Think Like a Champion: An Informal Education in Business and Life (4 page)

I’ve encountered people who don’t wonder about anything. Sometimes I wonder if they are in shock or something. Maybe they’re just afraid to strive for the big picture or the whole pie, or maybe they don’t think they’re worth the whole pie. Whatever it is, don’t let yourself fall into any of those categories. Don’t ever sell yourself short. That’s bad business on every level, even the metaphysical.

If striving for wholeness means diminishing your competition, then your competition wasn’t much to begin with. A lot of life is about survival of the fittest and adaptation, as Darwin pointed out. It’s not all there is, but it’s an indication of how the world has evolved in historical terms. We’ve seen many empires come and
go—the Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and so forth. There have always been surges of power. Sometimes they last for centuries. Even so, some of us have never heard of them as of today. In other words, things change. We have to keep up with the changes and move forward or we will be holding some moldy pieces of the pie.

As The Trump Organization has moved forward, I have very much seen it as a living organism that needs to be fed and replenished. It needs to be whole, which requires many sections fitting together and working together tightly. It is a daily requirement on my part to make sure all the ingredients are there and working together to make the best product possible. I can’t have any missing pieces. I can’t have any ingredients that aren’t the best. Those are my standards, and it’s my responsibility to make sure they are kept.

See yourself as an organization. Pay attention to every facet of your life. What’s strong? What’s weak? What’s missing? What can you do to make the big picture better? Whatever you do, don’t stagnate. Don’t become complacent. Don’t pretend that 50 percent is enough, whether you’re giving or receiving. Things move too quickly today to fall into that trap.

When I realized how fast the world moves, I decided to double up on my work hours.That wasn’t a big sacrifice because I love what I’m doing and I’ve always been a hard worker. I’m happier and more productive now than I ever was. But I kept the pace in order to keep up with my environment, which is a fast one. New York is known for being fast.You can adapt or lose out. I chose to adapt. Make your choices accordingly. People who want to compete with me will have to keep up with me.

I had a dynamic, very well-qualified, very well-educated young man come to work for me. I remember thinking, this guy is going to be great. Was I ever wrong. He took so long to explain anything that every time I saw him, I began to dread any kind of
interaction with him. He was just too slow. He was thorough and painstaking, but he couldn’t keep up with the required pace. He couldn’t adapt to his environment, and despite his qualifications, he was unable to get the big picture and figure out how to fit in. It was a happy day for me when he departed. Don’t let that happen to you. Learn to adapt. Learn to keep learning.

Very few of us are completed projects. It’s an ongoing process. Even being a prodigy, Mozart worked at what he did. We have to assemble the bits and pieces constantly in order to achieve the whole. But we have to assemble creatively and passionately to get anywhere near the whole. It’s another way of covering your bases for the most effective game. Strive for wholeness and keep your sense of wonder intact, and you will find yourself ready for a grand slam.

—ALBERT CAMUS

W
hen the achiever achieves, it’s not a plateau, it’s a beginning. Achievers move forward at all times—they have anticipation for their next deal and have another goal immediately lined up. It’s enthusiasm that can’t be fabricated—it’s either there, or it’s not. Achievers go for the challenge, so the next deal is what they’re thinking about. They have an obligation to themselves to best themselves. That’s living in the highest realm.

Your higher self is in direct opposition to your comfort zone. An indication of life is growth, and signs of growth have to be there.You’ve heard people refer to a city as vibrant, and what that means is that it’s growing and it’s lively—it is not stagnating. See yourself as a city if you must, with all the inner and outer workings necessary to keep yourself thriving and efficient.

There are so many “fine lines” in life that when people say life is an art, they’re not too far off. I’ve said before that I see my work
as an art form, and that’s one reason why. We all know that fine line between something great and something extraordinary. Sometimes it’s almost imperceptible, or impossible to define.What makes da Vinci’s
Mona Lisa
so exceptional? There are millions of different answers, but it mesmerizes people. It’s mysterious and brings us to another realm, a different dimension.

Our higher selves can serve to transport us to becoming visionaries. The word visionary evokes a lot of images and definitions, some even being a “castle-builder” or a Don Quixote. It often connotes someone who is idealistic. There is nothing wrong with that as long as it’s contained within reason.Visionaries move the world along into new dimensions. Look at Bill Gates, for example, in technology; or Mark Burnett in reality TV; or Pablo Picasso, Stravinksy, and other greats of the twentieth century. They were groundbreakers who followed their own instincts and led us in new directions.

Our higher self will often lead us into new waters, and for a good reason. No one wants to spend their life treading water just to keep from going under. That is futile and disheartening. Sometimes we do things to build up experience and stamina to prepare us, but it’s to prepare us for something bigger. Always know you could be on the precipice of something great—that’s being connected to your higher self. It’s also a good way to keep those negative thoughts far away.

Sometimes our goals aren’t necessarily concrete. Sometimes it’s a feeling of something great that will happen, and so we’re open to it. That doesn’t mean we sit around waiting for something to just happen—very often it happens while we’re working away on something else. Being industrious can be a magnet for new ideas, while idleness and inertia can be magnets for negativity.

One of the worst fears we can have is the fear to attempt something. That can leave you feeling bereft for no particular reason
except that maybe you will have missed your purpose. There is always the possibility of failure, but there is a greater chance of success if you actually try to do something versus doing nothing. I wasn’t sure I’d be a success on the radio, but I went for it and my program on Clear Channel was a big hit. But I had to take the chance first to find out.

Life can be an adventure of the best sort if you will give your higher self a chance. We all have something unique to offer. Our work is to find out what that is and to work at it with a passion. So don’t tread water. Get out there and go for it.

—OSCAR WILDE

I
remember reading a short book that was entirely based on the question: What does wisdom mean to you? People from every profession, every walk of life, and every possible background contributed their thoughts. All these people had been successful. The answers were diverse, but I realized they tended to have a few common denominators: experience, integrity, and knowledge.

I was relatively young when I read this book, and in fact I can’t remember the title of it. It was left on a table in the library at school so I just happened upon it. I understood the emphasis on knowledge, and could see the value of experience even though I hadn’t had much yet, so what stood out the most to me was integrity. Very often it was combined with the value of reputation, and I think that’s when my approach to a quality brand name was in gestation.

My father had already established a strong brand name in the outer boroughs of New York City as a developer, and people knew his work would have an inherent quality to it. They wouldn’t have to guess or feel they were taking a chance if it had the Trump
name on it. That’s how he built his reputation. When I went into business for myself, I made a point to establish a reputation that bankers and other professionals would be comfortable with, and I knew that eventually my integrity as a businessman would be intact. People are more apt to want to work with you if they feel they can trust you—an important consideration especially if one wants financial backing for projects.

Whether you are a full- or part-time student now is a good time to think about your future, whether it’s brand new or a new beginning. Make certain things your guideposts. It’s a good sign you’re reading this because that means you are serious about your education and gaining knowledge. That’s something that was emphasized to me as a student, and I made a greater effort to learn everything I could in order to gain wisdom.

What was pointed out—and what I fully realized later—is that wisdom comes as a result of several factors: one being experience, and one being knowledge. It’s something you can’t teach someone else—you have to achieve it on your own. It also has to do with insight, which comes with experience as well.

I realize now when I can assess a situation quickly that it’s a result of wisdom I’ve gained through a variety of experiences. It’s a bit like being able to trust your instincts because you’ve had a good record of successes. It’s very hard for me to just give you this wisdom—you have to get there yourself. But these pointers were helpful to me as a student, and they are worth thinking about.

Another way to gain wisdom is to read about the greats in history and those in your specific field of interest. I learned a great deal by reading about Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln, and people who had been in pivotal places in world history. They had to be very equipped to deal with what they were handed. Their situations may have been a matter of fate, destiny, and timing, but they had the experience and wisdom to deal effectively with their
circumstances. Imagine having many thousands or even millions of people affected by your actions and decisions, and you will have an inkling of the immense responsibility these people had. It can make our problems seem small in comparison, and it can enlarge our minds in order to comprehend a bigger picture of duty and competence.

I remember realizing back in school that two things in particular seemed to shape the world as I knew it then—war and nature. Nature is a powerful force and so is war. It changes the landscape of countries and cultures, and nature can just plain change the landscape. So I spent time studying wars and their impact on where we are today in civilization. That’s a big assignment and I’m by no means an expert, but it is worth spending some time to know how and why we are where we are today.

One book that I would suggest to you, because it is valuable for business and managerial strategies, is
The Art of War
by Sun Tzu. This was apparently written in the sixth century BC and is a study of military strategy. It has been influential to leaders for many centuries, and General Douglas MacArthur studied it as well as other famed military strategists throughout history. It may sound like an unusual business school recommendation, but believe me, it isn’t. It’s valuable and worth your time.

By comparison, another famed book is Machiavelli’s
The Prince,
which is more about political conflict and the qualities necessary for leadership than war or business, but its emphasis on power becomes a negative factor. Ethics and integrity seem to get lost somewhere in the shuffle, and therefore the word Machiavellian has become a pejorative term. It’s a better use of your time to read
The Art of War.

There are many roads to wisdom and many wonderful books to educate us on our way. I’m sure you’ll discover your own favorites, but the first step is to take the time to read and learn in
the first place. In the long term, this will save you time because you will be learning from people who have already been faced with serious issues and who have been victorious. Remember, you need knowledge and experience first. Wisdom will come provided you give it a chance to develop. First things first, and you will be pleased at what will follow. The achievement of wisdom will be all yours.