How to Get Rich by Donald J. Trump (2004)

How to Get Rich: Big Deals from the Star of The Apprentice by Donald J. Trump with Meredith McIver (2004)

Will this old book by Donald Trump cause some to quit my site? I sure hope not, but with the crazy climate of our country right now, you never know.

Before he became President—that is, before he became the most hated/loved man in America—Donald J. Trump was of course just a quirky yet well-respected businessman, and a wealthy one at that. For a long time, his political aspirations were a joke, but two presidencies later, well—no one can deny the man has drive!

In this review of his 2004 book, How to Get Rich, I open with his answer to that problem and his philosophy about “Success with Significance.” I then share five favorite lines from the book, one red flag, and four examples about why we shouldn’t be too surprised that he behaves the way he does.

Note: this post includes Amazon affiliate links.

Two Answers for How to Get Rich

The author of this book was the 2004, old-era Donald Trump, and if you really do hate the guy and don’t want to read any further (since I do praise him in this review), then let me at least give you The Donald’s basic recipe for “how to get rich.” You ready?

Hard work and discipline.

That’s it. Though he’s got nearly 300 pages of other managerial and personal advice, it all boils down to these two traits.

You can get on with your life now. Or you can keep reading. I prefer you keep reading, because there’s some good stuff in this book.

“Success with Significance”

In his concluding pages, Trump makes an admission I loved so much. If there’s just one quote to take away from the book, it’s this:

Unless you win the lottery or have a bonanza at one of my casinos, you’re not going to get rich purely through luck. You’ll have to work for it, and I’ve tried to show you how.

My ideal goals are success with significance. That’s worth more than the money. Being paid is nice. In most cases, it is absolutely necessary, and a good scorecard for success, but it certainly isn’t the only one. (270)

Money is nice, but it isn’t everything. He’s proved that attitude throughout his Presidency, and it’s one reason I voted for him. He’s not been a career politician and (as far as I can tell) he can’t be bought.

For a while there, I’ll admit, I had thought it possible that Donald Trump had some shady secrets from his past that he’s maybe-possibly been silencing through money. In fact, it seemed likely.

But come on. Any reasonable person knows that someone as hated and scrutinized as Trump—someone who’s gone through the legal ringer for decades like he has—legitimately has nothing more to hide. If there truly were some dark secret to uncover, they would have found it by now. They would have exposed the heck out of it. He’s the most open-book President America’s ever had. And they hate him for it.

Instead of catching him with some lurid skeleton, his enemies have resorted to concocting hoax after hoax to bring him down, and they’ve failed each time. Due to that failure, they’ve morphed this hatred into violence. They’ve gone for the jugular and tried to murder him—thrice now, as of this writing. More to come, I’m sure, because his enemies won’t let up till he’s dead. Pray for the guy.

Success with Significance, though, is his aim, and it would have been a much better title for this book. But I get it. He had to grab the reader’s attention with the most common question he was ever asked: “Mr. Trump, Sir, how can I get rich?”

Some Favorite Lines from the Book

While I loved his Ping-Pong chapter, I can’t quote it at length here, so you’ll have to read it on your own. Likewise, reading his itinerary as “a week in the life of The Donald” was eye-opening. Someone that busy must be well-prepared for the constant drive of 8 years as President (or is it 12? Just kidding).

But there are some short sections worth quoting here, and I’ll give you five. I’ve listed each with its chapter title.

1. Maintain Your Momentum:

No matter how accomplished you are, no matter how well you think you know your business, you have to remain vigilant about the details of your field. You can’t get by on experience or smarts… No matter what you’re managing, don’t assume you can glide by. Momentum is something you have to work at to maintain. (11)

This one is important for me as a Bible teacher, because sometimes I think, “Hey, I’ve studied that passage before,” and I convince myself that I don’t need as much time in sermon prep as normal. That’s a dangerous mindset to have.

Keep reading. Keep studying. Never glide.

2. Keep Your Door Open:

To me, arriving means something is about to begin. Graduation from college is a beginning, not an ending. Each success is the beginning of the next one. (36)

He wrote this in response to people fawning over others whom they think have “arrived,” so now they can simply rest on their laurels. Believe or not, Trump would call such people “losers.” And while he might be out of a job soon (if he survives this second presidency), I don’t think Trump will ever truly retire.

3. Look Closely Before Changing Careers:

In 2000, I thought about running for President of the United States as a third-party candidate. I proposed some sensible ideas: tax cuts for the middle class, tougher trade deals, a ban on unregulated soft money in campaigns, comprehensive health care reform. I formed an exploratory committee and met with Reform Party leaders, but in the end I realized I was enjoying my business too much to run for office. …

In politics, you usually have to watch your words. I’m too blunt to be a politician. Then, there’s my long-held aversion to shaking hands… Had I entered the race, I wouldn’t have been very popular. (67)

I loved this candid moment about his political aspirations. Of course, he never lost the desire to run, and he also became more popular than even he predicted. The country—no, the world—is a different place because he gave up his businesses to run. He’s watched his words somewhat better this second term than he did in the first, but his “too blunt to be a politician” is most certainly the reason he won.

4. Connect with Your Audience (The Art of Public Speaking, Part I):

Think about your audience first. The rest will fall into place. Granted, having useful information to convey will help, too. But tuning in to people is the first step. I’m good at that, and I don’t have to try too hard. Even in my office, with a few people around, the conversation will never be one-sided. I like to involve everyone and hear what they have to say. (74-75)

Trump plays the crowd like no President before him. I think of his interview with Theo Von where they discussed many things, including drugs—a connection that was borne from genuine interest, because he seriously cared to learn about a lifestyle choice he’d never experienced. Why? Because he cared to understand America and Americans better.

5. Read Carl Jung:

Fortunately, I am aware of my public side as well as my private side, and, while I’m not one for hiding much, I know there are several dimensions in which I operate… The people I work with day in and day out know I’m not entirely a glam guy. They see how hard I work. One person said I am very much like a Mormon, which I took as high praise. (96)

I’ve never read Carl Jung, and I don’t think anyone since has ever compared Trump to a Mormon (“moron,” yes; many, many times). But this issue of being real is at the heart of who he is and why he’s so different than anyone else in Washington. What you see is what you get, like it or not.

One Ginormous “Red Flag” Line

During the section where he provides a week’s itinerary, he has this line that totally threw me for a loop:

The mysterious Jeffrey calls in. As mysterious as Jeffrey is, he’s one of the few people I know who can get by on just a first name. My staff never asks for a last name in his case, which in a way puts him up there with Elvis. (213-214)

Now, in 2004 I would not have known of anyone in the public eye who was known simply as “Jeffrey”—except maybe Jeffrey Dahmer, but I’m sure that’s not who’s being referenced.

But 22 years later, that name rings some bells! There’s one Jeffrey, but he’s known way more by his last name—his last name plus “Files”. Was Donald actually referring to Jeffrey Epstein here? Was this before or after he tipped off the FBI to how creepy this dude really was? Makes me wonder.

If Only They Had Been Paying Attention…

In this final section, I want to point out a few instances where Donald Trump was very open about how he would eventually lead the country—were he ever able to secure the presidency. It’s shocking to me that anyone is surprised by his behavior, because it’s how he’s always behaved as a CEO.

How to Handle the Press

Someone who interrupts is not going to receive a warm welcome. (28)

How to Play Nasty

For many years I’ve said that if someone screws you, screw them back. I once made the mistake of saying that in front of a group of twenty priests who were in a large audience of two thousand people. I took some heat for that. One of them said, “My son, we thought you were a much nicer person.”

I responded, “Father, I have great respect for you. You’ll get to heaven. I probably won’t, but to be honest, as long as we’re on the earth, I really have to live by my principles.”

When somebody hurts you, just go after them as viciously and violently as you can. Like it says in the Bible, an eye for an eye. (162)

How to Give Good Advice (Without Taking It Yourself)

It will always work against you to demoralize your employees in any way. I can be tough, but most people will admit I’m fair. You can crush people if you don’t weigh your words carefully. Your power as a leader should be used in the most positive way, which sometimes calls for a great deal of restraint as well as patience. I have to laugh when I hear people say, “I can’t wait until I’m the big shot so I can order everyone around.” It doesn’t quite work that way.

Abraham Lincoln made an appropriate remark that is pertinent to management: “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” (34-35)

Conclusion

I have to admit that I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the Trump-McIver style of writing. It truly is a book filled with Trumpian wit, funny anecdotes, and solid advice. It’s an oldie but, considering how Trump has turned his fame into infamy, I’ll probably be looking up more of his “oldies” as well.

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