Average folks aspire to ride the coattails of the rich and famous by following their advice.
Several years ago, I conducted a TV interview with Donald Trump at a Chicago hotel. On a wintry day, we tossed our coats aside and he shared advice on becoming rich with my crew and me.
Such as: Always be able to regularly view any real estate you buy.
The image-conscious Trump requested that I telephone several prominent local folks to let them know he’d be on the evening news.
Later, as I was writing script and tape was being edited, I received a phone call from the hotel manager, who said nervously: “Mr. Trump, uh, believes that you and he, uh, exchanged coats.”
Sure enough, I checked the gray wool double-breasted overcoat I’d worn the rest of that day and, even though it fit and looked like mine, it was “the Donald’s.”
A limo arrived. Its driver and I solemnly exchanged coats. No, I didn’t find any significant scribbled notes in the coat pockets.
However, I will confess that during my return trip to the studio that afternoon, wearing Trump’s coat, I had experienced an exhilarating desire to put a down payment on the Sears Tower. It is, after all, a property that’s particularly easy to keep an eye on.