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Index
Cover
Praise for All in
Title
Copyright
Dedication
Table Of Contents
CHAPTER 1: I BELIEVE IN YOUR BIG DREAMS
I Was Once You
A Great Idea Is a Powerful Weapon
Why Listen to a Guy like Me?
But That’s Not the End of the Story
College Can Be a Double-Edged Sword
Still, I Had a Thirst for Knowledge
A Lifetime of Business Experience in One Book
CHAPTER 2: WHAT CAN YOU CONTROL THAT IS FREE?
“What’s Free in Life?”
1: Always Be on Time
2: Be Positive and Smile
3: Return Calls in Less Than 24 Hours
4: Find a Mentor
5: Look Successful, Act Successful, and You’ll Be Successful
6: Sweat Everything
7: Understand Your Business Market Size
8: Sell a Product They Need, Not One They Want
9: Be a Second-Mover Pioneer
10: Winging It Is Not a Strategy
11: Use Your Time Wisely
12: You Can Kid Others, but Don’t Kid Yourself
CHAPTER 3: DO YOU HAVE ENTREPRENEURIAL DNA? (HINT: IT DOESN’T MATTER)
A Will to Win Is Even Better
13: Do Whatever It Takes to Succeed
My First Product
14: What Goes Around Comes Around
15: Know When a Good Opportunity Falls in Your Lap
16: Turn Your Passion into Your Trade
The Rest of My Childhood Career
17: Embrace the Aha Moment
18: Make Lemonade out of the Lemons Life Deals You
My First Mentor Pays Off
19: You Can Do Great Things When Failure Is Not an Option
20: Create Multiple Profit Arms for Your Business
Michael’s Hardware Is Born
It Takes All You Have
CHAPTER 4: BOOTSTRAPPING A STARTUP
Do Battle with Complacency Every Day
Something in That New Jersey Water
Adapt, Adapt, Adapt!
Selling to Commercial Clients
My Marketing Obsession Pays Off
Wilmar Is Born
21: Don’t Just Be the Low-Cost Provider
22: Create a Niche. Be Unique.
23: Know Your Business Inside and Out: Be a Savant
24: I Repeat: Do Whatever It Takes!
25: Embrace Technology as Much as You Can
My Dad Rejected Technology
26: Fight for Your Right to Grow
Daring to Cast a Wider Net
27: Be Persistent and Consistent
Dad Handed Me a Brick, and I Built a House
Buying the Rest of the Business
28: Make Your Business a Piggy Bank, Not a Cash Cow
29: Think Big, Act Big, and You Will Be Big
Another Dream Comes True
CHAPTER 5: IT’S ALL ABOUT THE CUSTOMER
30: Create an Army of Raving Fans
31: Learn Your Clients’ Wants and Needs
32: If You’re Talking, You’re Not Listening
33: Good Customers Complain, Bad Customers Go Away
34: Fix Mistakes Fast
35: Be Creative, Be an Undercover Boss
36: Underpromise, Overdeliver
37: Be Multilocal: Think Nationally, Act Locally
38: Tailor Your Experience to the Customer
Database Management for Better Customer Service
39: Make Your Transaction Model Easier Than Your Competition’s
People Love Same-Day Servic
40: Survival of the Fittest: Adapt to Advance
I’ll Say It Again: Keep Adapting
CHAPTER 6: BUILDING A CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM
41: Surround Yourself with Winners
42: Let Your Employees Complete You
43: Employees Are Your Lifeblood. Make Them Count.
44: Understaff and Outsource When Starting Up
45: Always Be Interviewing
46: Don’t Let Loyalty Cloud Your Judgment
Don’t Hire Friends
47: Don’t Promote to Incompetence
48: Get Creative in the Interview Process
49: Raid Talent from Other Companies
50: No Raises? C’mon!
Managing Is Not a Four-Letter Word
51: Managing Is Like Parenting
52: People Do What’s Inspected Rather Than What’s Expected
53: Management by Walking Around
54: Cut Down on Meetings
55: Get Out of Your Comfort Zone and Delegate
56: Encourage Employees to Admit When They Don’t Know
57: You Can’t Measure Trust and Loyalty
58: You Can’t Fire Bad Hires Fast Enough
59: Train, Train, Train!
60: Avoid Paralysis by Analysis
CHAPTER 7: CRUSHING IT IN SALES
61: No Harvest Without Rainmakers
A Great Salesperson Should Be . . .
The Telltale Traits of a Great Salesperson
The Intangibles Are Huge
62: Always Be Sincere
63: Engage with the Customer!
64: The Customer Always Comes First
Hunters Versus Farmers
65: Ask for the Order!
66: I Repeat: Be Persistent and Consistent
67: What’s Luck Got to Do with It?
68: The Company Owns the Customer
Poaching Is Not Allowed
69: Sell Through the Organization
70: Peace-of-Mind Sales
71: Master “Relationship Selling”
72: Embrace the Power of Networking
73: Pounce on Your Competition’s Weaknesses
74: He Who Does His Homework Makes the Most Sales
75: Nail Your Sales by Doing It Differently
76: Guerrilla Negotiating
Three Categories of Vendor Negotiation
The Benefits of Overseas Importing
Cutting Out the Middleman
CHAPTER 8: TAKING YOUR BUSINESS TO THE NEXT LEVEL
Good Is Not Good Enough: Dare to Be Great
77: Become a Tactical and Strategic CEO
Experience Plus Wisdom Equals Strategy
78: A Healthy Company Can Grow Organically
79: Have a Dual Business Strategy
Climbing the Summit with Summit Partners
Going Public My Way
Running a Public Company Versus Running a Private Company
The Upside of Having a Value-Added Board
80: Your Shareholders Will Own You If You Let Them
Analysts Also Own You
Everyone Knows Your Business
Hunting Trolls on Social Media
How to Seek Strategic Alternatives
Cinderella at the Ball
The Hunted Becomes the Hunter
CHAPTER 9: MASTERING THE ART OF THE ACQUISITION
All Good Things Pass. Plan for It.
81: Success Can Be an Optical Illusion
82: Who Wants It the Least, Wins
83: Never Make a Deal with a Gun to Your Head
84: The Best Deals Are the Ones You Don’t Make
85: Keep Your Brand Game Strong
Becoming Interline Brands
86: Learn from Your Integration Mistakes
87: New Employees Will Always Be Skeptical
88: Don’t Let Your Ego Make Business Decisions
89: Have an Exit Strategy
CHAPTER 10: RETIREMENT? NOT SO FAST
Keeping My Dad Game Strong
Satisfying My Shooter’s Mentality
Boredom Leads to a Rebranding Effort
Going Back to Get That Monkey Off My Back
90: When All Else Fails, Listen to Respected Peers
91: Know Yourself to Please Yourself
WSG Partners Is Born
92: Killing It Now Doesn’t Mean You Always Will
One-Man Bands Never Go Far
No Product Will Please Everyone
93: Do What You Love, and Good Things Will Happen
CHAPTER 11: ONE-TRICK PONY NO MORE
You Can Age in Reverse
Putting Out Fires on the USS Aramsco
Putting the Deal Together
Success Has Everything to Do with Timing
94: Never Invest in an Unpredictable Market
Back in the CEO Saddle Again
Billy, the Wartime CEO
95: If You’re Going the Wrong Way, Turn Around
Turning the Sinking Ship Around
The Silver Lining Is Always the People
The Smart Adapt
My Venture into VC Waters
I’ll Say It Again: Sweat Everything!
CHAPTER 12: THE CRESTAR STORY: NEVER STOP PIVOTING
Shooting ’Til My Arm Fell Off
96: You’re Never Old Enough to Stop Doing Homework
Getting a Taste of Tax Lien Auctions
CCTS Capital Is Born
Evolving into Crestar Capital
The World Learns Our Little Secret
In Search of My Next Big Idea
97: Keep Building Off What You Know
Battling the Big Time for Market Density
Sailing Off into the Sunset? You’ve Got the Wrong Guy!
Diving into Crestar Loan Fund
To Be or Not to Be Institutional
98: Is It a Trade or a Business?
Pivoting into Real Estate Financing
99: Build New Businesses Off What You’ve Learned
I’ll Say It Again: Be a Second-Mover Pioneer
Why So High on Real Estate Finance?
Crestar Funding Becomes LendingOne
Crestar Real Estate Income Fund
100: Unique Business Models Have Bright Futures
Surround Yourself with Smart People
101: Not Every Dream Comes True, and That’s Okay
You Can’t Sink All Your Shots in Life
CHAPTER 13: NOW IT’S YOUR TIME TO SHINE
Time Flies When You’re Living Your Dream
You’ve Got What It Takes to Win
Believe in the Power of You
Find a Way to Give Something Back
When You Can Give Back, Do It Any Way You Can
He Who Works the Hardest Usually Wins
One Final Call to Action
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
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