Page 198 - Why We Want You To Be Rich - Donald Trump, Robert Kiyosaki.pdf

192 I CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
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Donald's Response:

Although I was sent to military school because I was a bit
aggressive as a kid, what I learned there had less to do with
discipline and channeling my energy more effectively than it had to
do with learning about the art of negotiation. It was a great business
lesson in disguise.
I was confronted with a former marine drill sergeant, and I
realized I would never be able to match him or take him on
physically, so I had to use my brain to handle the situation.
I had to get around the guy somehow, and I refused to back down,
so I tried to figure out what might get him on my side. I saw my first
opportunity: I was a very good baseball player and captain of the
team, and he was the coach. I knew I could make him look good by
playing my best, which I did. We had a great team, and I learned
how to lead them effectively. That was the first step.
The second step was showing him that I respected him (which
wasn't hard because I did respect him), but that I wouldn't let him
intimidate me. I think he respected that and realized it would be
pointless to go after me. So we met each other from a point of
strength, not weakness, and a mutual respect was established.
That's another great business lesson right there, especially for
negotiation. We both won.
I am friendly with the former marine drill sergeant, Theodore
Dobias, to this day, and meeting up with him at the NewYork Military
Academy was a fortunate event for me. So was going to military
school, although I wasn't that thrilled about it initially. I later
realized that I enjoyed the challenges and the discipline, and I never
lost the respect for time that I learned there. People who know me
know that I hate being late, and I don't like other people being late
either.
Military school underscored what my father had always taught us
- that we should show respect. I respected Mr. Dobias and it served
WHY WE WANT Yo u To BE RICH
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