Home : This Week: Let's Get Things Straight about What Working Really Means

This Week: Let's Get Things Straight about What Working Really Means

Posted by Sean Yazbeck on 3/30/2009 at 4:20 PM
Posted in Apprentice

In the first season of Celebrity Apprentice last year, I was impressed that so many of the contestants were able to set aside their celebrity egos, roll up their sleeves, and really work hard.

In this week’s episode, some of the celebrities were able to do that. Joan Rivers and Brian McKnight, for example, rose to the challenge of dealing with all kinds of unreasonable demands from their hotel guests. So did other celebrities, including Annie, Brande, Tionne, Brian, Jesse and Herschel.

I have been around a lot of celebrities and I can tell you, not many of them would relish the notion of making up beds, cleaning sinks and toilets, or making room service deliveries. The fact that some really top people like Herschel Walker, Joan Rivers, and Brian McKnight were able to put on hotel uniforms and do “grunt work” was therefore all the more impressive.

The performance of these candidates was so impressive, in fact, that it made at least three of the contestants look quite bad by comparison.

To be specific . . .

Khloe said that she was accustomed to ordering food from hotel room service, and therefore she was too good to be the person who had to deliver it. Meanwhile Annie and other teammates were delivering meals like room-service pros.

Melissa seemed to feel that it was beneath her to make a bed or clean a hotel room. Meanwhile, her teammates were scrubbing toilets and trying to get stains out of the carpets. Why was she better than the rest of them?

Dennis kept trying to be a “high roller.” After he arranged to have two nice limos parked at the curb for his team’s guests to use, he started to drink vodka with cranberry juice - then actually disappeared. Even if his drinking had not been part of the picture, he would have been fired nonetheless for such shoddy performance.

And I would like to share another observation with you, based on my own role as Donald Trump’s winning Apprentice . . .

Donald Trump doesn’t like people who avoid hard work and gritty jobs

I have spent time in Trump Organization headquarters and I can tell you that being a real-estate developer in New York City is not all glamour and sheen. There are many tough, unpleasant tasks to be tackled at every turn. And anyone who avoids rolling up his or sleeves is not going to win the respect of Mr. Trump. Who, by the way, likes to roll up his sleeves too.

Next week . . .

I regret the fact that Dennis has a drinking problem that contributed to his failure on the show this week. I hope he finds the help he needs - and that his past performance has not crippled the ability of the men to get up on their feet and fight for future wins. As I observed last week, I know we are going to learn a lot this season.

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As winner of The Apprentice (2006), Sean Yazbeck, was selected by Donald Trump to oversee construction of the 5 star hotel condominium, Trump SoHo, in New York City. Yazbeck's role included overseeing negotiations on all acquisitions and purchases for this $500 million project.

Yazbeck has since been working with the Trump Institute to set-up WAVSYS, a national technical staffing company providing individuals, project teams and strategic outsourcing services for engagements in IT and telecommunications. As Founder and CEO, WAVSYS leverages Yazbeck's 12-years of unrivaled recruitment expertise, for which he was awarded the EB1 Green Card for "persons of extraordinary ability".

In 2006, in recognition of his multiple achievements the mayor of Miami Dade County, Carlos Alvarez, named June 20th, as "Sean Yazbeck Day" in Miami-Dade County. More recently in 2008 the Governor of Kentucky, Steve Beshear, bestowed the honory title of "Kentucky Colonel" on Sean Yazbeck "in recognition of noteworthy accomplishments and outstanding service to the nation".

Since winning The Apprentice, Yazbeck has appeared as Boardroom Advisor to Mr. Trump on The Apprentice, hosted his own show, Reality Trailblazers, on the TV Guide Channel and has appeared on numerous shows such as Miss Universe, MTV Video Music Awards, Live with Regis and Kelly, 1 vs. 100, Soap Talk and Identity.

Yazbeck graduated top of his year with a First Class Honors Degree from Southampton Solent University in England. A British national, he is due to gain dual American Citizenship in 2010.

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6 Comments

Posted by member1953814 on 03/30/2009 7:30 PM

I've been thinking about last night's show today so much so that I actually shared what happened with a friend of mine, who missed the program.

I was impressed with the way Jesse dealt with Dennis Rodman's drinking problem in the board room. Jesse was brutally honest, yet at the same time showed genuine concern for Dennis and the impact that alcohol has had on the star athlete's life.

When Dennis kept referring to his past successes on the basketball court, Herschel asked,"What about today? That's in the past."

Joan Rivers spoke eloquently about how it felt to be in the board room as Dennis referred to his glory days in basketball while he was confronted about his drinking problem. It's obvious that Joan has a good heart. I was glad to see her give Dennis a hug as he left.

Kudos to the producers of the show for putting up the AA contact information at the end of the program.

I wonder if anyone anticipated that the show would wind up where it did last night!

Posted by Business 2000 Foundation.com on 03/30/2009 8:40 PM

We agree in a lot of the above comments. Many celebrities dont have a clue on what it takes in the real-world. Hard work and patience. They were tested. Some failed..and some just ignore the real world work and lost the tasks.

Mr. Trump made an easy decision of letting Dennis Rodman go. A sad story. He was part of the team and walked away from them. His perspective on team unity is much different. Phil Jackson would of made sure that he understood who the real boss is and maybe Mr. Trump should of spoke sooner than just on that drinking binge from Dennis. He was a bad example and a bad leader..but we have faith that others want to help him overcome his addictions. He is a good person...but needs time to overcome other issues. No excuses for his behavior...sad,

We felt bad for Jessie...Dennis was way out of bounds on a personal attack in the board-room. against him. You can tell Jessie had his heart tore by his past too. Way out of bounds. Dennis walked away as the project leader. In which, opens up more personal debate in the boardroom of why. And to his actions.

He should of stayed in basketball...that is where his heart is ...and fame history. We felt bad..they all are leaders in their own path. The charity lost out for Dennis. It was sad. But, it is the real world of celebrities.

Sad...to watch...

Posted by member1940540 on 04/01/2009 7:57 AM

I completely with the original comments regarding who gave 100% of their hard-work efforts and who didn't. And while I was very sorry to see what was happening as Dennis Rodman's performance on the team got worse, I was glad to see the team's real concern for him as a team member and as an individual. I too hope that Mr. Rodman will seek immediate treatment.

For me, this program has been an excellent way to help develop new skills and knowledge of what it takes to be an effective project manager. I didn't expect to be hooked on CELEBRITY APPRENTICE, but I certainly am now. I hope this series will come out on DVD when the first season is complete. I find it an outstanding learning tool for anyone who is seriously studying Projejct Management, and look forward to new seasons.

Posted by member1940540 on 04/02/2009 7:02 PM

After seeing all four projects in CELEBRITY APPRENTICE so far, I have learned a great deal about what makes the difference between a team's winning and losing on each project. Specifically, each project manager's ability to put his or her own ego aside and work together with the team members to achieve a success or "win" on each project. Some individuals, such as Mr. Hershel Walker and Mr. Clint Black, have learned from the mistakes they made on the first two projects, and have greatly improved in that respect, while others have not and still need improvement.

In addition, I was really impressed with Joan Rivers' job as "Concierge" on the Hotel Project, even when she made the error of neglecting to inform the guest (regrettably, I forget that guest's name) about the large cover charge at the restaurant or night club she recommended. Anyone who can honestly admit "it was my fault" as she did and to take responsibility for that error is someone I have tremendous respect for, no matter what job the person is doing.

Can anyone tell me when Episode Five is supposed to air on NBC? Is it Saturday or Sunday? I really don't want to miss it. :)

Posted by member1940540 on 04/05/2009 5:48 PM

Since it appears that all the team members are taking turns at being the Project Manager on each project, I think it would be helpful if all of them were able to read a book that would help them all to be far more effective in this position when his or her turn comes. I don't know if team members are allowed to read such a book or not, but I would like to share the title of the book I'm reading just in case.

The book is called PROJECT MANAGEMENT FOR DUMMIES (2nd Edition), and it was written by Mr. Stanley Portney, who is a Project Management Consultant and a Certified Project Management Professional. I just happened to come across it about two weeks ago, and I'm very glad I did, as it is an excellent learning tool for beginners. I only wish I had found it sooner, as it would have helped me manage my own individual projects even better. I have learned so much from this book already, and I certainly believe it would help all of the team members to develop more skills and knowledge in Project Management, and possibly (no guarantees, obviously) be more successful in gaining more wins for their team.

Posted by member1281519 on 10/12/2009 9:07 PM

Mr. Donald Trump:

I hope that Our former Governor Blagojevich will be pick by you to be on your show. I believe he is a excellent Candidate for the Celebrity Apprentice.
Sincerely,
Mary Hartsfield
A Supporter of Blagojevich

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