Whatever you do, the main thing is to think globally. Large-scale projects are the main driving force behind all the great achievements of our time, from giant skyscrapers to outstanding discoveries in science, technology and medicine. Powerful, global thinking is what lies behind every successful business, church, and political organization. Thinking big is what creates close, loving human relationships. I am confident that if you focus on the top, you will conquer it. Some people have an innate ability to conquer peaks. They are born champions. Other champions are self-made. Tiger Woods is one of them. So are Michael Jordan, Derek Jeter and Tom Brady. They sought to go beyond the ordinary. They set ambitious goals for themselves and worked hard to achieve them. Sometimes a large project is even easier to implement than a small one. It's easier to build a skyscraper in Manhattan than to buy a barn in the Bronx. It takes the same amount of time to close a large deal as it does to close a small one. You have to go through the same sorrows and troubles, you will have the same problems and the same headaches. Banks are more willing to lend money for a large project than for a small one. They feel safer investing capital in large, prestigious buildings than in a crumbling house in a less tranquil area of the city. And if you succeed on a big project, you'll make a lot more money. The first step to success is to make the leap from being a nobody to being somebody. Most people are afraid to think big. They simply cannot decide to do it. Why? Because they cannot imagine themselves doing big things: they have no knowledge, experience, or track record. They have nothing that a successful person should have. So it turns out that on the way to thinking broadly, big and globally, you are your own worst enemy. You really think that only people with money, university degrees can think big degrees, family connections or outstanding intellect? This is wrong. Everyone can think big. The most important thing in this life is the scale of your thinking. How big you think determines the level of success you can achieve. Everything else is secondary. The ability to think already sets you apart from the vast mass of people. So start now. First, define a big goal for yourself, and then try to become a person who can achieve this goal. I decided to become a big developer. And I began to work to become a person capable of managing large construction projects. I went to Wharton, where I studied financial systems. I studied real estate in my free time. I worked with my father for five years and learned how to close deals and how to build houses faster and cheaper than the competition. Then I felt like I was ready for more. Then I moved to Manhattan and opened my own company. I had a big goal, and I took all the necessary steps to become a person capable of achieving such a goal. www.mlm24.ru121 WALK SOFTLY - BUT KEEP YOUR POSTURE As you begin to think big, assume a proud posture. Everything you do in life, do it with a flourish and with your shoulders back. I always think of myself as the most attractive man—and it's no secret that I have a weakness for beautiful women. That's why I became the owner of the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants. I love to constantly be surrounded by beautiful women. My wife doesn't mind because she is the most beautiful woman there is and she knows that I married her because I love her and because I wanted to marry her. I had a choice: get married or remain single. I preferred to get married. I don’t want to be single. Of course, I have a poor track record when it comes to marriages, but I still prefer married life to single life. That's why I finally found the right woman, having learned something from my past mistakes. I am determined that in my marriage with Melanie everything would be much better than before. But many are surprised that the beauties love me! For the first season of The Apprentice, NBC paid me virtually nothing—and no one thought the show would survive. They didn't even bother wasting ink to sign an agreement with me. One of the channel’s managers said: “For the show to be successful, women must watch it.” Why on earth would women look at Donald Trump? I replied: “Things have not been so bad with women so far.” And, as it turned out later, the vast majority of the viewers of “The Apprentice” were women! Women with whom I had relationships over all these years, they could have gotten any man - these were top models, the most beautiful women in the world. And I dated (and slept with) all of them because I have something in me that other men don't have. I don’t know what this “something” is, but women have always liked it and still like it. So, guys, with more audacity, self-confidence, cunning and humor - then you will get all the women you so wanted to get! Geraldo Rivera is my friend, but he once did, from my point of view, an absolutely unacceptable act (he admits that made a mistake). So, he wrote a book where he named all the famous women with whom he slept. I would never do something like that - I respect women too much for that. But if I wrote such a book, the world would shake up! Beautiful, famous, successful, married - I’ll tell you a secret, I had them all. It’s just that, unlike Geraldo, I won’t talk about it. But if I did, such a book would sell ten million copies (maybe I will write one after all). The only thing I've learned about women over the years is that they need sex more than we do! We may live in nice houses in the suburbs, but our brains and our emotions are still a tiny step away from the jungle. In primitive times, women sought protection from the strongest males. They did not waste time on some nonentity, a low-status male who did not have the means to provide shelter, protection and food for them and their offspring. But males with status demonstrated their capabilities precisely by the behavior of the winner. They were not afraid to think for themselves and make their own decisions. www.mlm24.ru122They didn’t give a damn about what the rest of the tribe thought. And the “winning” style of behavior is still associated with the type of man who attracts women. Maybe this is not a politically correct thought, but I don’t care much about it. This is common sense, it is a fact and will always remain a fact. The same is true for women. In female attractiveness, appearance plays a serious role, there is no arguing with that. But appearance alone will not help you get a truly high-quality man - at least not for a long time. Appearance is only half the game. You also need to behave correctly. A woman's attractiveness greatly depends on her attitude towards herself. Believe that you are precious and unique - and convey this feeling, this belief to everyone around you. Everything should speak about your “royal” nature: posture, gait, speech, movements, gaze. My advice to both men and women: believe in yourself and demonstrate it through your behavior. You will become much more attractive to the opposite sex. And even if you are gay, it doesn't change anything, because behavior is everything! Think big and show confidence in yourself in work, in play, in everything you do in life. People sometimes complain that their life is completely boring. I'm never bored. If you need more emotionality in your life, it is only within your power to add this ingredient to your life. Let's say you are planning some kind of private event. You have a choice: keep this event low-key or go big. If you are planning something modest and without any special fireworks, well, that’s what you’ll get. Plan your event to the maximum! Take your emotional level to the limit! So that everything is cooler than in the movies and more fantastic than in a fairy tale! You are who you imagine yourself to be. Most people have a low opinion of themselves and their abilities. They believe that others are much smarter and underestimate their own intelligence. Turn the table one hundred and eighty degrees! And tell yourself that you are smarter than most other people. And let this be reflected in your attitude and behavior. Everyone says about George Clooney: “Oh, what a handsome man!” But when I recently met him over a cocktail, I was amazed: how small, how short this Clooney turned out to be! No, he was very sweet and pleasant, but his behavior did not at all correspond to my ideas about him - he did not at all resemble his familiar image. He looks much cooler on screen. Another example of the same discrepancy between image and reality: Angelina Jolie. I don't find her attractive and the press crawls around her on their knees! After all, I am an expert in female beauty, and Jolie, of course, is far from ugly, but she is not a beauty at all. Perception is what is very important. She is perceived as an outstanding beauty, which has nothing to do with reality. But very often perception is much more important than fact. Which is the case in her case. We ourselves dictate to people how they should think about you. Your attitude towards yourself is obvious to everyone. Behave in such a way that everyone understands: you are worth a lot. Then people will regard you that way. Move energetically, purposefully, look straight ahead, like a person who knows where and why he is going. We all define ourselves, so feel free to define yourself. www.mlm24.ru123 Instead of “marketing manager,” define yourself as a marketing manager who is about to become vice president of marketing. Instead of a “single-family home builder,” define yourself as a single-family home builder who is about to become a high-rise developer. Instead of a “legal assistant,” define yourself as a legal assistant who is about to become a partner in a law firm. Instead of an “accountant,” define yourself as an accountant who is about to become a vice president of finance. Showcase your big-picture thinking with your entire being . Present yourself as an active, enthusiastic, determined, efficient, dedicated person who believes in himself. You are the one who gets promoted, who gets clients, who has many friends. You are the one who climbs up the ladder of life, the fountain of creative ideas. Your attitude towards life, demonstrated to others, your behavior is much more important than your IQ. Outstanding minds have always drawn positive conclusions about things and events. Get into the habit of doing the same. Start each day with the thought: “Today is a great day. I live in the best country in the world. I have a wonderful profession. It's great to be alive! I have a lot of opportunities to succeed today!” And your consciousness will find ways to prove that all this is true. People who think small and draw negative conclusions from everything that happens force their minds to generate more and more negative thoughts. The choice is yours. So let this choice be positive. AT THE HIGHEST DEGREE - TO THE THINGS Reinforce the impression of yourself as a person of large-scale thinking with every step you take. Everything must be of the highest standard - down to the smallest detail. Let your shoes, suits, shirts, ties, coats, watches and jewelry show the world that you understand and value quality. If your budget is not too big yet, buy fewer things - but of better quality. Everything you do and own should project an image of seriousness and solidity. Drive a first-class car and have first-class luggage, eat in first-class restaurants, buy everything in first-class stores. I learned this lesson when I bought a football team in New Jersey. The New Jersey Generals then played in a minor league called the United States Football League. For the 1985 season, I signed with Doug Flutie and Herschel Walker. In 1986, we filed a $1.5 billion lawsuit against the National Football League, alleging that the NFL had conspired to monopolize American football. We won in court, but received only one dollar in damages plus interest—a total of three dollars and seventy-six cents. We later received six million in compensation for legal expenses. At the time, I thought it would be a good, cheap way to jump into the NFL. I didn’t spend that much money, but I still tried to achieve my goal. But in the end, I realized that it would be better to pay full price and buy an NFL team. It's like buying property on Fifth Avenue. This is the only way to play. “Do everything to the highest standard” - I learned this truth then. www.mlm24.ru124 When in 2005 I was going to marry Melanie, people said: “Donald, you’ve already had big weddings on a grand scale.” Why don't you arrange a small ceremony just for family and close friends? That's right, especially since in those days I was terribly busy, there was a lot to do, but life is not only about business. We need to find time to live. And I live big. Iya said: “No way.” This is an opportunity to celebrate our union and have some fun. This is a big day for Melanie and for me too. I want this day to be special and memorable for her and for all our friends and family. AWAY DOUBT People who think big know how to deal with their doubts. Doubts directly lead to loss. If you don't know how things will turn out, you're not alone. None of us really know. You could be crossing the street and get hit by a bus. If you have doubts, just believe in yourself and believe that you will definitely win. No one else will do this for you. Don't cling to someone else's confidence and don't look to others for encouragement if you feel like a task is too much for you. Develop self-confidence. Sometimes you see a person who didn't think he should have succeeded, but succeeded only because he had the talent to think on a large scale. Here's an example: former President Jimmy Carter. A very nice man - but as a president he’s not at all to my taste. I like Ronald Reagan better. However, when Carter's presidential term ended, he asked to meet with me - and, of course, he agreed. I have never supported him and have been very outspoken in my criticism of his actions in the Iran crisis and in the situation with our hostages. When it was announced that Ronald Reagan had won the election, the Iranians immediately handed over the hostages to us. If Jimmy Carter had won, the hostages would still be there today. We had a great conversation before getting to the big question: Would I be willing to contribute $50 million to the Jimmy Carter Library? This is an option: a person whom I did not support, for whom I did not vote, sits in my office and asks for a donation of $50 million! And then I said to myself (and repeated it to others): Jimmy Carter, despite his image, knew how to think globally. That's why he ran for president, while others found it too tough. As it turned out later, Jimmy Carter became one of the few people who did much more after his presidential term than during it. An example of the opposite property: Mario Cuomo. I've supported Mario Cuomo for years. After he had already left his post, I asked him for a small and completely innocent favor. He refused. This was a manifestation of enormous disloyalty towards me - and yet I always supported him. At that time, he could become a competitor to Bush Sr. in the presidential election race. And, if Cuomov had nominated himself, he most likely would have won - which would have been a big setback for the country. He would be a terrible president. He didn't have the ability to think big. Then the smartest person and my good friend, Arkansas politician Bill Clinton entered the race - he entered and won. He has the ability to think really big, and his wife Hillary, a fantastic woman, also thinks big. That's why Bill Clinton won the election. When others stopped trying to catch up with Bush's gigantic ratings, Clinton was undeterred. And when Bush's ratings slid down like a cobblestone from a mountain, Clinton immediately took advantage of this to strengthen his position. Bill Clinton is a big man with a lot of courage. Mario Cuomo is a disloyal coward. People treat you the same way you treat yourself. If you believe you can achieve something, others will believe it too. Exude significance with your entire appearance. People are too busy thinking about themselves. They will take a quick glance at you to see if you consider yourself a valuable person - and then they will simply accept your own opinion about yourself! They will see both in your face and in your manners that you are full of energy, that you are a leader who gets things done. If you value yourself, others will also respect and value you. The lion is afraid of the short tamer, and the big one, who clearly shows that he is afraid of the lion. Don't seek the approval of others. This is a clear sign of weakness. Many will envy you or perceive you as a threat. Others prefer to give in, bend over, hide, just to avoid the stress and pressure that are inevitable when interacting with a strong personality. Don't be like them. Your belief in yourself generates the talent, power and energy needed to succeed and achieve your goals. Doubt dramatically weakens your will to succeed and sends a signal to everyone around you that you will fail. Eliminate all doubts! I'm not talking about being arrogant towards others. Just believe in your competence and your worth. Assess your strengths and abilities as accurately as possible. Your behavior should be consistent with your worth. EMPLOYMENT IS A GOOD I was once asked, “What is the difference between a braggart and someone who is truly capable?” And I thought of the time when Muhammad Ali stood up and told his opponents: “I am the most great. I'll smear you. I will destroy you". Ali fought George Foreman in a famous fight. George was invulnerable at that moment. It was impossible to defeat him. He was the toughest opponent Ali had ever faced. He hit harder than Joe Frazier or Sonny Leeston. And he could take a powerful series of blows - and survive. In addition, he was much younger than Muhammad Ali. George Foreman was such a great fighter that he knocked down Joe Frazier six times and knocked him out once. And the best times of Muhammad Ali were already in the past. But what he did when he stepped into the ring that night was amazing. Ali has always been smart. He watched videos of all of Foreman's fights and didn't tell anyone about it, not even his coach. On one tape, he saw Foreman fight three opponents in a row. He knocked out the first one on the spot. The fight with the second opponent was more or less difficult, but he knocked him out too - in the fourth round. In the fight with the third opponent, Foreman almost lost. The fight was very difficult for him. Ali saw that he recognized Foreman's weakest point - he succumbs to fatigue. During the first five rounds, Ali did not land a single blow. He simply lay on the ropes and allowed Foreman to shower him with blows. However, Foreman could not land a head kick. Angelo Dundee, Muhammad Ali's trainer, said: www.mlm24.ru126 - Hey, champion, we have to stop the fight. You catch blow after blow. Ali objected: “Are you crazy?” Yes, everything is fine with me! No one could understand what he was talking about. But after five rounds, Foreman was exhausted. And suddenly in the sixth round Ali began to hammer Foreman, who simply had no strength left. He was simply defenseless - and in the eighth round Ali knocked him out. This was the greatest fight in history! Yes, Mohammed Ali speaks “big” - but he backs up what he says with action. My opinion: Conceit is good, just don't confuse it with selfishness. A big ego is positive. Here are other examples of people who knew how to get their own way: George Stein-Brenner, Bob Craft and Bob Tisch. George led the New York Yankees to great success, as did great manager Bob Kraft with the New England Patriots and the late Bob Tisch with the New York Giants. Bob was a big businessman who bought the Giants against advice. He bought the team at a fairly low price, but did a fantastic job with it. His family continues to run the Giants business and does it well. In sports, champions emerge at all levels - both on the playing field and in business. One of these modern champions is Tom Brady of the New England Patriots. Tom is one of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of football, but he is also a very good golfer. Tom and I played at my Trump National Golf Club in Westchester - he is not only a great athlete, but a great person. If he had taken golf seriously, he would have become one of the best. He has an amazing talent. LEARN TO SPEAK LOUD Always speak like a person who thinks big. Fear often leaves people speechless. Get used to speaking loudly and openly at business meetings and at friendly parties. Articulate your thoughts internally. And then speak - loudly, clearly and with the confidence of someone who wants to communicate something important. And don't worry about what others think of you. Remember, people aren't as smart as you think they are, or as they think they are. I kicked Christy Frank out in week five of the first season of The Apprentice mainly because she couldn't speak her mind clearly and loudly. In the fifth round, Christie had to organize her own retail outlet in New York. She did a great job, but her team lost because Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth lost some money. Omarosa never admitted her guilt. Christie was accused of everything - and she didn’t even open her mouth to defend herself from these accusations. If she had spoken boldly and openly, if she had defended herself, I would have left her and kicked Omarosa out. Anyone who does anything is always criticized. Be prepared for this. Listen to criticism. And then throw it aside. I was criticized for literally everything I did. I don't let criticism get me down. I already said once that everyone is hunting for the “fastest revolver of the Wild West.” If you are at the very top, you always become a target for people who think narrowly but love to criticize those who do the work. Don't let them stop you. Object, speak loudly and boldly and stand your ground. www.mlm24.ru127 Joe Quinnen, a highly respected author of books on business, was also at my recent speech at the Learning Annex. Joe is a serious person, as they say, “no fools.” This is what he wrote at the end of his report: “Trump is a legend, a folk American financial hero who has mysteriously touched the souls of millions of ordinary Americans. His popularity was enormous even before the success of the TV show "The Candidate". His brash, predatory, attacking style attracts millions of people, even more so than twenty years ago...” And the last words of the report: “Thirty million dollars is thirty million dollars, but even in this case Zanker is underpaying Trump! »BIG PLAYERS STICK TOGETHER Connect with people who think big, just like you. Those around you have a huge influence on you. We are all a product of our environment. Join clubs, associations and organizations that include successful people. Think of yourself as someone who simply needs to be known. The most important person in any meeting, in any group, is the one who most actively represents himself. When meeting someone new to you, look him straight in the eye, be sure to remember his name and try to make sure he remembers yours. Make friends with people who set big goals for themselves. Meet with them regularly: for lunch or dinner, to exchange ideas, express your opinions, tell them about your dreams. And be selective in your friendships. Stick only with those who truly want you to succeed. Forget all your so-called friends who are full of negativism and do not know how to act on a grand scale. They only drain your energy. And some also try to block your path to success and make you feel ashamed that everything is going great for you. Listen only to people who know how to do things. One of my “large-scale” friends is John Mack, the head of Morgan Stanley. John is truly smart - a brilliant, brilliant Wall Street tactician. His insight and ability to foresight are inimitable. He is my good friend and a major benefactor. He chairs the board of trustees of New York General Hospital. Not long ago, John invited me to dinner, he wanted to talk to me about something. At first there was an interesting story about what wonderful results he was able to achieve at the hospital (of which I am not a trustee , which does not prevent her - like other similar organizations - from trying to get my support, at least financially). Then John asked me if I could make a contribution? Anywhere from $25 to $50 million? I looked at him and said, “Yes, old man, you really think big!” Thinking big is one of the trump cards that allowed John to succeed. Some time later, I was with John at lunch, where I handed him a check for one million dollars—not the smallest contribution. John was very happy and accepted it with gratitude, but for the first time I felt cheap, presenting a million-dollar check to charity! John also does a great job in business, while helping other people who are less fortunate in life. He is a great example for everyone reading this book. www.mlm24.ru128 GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENTS GIVE GREAT CONFIDENCE Turn your big thoughts into big actions as quickly as possible. Don't let false excuses slow you down. (“I’m not too smart, I don’t have enough experience, I’m too young, I’m too old, too female, too fat, too thin, too bald” - and so on, endlessly.) These are empty and false excuses. Get them out of your head. Excuses are symptoms of fear. Rush forward headlong and do what you were most afraid to do - your fear will disappear by itself! No one is born with complete self-confidence. This is acquired. Get into the habit of taking action and your confidence will skyrocket! Don't spend too much time planning and trying to anticipate and solve problems before they arise. This is just an excuse to stall for time. Until you start, you cannot know where and when problems will arise. You will have no experience in solving these problems. Dive into things headlong and solve problems as they arise. Stop thinking - start doing! Start small - and constantly move forward, taking on new and new heights to strengthen your strength and self-confidence. Tacolympians reach the very top. They push themselves to ever greater goals, achieving them consistently. When you start out, it's not what you know that matters. What matters is what you can learn in the process. When you start something new and difficult, always tell yourself: “I can do it!” Your ability to do something is always a state of mind and soul. And your results depend on how much you think you can do. Many people get used to working at a certain level of efficiency. However, when circumstances require it, they do much more than they could imagine. Learn to think that you can do more. Start building a single-family home and at the same time think about how much more you would make if you built an apartment building or an entire complex. Set your sights on a really big problem and you will find a way to solve it! I don't mean vague promises to do something someday. I'm talking about a legal agreement, a contract that will give you an incentive to move forward. Sign your name and your feet will be on burning coals. I assure you, you will begin to act at such a speed that you never expected from yourself. Train your thought, accustom it to increasingly significant goals. Your mind must be ready for new, big steps. You cannot move to a higher level if your consciousness is not ready for it. Let's say you're starting a business where you make a hundred dollars a month, but you want to make ten thousand a month. Most people are not able to jump from a hundred to ten thousand in one day. Your consciousness must get used to this thought. Start with smaller steps to adapt, and then build bridges from where you are to where you would like to be. It is helpful to have a mentor who can help you climb to a higher level. For this purpose, there are teachers and trainers in every field and industry. We are more receptive to advice given to us by authority figures. Find such an authority in your field of activity, listen to his advice, enlist his support in order to take new bold steps. Their confidence will boost your confidence. TRY TO GET THE MAXIMUM POSSIBLE FOR YOUR WORK Thinking big is the leverage you need to get paid what you're worth. In the real world, no one will hand you money just like that. People fight and kill for money. In a fantasy world, you are automatically paid what you are worth. Alas, in the real world things are not so simple. You will only get paid decent money if the person you are dealing with simply has no other choice. Doctors get paid a lot of money because you either pay or die. Dentists get paid a lot of money because you either pay or end up with a bad tooth. Lawyers are paid a lot of money, otherwise they will simply ruin your case. There is an old saying: “If you don’t try, you won’t succeed.” This is usually attributed to bodybuilding, but it also works one hundred percent in negotiations. Celebrity athletes demand big salaries and even huge bonuses because they know they are indispensable. Movie stars can demand huge amounts of money because film companies need them to entice the public. The same goes for top trainers, models and rock stars. They demand high fees because if you don't pay, they'll just go to the competition and you'll lose. This is something like a legal bribe. This is exactly how lawyers and attorneys get rich. To be super successful, you need to use the principle of leverage to get maximum pay for what you do. You must threaten your opponent with serious losses before you can get your way. In every successful real estate transaction, I have always made my opponent aware of the losses he would suffer if he did not agree to my terms, and the benefits of making the deal work. Everyone knows this - but few say it out loud. Take work negotiations. Most people get their biggest pay raises when they quit their jobs—or threaten to do so. When the goal of negotiations is to get a higher salary, overestimate your importance and value to the company and overestimate the level of losses for the company in the event that it breaks up with you. Always be prepared to slam the door and walk away. Use the leverage of threat - it is very effective. WALK AT THE VANGUARD OF CHANGE AND KEEP YOUR NOSE TO THE WIND Always respond to important, large-scale trends. Many events take most people by surprise—but they are actually quite predictable. Look deeper, think about the daily news, to see the powerful changes that will occur over the course of decades. This is how you can find big ideas. Current demographic, cultural, financial, technological and medical trends will produce predictable results years from now. There is a shortage of doctors and nurses - and at the same time the population is rapidly aging. There is a growing Hispanic population, migration from the suburbs to the outer suburbs, an increase in the number of single people and a cultural shift towards ecology. All of these are huge opportunities for profit if you know how to think globally and find solutions to meet current human needs . So, I saw a lot of potential in Jersey City. I'm good at predicting trends, so I saw a great future in Jersey City. That’s why he built Trump Plaza Jersey City there, a huge condominium complex worth $415 million, with two fifty-story skyscrapers and almost nine hundred luxury apartments. And then I found a great partner, Dean Gabel, who made our dream come true! DON'T STOP HALFWAY TO THE TOP, get stuck halfway if you're on the path to success! Many people start with big goals. They start by thinking big, on a large scale - and it works. They achieve some success, a good job, money in the bank, a decent income, a secure pension, expensive toys like a yacht or a luxury car. That's all. Now they stop thinking globally - and start thinking about how to avoid any risk and secure what they already have. Don't fall into the same trap. Keep training your mind with big ideas. Become a collector of big ideas. Constantly fill your mind with new information and use it to generate new ideas. Put these ideas together to come to big decisions about how to make money, produce useful things faster and cheaper, etc. HIGHER AND HIGHER AND HIGHER! Always try to surpass your own achievements, pushing the bar higher and higher. When I built Trump Tower, I didn't just want to build another skyscraper. I wanted to create a skyscraper that has never existed in the world. I wanted innovative solutions: glass and bronze - something that would make Trump Tower a unique structure. I was advised to hang beautiful and expensive paintings in the lobby of a skyscraper. But I found it unoriginal and boring. I wanted something fantastic, unprecedented, something that would take my breath away. In 1980, I spent $2 million to create a twenty-five-meter waterfall in the lobby of Trump Tower - and it became one of the main attractions for tourists visiting New York. After work on Trump Tower was completed, I already knew that I wanted more - new tasks, new achievements. And I have built many beautiful buildings and complexes. I recently completed the Trump World Tower near United Nations Plaza. This skyscraper - ninety-nine floors - became the tallest residential building in the world, and it ranks forty-eighth among the tallest buildings in general. An impressive success—and an example of what you can do if you want to outdo yourself. I'm currently working on a ninety-two-story building in the best part of Chicago. LEARN TO SEE THE WORLD IN A BROAD PERSPECTIVE When faced with a big problem, don't look at what is. Instead, focus on what could be. When I purchased building number 40 on www.mlm24.ru131Wall Street, everyone else saw only a huge house that was good only for sucking the owner's money. I saw an opportunity to acquire a magnificent piece of real estate, a city landmark - and for just a fraction of its price. I've seen what she can become. And what I saw was worth much more than the then price. The same thing happened with the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach. Before I came into the game, this huge house was like a white elephant that no one wanted to buy, because no one would want to live in a 128-room monster right on the ocean. I saw in it an exclusive club that would attract the opportunity to communicate in a noble and magnificent environment. Columbia University at one time had the opportunity to build one of the most beautiful educational complexes in the world. An incredibly successful businessman named AlLerner, who also owned the Cliveland Brownes football team, was on the university's board of trustees and wanted to buy part of the site for himself. I was working on the West Side of Manhattan at the time. Columbia University was to receive a huge site facing the Hudson between 59th and 62nd streets, right behind Lincoln Center. Lerner dreamed of building the Columbia Business School and the School of Theater Arts on this site - and it was a great, great dream! The contract was already close to being concluded when suddenly Al called me and said: “Donald, I was just diagnosed with cancer.” I don't think I'll last long. It's amazing what illness does to people. Even with a cold, your affairs seem to fade into the background. But in Al's case it was much worse. He was a powerful, tough, but at the same time a wonderful person, endowed with imagination and foresight. His vision and tenacity helped him create a huge business. Al died, and the new president of Columbia University, Lee Ballinger, a graduate of the University of Michigan, did not like Al's idea. Instead, he wanted to build new buildings on lousy sites that did not even belong to the university. And as soon as the project was made public, these plots became impossible to buy, because all the owners wanted mountains of gold for them. He actually trumpeted the project to the whole world before he bought the plots - what a fool! Be that as it may, Lerner's project was originally a great idea of a great man. An idea that came to naught due to the unprofessionalism of the university leaders. But...The University of Michigan was lucky: it got rid of Bollinger in due time. Maybe one day Columbia will be just as lucky! BE PREPARED FOR SERIOUS PROBLEMS You must understand that big, large-scale thinking also gives rise to big, serious problems. There is no success in life without hard work. Problems, stoppages, temporary setbacks happen to everyone. It's part of life. If you think big, you will encounter big failures from time to time. The main thing here is one thing: how you react to them. Every great artist, doctor, lawyer, scientist, inventor, athlete, musician, politician, real estate developer, entrepreneur and merchant turns failures to their advantage. All the greats knew how and know how to learn from failures. They analyze their failures - and open new paths to success. www.mlm24.ru132 Failure or temporary stop is not defeat. Defeat is always the state of mind of the soul. You only fail if you admit it. If you think and act like a loser. Learn from your mistakes and view failure as the price you pay for your learning. Healthy self-criticism helps a lot. It makes you better and stronger. But never admit defeat. And never go too far with self-criticism. Don’t let failure drive you into negativity and surrender: “I’ll never succeed. I'm a loser. It's time to give up. Everyone who criticized me turned out to be right.” Such self-criticism becomes unhealthy and dangerous. Don't do this. This could ruin your whole life. When I went through a series of failures in the 1990s, I saw many of my friends succumb to self-criticism so destructive that they never recovered from it. This excessive self-criticism killed their spirit. No one heard anything more about them. Some actually committed suicide - the pain of self-deprecation was so strong. You shouldn’t see every failure as the end of the world. You learned your lesson, learned it, and move on. Don't sit on failure like it is on ashes. Start thinking big again. Fill your mind with thoughts that can lift your spirits, plans for the future, past successes, everything good that your friends said and say about you - everything that can bring positivity to your internal dialogue. And learn the great art of - forget. Move on and don't think for a second about all the bad things that once happened to you. Don’t fall into idealism and daydreams about how something would have gone differently in the past, so that you could live in a fairy tale where everything always ends well. Don't wait for ideal conditions to get started again. Be realistic. There will be no ideal conditions. Just decide to do everything better than before - and move forward, forgetting the past. Consider every failure as a step towards ultimate victory. Remember: persistence plus learning from mistakes equals success. Think big, think big - but keep both feet on the ground. You must be good at what you do. There will always be forces that can break you: envious officials, greedy lawyers, fraudulent contractors, cowardly bankers. You can’t get caught up in your big dreams and bold ideas, forgetting simple fundamental things. First of all, you need to remember that you need to produce a quality product, keep your ears to the ground and make sure you get your money on time. Think big—but don't lose sight of everyday problems. ZANCHER ADDITIONS founded Learning Annex 28 years ago, in his tiny studio apartment in New York City. I had to start humble. I only had $5,000 in starting capital. But I always tried to make the company look bigger than it actually was. I gave the building custodian a small bribe to allow me to hang a sign on the door in the lobby: “Learning Annex - Room 101.” And an arrow pointing to my door. My office immediately began to seem twice as large as it actually was. In the apartment itself, I replaced the bed with a sofa and folded it every day.www.mlm24.ru133We grew, and this required more and more space. We didn't have the money to rent another room, so I had to improvise to get the most out of the minimal capital. I found a woman who agreed to rent me a table in her living room - in her apartment on the floor above mine. We could work in it and receive visitors in my one-room apartment. I ran the wire from my phone into her apartment. Five people could work on one line at the same time. But the hostess agreed to have only one person in her living room. So every evening I made sure my five coworkers cleared out of her apartment at exactly six o'clock, before she returned from work to find them there. In those days, Tony Robbins taught me how to raise my energy to a level of maximum intensity. However, when you are next to Tony Robbins, it doesn’t work out any other way. This non-human is a dynamo! I learned my first lessons about how to think big from Tony. It was my attitude of playing for big that allowed us to make Learning Annex quite a prominent company in the 1980s. To feel rich, I bought myself a very expensive suit. I wore a $1000 suit even though I had nothing at all. But instead of buying ten cheap suits, I bought one very expensive one, which I wore to all business meetings. I felt great in it: a very significant and very rich person. My suit attracted people. They didn’t tell me this directly, but everyone understood that I was dressed like a rich man. And on a subconscious level, everyone I met treated me a little better just because I was wearing a $1,000 suit. Every year, all my managers came to New York for a meeting at our tiny headquarters. I took them all to the Armani store, where everyone had to buy an Armani suit for $1000. Everyone, whether man or woman. I didn't let them buy $750 clothes - that would be too cheap. Only $1000 - or more. But this was the 1980s. Nowadays we all buy suits for $3000. And one more trick. Every time I went to a meeting with respectable and influential people, I carried $5,000 in cash. I would walk into an office or restaurant for lunch or dinner wearing a thousand dollar Armani suit with five thousand in cash in my pocket. This money added energy to my walk. I didn't take them with me to spend them. It was all about the mood. I felt very rich - and everyone else immediately picked up on my mood. People thought to themselves, “This guy is one of the winners.” I took that $5,000 with me even when it was the last money in my account. In this case, I would withdraw every last cent and take the money with me when I went out to meet someone. Now I take $10,000 with me for serious negotiations. And for every very important meeting - like a conversation with Donald Trump - I put $15,000 in my pocket! A great feeling - and it immediately attracts the right people and leads to the right contacts and deals. And it makes me remember that I am rich. After meeting Donald Trump, I began to perceive the meaning of the words “think globally” completely differently. I realized that what I considered big and big thinking was small and even very small in the world of Donald Trump. Contact with him made me think ten times bigger than before. Of course, it took all my courage to take such a giant leap. But I’m glad I did it, because in the three www.mlm24.ru134 years since I met Donald Trump, my business has grown twenty times! Trump’s attitude towards life is clear: nothing is impossible. He does not allow any deal, any potential project, no matter how gigantic, to intimidate him. It all comes down to a simple scheme: if he comes across a worthy goal that he wants to achieve, he achieves it. He never lets the fear of failure stop him from getting what he wants. After meeting Donald, I made a conscious effort to date people of his caliber. And I discovered that they all thought the same way: big, big, global. In November 2005, media mogul Rupert Murdoch held an auction on eBay for an hour-long lunch with himself, and the proceeds from the sale would go to the Jerusalem College of Technology Foundation. My bid of $57,100 beat out all other bids and I won the opportunity to spend an hour with Murdoch at a New York restaurant. This was a more than reasonable price to pay for such an opportunity. I took the opportunity to talk to him about the best options for expanding LearningAnnex's operations. Murdoch works in the same way as Trump: all means are good - and no ceremony! Yes, paying $1000 for a minute of communication with him was certainly worth it. Besides, it was peanuts compared to what I pay Donald Trump. Warren Buffett has the second largest fortune in America. I really wanted to have him as a speaker at our Wealth Expo. When I heard that he was putting his car up for sale online, I immediately became interested in this option. If I win the auction, the money will go to his favorite charity, Girls, Inc., and Buffett himself, wearing a chauffeur's cap, will pick me up in his car. This would be a great chance to meet a legendary stock tycoon and ask him to give a lecture on “How to Make Profitable Investments at Any Age.” I won the auction and paid Warren Buffett $73,200 for his used Lincoln. Then I offered him two million to speak at the Expo. . He refused this offer, but it gave me a fantastic opportunity to peer into the personality of this incredibly successful man. I spent all this money to meet Rupert Murdoch and Warren Buffett. What lesson did I learn? I realized that Rupert, Warren and Donald have the same attitude, the same attitude towards life: think big and hit hard. Master this attitude and you will be unstoppable. SUMMARY Whatever you do, think big . Global thinking is the force that has given us all the achievements of our time, from giant skyscrapers to amazing discoveries in science, technology and medicine. Thinking big is what creates close, loving human relationships. Set a really big goal for yourself and do everything to achieve it. Most people are afraid to play big. They are unable to imagine that they can implement a truly large-scale project, because they lack knowledge, experience, and connections. But in order to think correctly, you don’t need all this. You can start thinking big without these attributes of success. Every globally-minded person started from scratch - everyone was once a nobody. Play big - and this will immediately set you apart from the huge www.mlm24.ru135 mass of everyone else. How big you think determines your success. Everything else is secondary. KEY POINTS Global thinking underlies all human achievements. Focus on the top and you will get there. Big things are easier to do. Overcome the fear of thinking big. Become a person who can achieve big goals. Let your behavior correspond to the image of a person who has great goals. Define yourself as a significant and important person. Think about yourself in a positive way. Do everything to the highest standard - down to the smallest detail. Demonstrate your scale in everything - both personal and social life. Speak loudly and openly, as befits a person of great magnitude. Hang out with people who play for big money. Transform big ideas into action without delay. Build self-confidence by moving from small successes to increasingly significant ones. Leverage significant trends. Stay away from negative people, both in business and in life. Avoid unnecessary and dangerous self-criticism. After every failure, switch to positive thoughts and big goals as quickly as possible.
Donald Trump
Think big and don't slow down!
To my parents Fred and Mary Trump, my brother Fred Trump Jr., my sisters Judge Maryanne Trump-Barry and Elizabeth Trump-Grau, my brother Robert Trump, my children Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany and Barron, and my lovely wife Melania.
Donald Trump
This book is dedicated to my loving wife, Debbie, and my children, Ediva, Dylan, and Vera, who have always supported me in my pursuit of excellence, and to everyone at the Learning Annex who THINK BIG every day.
Bill Zanker
Preface
Over the course of many years of my business life, I have met people who have left a lasting impression on me. Bill Zanker is one of them. When I met him, I realized that he was not just a very smart and energetic person, but a dynamo in every sense of the word. I couldn't help but admire his ideas and his enthusiasm.
Creativity is an important element of success, no matter what you do. Bill is a creative person and he knows how to apply his creative energy to real work. Anyone who ever crossed paths with Bill is unlikely to forget him. He is a talented promoter and his positive outlook on life has influenced thousands upon thousands of people. He is an excellent mentor who knows his subject down to the smallest detail.
But besides that, he loves what he does - and for me this is one of the key indicators when it comes to how to achieve success. His enthusiasm has not waned over the years, and Learning Annex has achieved impressive results.
Thinking big is a credo I have practiced since my early youth, and it is a tried and true path to success. Bill also professes it, and the results are obvious. Working on this book was a good adrenaline rush for both of us, and we hope that it will not only be an interesting read, but also teach you a lot. We want each of you to realize your dream - and if you work tirelessly, your dream will come true!
Donald Trump
Introduction
From small to big
Until I met Donald Trump, Learning Annex was a small company. Now this is a big company - because I have learned the principle of Donald Trump: hit the point with all my might. Twenty-eight years ago, when I was a film student at New York's New School, I needed money to support myself. And then, in 1979, at the age of twenty-six, I took the $5,000 given to me for my bar mitzvah1 and founded Learning Annex. At first, I saw my company as something like an informal school, where experimental film professionals could share their experience with beginners. But my then friend, a teacher of artistic ceramics, convinced me to expand the range of subjects and create a training center of a different kind, where people in a short time could learn something that is not taught almost anywhere. And so the Learning Annex School was born.
In those early days, at the very beginning of my journey, I would dress up in a clown costume and go out onto the streets of Manhattan, where I would hand out catalogs of our courses to passers-by. At the same time, I explained that they needed to call the number listed in the directory and say that they were sent by a clown. For this they were guaranteed a five dollar discount. Then I ran to the office and answered calls. To my delight, many of the callers told me that some handsome clown told them about the discount. I recorded the details of the future listener and sent a confirmation letter to his address. If there were no calls, I started looking for new teachers and lecturers. The entire business consisted of one person, and I ran it from my one-room apartment on the West Side of Manhattan.
My film career never happened, but the Learning Annex did - and I was happy. I realized that I was born a promoter and that I had finally found my calling.
I completely changed the concept of “lifelong learning” into what I called edu-tainment2. These days, everything happens at incredible speed. People don't have time for formal education. MTV and the Internet have created a generation that wants things done quickly and in an entertaining way. I decided that the lectures should be given by celebrities and stars. I wanted our lecturers and teachers to be people of enormous stature.
As our list acquired a certain glamor thanks to the inclusion of celebrities, the number of people willing to attend the courses immediately increased many times over - and more and more prominent people agreed to my requests to give lectures. Sarah Jessica Parker, Harrison Ford, Richard Simmons, Henry Kissinger, Barbara Bush, Larry King, Renee Zellweger, Deepak Chopra and Rudy Giuliani are just a few of the hundreds of celebrities who have taken the stages at the Learning Annex.
How did I manage to attract them? Since I didn’t have a lot of money, I pressed another button: their feeling of guilt. I said, “You have succeeded. Why don’t you give back to society?” I remember movie mogul Harvey Weinstein. I whined and whined, whined and whined: “You can devote one hour of your time to the students of the Learning Annex - for charity.” In the end he agreed. It was amazing to listen to him talk, full of interesting details, about how to succeed in Hollywood. It all ended with him talking for several hours! That's how we got legendary music producer Clive Davis. He not only listened to the demo recordings of our students, but also signed a contract with one of them right in the classroom. Most celebrities didn't care about money.
But not Donald Trump. He didn't even answer my calls. One day I called Trump's office and was put through to his personal secretary, Norma. I knew I wouldn't attract Trump's attention by casting my usual bait. He simply wouldn't talk to me. I decided to whet his interest with money, which is actually extremely unusual for me. But I really wanted to get him - and that’s why I dared to take such a step. I offered an amount that was fantastic for me: $10,000. His secretary responded: “And that’s all?”, immediately rejecting my offer as a bottle of cheap Chianti. After adding a short “no,” she hung up.
It took all my courage, but a few days later I called Norma again and said, “I will give Mr. Trump $25,000.” Norma replied: “No. He's not interested in that."
I was shocked. Then I finally realized that I was playing too carefully. A week later, I took a huge risk by offering $100,000. It was the largest fee I had ever offered to a guest speaker—but Norma was unimpressed. Without hesitation, she snapped: “It won’t work. Donald will not perform."
I sat down and thought: what to do next? Give up on the idea of luring Donald Trump - or keep trying? I didn't know what to do. Then I remembered what motivational guru Tony Robbins taught me: “If you want to achieve something great, you have to push yourself beyond your limits. You need to pump yourself up into a state of hyperactivity. And you have to do it yourself. No one will do this for you." I decided that I wanted to reach the maximum. Donald Trump was precisely the incarnate Mr. Maximum. Each of us has our own heroes. Mine was Donald. If I wanted to play on the same field as him, I had to push myself to the next level. I puffed out my chest, took a deep breath and gathered all my energy reserves together. Then I called Norma at Donald Trump's office and offered one million dollars for Trump to speak for an hour at the Learning Annex. At that time, our company's annual income was five and a half million dollars. Think about it for a second. I offered him a million, but our entire income for the whole year was only five and a half million! At the same time, there were rarely more than several hundred students in the hall. How I was going to get my money back - I didn’t have the slightest idea. But I knew I had to take this step. I just knew it. I listened to my instincts and called. And Norma said: “This is a very interesting proposal. I'll talk to Donald."
I hung up and went to the toilet, where, as expected, I vomited. In fact. Thoughts were racing in my head, and my heart was pounding like crazy. What have I done? If this gamble doesn't pay off, I'll lose everything! In an instant, I moved to a new level of life - and it was a very disturbing feeling. But at the same time it was delight! What I did was crazy. But the feeling was indescribable.
Less than an hour later Donald himself called me back.
When I picked up the phone, I couldn't believe I was talking to Donald Trump. I decided that one of my friends was just playing a prank on me. But it was Donald. He said, “Bill, I like what Learning Annex is doing and I like your proposal. Tell me, how many people do you expect to gather for this meeting? So far, the maximum attendance has been somewhere in the region of 500–700 people, with the largest number of people coming to meet the psychic. We have never gathered a larger number of students. I said, "We'll gather a thousand people." In my mind, 1000 people was a huge number. Trump retorted: “I will agree if you promise that there will be ten thousand people at the meeting.”
Think big and don't slow down! Bill Zanker, Donald Trump
(No ratings yet)
Title: Think big and don't slow down!
Author: Bill Zanker, Donald Trump
Year: 2012
Genre: Popular about business, Foreign business literature, Personal growth, Foreign psychology
About the book “Think big and don’t slow down!” Bill Zanker, Donald Trump
In his new book, the great businessman and provocateur Donald Trump brilliantly debunks the illusions associated with the world of business. According to Trump, not everyone can become rich and famous. Success and wealth go to the strong, but illusions and doubts are the lot of losers.
Donald Trump's motto in life and business is passion, healthy anger, a realistic view of the world and a creative approach to solving any problem. Life is a tough fight, and if you want to come out victorious, forget the word “no”, learn to work with your fists, return blow to blow, never give up and calculate your every step. This is the only way to achieve big goals, and you shouldn’t set others!
The price of success is high, and if you feel you are willing to pay it, this book is for you!
On our website about books, you can download the site for free without registration or read online the book Bill Zanker, Donald Trump “Think Big and Don’t Slow Down!” in epub, fb2, txt, rtf, pdf formats for iPad, iPhone, Android and Kindle. The book will give you a lot of pleasant moments and real pleasure from reading. You can buy the full version from our partner. Also, here you will find the latest news from the literary world, learn the biography of your favorite authors. For beginning writers, there is a separate section with useful tips and tricks, interesting articles, thanks to which you yourself can try your hand at literary crafts.
Quotes from the book “Think Big and Don’t Slow Down!” Bill Zanker, Donald Trump
The best way to learn is to study the history of successes and failures in your business.
– The more I work, the luckier I get.
Outstanding minds have always drawn positive conclusions about things and events. Get into the habit of doing the same. Start each day with the thought: “Today is a great day. I live in the best country in the world. I have a wonderful profession. It's great to be alive! I have a lot of opportunities to succeed today!”
Stop thinking - start doing! Start small - and constantly move forward, taking on new and new heights to strengthen your strength and self-confidence. This is how Olympians reach the very top. They push themselves to ever greater goals, achieving them consistently.
Trump: “If you can think at all, then nothing stops you from thinking big. This is your choice. Whatever the circumstances, no one can stop you from thinking big.”
Tony Robbins: “If you want to achieve something great, you have to push yourself to go beyond your limits. You need to pump yourself up into a state of hyperactivity. And you have to do it yourself. No one will do this for you."
When you start something new, you don't have any "charge". And during this period everything is very difficult. People don't call you, they don't invite you anywhere. You seem to be going nowhere, but if you work hard to achieve your goal, you will soon find yourself in the thick of people and events. You will have contacts, they will begin to trust you, undoubted achievements will appear on your list of works - and now everything will be much easier.
Now everyone probably knows who Donald Trump is. But when I read this book, he hadn't even run for president yet. And they knew about him only in business circles. And he was famous above all as an outstanding businessman and billionaire.
What is this book about
In this book, Trump shares his life stories. The book is not only about how to build a successful real estate business, but also about the basic principles that Trump followed on the path to success. Donald Trump's laws are based on toughness, endurance and resilience. “Be Honest”, “Never Give Up”, “Think Big”. These principles are the basis for any person who wants to create his own empire and achieve success in the business world.
The book is easy to read and has a lot of practical advice. Take it and do as they say. Only... knowing the psychology of most people, only 2% of all readers will do it. Well, maybe it's for the better. After all, the higher the goal, the less competition there is on the way to it.
The book is definitely worth reading. You will look at the world of business and money in a new way. And how to make decisions in such a world.
Important idea from the book
To achieve serious success in any business, you need to accumulate a “charge”. All that is needed for this is energy and a precisely chosen moment in time. When you start something new, you don't have any "charge". And during this period everything is very difficult. People don't call you, they don't invite you anywhere. You seem to be going nowhere, but if you work hard to achieve your goal, you will soon find yourself in the thick of people and events. You will have contacts, they will begin to trust you, undoubted achievements will appear on your list of works - and now everything will be much easier. Why? Because you have accumulated a “charge”. But in no case should you think that it will last you until the end of your life. If you lose this “charge”, all your successes will evaporate, and difficulties will grow like a giant snowball. When you have lost the moment of movement, when the flywheel has stopped, it is dangerous to be active. You no longer keep up with the times, people and events no longer play on your side. Be careful. Never run out of charge.
Global thinking underlies all human achievements.
Concentrate on the top and you will get there.
Big things are easier to do.
Overcome the fear of thinking big.
Become a person who can achieve big goals.
Who has already read this book, write your opinion in the comments.
To my parents Fred and Mary Trump, my brother Fred Trump Jr., my sisters Judge Maryanne Trump-Barry and Elizabeth Trump-Grau, my brother Robert Trump, my children Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany and Barron, and my lovely wife Melania.
Donald Trump
This book is dedicated to my loving wife, Debbie, and my children, Ediva, Dylan, and Vera, who have always supported me in my pursuit of excellence, and to everyone at the Learning Annex who THINK BIG every day.
Bill Zanker
Preface
Over the course of many years of my business life, I have met people who have left a lasting impression on me. Bill Zanker is one of them. When I met him, I realized that he was not just a very smart and energetic person, but a dynamo in every sense of the word. I couldn't help but admire his ideas and his enthusiasm.
Creativity is an important element of success, no matter what you do. Bill is a creative person and he knows how to apply his creative energy to real work. Anyone who ever crossed paths with Bill is unlikely to forget him. He is a talented promoter and his positive outlook on life has influenced thousands upon thousands of people. He is an excellent mentor who knows his subject down to the smallest detail.
But besides that, he loves what he does - and for me this is one of the key indicators when it comes to how to achieve success. His enthusiasm has not waned over the years, and Learning Annex has achieved impressive results.
Thinking big is a credo I have practiced since my early youth, and it is a tried and true path to success. Bill also professes it, and the results are obvious. Working on this book was a good adrenaline rush for both of us, and we hope that it will not only be an interesting read, but also teach you a lot. We want each of you to realize your dream - and if you work tirelessly, your dream will come true!
Donald Trump
Introduction
From small to big
Until I met Donald Trump, Learning Annex was a small company. Now this is a big company - because I have learned the principle of Donald Trump: hit the point with all my might. Twenty-eight years ago, when I was a film student at New York's New School, I needed money to support myself. And then, in 1979, at the age of twenty-six, I took the $5,000 I was given for my bar mitzvah and founded Learning Annex. At first, I saw my company as something like an informal school, where experimental film professionals could share their experience with beginners. But my then friend, a teacher of artistic ceramics, convinced me to expand the range of subjects and create a training center of a different kind, where people in a short time could learn something that is not taught almost anywhere. And so the Learning Annex School was born.
In those early days, at the very beginning of my journey, I would dress up in a clown costume and go out onto the streets of Manhattan, where I would hand out catalogs of our courses to passers-by. At the same time, I explained that they needed to call the number listed in the directory and say that they were sent by a clown. For this they were guaranteed a five dollar discount. Then I ran to the office and answered calls. To my delight, many of the callers told me that some handsome clown told them about the discount. I recorded the details of the future listener and sent a confirmation letter to his address. If there were no calls, I started looking for new teachers and lecturers. The entire business consisted of one person, and I ran it from my one-room apartment on the West Side of Manhattan.
My film career never materialized, but the Learning Annex did, and I was happy. I realized that I was born a promoter and that I had finally found my calling.
I completely changed the concept of "lifelong learning" into what I called edu-tainment. These days, everything happens at incredible speed. People don't have time for formal education. MTV and the Internet have created a generation that wants things done quickly and in an entertaining way. I decided that the lectures should be given by celebrities and stars. I wanted our lecturers and teachers to be people of enormous stature.
As our list acquired a certain glamor thanks to the inclusion of celebrities, the number of people willing to attend the courses immediately increased exponentially - and more and more prominent people agreed to my requests to give lectures. Sarah Jessica Parker, Harrison Ford, Richard Simmons, Henry Kissinger, Barbara Bush, Larry King, Renee Zellweger, Deepak Chopra and Rudy Giuliani are just a few of the hundreds of celebrities who have taken the stages at the Learning Annex.
How did I manage to attract them? Since I didn’t have a lot of money, I pressed another button: their feeling of guilt. I said, “You have succeeded. Why don’t you give back to society?” I remember movie mogul Harvey Weinstein. I whined and whined, whined and whined: “You can devote one hour of your time to the students of the Learning Annex - for charity.” In the end he agreed. It was amazing to listen to him talk, full of interesting details, about how to succeed in Hollywood. It all ended with him talking for several hours! That's how we got legendary music producer Clive Davis. He not only listened to the demo recordings of our students, but also signed a contract with one of them right in the classroom. Most celebrities didn't care about money.
But not Donald Trump. He didn't even answer my calls. One day I called Trump's office and was put through to his personal secretary, Norma. I knew I wouldn't attract Trump's attention by casting my usual bait. He simply wouldn't talk to me. I decided to whet his interest with money, which is actually extremely unusual for me. But I really wanted to get him - and that’s why I dared to take such a step. I offered an amount that was fantastic for me: $10,000. His secretary responded: “And that’s all?”, immediately rejecting my offer as a bottle of cheap Chianti. After adding a short “no,” she hung up.
It took all my courage, but a few days later I called Norma again and said, “I will give Mr. Trump $25,000.” Norma replied: “No. He's not interested in that."
I was shocked. Then I finally realized that I was playing too carefully. A week later, I took a huge risk by offering $100,000. It was the largest fee I had ever offered to a guest speaker—but Norma was unimpressed. Without hesitation, she snapped: “It won’t work. Donald will not perform."
I sat down and thought: what to do next? Should we give up on luring Donald Trump - or should we keep trying? I didn't know what to do. Then I remembered what motivational guru Tony Robbins taught me: “If you want to achieve something great, you have to push yourself beyond your limits. You need to pump yourself up into a state of hyperactivity. And you have to do it yourself. No one will do this for you." I decided that I wanted to reach the maximum. Donald Trump was precisely the incarnate Mr. Maximum. Each of us has our own heroes. Mine was Donald. If I wanted to play on the same field as him, I had to push myself to the next level. I puffed out my chest, took a deep breath and gathered all my energy reserves together. Then I called Norma at Donald Trump's office and offered one million dollars for Trump to speak for an hour at the Learning Annex. At that time, our company's annual income was five and a half million dollars. Think about it for a second. I offered him a million, but our entire income for the whole year was only five and a half million! At the same time, there were rarely more than several hundred students in the hall. How I was going to get my money back - I didn’t have the slightest idea. But I knew I had to take this step. I just knew it. I listened to my instincts and called. And Norma said: “This is a very interesting proposal. I'll talk to Donald."
Loading...