Trump: The Art of the Deal [Mass Market Paperback]

Donald J. Trump (Author), Tony Schwartz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 28, 2004

From the Impresario of NBC’s hit show The Apprentice

TRUMP ON TRUMP: “I like thinking big. I always have. To me it’s very simple: if you’re going to be thinking anyway, you might as well think big.”

And here’s how he does it: the art of the deal.

Beginning with a week in Trump’s high-stakes life, Trump: The Art of the Deal gives us Trump in action. We see just how he operates day to day—how he runs his business and how he runs his life—as he chats with friends and family, clashes with enemies, efficiently buys up Atlantic City’s top casinos, changes the face of the New York City skyline . . . and plans the tallest building in the world.

TRUMP ON TRUMP: “I play it very loose. I don’t carry a briefcase. I try not to schedule too many meetings. I leave my door open. . . . I prefer to come to work each day and just see what develops.”


Even a maverick plays by rules, and here Trump formulates his own eleven guidelines for success. He isolates the common elements in his greatest deals; he shatters myths (“You don’t necessarily need the best location. What you need is the best deal”); he names names, spells out the zeros, and fully reveals the deal-maker’s art: from the abandoned property that became the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center to the seedy hotel that became the Grand Hyatt; from the race to rebuild Central Park’s Wollman Skating Rink to the byzantine saga of the property that became Trump Tower. And throughout, Trump talks—really talks—about how he does it.

TRUMP ON TRUMP: “I always go into a deal anticipating the worst. If you plan for the worst—if you can live with the worst—the good will always take care of itself.”

Donald Trump is blunt, brash, surprisingly old-fashioned in spots—and always, always an original. Trump: The Art of the Deal is an unguarded look at the mind of a brilliant entrepreneur and an unprecedented education in the art of the deal. It’s the most streetwise business book there is—and a sizzling read for anyone interested in money and success.


From the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This boastful, boyishly disarming, thoroughly engaging personal history offers an inside look at aspects of financing, development and construction in big-time New York real estate. "I don't do it for the money," maintains Trump, the son of a Queens realtor who, at age 27, bought and transfigured the colossal Hotel Commodore at Grand Central Terminal. Now 40, he has built, among other projects, and owns outright, Fifth Avenue's retail and residential Trump Tower (where he occupies a double-triplex suite); owns and operates Trump's Castle, a casino in Atlantic City; is arguably the most visible young man on Manhattan's celebrity circuit ("Governor Cuomo calls. . . . dinner at St. Patrick's Cathedral. . . . I call back Judith Krantz"); and is currently developing a controversial 100-acre West Side "Television City" project that is planned to include the world's tallest building. For those who would do likewise, Trump articulates his secrets for success: imagination, persistence, skill at "juggling provisional commitments" (e.g., for land or lease options, bank financing, zoning approval, tax abatement, etc.) and most crucial of all, a true trader's instinct. 135,000 printing; first serial to New York magazine and Vanity Fair; Fortune Book Club main selection; BOMC alternate. (December
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

This is a fascinating book because it is incredible. At the age of 41, Trump, the son of a Queens, New York, developer of moderate-income apartment houses, presides over a vast real estate empire with assets in the billions. Trump's world is composed of an endless series of deals and ventures, most of them monumentally successful from his point of view. The book is less an autobiography than an hour-by-hour recapitulation of how Trump spends his time plus a few lessons for those who would do the same. Trump seems to be a clever entrepreneur and exhibitionist. There should be requests aplenty for this. A.J. Anderson, G.S.L.I.S., Simmons Coll., Boston
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1ST edition (December 28, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345479173
• ISBN-13: 978-0345479174
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (113 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,390 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( T ) > Trump, Donald
  • #1 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Leaders & Notable People > Rich & Famous
  • #2 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Professionals & Academics > Business

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

78 of 79 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Empire-Building 101 (perfect for eager Apprentices), March 9, 2004

By 

Christopher Hefele (Lawrenceville, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Trump: The Art of the Deal (Mass Market Paperback)

"Trump, who believes that excess can be a virtue, is as American as Manhattan's skyline," wrote George Will in the 1980's. Regardless of whether you think Donald Trump as a symbol of American success, or you think he's an annoying, chest-pounding egomaniac with bad hair, this book will show you what it took for him to build up his empire. The book shows Trump doing what he does best -- boldly making big deals -- during the "greed is good" decade of the 1980's. I found it interesting to see how much of his current empire he had built up before his 40th birthday, and to understand how he pulled off various deals.

The majority of the book is a swashbuckling, detailed history of his biggest projects. He talks about all the details, from negotiating with landholders, arguing about zoning with city officials, lining up contractors, interviewing architects, dealing with partners in various projects, negotiating with banks to line up financing, and the like.

Trump also devotes a couple chapters to his background. He was the son of a successful developer of rent-controlled & low-income housing in Queens and Brooklyn, NY. He was a mischievous, aggressive kid (he once punched a teacher), and was sent military school during his high-school years. He started college at Fordham in the Bronx, NY, to be close to home, but then then transferred to the Wharton Business School (at the University of Pennsylvania) because he liked its entrepreneurial emphasis. Shortly after college, he worked with his father to buy a troubled apartment complex in Cincinnati, which he fixed it up and sold for a multi-million dollar profit. Hungry for bigger things, he moved to a small studio apartment in Manhattan, and progressed from small deals to bigger ones, from renovating a hotel, to building Trump tower, to building and buying casinos in Atlantic city, along with a many other projects.

Besides the stories of his deal-making, Trump gives some tips for aspiring moguls. Although he believes you need a certain innate instinct for negotiating well, he thinks there are some tips everyone can use. For example: when planning deals, one should think big, always have a plan B, keep your options open, and use your advantages as leverage in negotiations. When executing a deal, one must deliver results, control costs, and fight competitors when necessary. Also, promotion of your project is important to get the word out. And finally, of course, Trump says one has to have fun doing all this -- if it's not fun, why do it?

Overall, the book was an OK read, and it moved quickly (I read it in about a day). Some reviewers were put off by Trump's bravado (but give me a break -- it's Donald Trump!! what did you expect?). If you can get past the bluster, you can see what it took to assemble his empire. I was inspired to re-read the book because of the success of Trump's new TV show, "The Apprentice," and I don't regret the day or so it took to re-read -- it's light reading & moves very quickly. If you'd like a quick refresher on Trump's rise, as I did, then this book (and some say the best book) should be on your reading list.

112 of 120 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A book about his deals, June 7, 2002

By 

Jeffrey Leeper "kem2070" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Trump: The Art of the Deal (Hardcover)

This book is not a how-to book for deal making or negotiation. This book is more autobiographical. Each chapter covers a different deal, which were mostly in the 1980s. To learn from this will require some reading between the lines and some extrapolation.

With the exception of the first couple chapters, which talk about his early years, each chapter goes into some detail about a different deal, like the USFL and Trump Plaza. Trump talks about some negotiations, licensing, and construction. Reading about the steps behind each deal has some benefit if you are patient and read carefully.

Unfortunately, you need to understand the time, New York/New Jersey, and Trump to get this information. Since the information is from the 80s, it is a bit dated. Also, if you are not familiar with New York or New Jersey, many of his references (which are oftentimes just the streets involved) will mean nothing to you. Trump also does a lot of name-dropping. If you are not from the area, then most of the names will mean nothing (with the exception of some of the USFL players he mentions).

I would rate this book higher if it wasn't so dated. If you are familiar with the area and time covered in the book, then this can be helpful.

34 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book by "the Donald", April 24, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Trump : The Art of the Deal (Hardcover)

This is a must read for anyone in the real estate industry or those intending to enter the industry. Donald Trump tells how he did it - about himself, his deals, his money, the people he dealt with, his women... He tells you how the real estate industry really works and about the city he loves - New York. The stories of his deal-making strategies are absolutely captivating. I also recommend reading The Art of the Comeback.