something to me with a minimum of words, sometimes ten words
or less. Considering how much I have to do every day, I appreci-
ate this brevity. George Ross, Senior Counsel, Jason Greenblat,
General Counsel, and Matthew Calamari, my COO, have the
same ability. It’s not that I don’t enjoy talking with them on a per-
sonal level, but our agendas have to be attended to and by now
we all know how to get things done quickly, both individually
and as a team. The respect goes both ways, and it’s a great envi-
ronment for everyone.
If you can get a core group around you that you like and who
understands your needs, you will be heading in the right direction.
Sometimes I think it’s divine intervention when the right people
show up, because as we all know, it happens that people who give
great interviews sometimes aren’t so great, and vice versa. In that
sense, every hire is a bit of a gamble. Solid gold credentials don’t
always mean solid gold people, but sometimes they do. You have
to give people a chance to prove themselves. But in the interim,
it helps a lot if you like having them around to begin with.
You will have to see beyond what is presented to you. Every
person has unique talents that may or may not be in their job de-
scription or listed on their resume. People are not one-dimensional.
I don’t like being underestimated or stereotyped, so it is safe for
me to assume that other people don’t like it either. I appreciate
being seen as something more than my public persona, and peo-
ple who work for me know that although I may be demanding, I
am also fair. My door is always open, and they feel confident that
when they have something to say, I’ll be listening.
Someone recently wrote in to ask me how to manage people
who she didn’t like. My response was to ask her if she liked any-
thing about any of the people she was attempting to manage. We
all have hidden potential, and a good manager will find it. A good
manager will also look for what he or she likesabout the people
DONALD J. TRUMP