Archive View (December 2007)

NBC launches Celebrity Apprentice on January 3rd. If you are ready to get the most from every episode, make The Trump Blog your first stop. Here's just a small sample of the Celebrity Apprentice coverage you'll find here . . .  Weekly commentaries from Stefani, Sean, Kendra, Kelly, Stacey, Troy, Andrea and lots of other Apprentice stars!  That's right. They'll be here every Monday to comment on every episode.  The Trump Blog is the only place to get these insights from tough contenders who know what life is really like on the inside of your favorite reality show. Another season of our critically acclaimed Lessons Learned advisories is about to go live. For the fourth season in a row, the more...

To make 2008 your most successful year ever . . . Think big! When you were a child, would you have liked to keep crawling, when everyone else was walking? I don’t think so. We all have to start with small steps, but the point is: Get to the biggest steps you’re capable of taking. Thinking small will limit your potential. Thinking big will take you places. Thinking big can get you to the top, and I can tell you, it’s not lonely up here. Successful people like challenges. It’s our nature. Keep in sync with this basic premise, and you’ll begin moving forward with the momentum more...

We don't suffer from false modesty at  Trump University.  Our courses  and live events provide the best real estate training available anywhere.  But when we find a good source of information elsewhere, we feel duty-bound to let you know about it. So be sure to check out a useful blog roll online, The Top 50 Real Estate Marketing Bloggers, compiled by International Listings.  It offers an especially good collection of links to real estate blogs. Trump University does not endorse the experts whose blogs are listed, nor do we recommend all the strategies they offer.  But we also know that the more we all know about real estate, the better we will all do. Have you noticed that smart, educated people usually create opportunities for more...

Do you work nights? It may be harmful to your health. Like UV rays and diesel exhaust fumes, working the graveyard shift will soon be listed as a "probable" cause of cancer. Scientists suspect that overnight work is dangerous because it disrupts the body’s biological clock. In addition, a hormone which can suppress tumor development is normally produced at night. People who work nights also tend to sleep less. Not getting enough sleep makes your immune system vulnerable to attack, and less able to fight off cancerous cells. If this theory is correct, millions of people worldwide could be affected. Experts estimate that more...

Everyone here at Trump University wishes you and your loved ones a joyous holiday season. Trump University is truly an international community. Our students, faculty and administrators come from many different countries and faiths. I think it is wonderful that we all come together every day to work hard together, learn from each other and build our succcess side by side. We'll be back on Wednesday, December 26th with a post from our Chairman, Donald J. Trump. Until then, I send best wishes for a joyous holiday season - and every success in 2008. more...

If you buy into an organized co-op, condo, townhouse or subdivision development, a homeowners' association (HOA) will require you to live under its regulations and rules. Don't take a casual glimpse at these associations and move ahead with your purchase under the assumption that membership is just a formality. Because the fact is, these associations can and will fine you for violations of rules, assess monthly dues that they can raise at whim, demand that you pay for improvements that you don't really care about - and otherwise make your homeowner's experience feel a lot like living in a socialist state.  Here are more...

A wealth-building secret from the pages of Trump Wealth Building 101 What do wealthy people have in common? You might be surprised to learn that one of the most powerful habits of wealthy people is their ability to visualize a better financial future. They develop a clear mental picture of where they want to be financially, and then describe their financial vision in a simple and concise statement that serves as a constant reminder of where they are headed. This picture becomes a powerful motivator in their quest to produce and acquire wealth. If you can get a clear picture of the way you more...

I never send emails. If I need to communicate with someone, I ask them to come to my office or I just pick up the phone. But there are people I know who are always sending emails. They’re always on their computers or their Blackberrys or their iPhones. They send and receive hundreds of messages a day. Thirty-five million emails are sent daily. White-collar workers spend more than two hours of their paid time each day at a total loss for all employers of 28 billion hours a year and $650 billion dollars! So they waste time and productivity as well as lots more...

“When I die, I am not going to be there saying, Oh, I wish I had done this, and I wish I had done that. Because I did it.” - Francis Ford Coppola interviewed in the New York Times, December 16, 2007 That quote from the legendary filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola just about says it all, doesn’t it? In life, there are those who sit on the sidelines and those who get in the race. If you’ve been warming the bench a bit too long in your life plan, why not make 2008 your change year? If you’re ready, we have the tools more...

While many experts in the United States are still trying to decide whether Internet addiction is a real illness, China is taking this disorder very seriously. They’ve opened several Internet addiction clinics and camps to treat hundreds of children and teenagers who spend hours and hours each day online. They have them eating, playing and socializing with other kids in the real world instead of sitting in front of a computer living in a virtual world. In extreme cases, the patients receive drugs and some even get shock therapy to try to fix their problems. About 70 percent of the kids who more...

In their new book Why We Want You to Be Rich, Donald J. Trump and Robert T. Kiyosaki discuss the 90/10 Rule, a simple principle that can get you started on the road to riches today. What is the 90/10 Rule? Here’s your chance to find out now from two incredibly successful men. Robert T. Kiyosaki’s Advice on the 90/10 Rule . . . The 90/10 Rule of Money is something that my rich dad taught me about. I have written about it in Rich Dad, Poor Dad and my other books. Simply put, in the game of money and the game of life too, more...

It happens often when people are buying a business - and generally quite early in the negotiating process. The seller takes the prospective buyer aside and quietly makes a statement that goes something like this:  “Well there is the income you will see in the books. But you also need to know that we also get a substantial amount of unreported cash income too (wink, wink). When you buy the business, you can count on that too, so make sure you figure that into your valuation.”  All I can say is that if the seller has been taking unreported cash from the business, more...

If you want to learn how to talk on your feet, know your subject inside out so that you will never have to hesitate or bluff because questions will not surprise or stump you. You'll know every answer, and each question will give you a great opportunity to show how good you are and how much you know. Master your subject and know it cold. Work at it, read about it and discuss it with others. Dedicate yourself to working at it every day. Anticipate the questions you will be asked and practice your answers to them. Follow the example of great athletes more...

Donald J. Trump is the most self-reliant, rugged individual I have ever known. Yet he often says that he could never have reached the pinnacle of success without the support of a great team.   Here’s just one instance of that philosophy, quoted from his book Trump 101: The Way to Success: “Good leaders determine the teams they assemble. If you pick the best players and set the example, many good seasons should follow . . . Assemble a core group around you; create a great team. Fill in the group with people who will excel in their roles.” If Donald J. Trump needs a good more...

“A leader has the right to be beaten, but never the right to be surprised.” --Napoleon The Apprentice teaches candidates to think quickly on their feet. Since they're placed under tight time constraints, they have to think, act, and express themselves without hesitation or they lose and are fired by me. Since their ideas don't always work, they also need backup plans that they can employ when Plan A fails. If they're ready and move promptly and decisively on Plan B, they can recover without losing much time. You have probably noticed that the candidates who have no fallback plans are often the more...

Just one year ago, Scott and Jalisa Schafer were planning to become entrepreneurs. Knowing they needed guidance to make the right business investment, they selected The Art of Buying a Business, a premier course developed by Professor Richard Parker for Trump University. “Trump stands for quality,” Scott explains. “It is one of the best brands out there. We knew we would get information we could trust to succeed.” They found the resources in The Art of Buying a Business to be top-notch - particularly, they say, the Buyer Toolbox part of the course, which clearly explained what to do when researching a business more...

It’s one thing for a company to forbid its employees to smoke at work, but what about businesses that tell their employees not to smoke at all? A growing number of companies are prohibiting their workers from smoking not only at work, but also in their private lives. If they find out their employees are lighting up - even in the privacy of their own homes - they’re firing them. One boss even said, “If you’re too stupid to understand that smoking will kill you, then we’re going to tell you that if you want to work for our company, you will not more...

We’ve all heard Mr. Trump discuss the importance of establishing yourself and then defending yourself. One seems to follow the other - once you become successful, it’s great, but you also become a target. I’ve been around long enough to know that Mr. Trump follows the advice he gives others - if they come after you, you have to go after them. Most of time it’s simply to set the record straight when the facts seem to escape the grasp of journalists and other people with the tools to damage your business and reputation. A couple of weeks ago an article came more...

On Saturday night I watched an episode of TLC’s Property Ladder that followed one property investor’s difficulties in fixing and flipping a house. It was a familiar story, similar to others you will see on other “fix and flip” TV shows. She underestimated the renovation costs and had to exceed her $55,000 renovation budget for fix-ups. In the end, the female investor still made $80,000 when she sold her property, so all ended well. But she definitely encountered some unpleasant surprises during her renovation. The roof needed not just new shingles, but new sheathing underneath. The backyard needed an expensive new drainage system, not just a cheap application of more...

Most college students admit that their vote has a price. A professor who taught an NYU journalism class asked more than 3,000 undergraduates how much their vote was worth to them. They were also asked what they’d be willing to take in exchange for their vote in the next presidential election. Two-thirds said they’d trade their vote for free tuition. Twenty percent said they’d exchange their vote for something as little as an iPod Touch. Half said they’d forfeit their vote forever for $1 million. But the students overwhelmingly agreed on the importance of voting. Nearly three-quarters of them felt that one vote really more...