A little more moderation would be good. Of course, my life hasn’t exactly been one of moderation.
— Donald Trump

As long as your going to be thinking anyway, think big.
— Donald Trump

Everything in life is luck.
— Donald Trump

Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut, no matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you’re generally better off sticking with what you know. And the third is that sometimes your best investments are the ones you don’t make.
— Donald Trump

I don’t make deals for the money. I’ve got enough, much more than I’ll ever need. I do it to do it.
— Donald Trump

I have made the tough decisions, always with an eye toward the bottom line. Perhaps it’s time America was run like a business.
— Donald Trump

I like thinking big. If you’re going to be thinking anything, you might as well think big.
— Donald Trump

I mean, there’s no arguing. There is no anything. There is no beating around the bush. “You’re fired” is a very strong term.
— Donald Trump

I think Les Moonves is the most highly overrated person in television.
— Donald Trump

I try to learn from the past, but I plan for the future by focusing exclusively on the present. That’s were the fun is.
— Donald Trump

I wasn’t satisfied just to earn a good living. I was looking to make a statement.
— Donald Trump

I’m a bit of a P. T. Barnum. I make stars out of everyone.
— Donald Trump

I’m the No. 1 developer in New York, I’m the biggest in Atlantic City, and maybe we’ll keep it that way.
— Donald Trump

If you’re going to be thinking, you may as well think big.
— Donald Trump

If you’re interested in ‘balancing’ work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable.
— Donald Trump

In the end, you’re measured not by how much you undertake but by what you finally accomplish.
— Donald Trump

It’s tangible, it’s solid, it’s beautiful. It’s artistic, from my standpoint, and I just love real estate.
— Donald Trump

Love him or hate him, Trump is a man who is certain about what he wants and sets out to get it, no holds barred. Women find his power almost as much of a turn-on as his money.
— Donald Trump

Money was never a big motivation for me, except as a way to keep score. The real excitement is playing the game.
— Donald Trump

One of the key problems today is that politics is such a disgrace, good people don’t go into government.
— Donald Trump

Part of being a winner is knowing when enough is enough. Sometimes you have to give up the fight and walk away, and move on to something that’s more productive.
— Donald Trump

Sometimes by losing a battle you find a new way to win the war.
— Donald Trump

Sometimes your best investments are the ones you don’t make.
— Donald Trump

The 1990’s sure aren’t like the 1980’s.
— Donald Trump

The first thing the secretary types is the boss.
— Donald Trump

The point is that you can’t be too greedy.
— Donald Trump

Well, real estate is always good, as far as I’m concerned.
— Donald Trump

Well, yes, I’ve fired a lot of people. Generally I like other people to fire, because it’s always a lousy task. But I have fired many people.
— Donald Trump

What separates the winners from the losers is how a person reacts to each new twist of fate.
— Donald Trump

When somebody challenges you, fight back. Be brutal, be tough.
— Donald Trump

With out passion you dont have energy, with out energy you have nothing.
— Donald Trump

You have to think anyway, so why not think big?
— Donald Trump

1. All successful people have a vision. They have the ability the “see” clearly what they want before it exists. – Bill Gates

2. Some of success is luck. Just being in the right place at the right time. – Bill Gates

3. When you find a good idea act on it right away. – Bill Gates

4. Absorb, assess, and then act. Knowledge without action is impotence. – Donald Trump

5. Avoid your comfort zone — it’s probably outdated anyway. – Donald Trump

6. Resolve to be bigger than your problems. Who’s the boss? – Donald Trump

7. If you’re honest, you should know the questions that should be asked, as well as the answers. That’s probably why there’s so much confusion out there today. – Donald Trump

8. Do business with people you like and who share your objectives. – Warren Buffett

9. It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently – Warren Buffett

10. Borrowed money is the most common way that smart guys go broke. – Warren Buffett

11. Price is what you pay. Value is what you get. – Warren Buffett

12. Strive to become a market leader. Own and control the primary technology in everything you do. – Steve Jobs

13. Ask for feedback from customers of diverse backgrounds – Steve Jobs

14. Learn from failures, admit it and move on. – Steve Jobs

15. Learn continually from people within and outside of your company. – Steve Jobs

16. You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new. – Steve Jobs

17. Have a clear articulation of what your value proposition is – what makes you different? – Michael Dell

18. Tough times present new opportunities and the seeds can be sown for future successful companies. – Michael Dell

19. There’s never been an easier time to connect with customers all over the world – utilize social media opportunities like blogs, Facebook and Twitter. – Michael Dell

20. Find something that works well and then replicate it. – Michael Dell

21. Take advantage of the resources around you – people, technology and suppliers. – Michael Dell

22. Keep your messages simple and clutter free to reach your market faster. – Jack Welch

23. See change as an opportunity-keep an eye out for changes to your business. – Jack Welch

24. Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming. – Richard Branson

25. Big businesses will always try to crush small upstarts. To beat big businesses, use the strengths of being small. Big corporations are impersonal; staff is often not treated well. At a small company, you can make sure your staff is proud of working for you and then they’ll work hard to be successful. And small companies are more nimble. – Richard Branson

26. If you’re a successful entrepreneur, wealth comes with it. A responsibility comes with that wealth. – Richard Branson

27. A good company runs as if it is a family. If your son messes up, you don’t kick him out of the house. – Richard Branson

Follow the practical way,
George

This is one of the latest books of Donald Trump that he wrote together with Bill Zanker from the Learning Annex. They draw from their experiences in life to provide practical advice on how to think big in your life and achieve what you want. Donald gives many examples from real estate and his experience with dealing with famous people. Bill’s prospective is different. He draws his examples from the struggles that he had in starting the Learning Annex and transforming it into a successful company.

They recommend that is very important to find your passion and follow it. Do not do something for money, but because you are passionate about it. Then the money will follow. You need to go after your passion with 150% focus and to focus on the solutions to the problems that you will encounter and do not be dishearten by the problems. They say that you should follow and listen to your instincts because many times they will guide you through difficult situations. Their discussion of luck is very interesting. They point out that luck is created by hard work and not waiting for something to come to you.

There is a large portion of the book that is focused on been very competitive, gaining respect from your colleagues and going after people who are trying to hurt you. They talk about the jungle of the business world and that you need to be the strongest to survive, because people will always try to bring you down. What is very important as well is to build momentum and not to stop when you start to achieve things. Slowing your momentum will cause you to relax and you will lose your edge.

Their final advice is that if you want to think big you also need to act big. You need to show it in your everyday life. You need to have friends who have big dreams like you and learn from them.

In general the book is very interesting and discusses many personal characteristics that successful people have that you can easily copy. The examples that Bill gives from running the Learning Annex are very remarkable and show how big his thinking has helped him to grow his business.

Follow the practical way,
George

After watching Series 1 & 2 I was really looking forward to watch the third one. I find the advice that Donald gives valuable and I think it can help people become winners.

The third series of “The Apprentice” is full with more advice on the same topics. By now you will start to see certain topics repeating themselves. Donald is big on thinking big and leading with authority. This is where Donald places his focus and what has helped him to build his empire.

It is surprising that Donald refers to the same topics again and again. The candidates in the series keep doing the same mistakes. Please make sure that you do not repeat your mistakes. Learn from them and improve.

Here is the advice from Donald Trump give in the third series:

• Perseverance – Go ahead and do not give up when things get tough.
• Respect comes from winning – The people around you will respect you more when you show them that you are a winner.
• Lead with authority – When you lead you must have authority
• Never settle – Do not settle for the second best. Push for the best.
• Instinct – Listen to your instinct.
• Shut up and listen – You must listen and value your team’s opinion.
• Play golf – Be social and get to know the people you deal with.
• Go big or go home – Think of big ideas and go for them.
• Sell your ideas – You must be able to successfully sell your ideas.
• Know when to fold – Know when a plan is not working and cut it and move on.
• Let nothing get in the way – When you are moving towards your goal do not let other things distract you.
• Pulling all-nighters – Many times you need to push yourself very hard to achieve you goal.
• Take control – Be in control of the project and not let others wander aimlessly.
• Keep your eyes on the prize – Keep focused on your goal and go after it.

I will follow up in a future post with the advice from series 4. Till then have fun and be a winner.

Follow the practical way,
George Traganidas

Last week I covered the advice that was given by Donald Trump in the first part of the series “The Apprentice”. This advice is covering practical ways that can help people become more successful in business and become better leaders. I think that these are steps that Donald has followed and he lives by. These steps have helped him to build his huge empire and become a billionaire.

The second series continues in a similar style. A new group of people face business challenges every week and hope to work for Donald. The tasks are similar to the first series, but the pressure is more and the deadlines are more aggressive. Donald continues to evaluate the performance of the teams each week and give feedback and advice.

Here are his gems of wisdom from the second series:

• Be quick but be careful – You need to make decisions fast, but you must not be careless.
• Get organized – You need to be organized and move decisively.
• A penny saved is a penny saved – You must be able to control your costs.
• Be respected – You must be able to get the respect of the people you work with and that work for you.
• Price is right – You must price your product correctly for the market you target.
• Know your market – You must know the market that will buy your product.
• Sell your ideas – You must sell your ideas all the time.
• You have to love it – You must love what you are doing.
• Control your contractor – You must control the people who are working for you and make sure that they deliver.
• Believe in yourself – You must have faith in your abilities to succeed.
• Never lose your cool – You must always keep your temper and composure.
• Form your own opinion – You must be able to decide for yourself and not ask for other people’s opinion all the time. You are the one to make the final decision.
• Know your enemy – You must know the person who you will negotiate with.
• Winning is everything – You must focus your energy in winning.

I hope the advice from the first two series starts to paint a clear picture of what you need to be a winner. There is some repetition and that shows the importance of the particular skill.

I will follow up in a future post with the advice from series 3. Till then have fun and be a winner.

Follow the practical way,
George Traganidas

I came across the other day a series called “The Apprentice”. I am not a big fun of reality TV, but a friend recommended that I should watch this, because it is different and full of practical advice on how to succeed and run a business. As you know by now, I am very interested in practical advice and I thought of giving it a go and see what Donald Trump has to share.

I was pleasantly surprised by “The Apprentice”. It is all about business and how to be successful. Each week Donald gives the candidates a business task to complete and then at the end he judges them on how they did and gives his advice on what they did wrong. The tasks range from creating products to marketing to creating and running a business. The advice that Donald gives is great.

In each episode Donald gives a piece of practical advice on how to succeed. I have created a list of all the advice that Donald gave in the first series. Here is the list and my notes:

• Location, location, location – You already know that the location that you choose for a project is key to its success. What you must also focus on is the person who is behind the project and that the person is as important as the location.
• Don’t negotiate with underlings – You need to speak with the boss and not the employees when you are negotiating.
• The art of the deal – You must master the art of striking good deals.
• A deal’s a deal – You must follow through with the deal once it is agreed. This will build you a positive reputation.
• Stand up for yourself – You must stand up and fight for yourself. No one else will do this for you.
• Know what you are up against – You must do your homework, before you start a project.
• God is in the details – You must pay attention to all the details. This can impress your clients and show you are a professional.
• Beggars can’t be choosers – You do not beg to sell your services/product. If the person does not want to buy then walk away.
• You gotta believe – You need to believe in what you are selling.
• Think outside the box – You need to be creative with your ideas.
• It’s easier to think big – You need to think big ideas and implement them. Few people make bold big moves and that will differentiate you from the mass.
• Passion – You must be passionate about what you are doing.
• Dog does not eat dog – You must surround yourself with other great and successful people.

As I said in one of my previous posts you must seek advice from people who are successful in their field and they are active players. Donald passes that test and I believe that his advice is valuable and can lead you to success.

Next week I will talk about the ideas that Donald presents in the second series.

Follow the practical way,
George

This is a very interesting book that is written by two great authors. The book is packed with good material about the things you need to focus to get rich. It spends some time in the beginning to tell you why you need to get rich and why depending on a job and the government to look after you is not a wise decision.

I found that Robert is repeating his mantras here, a lot. If you have read some of his other books I do not think you will read anything new here. Maybe some bits here and there, but nothing amazing. Donald is a bit more original than his usual books. His parts in the book are smaller that Robert’s, but I found they contain much more practical steps on how to think big and negotiate.

If you have read no other books of Robert or Donald, then I would strongly recommend this book. It will help you to see why you need to think seriously about your financial freedom and show you practical actions to do. Donald talks a lot about thinking big and certain beliefs that you need to adopt. If you have read other books of Robert or Donald then I would be skeptical to read it. I found it good, but not exciting. If you like the book you can buy it from here.

Follow the practical way,
George