It feels great to be in a position to make a difference, and that’s what I mean when I say success with significance.
I hope you become rich. And I hope you use your talent to make some kind of positive change in your immediate world.
Whatever your job is, that’s your assignment.
Begin now.
You’re hired.
Acknowledgments
This book could not have been written without Meredith McIver, a writer of many talents. She served her apprenticeship with the New York City Ballet, worked on Wall Street, and for the past two years has been an executive assistant at The Trump Organization, stationed at a desk outside my office. As you know, my door is always open, so Meredith has heard everything, and she’s taken good notes. She’s done a remarkable job of helping me put my thoughts and experiences on paper. I am tremendously grateful to her.
Very little happens in my office without Norma Foerderer, who oversees my schedule and has been instrumental in keeping this book project on track in many ways, especially in the coordination of the photographs.
I want to thank my editor at Random House, Jonathan Karp, who asked me to write this book. I first met Jon in 1997, when he editedThe Art of the Comeback. He spent a lot of time in my office, and one day I noticed he was staring at the carpet under my desk. Finally, he said, Donald, what’s the deal with the space heater?
I told him that my feet get cold.
Jon said, “We’re in
It’s important to have an editor who asks the tough questions.
I’m also grateful to many others at Random House who worked long and late hours to produce this book in record time: publisher Gina Centrello; associate publishers Anthony Ziccardi and Elizabeth McGuire; executive director of publicity Carol Schneider; director of publicity Thomas Perry; associate director of publicity Elizabeth Fogarty; editorial assistants Jonathan Jao (who did an excellent job with the photos) and Casey Reivich; art director Gene Mydlowski; managing editor Benjamin Dreyer; production chief Lisa Feuer;design director Carole Lowenstein; production manager Richard Elman; production editor Janet Wygal; copy editor Ginny Carroll; advertising director Magee Finn; rights directors Claire Tisne and Rachel Bernstein; and everyone in the Random House sales force, which is the best in the business.
At The Trump Organization, I am surrounded by home-run, grand-slam people: Matthew Calamari, Allen Weisselberg, George Ross, Bernie Diamond, Jason Greenblatt, Rhona Graff, Tony Morace, Andy Weiss, Don Jr., Jeff, Eric, and many more.
Meredith McIver would like to thank Mark Burnett, Richard Casares, Steve Palitz, the Bosworth Family, George Balanchine, Alain Bernardin, Christophe D’Astier, Peter Irigoin, and Richard Irigoin. To my family, you are the best. To everyone at The Trump Organization, it’s an honor to work with you. To my officemates Rhona Graff and Robin Himmler, a special thanks for your support. To Norma Foerderer and Mr. Trump, thank you both for making every day an adventure. To Mr. Trump, you are a writer’s delight. I will never be at a loss for ideas. Thank you very much.
Appendix
THE TRUMP ORGANIZATION PROPERTIES
The city’s most famous contemporary building and its third most- visited attraction (with in excess of 2.5 million visitors annually), this sixty-eight-story bronze glass and polished brass structure is situated on Fifth Avenue and Fifty-sixth Street. Completed in 1983 by renowned architect Der Scutt, it is one of the tallest residential buildings and concrete structures in Manhattan. It also boasts 170,000 square feet of commercial space and 136,000 square feet of retail space and is a center for business, a mecca of style and high fashion, and an elite sanctuary to some of society’s most famous and influential people.
The piece de resistance of Donald Trump’s real estate empire, Trump Place is a ninety-two-acre property fronting the Hudson River that promises to be the most exciting real estate development in Manhattan since the turn of the century. In June 1994, Mr. Trump entered into a joint venture with four of the largest Hong Kong real estate development firms, which have committed $2.5 billion to implement this project. The project’s first five buildings are complete, with a sixth tower under construction. The overall project will feature sixteen buildings containing 5,700 residential units and more than two million square feet of commercial space. The construction of a magnificently landscaped twenty-five-acre public waterfront park has also enhanced this property enormously by providing bicycle paths that link Battery Park in lower Manhattan to upper Manhattan.
This fifty-two-story mixed-use structure comprises a superluxury hotel, residential tower, and world-famous restaurant (Jean-Georges). Located at the crossroads of Manhattan’s West Side on Central Park West and Columbus Circle, it was designed by the renowned architect Philip Johnson and completed in 1997. Trump International has broken all records to date, becoming one of the most successful condominium towers ever built in the United States and pioneering the concept of a condominium hotel. The hotel achieved Mobil Five-Star status in its very first year of operation.
Sold out since its completion in January 1988, Trump Parc is an elegant condominium located on Central Park South. Trump Parc’s 347 residential units provide stunning views of Manhattan’s skyline from river to river, as well as unobstructed views of Central Park.
In 2002, Mr. Trump purchased the fabled Delmonico Hotel, located at Fifty-ninth Street and Park Avenue. It is now being developed, in partnership with General Electric, into a state-of-the-art luxury high-rise condominium.
This luxurious Upper East Side cooperative, completed in 1984, combines 175 residential units with numerous boutiques and privately owned apartments, each with its own private terrace.
With a majestic facade that commands an entire block of Third Avenue on the tony Upper East Side of Manhattan, this 283-unit luxury condominium, completed in 1991, is distinguished by an illuminated spire that has become a distinctive landmark in the New York City skyline.
The Trump Organization, in partnership with Colony Capital, restored the former Mayfair Hotel into luxurious
