Page 111 - Midas Touch

about something. My job, and the job of those around me, is to keep the
message one of quality.

The Apprentice also enhances the Trump brand recognition, even in
countries where we do not have development projects. I get a lot of
publicity, good and bad, but that comes with the territory of being famous.

Being a target is something to deal with. But if I wasn’t successful, I
wouldn’t be a target to begin with. After a while, you develop a thick skin
when it comes to criticism, whether it’s about your hair or your latest
building. Any entrepreneur who becomes very successful will be subject to
scrutiny as well as criticism. Your critics will surface very quickly and
you’ll be judged for everything you do, as well as what you don’t do, so be

prepared for that. The plus is that your name becomes more familiar and
the brand becomes more established, provided you’re offering the highest-
quality goods.

Through my experiences with the media, I’ve realized that being true to
yourself means you are operating from a very solid base, which will give
you a lot of power over any negatives thrown your way. That’s worth

repeating: Be true to yourself!

When Robert used the example of his fake Rolex, it reminded me of all
The Apprentice-type shows that tried to make it after our initial success.
When something is successful, there will always be copycats. You will
want to be prepared for that. In the case of The Apprentice, none of the
copycat shows succeeded. The Apprentice was a formula that worked for
us, for the Trump brand, but somehow it didn’t translate well with other

people at the helm. To me, it seemed the whole format didn’t fit with who
the public thought those other people were. It didn’t fit with their brands,
and then, of course, the concept had already been done. The other shows
weren’t different enough to build their own brands. The Apprentice, by
contrast, was developed with the Trump brand and The Trump
Organization in mind, and we were behind the show in every way. That has
made it rock solid. When we do an episode of The Apprentice, our team is

not only completely organized, but also open to creativity and surprises.
That’s one great thing about being an unscripted show. The only thing
predictable is the professionalism of the teams, ours as well as Mark
Burnett’s.