Whenever I mention Donald Trump to my friends, the initial reaction is disgust.
“He’s not a real businessman, he inherited his money.”
“He’s just another slimy rich bastard out to make money off of glitz and glamour.”
Like most people, I have been exposed to one aspect of his personality through his television show, The Apprentice, and like most people, I have read about the casinos, beauty pageants, and the lavish Trump Tower in newspapers and magazines. However, I wanted to see for myself whether or not Trump’s success is born from his upbringing and family background or whether it is the result of shrewd business tact. I figured the best way to do that would be to read his well-known known book, The Art of the Deal. I have divided this review into two sections: My Review and What I Learned (and can apply to my own business life).
My Review
Should you pay $8 on amazon to read this book? First of all, no, get it used. Second of all, it really depends on what you are looking for. If you’re looking to better understand his rise to fame and fortune, then yes. It’s really remarkable the juggling acts he performed as a real estate developer, often times having to convince multiple parties to agree with him and get on the same page. It’s even more impressive how he mitigated risk, persuaded lawmakers, businessmen, and city officials (despite having no track record), and used the press to his advantage.
If you want to be an entrepreneur, I’d say that this book is not a “must read.” As a real estate developer, Trump is far more of a businessman than an entrepreneur. Of course he spots opportunities and organizes resources to take advantage of new high risk ventures, but I think he really shines more as a businessman. When you think about the word “deal,” you’ll get a better understanding of what this book is about. In simple terms, a deal is an agreement where one party is selling and one party is buying. One party is doing the persuading and the other needs to give the “okay” or buy into the opportunity. Negotiations simply refer to deciding on the terms of the deal, whether that be price, ownership, or future privileges. So, this book is about Trump convincing a lot of people to buy into the opportunities he creates, and he does it brilliantly.
If you want to be a businessman or an entrepreneur who also manages his or her venture, this book will be invaluable. It gives an in-depth look of how negotiations work and how to manage people. It’s also interesting to see how Trump partners with other businesses in order to give his projects more profitability and authenticity.
Is Trump a real businessman? It’s true that he had family money and was able to learn about the real estate business from a young age from his father, but financial resources are not what cause success. If that were true, investors wouldn’t care about business teams. I believe what determines success in business is how well you use all of the resources available to you, be they financial or social. It comes down to your business skills and who you are as a person. Without a doubt, Trump is a brilliant businessman and would not have been able to attain the level of success he now enjoys were it not for his passion, ability to understand people, and knack for spotting opportunities.
Another rich bastard who only cares about money? I think that caring about money is part of what develops your hunger in the early years of business, but there also needs to be a stronger desire to build something that wasn’t there before. From all of the business men and women I’ve read about, I’ve come to the conclusion that you either need a passion for the game or a passion to create. Let’s be honest, if all he cared about was money, he wouldn’t still be in the game making deals. I think he genuinely enjoys the game and is playing it for life.
What I’ve Learned
Business is people. There is no other way to say it. Reading this book has shown me that developing relationships can go a very long way and that learning how to persuade others while still maintaining integrity is invaluable. That also means it’s important to know your customers, which Trump did by constantly asking questions to understand how people viewed the world, his ideas, and his products
You are only as good as your product. Donald Trump would spend so much time and energy making sure he created quality products and delivered on time. It built into his reputation over time and made for smoother sailing in later years.
Mitigating Risk. I was surprised the steps that Trump would go to to mitigate or in some instances almost completely eliminate risk. At the same time, he knew when to take the calculated risks. It’s very smart business tactics and I think that people who play the game in the long run all have this in common.
Psychology. I’m a big believer that talent will only take you so far. Maybe that’s because I don’t think I’m a born businessman or entrepreneur. But one thing I’ve seen over and over again is successful business people saying that in the long run what has made them successful is complete focus on improving their skills and producing quality work. Trump is no different and I think that the psychology he has developed has played a large role in his success. Thinking Big. Dreaming. At the same time, taking action and focusing on the present project at hand. In the realm of psychology, he also taught me to leverage “public anticipation” and “sensationalize” in terms of public relations and marketing.
Conclusion
I really enjoyed this book! Especially the early years when he was first getting started. The idea that he started with $200,000 right out of college is kind of astounding, but it’s in no way the hundreds of millions of family money that people make it out to be.
“To me it’s very simple: if you’re going to be thinking anyway, you might as well think big.”
The Thought Hole 