Archive View (June 2009)

There’s been a lot of coverage on Michael Jackson, and rightly so. He was the most amazing performer I have ever seen, and I have seen most of the greats. I knew him personally as well, as he lived at Trump Tower and stayed at my Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach. He stayed there when he and Lisa Marie Presley were married, and they were obviously a romantic item. They had a great time and we loved having them as guests. Michael Jackson was a shy person which made his gift as a performer even more astonishing. I remember thinking, “This quiet more...

Guerilla marketing is a term that was coined by Jay Conrad Levinson in his book of 1984, Guerilla Marketing. This is a form of advertising and promotions that depends on the unconventional. Imagination is key, and a big budget isn’t always necessary. Entrepreneurs use this technique, and it’s considered to be non-traditional--just what entrepreneurs are known for being. A very good example of this would be the June 22nd WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) event that drew 6.8 million viewers. That’s a 25% increase in viewers from an earlier broadcast in June. Some of you may have heard of Vince McMahon, who owns more...

The following question was submitted to "Ask Donald Trump" by a Trump University member. What methods do you use to help you focus on the many projects and businesses that you have? In the morning, I review the newspapers, national and international, and watch the morning news. I pay attention to anything that might have a positive or negative effect on wealth creation and make mental notes about that. It gets my mind going for what I need to address that day, and gives insight into developing situations that might also affect my businesses in the future. This provides an immediate focus.  Related Posts  Donald more...

The following question was submitted to "Ask Donald Trump" by a Trump University member. What was your biggest challenge as one of the top entrepreneur’s in the world? Entrepreneurship takes patents, skill and a lot of hard work. In the early 1990’s I was many millions of dollars in debt, the markets weren’t doing well, and newspapers had reported my demise, that I was finished. But I didn’t believe it for a second. I focused on the solution, not my problems, and refused to give up. I became more successful than I had been before. Related Posts  Real Estate Investing and The Global more...

To this day, I think of my father every single day. He was a tremendous presence in my life and the example he set for me remains intact. His integrity was beyond reproach, and the legacy he left behind was as important to him as it is to me. In that sense we are still very much together. Our goals may have been different--he didn’t see why I wanted to build glass skyscrapers, for example, when bricks worked for him as a developer--but the means were the same: hard work, focus, integrity, and a standard that would not be diminished by more...

The following question was submitted to "Ask Donald Trump" by a Trump University member. What do you think about the importance of buying real estate in this world crisis? There are always real estate investing opportunities, but one must research and be careful. Of course it helps if you have cash and know how to buy in this kind of market, but it’s important to realize that there are opportunities no matter what the market is doing. One of my first deals was done when the real estate market was in bad shape in New York City, in fact the city itself was more...

After learning that Air France is replacing the airspeed sensors on its Airbus A330 jets following the air disaster--even though there is no confirmed link between the crash and the airspeed sensors--I spoke to a friend of mine who has a hand-cart company. For many years his carts were made of steel, and now they are made of a carbon fiber composite that is stronger and lighter than steel, but has moments of weakness. The carts are made of the same composite material as the Airbus 330 vertical stabilizer/rudders. He also explained that out of many thousands of carts made a year, more...

June 6th marked the 65th anniversary of an epic day in history, which was the Allied invasion of Normandy. This was the turning point in World War II and is an event that warrants the great tributes it has received. President Obama, President Sarkozy, Prince Charles, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper were among those who were present, along with veterans, at the American cemetery in Normandy on Saturday. Maybe some of you saw Stephen Spielberg’s film, Saving Private Ryan, which chronicles this day in a realistic and therefore devastating way. One veteran said this film is more...

Yesterday, I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down and chat with Mike Veraldi, who has been in residential real estate investing full time since 2003. In his past life, Mike was an airline pilot for a large carrier.  With cutbacks and furloughs becoming an almost daily occurrence in the airline industry, Mike decided to take a 6 month leave of absence to start investing in real estate and has never looked back. What made you decide to try real estate investing? "A friend of mine recommended it to me.  I took some training classes and spent about $3900 learning the business.  Then, I more...

This week we are running real estate investing events in the following locations: New York/ New Jersey Jun 1, 2009 - Jun 4, 2009 Learn More and Register Here » The following is our market analysis for the NY/NJ area: Many students may have thought that residential or investment properties in the New York/ New Jersey area were out-of-reach, or that there were fewer opportunities due to prices usually above the national average. But today’s market provides the savvy buyer in the area with more opportunities for profit than ever - and even bigger profits are on the horizon for those ready to invest. This week’s more...

Last week in the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal there was an article on James Gutierrez. Gutierrez is the co-founder of Progreso Financiero, which he started in 2005. His company has brought in $26 million in venture funding, has partnered with Sears and has made 20,000 loans from 24 locations throughout California. He mentions that his success had early beginnings when he would look through business books while in grade school. He came across one of my books, and that’s the first time he had seen the word ‘entrepreneur’--and he decided that’s what he wanted to be. His first venture was selling pens more...