Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Book Review - The Lessons From Apprentice - Chapters One - Three

I have enjoyed watching a few seasons of The Apprentice. Although my business is a network marketing business, the strategies I have learned from the show have been numerous. I've always loved watching how the teams who find the most creative forms of advertising often are victorious over their opponents.

I was excited when I found The Lessons from Apprentice during a recent shopping excursion.

I smiled all the way through this book. Many of the lessons I learned from the show were shared in the book.

Right off the bat, Mr. Trump speaks of both name and location. In the first chapter of the book, Mr.Trump shares his thoughts on choosing a name and what that name says about you and the business.

The first task a team receives is to choose a team name. Team names speak volumes about the group as a whole. What I find interesting is that in network marketing, group leaders sometimes choose names that end up hurting them in the long run. Imagine two teams, one is called "Sally's Silly Girls". The other team is called "The Entrepreneurs." Which team do you think men would be more inclined to join? Which team do you think a doctor or lawyer would be more inclined to join?

Chapter two is titled "Brainstorming 101." Mr. Trump speaks of several seasons of the show and explains how simple brainstorming done correctly spelled victory in challenge after challenge.

In network marketing, reading the words of others can very often help you in building a larger customer base and a larger sales team. Over the years, I have enjoyed many different authors, all who take a different approach to sales and marketing.

If you want to know how to sell more, read books written by a top seller. It doesn't matter what they are selling, what matters is that they are closing the sale. If you want to understand more about team dynamics, read books written by an expert in that topic.

The goal here is to know who to brainstorm with for each topic.

Chapter three is about instinct. I have to say that after reading the chapter, I'm not sure I would have given the chapter this title. It was a chapter more on planning and what to do when your plan doesn't quite work out as you had expected.

In network marketing, there are many times that a backup plan is needed. For example, someone orders a product for a gift and the item doesn't come in. What's your plan for this happening? How do you satisfy the customer and keep your cool? Knowing what might happen and how you'll react are key to succeeding.

This is a book chock full of everyday business lessons. It's well worth the cost of the book and the space on your bookshelf.

Audrey :)