Michael's Blog

"Think Big and Kick Ass in Business and in Life", Donald Trump and Bill Zanker

Donald Trump and Bill Zanker's "Think Big and Kick Ass in Business and in Life" is a bit of a ridiculous joke if you ask me. Long story short, it's mostly a mix of Trump bragging about himself and bagging out others, with some useful tips thrown in here and there.

The book focuses on various aspects of business life - passion, basic instincts, luck, momentum and fear, among others. A chapter is devoted to each of these, with each chapter concluding with Bill Zanker's closing comments.

[TBC]

Goals

I'm the type of person who needs to have goals set out. And not just set out in my mind, but written down. Definite, measurable goals. To me, goals are only goals when they are written down. I've been thinking lately about my long term personal goal - to become an entrepreneur running at least three different types of business ventures. Going through my early twenties, reading about business and famouse entrepreneurs like Richard Branson, I was attracted to the excitement of business and doing things and making lots of money in the process. I am so impressed by people who engage in various types of businesses - cafes, cabs, property, restaurants, building, software. I think it makes life interesting.

Below is a story-like description of my long term goals to acheive before I turn 40.

I want to become an entrepreneur running at least three different types of business ventures. I want to attend meetings for prospective business deals, property purchases and random issues concerning my businesses and investments. I want to always be well dressed in business attire, well presented and well spoken. I want to drive a luxury car and be constantly on the move with electric energy. I want to be very confident in meetings and impress those that are present. I want to have a quick and sharp mind and be able to concentrate intensly in the moment without worrying or distracting myself with other thoughts. This is who I want to be.

I want a beautiful home overlooking the ocean in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. I want my kids to wake up to the sound of waves crashing and to enjoy a fantastic, energetic life by the beach. I want to have my family and friends over on weekends for a BBQ on the verandah, with a magnificent view of the water. This is the home that I want.

I hope to have a blissful marriage and have kids to love and share life with. I want my kids to discover the world for themselves without imposing views or thoughts on them.

[TO BE COMPLETED]

"Ryanair", by Siobhan Creaton

Siobhan Creaton, the former Finance Correspondent of the Irish Times newspaper, did a stellar job in writing this book. Very well researched, detailed and fast paced, this story is about the bumpy but enormously successful journey of an Irish low-budget, cut-throat airline who beat the odds to become one of the most profitable airlines in Europe.

Tony Ryan, a wealthy Irish businessman who originally worked for Ireland's national carrier Aer Lingus, founded Ryanair in 1986. He had a vision of a low-budget, no-frills airline: "If people want a cut of tea or coffee, let them pay for it. If they want to buy tickets let them stand". During its first few years of operation, the company recorded heavy losses and was on the brink of bankruptcy in the late 1980s.

In 1988, Ryan hired Michael O'Leary, a confident 27 year old accountant and school friend of Ryan's sons Cathal and Declan. Sceptical about the airline at first, O'Leary later took on a heavier workload and became more interested in all aspects of the business, after Ryan agreed to his proposal "If I make 2 million pounds will you give me 10 per cent?". O'Leary went about aggressively cutting costs and in 1994 became chief executive.

In the mid to late 90s, Ryanair was turned around to become very profitable and a major player in Irish aviation. By this time, O'Leary was fantastically rich. He continued heavy cost-cutting and expanded Ryanair's routes all over Europe. His business model was based on Herb Kelleher's Southwest Airlines, a widely successful low budget in the US.

Creaton gives countless examples of Ryanair's careless treatment of customers, O'Leary's rude and aggressive management style and the airline's horrible treatment of its own staff. Numerous times the Irish carrier has made headlines for not helping disabled passengers board a plane or charging them for using a wheelchair. When ice suppliers bumped up prices, O'Leary refused to pay the higher cost and the airline simply stopped serving ice with drinks for some time before a deal was eventually made. When asked about how Ryanair deals with customers seeking a refund on their tickets, O'Leary once replied "We don't fall over ourselves if they say 'My granny fell ill'. What part of 'No Refund' don't you understand? You are not getting a refund so fuck off".

Given all Ryanair's flaws, reading about the airline's successes made me appreciate just how much the company has revolutionised aviation in the UK and other parts of Europe. These days many flights are offered free - travellers only need to pay the airport tax (usually around 20 pounds for a return flight) - an amazing feat for an airline that in the early 1990s was in danger of folding.

Siobhan Creaton has written a fantastic book - an exciting, insightful and inspirational business story.

Technical skills or business skills?

Lately I've been thinking about the direction I want to take in my professional career. Basically I see that I have two options - I either continue as a "techie" developer or move into the business side of things.

Being someone who is more interested in making money than becoming an excellent IT programmer, I've decided that I should focus more on the business of a corporation than the nitty gritty techie work.  My next career position is going to be a "Business Analyst", at a major bank. Business Analysts generally make easier money than techies, and often more money. The way I see it, BAs rely more on natural talents like communication, writing skills and diplomacy; so in a major way, work is easier. Techies on the other hand rely on learnt knowledge more than natural talent. There is so much happening in the IT world all the time and techies HAVE to keep up to speed and have answers for their superiors when they're asked.

It's not just the money. Having worked as an analyst programmer for a good five years, I've come to notice that I don't think like the typical IT programmer. I am always more interested in how my designed software can help an enterprise rather than being interested in the software itself. Other programmers I've worked with would get excited about the software itself - the code, the design, the lack of bugs, the cleverness of the algorithms. To me, software is a means to an end - it's there to help a business make money, to put it simply. It's not there for the sake of giving clever programmers a job. To give another example, recently I asked a programmer colleague of mine of what he wants from his next career move. Without hesitation he replied "Man, I just want to make money". I suggested to him that he should look into getting into business analysis or project management. Instead, he told me he was learning "Unix administration" and C# .NET after work in order to get a higher paying job. See what I mean? Instead of focusing on the "money making" side of the company, he is preoccupied in learning new technologies to increase his wage. I think in the short time he might get a small pay rise but longer term who will make more money generally? I think the BAs and the PMs.

Being involved in the business attracts more money, just like a property developer (generally) makes more money than the brick layers he employs. BAs are to developers what builders are to bricklayers. They tell developers what to do after discussing the really important matters with management, and that's where money is made. The ideas and plans have already been discussed once the developers are instructed to start work - being in the thick of the planning, the meetings and the budgeting is what is really valuable to a company.

Thailand Trip

Earlier this year, in April, I went to Thailand for a holiday - what an amazing and CRAZY place! We stayed in Bangkok for two nights then seven nights in Koh Samui island. It was me, my younger brother Jeff, and a mate, Robert.

Bangkok is something out of this world. As soon as you walk out of the airport you're approached by dozens of taxi drivers in plain clothes offering to take you to your hotel; there's no cab rank or anything like that, just randoms that offer a price. The first guy we spoke to wanted 1000 Baht to take us to the Shangri-la in the city, around $35. We initially thought "yeh, what the hell", but then spoke to a few others and managed to get a cab driver to take us there for 400 Baht (around $14). Not only did he drive us to the hotel, he waited for us to check in, then drove us around for another 3 hours - all for $14!!

Bangkok city is the busiest place I've ever been to. The traffic is maybe 5 times as bad as Sydney. At 10pm on a weekday, you have traffic jams all over the place and people everywhere, from hookers to merchants selling fruit - it's non stop. There's a constant smell of smog, and it's hot as hell. We went to a shooting gallery near an army base and when we agreed on a price to shoot 3 rounds of bullets each, the guy just handed us 3 handguns and a bunch of bullets and goes "here you go, shoot at the target". We were there cracking up at the lack of security and just plain carelessness, but that sums up Bangkok. Anything goes if you have money.

Koh Samui was probably an even bigger culture shock than Bangkok, and a really, really fun place. You rent these motorbikes for $10 a day and just ride around the island from place to place. The bars are full of tourists from all over the world. You buy these buckets of Vodka and Red Bull for 300 Baht ($11) and just get trashed and party until 6am. We would be blind drunk and still jump on our motorbikes and ride back to the hotel. We went to the full moon party on Koh Phangan island - by far the biggest and best party I've been to. 10,000 or more people on the beach all smashed, dancing to all types of music. And when you wake up with a massive hangover, you just walk over to the beach and get a one hour thai massage for $10!!