I worked as an ad salesperson for a monthly motoring magazine called Auto News and was doing well enough. After eight months, they promised I'd finally get to test-drive and keep for the weekend the next car they received for review. When the time came, the car turned out to be a high-end luxury model ' and the boss and his wife quietly kept it for themselves. The following month, I didn't sell a single real advert. Instead, I invented them. My numbers were the best the magazine had ever seen. The printers never received a thing. No ads ran. I still collected a huge commission. Then I sent a short note asking if they'd enjoyed their free luxury car.