic management book and has sold more than a million copies.
About Scott
In the days following his death, which was in fact national news, both mainstream media and alternative media have had things to say about Scott Adams. A lot of that has been about his endorsement of Donald Trump way back in 2015. In fact, President Trump himself said this on Truth Social:
Sadly, the Great Influencer, Scott Adams, has passed away. He was a fantastic guy, who liked and respected me when it wasn’t fashionable to do so. He bravely fought a long battle against a terrible disease. My condolences go out to his family, and all of his many friends and listeners. He will be truly missed. God bless you Scott!
The reference to “listeners” is about Scott’s podcast, Real Coffee with Scott Adams. I haven’t listened to any of those, but I’m going to. Partly that will be out of respect, but another part will be out of curiosity. What is driving that is a letter he wrote “to all of us” that was to be read after he died. His ex-wife did that the day after he died, reading it aloud in what was a viral tweet. A written copy was published by his friend Elon Musk, and that is what I have seen.
I saw in that letter a man who truly wanted to do good, and in fact did that on a grand scale. See if you have the same take on it.
Last Words
On January 1, 2026, Scott wrote the letter mentioned above. He says at the beginning, “If you are reading this, things did not go well for me. I have a few things to say before I go.” He goes on to reassure everyone that he is still of sound mind and that none of his decisions about his estate, etc., were coerced.
He then says “many of my Christian friends have asked me to find Jesus before I go.” I love that they did that, that he heard it, and that it had an impact. Ultimately, at least as of January 1, 2026, Scott decided that “the risk-reward calculation for doing so looks attractive. So, here I go: I accept Jesus Christ as my lord and savior, and I look forward to spending eternity with him.”
Some Christians will say, “Not enough.” Many others will rejoice. If he is now in heaven, perhaps one of the first to greet him might have been the thief who died on the cross next to Jesus, who said to him, “Today you will be with me in paradise.
But it was Adam’s life I want to focus on. When his marriage “unwound,” he said he “needed a new focus. A new meaning. And so I donated myself to “the world,” literally speaking the words out loud in my otherwise silent home. From that point on, I looked for ways I could add the most to people’s lives, one way or another.”
From there on, his key word is “useful.” He wanted to write useful books, and he did. He noted not the income from the books, but the impact on people’s lives. The entire goal of it all was to help people be better, think better, act better, and find community. He did good.
In Pascal’s Wager, the great thinker Blaise Pascal said that a rational person should live a life consistent with the existence of God and strive to believe in God. Adams didn’t do the second until the end, but he did the first most of his life.
He ended the letter by saying, “Be useful. And please know I loved you all to the end.”
That, my friends, is good.
Do good. It’s in you.
A Farewell to Scott Adams, Doer of Good
The year was 1996, the place was Stacey’s Books on University Avenue in Palo Alto, California, and the people were me, my wife, and Scott Adams.
Stacey’s Books closed in 2000, and now Scott Adams, creator of the cartoon character Dilbert, is also gone. He passed away on January 13 (Tuesday of this week) after a months long battle with Stage 4 prostate cancer. He was 68.
How that brief but memorable meeting came to pass thirty years ago was this. My wife and I lived in Palo Alto about a two mile walk from downtown. We liked to walk and we liked downtown, and often put the two together. As we were wandering along University Avenue (so called because it leads directly into the campus of Stanford University), we walked by Stacey’s Books. There was a sign in the window with a large version of the cover of a new book called The Dilbert Principle, along with an announcement that the author, Scott Adams, was doing a book signing that day.
Dilbert had been around in papers since 1989, but by 1994 it was being published in 400 newspapers. Because it fit the whole high-tech world of Silicon Valley, papers in the San Francisco Bay Area carried it, and we read it. Having already been in management for several years, and in high-tech at that point for about three years, I loved it. Everyone at our little company loved it, including our boss who was decidedly not like the pointy-haired boss in Dilbert.
So it was an easy decision for us to stay downtown and wait for the book signing. In fact we assumed a lot of people would be there, so we returned to Stacey’s Books perhaps 30 minutes before the time. From then until the opening of the doors for the signing, no one else showed up. When we went in, there was Scott, the perfect model for his creation, sans the white shirt and tie.
We chatted for a bit, telling him how much we liked his work and his sense of humor, and he was genuinely pleasant and kind. I have a copy of The Dilbert Principle beside me as I write, but it is not autographed. Apparently we did not actually buy a book at the book signing, or if we did we lost it and replaced it. But it is still a classic management book and has sold more than a million copies.
About Scott
In the days following his death, which was in fact national news, both mainstream media and alternative media have had things to say about Scott Adams. A lot of that has been about his endorsement of Donald Trump way back in 2015. In fact, President Trump himself said this on Truth Social:
The reference to “listeners” is about Scott’s podcast, Real Coffee with Scott Adams. I haven’t listened to any of those, but I’m going to. Partly that will be out of respect, but another part will be out of curiosity. What is driving that is a letter he wrote “to all of us” that was to be read after he died. His ex-wife did that the day after he died, reading it aloud in what was a viral tweet. A written copy was published by his friend Elon Musk, and that is what I have seen.
I saw in that letter a man who truly wanted to do good, and in fact did that on a grand scale. See if you have the same take on it.
Last Words
On January 1, 2026, Scott wrote the letter mentioned above. He says at the beginning, “If you are reading this, things did not go well for me. I have a few things to say before I go.” He goes on to reassure everyone that he is still of sound mind and that none of his decisions about his estate, etc., were coerced.
He then says “many of my Christian friends have asked me to find Jesus before I go.” I love that they did that, that he heard it, and that it had an impact. Ultimately, at least as of January 1, 2026, Scott decided that “the risk-reward calculation for doing so looks attractive. So, here I go: I accept Jesus Christ as my lord and savior, and I look forward to spending eternity with him.”
Some Christians will say, “Not enough.” Many others will rejoice. If he is now in heaven, perhaps one of the first to greet him might have been the thief who died on the cross next to Jesus, who said to him, “Today you will be with me in paradise.
But it was Adam’s life I want to focus on. When his marriage “unwound,” he said he “needed a new focus. A new meaning. And so I donated myself to “the world,” literally speaking the words out loud in my otherwise silent home. From that point on, I looked for ways I could add the most to people’s lives, one way or another.”
From there on, his key word is “useful.” He wanted to write useful books, and he did. He noted not the income from the books, but the impact on people’s lives. The entire goal of it all was to help people be better, think better, act better, and find community. He did good.
In Pascal’s Wager, the great thinker Blaise Pascal said that a rational person should live a life consistent with the existence of God and strive to believe in God. Adams didn’t do the second until the end, but he did the first most of his life.
He ended the letter by saying, “Be useful. And please know I loved you all to the end.”
That, my friends, is good.
Do good. It’s in you.
Get The Do Good U news
We won’t send you spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Let's Do Some Good
Learn more about our programs.