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Build W ealth—My W a y

Resolve to move forward and to learn as much as you can—today and
every day.

Take Action

Knowledge alone isn’t enough. You have to act on knowledge.
That’s why we based one whole season of The Apprentice on this dichot-
omy, pitting a team of people with higher education who were “book smart,”
but clueless in the real world, against a team that was “street smart,” but
clueless about the right information.
Learning by doing challenges you to prove yourself.
My first big real estate job was turning around a 1,200-unit residen-

tial development with 800 vacant apartments that had become a disaster. The
developers had gone under, and the government had foreclosed. I learned a
lot, made a good profit, and got the confidence to take the next step in my

real estate career. That wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t put my knowledge
to work for me. I studied and prepared, but then I took action.
Did you ever notice how easy some things look until you try them for
yourself? Golf is like that. The sport looks effortless and even noncompetitive
until you try to play. Suddenly, it takes on an entirely new dimension. The
real pros make extremely difficult maneuvers look easy because they’ve spent

hours perfecting their technique.
Don’t underestimate anything until you’ve tried it for yourself.
Start practicing!

Take Risks

Many people are afraid to fail, so they don’t try. They talk, but they don’t do.
That’s the perfect formula for failure.
My advice? Take some risks, even if you fail.
There has never been, and never will be, an Olympic ice skater who
hasn’t taken a spill on the ice, no matter how much he or she knew about ice
skating. Skaters acquire their skills by doing, not by watching.
Take some risks, even if you get criticized and are afraid you don’t know
enough.
When I was interested in acquiring the (former) Commodore Hotel near
Grand Central Station years ago, a friend told reporters my idea was like
“fighting for a seat on the Titanic.” Admittedly, I was working against great

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