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Never Lie! (What I Learned from Last Night's Apprentice)

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In the final moments of last night’s episode, we all saw Heidi come apart at the seams. It was hard to believe that we were watching the same woman who was such a consistent winner in the early episodes this season.

That, for me, showcased the fact that it only takes one little lie to start the downfall of a career. Just one small fib took Heidi through this wrenching sequence:

  1. Denial. When Mr. Trump attacked her team’s brochure for being ugly and over-packed with text, Heidi impulsively tried to blame her teammate Frank for it. A complete absurdity, since the brochure was her responsibility, not his.
  2. A bigger lie. Next she tried to blame Frank for the brochure by saying that he was spending all his time working on the computerized presentation. Frank jumped on this flawed defense. How could she blame him for the brochure when he was working on the presentation? She was beginning to be boxed in by her own lies.
  3. Total confusion. Next she took responsibility for the brochure, but denied that she had ever tried to pin it on Frank - even though she had done just that, moments earlier. That’s the kind of self-contradiction that usually results from a series of lies.

In the end, Heidi fell back on the final desperate defense that remains for people who get tangled in their own mistruths:

“Mr. Trump, I am not lying.”

Now, when it becomes necessary for someone to say that, there is only one logical conclusion. The person really is lying!

Would Heidi have been fired if she admitted responsibility instead of impulsively trying to avoid blame? Maybe yes, maybe no. At the very least, she would have left the show with her credibility intact.

The sad thing is, Heidi is not a dishonest woman. She simply gave in to the momentary temptation to avoid blame with one little lie. And that led to another and another. And then her whole house of cards began to fall, with no way to put everything back in place again.

Lies are like that. They are sneaky and they lure you in. They can undo, in a moment, all the good things you have done to achieve your success. Just be alert and make sure it never happens to you. 

Paul C. Quintal is Vice President of Trump University.

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15 Comments   Post a comment

[-] Posted by Business 2000 Foundation on 04/09/2007 3:34 PM
Simply: Heidi Chocked. The presentation was very poor. She knew it and tried the "blame game." She is much better than that! She can be a star player. But take responsibilty.

It was very contridicting in her arguments. And she did not see it comming.
All in all she might learn from a bad mistake, and become the star again.
[-] Posted by member1349490 on 04/09/2007 3:49 PM
Greetings,

I read your blog with great interest, however you only scratched the surface of the mess that was going on last night on "The Apprentice". Honestly I think James had it right when he said both of the other teams should have been fired.

If anyone goes back and actually looks at the footage from this years show before the finale (and lord I hope they do), they are going to dump Frank like a rock. No attention span, no attention to detail. He needs to write a huge thank you letter to Heidi for making him look good to both Mr Trump and Don Jr.

Kristine fired for getting the phone number wrong on the brochure in addition to a bad presentation. Understandable at this level. Should have been given the chance to defend herself especially against.........

Nicole. The one who chose to let Christine do all the work and the go off to sleep on the couch gets spared. That should not have happened.

Heidi. This one is where you and I disagree Mr. Quintal. I am totally supportive of the firing last night, I only differ with you on her being a "star" up to this point. I can't reflect on anything she had done this season that would qualify that statement. She has done nothing be waffle repeatedly when asked direct questions and reflected blame to everyone but herself. She just painted herself into a corner last night and couldn't get out of it and managed to save Frank at the same time. Unreal.

William Harding
Kentucky
[-] Posted by member1500110 on 04/09/2007 4:31 PM
I agree, people shouldnt lie, but thats how many people try to save their butts on the apprentice, with exception to Frank and a few others. Most people try to walk the line between truth and a lie, so they cant be accused of lying, but are twisting the truth to suit their own means, and to get someone else fired, i have yet to see someone say this season, it was my fault we lost,, Michelle knew she lost, and decided that she would quit and say it wasnt what she was expected, when she blatently knew she was gonna go and be fired because she wasnt up to the job. She would rather Trump think she is a quitter when the going gets tough rather than think she cant lead. Deciding to lie if you have done a bad job.is a lose-lose situation, either you lie and Mr Trump knows you're a liar or tell the truth and most likely get fired. Surely by the time of the events last night, each team knew they could go any time, rather than relying on their team and laying low. Anyway people shouldnt lie, if you do a bad job, admit it, learn from your mistakes and come back stronger next time. If you get fired for doing a bad job, make sure you don't make the same mistake next time. You could tell last night in Heidi's face that she knew she was going, and she tried to take blame off her, which is terrible as it might have cost Frank a job. Pepple sometimes forget lying could affect other people, they are too selfish to think about anyone.

Dont lie, You will have more respect that way.
[-] Posted by member1499085 on 04/09/2007 7:24 PM
Heidi started to dig a big hole for herself by lying then couldn't get out of it. Don Jr. even made the comment that she had contradicted herself a few times. The one thing that left me scratching my head after the show, was when Frankie said he was responsible for their presentation, and the brochure was assigned to Heidi. However, when it was their turn to present, Heidi began talking not Frankie. If this was his presentation, why didn't he present? As far as Kristine getting fired, I think it wasn't deserving. We as fans, were able to see the time, effort, and energy she put forth into this task as Nicole slept. Kristine demonstrated to me she is willing to go above and beyond to get the job done. Yes, she did make a big mistake by inserting the incorrect phone number, but the mistake could have been made because she went the entire night without sleep. Why didn't Nicole catch the mistake the following day? James and Stefani did an excellent job, and the show captured them working well together. With only a few weeks to go, I would have like to see Stefani in the project manager role because James has proven himself.....Until next week.......rickyl
[-] Posted by member1539196 on 04/09/2007 8:20 PM
Let me shift the focus to another key lesson that we can learn from last night episode: Planning and Time management.

The task was more than just a presentation in front of the Trumps. The "substance" of the task called for a well-conceptualized, practical and integrated marketing plan. The "form" required an innovative approach that captured the attention of prospective buyers and effectively sells the idea that shelving out thousands to own a piece of that property development is worthwhile --- all these boil down to proper branding.

I was therefore surprised to see the way the two losing pairs worked. There was no concerted effort and I don't have to wait till the finale to know who are the last two standing will be.

Most importantly, it is essential to create an overall plan that will exceed the requirements of the project. In this case, build on the unique selling features of the second twin tower, and provide meaningful pictures and an impressive brochure to showcase them.

Second, incorporate timelines for the various tasks to be performed-- with a time manager watching the time and milestones closely.

Rehearse the presentation as many times as you can to make sure that the real presentation will be smooth and polished.

Ultimately, these tips wouldn't have worked with Nicole. She was over-confident to the point of being cocky. Frank thought too much of himself as well, and did not seem to be much of a strategist...which begs the question -- why are these two still in next week's episode?

Another interesting point is this: Nicole and Frank are experienced real estate "professionals"; yet why did they not impress in this project which is supposedly their forte? It does highlight the fact that in the real world,
one has to distinguish between different grades of experience. You can have people who have been working many years doing ineffective things (the "experienced fool") or have those who have worked many years and learned from the mistakes they have made (the "experienced smarts"). Perceptive leaders will also be on the lookout for some who may have just graduated from college and performed outstandingly well even though they do not have the experience (the "Stars").

Last night's episode was an interesting one all right. I'm looking forward to the finale, though I have an idea as to who the Apprentice will be.

Andrew Wee
AAE Immigration
http://www.aaeimmigration.com/business_immigration.htm
http://www.aaeimmigration.com/
[-] Posted by member1486974 on 04/09/2007 9:40 PM
Mr. Trump ,

I would've fired Nicole and Heidi. Nicole hardly ever does anything worthy of mention. You think you'll ever have a show where commonfolk can compete? You know, community college education (but on their way to transferring) people? . Either way I love your show and how you've evolved as a persona.
Ta, ta,
Cyn
[-] Posted by member1553772 on 04/09/2007 11:02 PM
AWESOME EPISODE...they problaly didn't fire two groups because they needed to extend the show abit. I think this is the best show on tv cause it shows you how deceitful people can be. It would be cooler if they could show parts of the show during the firing like on a big screen or somethin behind mr trump because then we could actually see Heidi having a hard time writing the presentation and FRANK actually offering to help and Heidi turning him down.

So I wonder how the frank and Nicole team will do.???
[-] Posted by member1553819 on 04/10/2007 12:10 AM
I agree that Heidi cornered herself. This was perhaps her worst performance and she admitted to it. I DO think though, that she has been a "star" in her previous performances. She is very polished and Kinetic consistently won when she was their project manager. She was also very much liked, although envied at times, unlike Jennifer M. from season two.
Although I hated to see her go, this was the most important task of them all. I believe that even if you had done exceedingly well in ALL of your previous tasks, this one particular task could have made you or broke you. It was a task that personally had to do with the Trump Organization, the company you are trying to work for. It was tabula rasa going in and even a shining star could have fallen very easily.
I don't think the remaining candidates are worthy of being the next Apprentice, I believe all the good ones have already left! If you think about it, the remaining four candidates are from Arrow, the team that always had so much trouble in the beginning. I am now unsure what Trump will do now, he must realize that he has cornered himself into the weakest Apprentice yet!
[-] Posted by member1366890 on 04/10/2007 6:13 AM
I like this girl, espetially in a moment when she talks with her mother.
That was the most beautiful sequence of Apprentice show, with tent, of course:-)


Ina Matijevic***
[-] Posted by member1446977 on 04/10/2007 11:27 AM
the first important thing I learnt from this great episode is that James and Stefani did an even impressive job and presentation only and simply because they work as 'a TEAM' though it's all about getting a job from Mr. Trump but thinking about the four others (I don't see myself describing them as 2 teams) they were working one against the other: Kristine wanted to beat Heidi and because of that she was even able to put her team-mate aside - Nicole took a lil nap and she was supposed to be woken up by Kristine - so she could take full credit for the job done unfortunately her selfishness and greediness have slapped bac on her face and she had to pay for it. Think about Frank and Heidi, you can see that Heidi didn't accept the hand held out to her by Frank when this one asked to, not good when you're in a team (so-called) especially when you've got a player like Frank who always hides himself behind the weaknesses of his team-mates while he's immured and he did that with Tim and now with Heidi again though she was already on her way to fall down and be crushed...So Integrity, 'Fairness',Honesty, Truth and (Responsibility) always pay off...Just look at the way James and Stefani played their game and you'll understand that nothing is really stronger than the strength released by a real team

Ainrické Bo. Beothé
[-] Posted by Rit Man on 04/10/2007 2:46 PM
What happend to the prize?! Donny needs to at least take them out to dinner or something. And stop calling rosie fat, we all know she is, but you are a person people look up to so you should not be insulting anyone, ever. My friend said about the poll if she was worth 40 million: whats the price of pork these days, Then Ill tell ya?
[-] Posted by user89187 on 04/10/2007 10:35 PM
Frank is definately a fighter you have to give him credit for that!

Heidi blew it. It apears the only two people who have been consistently professional are Stefani and James.

Gee I wonder if they both get hired.

I hate liars!
[-] Posted by user89187 on 04/10/2007 11:17 PM
Do you think calling in sick for work when your really realing from a drunken hangover is a lie? That's a lie for sure.

How about lying about someone's character to try and protect a guilty party.

Have you ever sued anyone for character assasination for doing so?

What goes around comes around liars. Egos and ****s.
[-] Posted by Blakie on 04/11/2007 7:01 PM
There are a lot of things that I have learned watching "The Apprentace"
1. These individuals don't realize that they are already working for Mr. Trump. It some what as if these companies go to Mr. Trump to have a few of his people to come up with a plan for a product.
2. Outside the board room, is like working for any company. You have the ones who pretend to like you be your freind and then behind your bach they are stabbing you in the back. Then In the board room, now they are all getting called on the carpert. So everyone starts kissing the boss's ass, because they don't want to screw up and get fired.
3. What ever you do, you are advertising yourself, first. and the product second. Sunday's show, I knew that James was going to win because of they way they caame in, with trying to kiss ass, plus their presentation was great. But as you watch James and the way he presents himself, he is actually adversising himself. Full of confiedencse.
4. Don't go in and lie, admitt, the resoning for any loss, whether it's in business or a relationship, you all fail as a team, it wasn't just one individual.

Education is important, and there are a lot of people who can't afford to go to college but not only street smart, but book smart as well. Look at the movie "good Will Hunting"

I would like to see an season of the Apprentice, were every one goes on the show with out any college degree and not only is applying for a job with Mr. Trump but a college education.
Thanks
Blake Bean
Weymouth, Ma
macbea4@hotmail.com
[-] Posted by member1483759 on 04/11/2007 8:28 PM
If you want to see some classic examples of "argumentative fallacies", the watch Frank debate Heidi. The guy makes no sense. I can't believe Trump would allow that guy get this far. He's a dummy.

By the way. Heidi never actually lied. She only pointed out half-truths and pointed out Frankie's character flaws.
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