A man surprised is half beaten.
By definition, a fearless and crazy decision has an element of surprise. It’s the unexpected, the shake-your-head, drop-your-jaw, where-did-that-come-from memorable moment. History and life—yours included—have these moments. What’s important is recognizing them when you see them, learning from them, and applying them to your personal and professional life. The element of surprise can give you that decided advantage and make you the victor when all seems lost. The following three surprising tales illustrate this.
It was midsummer 1950. The United Nations forces had held the line, but the situation was getting more desperate by the day. It had all begun on June 25, when troops of the Communist Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) swept across the 38th parallel into the Western-aligned Republic of Korea (South Korea). The North Korean soldiers advanced swiftly and brutally, taking Seoul, the South Korean capital, and pushing the South Korean army down the peninsula.
The UN Security Council passed Resolution 82 authorizing the United Nations to send armed forces to assist the hapless South Koreans. The United States was empowered to appoint the UN commander, and the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff unanimously chose General Douglas MacArthur, World War II hero of the Pacific, Medal of Honor winner, and one of the most famous military men in American history.
The perfect choice for a tough job.
From his headquarters in Japan, MacArthur took command of South Korea’s army and on July 1 received permission to commit U.S. forces as well. The American troops were hastily assembled and poorly equipped. They entered the fray and did all they could to slow the North Korean onslaught. But the Communists pushed on, finally surrounding the UN forces at Pusan in the extreme southeast corner of the Korean Peninsula. The UN soldiers held—for now—setting up a line that would be known in history as the Pusan Perimeter. They would either continue to hold that line or be pushed into the sea, allowing South Korea to fall.
Throughout August 1950 the fighting and dying around Pusan continued. And General MacArthur worked on his fearless and crazy plan to turn the tide. He gathered his top generals and admirals in his Tokyo office and laid out his scheme. Never one to practice humility, he compared what he was proposing to British general James Wolfe’s strategy at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham (also known as the Battle of Quebec) in the French and Indian War. In a risky surprise move, Wolfe had sent troops by boat upriver past the French lines to slip ashore, scale the cliffs, and outflank the enemy and cut their supply lines. The maneuver succeeded, and the battle was won.
But now in the summer of 1950, MacArthur had some persuading to do.
The city of Inchon, in the far northwest corner of South Korea, just below the 38th parallel, was far from the Pusan Perimeter. Because it was so far from hostilities, the city was only lightly defended by the occupying North Koreans. Inchon was MacArthur’s target.
His plan was simple and complicated at the same time. He would send an amphibious force from Pusan around the peninsula and up to Inchon. Marines and Army troops would land on the rocky shore, scale the surrounding seawalls, and take the city, thereby outflanking the enemy and cutting off their supply lines—just like Wolfe at Quebec. From Inchon, the UN troops could quickly sweep toward Seoul, only about 20 miles away, and turn the course of the war.
Simple? Hardly. First of all, the Marines, who would be key to the surprise assault, had been significantly drawn down in the five years since the end of World War II. What was left of the force would have to be hastily regrouped and reequipped.
Nature and geography would also be problems. Approaches to the city from the water consisted of just two narrow channels, passages that could easily be mined. Also, the current in the channels was dangerously swift—three to eight knots. Finally, the anchorage was small, and the harbor below the city was surrounded by tall seawalls (just like the cliffs fronting Wolfe’s Quebec). Said Navy commander Arlie Capps, “We drew up a list of every natural and geographic handicap—and Inchon had ’em all.”1
MacArthur’s officers argued, protested, and even suggested alternative sites. But MacArthur was not to be dissuaded. He adjusted and revised some of the details, but the target remained Inchon. He argued that because of all the city’s natural defenses, the North Koreans would not expect an attack there; victory at Inchon would avoid a costly winter campaign to push out from Pusan; taking Inchon would cut off enemy lines of communication; and, most important, Inchon was not far from Seoul, the ultimate target and the linchpin of the war.
“I can almost hear the ticking of the second hand of destiny,” said MacArthur to his commanders. “We must act now or we will die. . . . We shall land at Inchon, and I shall crush them.”2
MacArthur code-named the Inchon assault Operation Chromite. His superiors in Washington, D.C., approved the plan. Soon the world would know just how fearless and crazy it was.
In preparation for the assault, the UN forces sent in spies to learn more about the city’s fortifications and the harbor’s tides, mudflats, and seawalls. The United Nations also sent Air Force bombers to soften up the city and surroundings. UN troops even conducted a few practice landings at coastal sites similar to Inchon. The North Koreans considered all this a mere nuisance, minor distractions from the standoff at Pusan.
In the five days before the scheduled September 15 landing, warships from the United States and Canada bombarded Inchon and its harbor, primarily targeting gun emplacements. Finally, the North Koreans realized something big might just be coming. But it was much too late to do anything about it. At 6:30 A.M. on September 15, 1950, the first tank landing ships (LSTs) of the UN attack force pushed ashore on one of the Inchon beaches. The landing force was made up of Marines and an Army tank battalion. The second wave came ashore that evening at two other nearby beaches. The North Korean forces, outnumbered six to one, resisted fiercely but had to give ground. It was all over in just five days, with UN troops firmly in control of the harbor and the city. Supplies and reinforcements streamed ashore.
General MacArthur watched the initial assault of September 15 from the bridge of the USS Mount McKinley just outside the harbor. On September 17 he visited the battlefield itself, inspecting the wreckage of six North Korean tanks that had been knocked out by the Marines. As he walked around the burned-out tank hulls, North Korean sniper fire rang out. MacArthur simply continued his inspection tour, noting that the North Korean marksmen were poorly trained.
Operation Chromite—the surprise amphibious assault at Inchon—had been an unqualified success. It would go down in military history and lore as one of the greatest strategic moves ever, even more impressive than Wolfe’s at Quebec.
Yet the momentum of the victory was squandered. The “sweep” on to Seoul turned out to be a slow, bloody slog. Eventually, UN troops broke out from Pusan and advanced north. Seoul fell, and thousands of North Korean troops retreated back across the 38th parallel, with the UN allies in pursuit. The People’s Republic of China warned the United Nations not to push on all the way to the Yalu River, the Chinese border. MacArthur dismissed the Chinese threat as empty, but on November 25, 1950, the People’s Republic of China sent thousands of its soldiers across the river into North Korea. The overwhelming Chinese force pushed the UN Allies back down past the 38th parallel in disarray.
In early 1951, the Allies regrouped, recaptured Seoul, and advanced again toward the parallel. MacArthur wanted to push on, of course, and continued to criticize his superiors, including President Truman, for their timid, limited war strategy. He also publicly threatened to attack China if there was no quick truce. Truman had had enough; he fired MacArthur on April 11, 1951, for “insubordination.”3
Fighting on the Korean Peninsula continued for another two years, ending with a stalemate and a truce in July 1953. That truce remains in force to this day. North and South Korea are still officially at war.
As for Inchon, today it is a bustling city of 2.8 million and a transportation hub featuring that famous harbor as well as South Korea’s main international airport. It also boasts Korea’s tallest building. Yet its name will always trigger memories and images of a bigger-than-life general and his fearless plan of attack so many decades ago.
Some people—and companies—are full of surprises. They never cease to amaze us with their words and actions. They raise eyebrows; they get heads shaking.
And sometimes their surprises command our admiration and respect.
Such is the case with Groupon, the hugely successful online coupon and gift certificate provider that has become a household word in the few short years since its November 2008 launch.
There’s nothing complicated about the basic Groupon service. The name itself is simple—a combination of “group” and “coupon.” When you sign up, you receive an email offer once a day for a retailer or service in your area, or sometimes for a national store. Most of the deals run from 50 percent off to 90 percent off. You have a time limit (usually several hours) in which to sign up, and there is a set number of Groupons available for each offer. These restrictions keep participating retailers from being overrun by Groupon-clutching customers. In addition, the coupon has to be redeemed within a certain period of time, usually several months.
For example, let’s say today’s Groupon is for $40 of food and drink at a local sports bar for the price of $20. Half off. You sign up (before the expiration), pay your $20 via credit card or PayPal, print out your Groupon, and use it at the restaurant sometime before the end date. You’ll get $40 worth of food and drink for your $20 advance payment. That $20 is split, usually 50-50, between the sports bar and Groupon. Sure, the retailer is offering a deep discount, but it is also getting added business and good marketing buzz.
The simple plan was the brainchild of Groupon CEO and founder Andrew Mason, who in the fall of 2008 began offering half-price pizzas online from the first-floor restaurant of his Chicago office building. Mason convinced his former employer, Eric Lefkofsky, to invest $1 million in his “group coupon” idea, and as they say, the rest is history. Three years later Mason’s booming enterprise was “on pace to make $1 billion in sales faster than any other business, ever,” according to Forbes.4
People like bargains, and they like Groupon’s user-friendly way to get those bargains: an email a day. If you like it, buy it. If not, delete. The service offers more than a thousand daily deals to 83 million subscribers in 43 countries. It employs more than 7,100 workers. But the ink is still red. In 2010, Groupon brought in revenue of $713 million but still lost a net of $413 million when expenses were factored in. Yet it’s that unprecedented revenue growth, racing toward $1 billion, that has gotten everyone’s attention.
At its core, Groupon is just a clever online method to market a traditional service; after all, coupons are as old as the corner grocery store. Even online coupon websites have been around since the tech bubble days of the 1990s. And Groupon isn’t the first high-profile online enterprise to attract celebrity-like attention and through-the-roof revenue projections. Facebook, eBay, and LinkedIn come to mind. So what is it about Groupon that makes us smile, aside from a good deal on a massage treatment? Where are the Groupon surprises?
To begin with, Groupon and Mason, still only in his early thirties, turned down a couple of amazing buyout offers in late 2010. Throughout that year, the company’s monthly revenues grew from $11 million to $89 million. The big boys were noticing. In October 2010, rumors had Yahoo! offering $3 billion to acquire the company. On November 30, 2010, Google came calling, publicly offering $6 billion.
Mason and his investors didn’t think about it for very long. After a few days, on December 3, 2010, they said thanks-but-no-thanks. With characteristic nonchalance they turned down one of the largest buyout offers in history.
Instead, the company spent the following few weeks attracting more private investment in the company and building a considerable cash stockpile, thereby positioning itself for its initial public offering (IPO) in the fall of 2011. Groupon had decided to go public the old-fashioned way and let the investors finance its future and determine its worth. Those private investors who came on board before the IPO would do very well as Groupon stock went on the market.
Mason’s June 2011 IPO filing was anything but traditional. Again he raised eyebrows with his irreverent wit and fresh-faced charm. In his cover letter accompanying the filing, Mason revealed his business philosophy with a simple statement: “Life is too short to be a boring company.” He warned that his about-to-be-public company will have “twists and turns, moments of brilliance and other moments of sheer stupidity.” Groupon’s goal, he wrote, is to “create experiences for our customers that make today different enough from yesterday to justify getting out of bed.”5
Other Groupon surprises—some of them worth getting out of bed for—include the following:
The company is picky about the retailers, restaurants, and services it partners with to offer deals. It doesn’t take just anybody, even though virtually everybody is ready to jump on the Groupon bandwagon. In fact, Groupon rejects seven out of eight possible deals suggested by retailers. It will not work with shooting ranges, abortion clinics, plastic surgeons, and strip clubs.
CEO Mason’s annual salary is a mere $575 (but he does own 23 million shares of Groupon stock).
Groupon shares the wealth. It “pays” consumers and companies to spread the word and drive business to Groupon. Not only does it pay $10 in Groupon credits for each additional person a member convinces to sign up for the service, but it also offers an “affiliate” program to businesses. Those that include a geo-targeted Groupon smart link (widget) on their company website earn as much as 15 percent commission on all Groupon deals generated through them.
Groupon daily discounts are with local, mostly small businesses. That’s the backbone of the company’s strategy. You buy the deal because it’s for your local downtown bistro or your mall fitness center. But in August 2010 Groupon offered a national deal, partnering with giant retailer Gap. As always, the discount was simple: $50 in Gap clothing or accessories for $25. The coupons sold at a rate of 10 per second, meaning 200,000 of the deal vouchers sold before noon on the day of the launch. The response overwhelmed the company’s computer servers even though it had boosted capacity in anticipation of a successful launch. National deals will be part of the Groupon mix going forward.
The company has partnered with online travel giant Expedia to bring deep discounts to leisure and business travelers. The partnership and Groupon’s simple buying procedure have the potential to knock the entire worldwide travel industry on its ear. Stay tuned.
In spring 2011, the company launched Grouspawn, described by Mason as “a foundation we created that awards college scholarships to babies whose parents used a Groupon on their first date.”6 Get it? Grou-spawn. The company and Mason are serious; the details of the initiative are laid out on its website (grouspawn.com), with FAQs outlining such puzzles as how the Groupon-using couple will prove that their particular spawn session occurred after their Groupon date.
The company has developed a mobile app called Groupon Now! that it is testing in several large cities. The app allows Groupon members to find a discount for a specific participating merchant immediately when they are near that merchant’s location. The instant deal will pop up as a message on the member’s smart phone. No more waiting for a daily email.
After a series of revenue restatements, Groupon finally went public on November 4, 2011, raising $700 million, the most successful Internet company IPO since Google Inc. raised $1.7 billion in 2004. For CEO Mason the result was just the latest in the long line of Groupon surprises. As he had advised (warned?) prospective investors: “Expect us to make ambitious bets on our future that distract us from our current business.”7
In October 1974, the champ’s best years seemed to be behind him. In fact, he was the former heavyweight champion of the world. The last few years of his storied career were anything but impressive. He had lost a brutal “Fight of the Century” to then-champion Joe Frazier in March 1971, just three and a half years earlier. It was his first professional loss. Then in 1973, he fought Ken Norton, suffering a broken jaw even as he won a 12-round split decision. Later that year he won a rematch with Norton, also by split decision. That earned him a rematch with Frazier, who had recently lost his title. Although he beat Frazier on January 28, 1974, in a unanimous 12-round decision, it had not been a stellar last few years. He was tired. He was 32 years old.
Now it was October, and he was getting another title shot. He was about to fight George Foreman—the popular George Foreman who had won a gold medal for the United States at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. The George Foreman who had knocked out both Frazier and Norton in two rounds. The George Foreman who in that title fight with Frazier had knocked the champ down six times in the bout’s first 4 minutes and 25 seconds. The George Foreman who was the heavyweight champion of the world. The George Foreman who at 25 was at the peak of his power.
And he would fight Foreman in Kinshasa, Zaire. They were billing it as “The Rumble in the Jungle.”
To Muhammad Ali, it would be that and more.
He and Foreman had spent the summer of 1974 training in Zaire so that their bodies would be completely acclimated to the hot, humid weather. Throughout those lead-in weeks and months, Ali met frequently with the press and endeared himself to the local population. He was a natural self-promoter, of course, but he was also pro-African and frequently said so.
He boasted again and again how he was too fast for Foreman and would come out immediately in the first round with a flurry of punches and dazzling footwork—an aggressive strategy. But with a sly smile, he would also mention he had a “secret plan” to take out the defending champ. Foreman, meanwhile, trained mostly in seclusion, quiet and confident, although he and his trainers were well aware of what Ali was saying.
As the October 30 fight drew near, celebrities and fight fans from across the globe descended on Kinshasa. For three nights preceding the bout, a music festival called Zaire ’74 treated the crowds to a long list of entertainers, including James Brown, B. B. King, and Miriam Makeba. The city had become a circus.
But now it was time to put the gloves on.
Later, in the days and weeks after the fight, Foreman, author Norman Mailer and several others all claimed they saw Ali’s handlers loosen the ring’s ropes in the hours before the opening bell.8 Maybe. But there was still a battle to be won or lost.
Round 1 went the way Ali had said it would, with him the fleet-footed aggressor. But he uncharacteristically often led with his right, tempting fate if one of Foreman’s powerful punches landed. Ali backpedaled and sideswiped as he punched, but by round’s end, Foreman was effectively cutting off the ring and scoring with a few shots of his own. Time for the secret plan.
In round 2, Foreman expected a toe-to-toe slugfest, but instead Ali leaned back into the ropes time and time again, letting Foreman flail away at him. He’d taunt Foreman, lean back and protect only his face. Foreman’s body punches lost much of their power as the ropes gave way to the leaning Ali. Also, Ali would move his head and body in perfect timing, making many of Foreman’s blows glancing or outright misses. And as he did so, Ali would snap off a counterpunch or two. Vintage Muhammad Ali.
Ali continued with his retreat-to-the-ropes strategy for the next several rounds, as the frustrated, angry Foreman swung again and again. Occasionally, Ali would dart away and land a few combinations of his own. He took every opportunity to fire straight punches at Foreman’s face. But mostly he leaned back against the ropes and weathered the Foreman storm.
And, not surprisingly, he kept up the chatter: “They told me you could punch, George! They told me you could punch as hard as Joe Louis!”
By round 7, Foreman was punched out. His tired arms all but hung at his sides. Ali then turned on his speed and energy and began scoring points. Foreman simply tried for a knockout punch.
“Is that all you got, George?” taunted Ali, after the desperate champ managed to land a punishing body blow.
“Yup, that’s about it,” answered Foreman.9
It ended in the eighth round with a five-punch combination from Ali, followed by a left hook that brought Foreman’s head up and then a straight right to the face that sent him tumbling to the canvas. Foreman managed to struggle to his feet, but not before the referee had counted him out.
Muhammad Ali was Heavyweight Champion of the World once more.
And Ali’s fearless and crazy secret plan—what he immediately after the fight called “rope-a-dope”—became boxing legend. In fact, today the term rope-a-dope is frequently used to describe a strategy in which one person pretends to be losing, hoping to lure a stronger opponent into overextending himself and setting him up for defeat. Politicians, businessmen, and soldiers often employ the term to describe their plans for success. But rope-a-dope will always belong to the magnificent Ali—and the powerful Foreman.
Ultimately, the two fighters became friends. When the 1996 documentary about the classic fight, When We Were Kings, won an Oscar, George Foreman helped the Parkinson’s-suffering Ali up the stairs to receive the award along with the filmmakers.
MY TAKE“I hate surprises!” You’ve most likely heard that line before—from a boss, a business partner, a friend, or even a spouse. Maybe you’ve said it yourself a time or two. And we all know what it means. We don’t like to be thrown out of our comfort zones. We don’t want to have to react—make the call, turn on a dime, yes or no, thumbs up or down, fight or flight—without having time to think and consider. Without having time to make one of those pros-and-cons lists. Quick decisions are rarely good decisions. Our brains are built to mull over things, to weigh possibilities, to ponder outcomes. No surprises!
And all of that is mostly true for your own business, your own career, and your own family. But when it comes to dealing with the competition, the element of surprise is a wonderful tool. It gives you the advantage. It suddenly gives you control. You become master of the situation. Your competition—be it in a boardroom, on a battlefield, or in a stadium—is forced to scramble, adjust, and react. Because your competition hates surprises. The North Koreans, George Foreman, and all those online coupon websites hated surprises. But the surprises—fearless and crazy as they were—prevailed.
Remember, it’s a surprise to the competition, but to you it’s carefully thought out, thoroughly planned, and perfectly executed. MacArthur, the folks at Groupon, and Ali knew just what they were doing from start to finish. Their masterful plans sent their competition into disarray and defeat.
As an entrepreneur (or a soon-to-be entrepreneur) you look for ways to surprise your rivals, to gain an unexpected advantage in the marketplace. Maybe it’s a new product you suddenly launch. Maybe it’s a special person you suddenly hire. Maybe it’s a building you buy, a place you relocate to, or an investment you make. Just when they think they’ve got you figured out, you zing them. Fearless and crazy. But planned all along. It’s a key element in the life-wealth strategy outlined in Chapter 1. It’s planning—with power.
All right, so you’re always looking for ways to spring a surprise. Maybe you even brainstorm possible surprises with your coworkers, write them down, and get them ready to go. But then you’ve got to do it. You’ve got to pull the trigger, push the button, sign the order, give the nod, just say yes.
MacArthur did it. Groupon’s Andrew Mason did it. Ali did it.
When he was deciding to run for president in 2007, Barack Obama used a phrase I just love: “the fierce urgency of now.” He wasn’t going to wait. Many in the political game said he was too young, too inexperienced. But he said no. The time is now.
As one of my buddies, film producer and entrepreneur Louis Lautman, puts it, “If you asked me the best time to start, I would tell you right now. If you asked me six months from right now, I would give you the same answer: Do it now, do it now, do it now.” To be more specific, put together your plan of attack now, and be ready to execute that plan whenever and wherever it feels right. Don’t just rush onto the battlefield because the time is now and end up getting your arm broken or your head blown off. Rush in prepared. Because you’ve planned; you’re ready. Remember, it is battle.
That said, action is absolutely fundamental—whatever it is you’re aiming to do, whatever surprise you’ve got in mind. You’ve done the planning, now you execute that plan—again, a key life-wealth component.
Anyone can talk a big game, dress to the nines, drive a fancy car, or say he’s “committed to the project,” but when it comes down to brass tacks, most people fold rather than execute. It has been true in my experience, and it will be in yours.
Many times I thought I had a new source of funding locked down, but an investor backed out.
Many times I thought I had an actor lined up, but he took another job.
Many times I thought I had the script nailed down tight, but someone, somewhere, wanted another rewrite.
Many times I thought I had the perfect location for shooting a particular scene all set up, but something happened and I had to scramble to find a new perfect spot.
In fact, the more people you get involved in a project, the more potential there is for things to go wrong. In my life-wealth plan, I call that dealing with the unknown. Those unknowns are out there, and they’re going to pop up; you just don’t know where or when. But you expect them; you’re ready for them.
You make sure the people who work for you and with you are also ready and willing to execute the plan, that they are unafraid of the unknowns and surprises. In short, you want people who do what they say and say what they do.
So which type of person are you?
Do you talk a lot and do a little?
Or do you say what you do and do what you say?
I started my film enterprise with a good product: proven best sellers by a respected author, Omar Tyree, who wrote magical and timely stories. I researched the industry and developed a power plan. I built a team and attracted A-list producers. Then I made sure it made sense on paper—that my financials were so solid we could not only get the films produced but also distributed.
Distribution, I realized pretty quickly, was going to be fundamental to the success of my studio. Films have to be seen on the big screen, many big screens, or else they’re just hobby projects. Distribution is key. To become a major player in Hollywood, I had to figure out distribution.
So I focused on developing a strong support group of mentors and businesspeople around the project. Those people made my initial run to line up investment capital easier but not easy. With no prior experience and only a few contacts in the film business, this was a challenging task. That reality, combined with the start of a global recession, made this venture one of the toughest I had ever faced.
But I was doing it. I was fearlessly executing my plan. I wasn’t wringing my hands; I wasn’t waiting just a little while longer. I was making decisions and moving forward—and surprising everyone at every step in my journey.
So many people are focused on what they can’t do instead of taking advantage of what’s right there in front of them, the very things they can control. People bump their heads against the same brick wall over and over simply because they’re concentrating on the problem instead of seeing the solutions and making them happen.
It sounds easy, but of course, it isn’t. Everyone has real-life situations, issues, and problems that can keep him from reaching his goals. Some are insurmountable—if you’re five foot four, you’re not going to play in the NBA—but many are not. And those are the ones you tackle, finesse, outlast, and defeat. As former football coach Lou Holtz likes to say, “Ten percent of life is what happens to you; 90 percent is how you react to it.”
So react. Raise some eyebrows. Attract some criticism.
Or just shake your head, lie back in the recliner, and be a “gonna” person.
A “gonna” person is someone who says:
“I’m gonna do it, but I’m tired after work.”
“I’m gonna do it, but I’ll wait until my kids are old enough.”
“I’m gonna do it right after my next promotion.”
“I’m gonna start saving for my future as soon as I make a little more money.”
“Gonna” people are always gonna do something. A “gonna” person always has an excuse, a perfectly logical reason why not—why not now, anyway. But they’re gonna do it later. As we all know, too often “later” never comes.
So what about you? Gonna? Or not? Surprise us. Or as the folks at Nike say, “Just do it.”
____________________
1 Edward J. Marolda, The U.S. Navy in the Korean War (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 207), 68.
2 Leatherneck Guide Inc, Leatherneck.com, Reference Section, History and Museum Division, http://www.leatherneck.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-6370.html.
3 “Relieving MacArthur of His Command,” Foundation of the National Archives, 11 April 1951, http://www.digitalvaults.org/record/3392.html.
4 Christopher Steiner, “Meet the Fastest Growing Company Ever,” Forbes magazine, August 30, 2010, http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/0830/entrepreneurs-groupon-facebook-twitter-next-web-phenom.html.
5 “Read Groupon CEO’s Letter to IPO Investors, “CNNMoney, June 2, 2011, http://money.cnn.com/2011/06/02/technology/Groupon_CEO_shareholder_letter/index.htm?iid=EL.
6 Ibid.
7 Ibid.
8 Ron Kurtus, “Strategy Used by Muhammad Ali to Beat George Foreman in 1974,” 2007, school-for-champions.com, http://www.school-for-champions.com/competition/boxing_ali_foreman.htm.
9 “The Rumble in the Jungle,” Wikipedia.org, March 31, 2011, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rumble_in_the_Jungle.