Trump: How to Get Rich

In business—every business—the bottom line is understanding the process. If you don’t understand the process, you’ll never reap the rewards of the process. You’ll never last long enough to achieve your overnight success.

Part of the process is doing your homework. You have to know what you’re getting into first. That was one of my father’s strongest beliefs. We’ve all heard the phrase You’re barking up the wrong tree. It brings to mind a funny image, but in reality it can be embarrassing. Not doing your homework can result in something analogous, so do a few things first to avoid this.

We can learn from our mistakes, but it’s better to learn from our successes. When I hear people say, Well, it was an interesting experience, I can usually safely assume they are referring to something that didn’t work out the way they’d planned. I don’t find my goof-ups to be amusing or interesting.

Can you imagine hearing a surgeon say, Well, it didn’t go quite right, but I sure learned a lot? I wouldn’t want that guy operating on me. The same applies to anyone in business, because if you’re in business, it’s not just your money involved, but very often the money and well-being of others as well. In my business, I can’t take chances. If something is not quite right with the design or construction of a superstructure, a lot of people could be injured or killed. I’ve got to know what’s going on. Bottom line, it will be my responsibility.

People see the finished product. Wow, a skyscraper! What goes into it is another story. Construction isn’t glamorous. It’s a serious and often dangerous endeavor. Fortunately, I understood this from my earliest days in the business, so there’s a certain gravity in my approach to the construction of any building.

That’s where having learned to do my homework comes in handy. It’s a necessary requirement, not an extracurricular course to enhance my productivity. Not only do I have to know exactly what I’m doing, but I’ve also got to make sure I find contractors who know exactly what they’re doing as well. That’s why I’m tough on them, and that’s why I’m equally tough on myself. A lot of lives are at stake in our work. We don’t want any interesting experiences!

We all know what it’s like to pretend to study. There are some courses in school that just don’t hold your attention. If you are choosing a career, keep that in mind. What most holds your attention?

Consider a pyramid. Did you ever notice how large and solid the foundation is? Did you notice the carefully graduated levels that eventually lead to the pinnacle? Now turn the pyramid upside down. That’s a representation of topsy-turvy thinking. You don’t start at the top. You start with the foundation—the stronger, the better.

The world moves along at such a fast clip that we have little patience when things are slow, whether it’s the line at a supermarket or Internet access. We’ve become intolerant of those things that cannot be accelerated or skipped entirely. I can’t speed up the foundation work for a building, nor can I expect to play piano like Glenn Gould just because I want to.

Know the limitations as well as the possibilities of everything you do. Find out as much as you can yourself about what you plan to do, and don’t expect anyone to act as your favorite grandmother in wanting what’s best for you. Most people want what’s best for themselves, not for you. If those people have already spent a great deal of effort on their homework, why should they share it with you?

Listen to a Ping-Pong Game

I learned a long time ago to listen, but to listen judiciously. You can learn a lot from the people around you—you just have to be discerning about the information that comes your way. A lot of the so-called information I receive turns out to be someone’s personal opinion. We’re all entitled to our two cents’ worth, but sometimes that’s all it amounts to.

Be aware of the marketplace. Know what’s going on now. That’s one reason I devote several hours a day to reading. That’s how long it takes to both keep up with current events and learn from the greats in history. How can you expect to be successful if your idea of what’s happening in the world is vague or nonexistent? That’s like saying, I know that September 11 happened, but I choose not to acknowledge it. It gets in the way of my positive outlook on things. That approach is fine if you’re a professional fairy-tale writer.

There’s another side to everything, so develop your ability to see it—or even hear it. I once met a young woman from Hong Kong who worked on Wall Street in emerging markets. She had an uncanny ability to predict certain events in the marketplace—it seemed almost like a psychic gift to me.

One day, I asked her how she could be so on target in her work and she likened knowing and predicting the global markets tolistening to a Ping-Pong game.