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TRUMP UNIVERSITY WEALTH BUILDING 101

owners were having trouble managing it. As a result, I was able to buy this
1.3 million-square-foot landmark, the tallest building in lower Manhattan,
for a mere $1 million in 1995.
So when I say knowledge is power, I mean it. Use it to your advantage.
But knowledge is only the foundation of great enterprises. Einstein said
that imagination is more important than knowledge. What he meant is:
Without imagination and the ability to visualize possibilities, what would be
the point of great knowledge?
An example is how I develop golf courses. I get the best experts in the
world, and I ask them hundreds of questions. I go over every detail, every
tree, every hole, and every idea with them. Fortunately, they love what they

do, so they don’t find my questions tedious. By the time construction is un-
derway, I know everything that’s being done, and I can keep an informed eye
on the progress.
Put imagination and knowledge together, and in no time you’ll have
something plenty big in your “think big tank.”

Be Thorough

There’s really no such thing as knowing too much about what you’re doing.
When I was in college, I spent my spare time reading about real estate
and foreclosures. I didn’t feel it was a sacrifice of my time, because I was inter-

ested in real estate; I wasn’t studying just to pass a test. The knowledge I
gained on my own led to my first successful investment. I couldn’t have

achieved that if I hadn’t spent the time studying on my own.
In college, I also read something that Rudyard Kipling wrote which I’ve
never forgotten: “I keep six honest serving men, they taught me all I knew—
their names are What and Why and When—and How and Where and Who.”
Finding the answers to these questions will ensure that your information is
comprehensive and correct.
On The Apprentice when my associates and I interviewed candidates,
sometimes the process went on for hours—one boardroom meeting lasted for

over five hours so we could make the most knowledgeable decision possible.
Staying informed is a daily task and challenge, considering how quickly
our world is moving. But not keeping up is like agreeing to check out—please
don’t do that. Plug in and learn everything you can. You never know when
information will come in handy. If I hadn’t studied real estate foreclosures as
a student, I wouldn’t have been able to see the great opportunity that led to
my first big success.

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