Trump is a risk taker - success or failure?

[Indeependent]

Trump was a big risk taker in business. He was either very successful, if you judge success by making money, or a total failure, if you judge failure as losing money. The failures resulted in multiple bankruptcies that allowed him to walk away from the failures relatively unscathed.

He is the same risk taker in politics. He will either be very successful or a huge failure. There will not be any middle ground.
Bankruptcy is not an option when you fail in politics

As I have already responded to YOU in the past...
Bill Gates failure far outnumber his successes in both quantity and quality.
MS flushes billions down the toilet every year.
May I hear some bitching about that?

 

[ElmerMudd]

Trump was a big risk taker in business. He was either very successful, if you judge success by making money, or a total failure, if you judge failure as losing money. The failures resulted in multiple bankruptcies that allowed him to walk away from the failures relatively unscathed.

He is the same risk taker in politics. He will either be very successful or a huge failure. There will not be any middle ground.
Bankruptcy is not an option when you fail in politics

What Trump did in business was take advantage of every available tool to make himself a success.

i.e. bankruptcy and putting his losses off on others. i.e., socialism for the substantial people.

As Trump stated, I didn't make the rules, I just use the rules to my advantage.

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

What Trump did in business was take advantage of every available tool to make himself a success.

i.e. bankruptcy and putting his losses off on others. i.e., socialism for the substantial people.

As Trump stated, I didn't make the rules, I just use the rules to my advantage.

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

You are completely wrong. A business opens up or operates to provide products or services for a profit. That's it. There are no social obligations of a business. Nobody opens up a business to provide good paying jobs and great benefits. Nobody opens up a business to provide government with tax money.

A nice gesture, a good PR move, perhaps, but that's not an obligation.

 

[Indeependent]

What Trump did in business was take advantage of every available tool to make himself a success.

i.e. bankruptcy and putting his losses off on others. i.e., socialism for the substantial people.

As Trump stated, I didn't make the rules, I just use the rules to my advantage.

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

See post 41 and eat shit.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Trump was a big risk taker in business. He was either very successful, if you judge success by making money, or a total failure, if you judge failure as losing money. The failures resulted in multiple bankruptcies that allowed him to walk away from the failures relatively unscathed.

He is the same risk taker in politics. He will either be very successful or a huge failure. There will not be any middle ground.
Bankruptcy is not an option when you fail in politics

What Trump did in business was take advantage of every available tool to make himself a success. That would be a bad strategy to use as President of the United States?

He has used bankruptcy, he has used every possible tax break, he has used law to favor his accomplishments, he even admitted to rubbing elbows and contributing to politicians to get what he wanted.

While he can't use those same tools to run the country, he's learning of the other tools he can use.

I am a business owner who believes in ethics. Laws are only necessary to keep in check those without ethics.
In business, I choose not to do business with people like Trump. Money is more important than ethics or morals. Disgusting.

Well........that's great, but it's also why you'll never be as successful as Trump.

Success is not determined by wealth. Do you think everyone who has more money than you is more successful than you?
There are plenty of individuals with more money than Trump that did not "take advantage of the rules" if it was unethical or immoral. Ethics and morality are not a consideration for Trump.
I definitely could have made more money if I was not guided by ethics and "took advantage of the rules". I had decent success and did not have declare bankruptcy or screw someone over to my advantage just because I could.

It's not about ethics or morality. It's about legality.

I work full-time but have my own side business. Anything my tax preparer says I should do is what I do. I may question it, I may not think it's the right thing to do, but I do it because it's to my advantage.

Yes, success is determined by your wealth in business. That's why a business that's worth 10 million wants to be worth 20. That's why a business that's worth 100 million wants to be worth 200 million. Money IS a measurement of success when it comes to business.

Sone people inherit money, some hit the lottery or get lucky in Vegas or the horse track or something, but we're not talking about people who got lucky enough to win a major lawsuit, we're talking about people who made personal investments and became financially successful. So yes, I do consider the big D a success.

 

[Fenton Lum]

i.e. bankruptcy and putting his losses off on others. i.e., socialism for the substantial people.

As Trump stated, I didn't make the rules, I just use the rules to my advantage.

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

You are completely wrong. A business opens up or operates to provide products or services for a profit. That's it. There are no social obligations of a business. Nobody opens up a business to provide good paying jobs and great benefits. Nobody opens up a business to provide government with tax money.

A nice gesture, a good PR move, perhaps, but that's not an obligation.

Exactly, and that is how the public should both view and treat them, as adversarial and predatory. We are not all in this society together at all, and those with accumulated wealth view us as nothing but commodities to be exploited.

 

[Fenton Lum]

i.e. bankruptcy and putting his losses off on others. i.e., socialism for the substantial people.

As Trump stated, I didn't make the rules, I just use the rules to my advantage.

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

See post 41 and eat shit.

Eat your own shit, you're in charge of nothing and no one.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

As Trump stated, I didn't make the rules, I just use the rules to my advantage.

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

You are completely wrong. A business opens up or operates to provide products or services for a profit. That's it. There are no social obligations of a business. Nobody opens up a business to provide good paying jobs and great benefits. Nobody opens up a business to provide government with tax money.

A nice gesture, a good PR move, perhaps, but that's not an obligation.

Exactly, and that is how the public should both view and treat them, as adversarial and predatory. We are not all in this society together at all, and those with accumulated wealth view us as nothing but commodities to be exploited.

I'm sorry, but I'm not a "It takes a village" kind of guy. I believe in individuality and less that our country is one giant commune.

A person who acquires wealth is not predatory or exploiting anyone. Those wealthy people provide us with services and goods at a set price. We can exchange our money for those products or keep that money for ourselves. That's not predatory at all, it's called a choice.

One of the many differences between the left and the right is how they view success. We on the right respect and admire success. You on the left view successful people as (using your own word) an adversary.

"Folks, liberals believe that success is to bring those from the top down, whereas we on the right believe in bringing those from the bottom up."
Rush Limbaugh

 

[Fenton Lum]

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

You are completely wrong. A business opens up or operates to provide products or services for a profit. That's it. There are no social obligations of a business. Nobody opens up a business to provide good paying jobs and great benefits. Nobody opens up a business to provide government with tax money.

A nice gesture, a good PR move, perhaps, but that's not an obligation.

Exactly, and that is how the public should both view and treat them, as adversarial and predatory. We are not all in this society together at all, and those with accumulated wealth view us as nothing but commodities to be exploited.

I'm sorry, but I'm not a "It takes a village" kind of guy. I believe in individuality and less that our country is one giant commune.

A person who acquires wealth is not predatory or exploiting anyone. Those wealthy people provide us with services and goods at a set price. We can exchange our money for those products or keep that money for ourselves. That's not predatory at all, it's called a choice.

One of the many differences between the left and the right is how they view success. We on the right respect and admire success. You on the left view successful people as (using your own word) an adversary.

"Folks, liberals believe that success is to bring those from the top down, whereas we on the right believe in bringing those from the bottom up."
Rush Limbaugh

Your "job creator"/donor class are "It takes a village" kind of folks, that’s just how they run the thing, by organization, exclusion and collusion. No one believes anything will come from the top down in america but oppression, as we see. Do not assign me a political view based upon your false corporate state duality. We merely disagree. If you which to align yourself with “one” of these illusional sides, please feel free to.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

You are completely wrong. A business opens up or operates to provide products or services for a profit. That's it. There are no social obligations of a business. Nobody opens up a business to provide good paying jobs and great benefits. Nobody opens up a business to provide government with tax money.

A nice gesture, a good PR move, perhaps, but that's not an obligation.

Exactly, and that is how the public should both view and treat them, as adversarial and predatory. We are not all in this society together at all, and those with accumulated wealth view us as nothing but commodities to be exploited.

I'm sorry, but I'm not a "It takes a village" kind of guy. I believe in individuality and less that our country is one giant commune.

A person who acquires wealth is not predatory or exploiting anyone. Those wealthy people provide us with services and goods at a set price. We can exchange our money for those products or keep that money for ourselves. That's not predatory at all, it's called a choice.

One of the many differences between the left and the right is how they view success. We on the right respect and admire success. You on the left view successful people as (using your own word) an adversary.

"Folks, liberals believe that success is to bring those from the top down, whereas we on the right believe in bringing those from the bottom up."
Rush Limbaugh

Your "job creator"/donor class are "It takes a village" kind of folks, that’s just how they run the thing, by organization, exclusion and collusion. No one believes anything will come from the top down in america but oppression, as we see. Do not assign me a political view based upon your false corporate state duality. We merely disagree. If you which to align yourself with “one” of these illusional sides, please feel free to.

How is it I'm not oppressed and I'm just a blue collar worker? The only time I ever lose anything is when Democrats are in charge.

Employment is only "It takes a village" when unions are involved. Without them, people are paid and promoted through individual accomplishments.

Yes, things do come from the top down. My company depends on it. We get our work from successful companies. They hire us to complete the jobs needed to be done. Without them, I would have no work.

I assign people to a political party or view based on how they post or respond. I am 70'% conservative and 30% Libertarian, and I make no bones about it.

 

[depotoo]

His company bankruptcies were chapter 11, in other words, reorganization of the debt- not a dissolution of the debt.

Trump was a big risk taker in business. He was either very successful, if you judge success by making money, or a total failure, if you judge failure as losing money. The failures resulted in multiple bankruptcies that allowed him to walk away from the failures relatively unscathed.

He is the same risk taker in politics. He will either be very successful or a huge failure. There will not be any middle ground.
Bankruptcy is not an option when you fail in politics

 

[ElmerMudd]

i.e. bankruptcy and putting his losses off on others. i.e., socialism for the substantial people.

As Trump stated, I didn't make the rules, I just use the rules to my advantage.

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

You are completely wrong. A business opens up or operates to provide products or services for a profit. That's it. There are no social obligations of a business. Nobody opens up a business to provide good paying jobs and great benefits. Nobody opens up a business to provide government with tax money.

A nice gesture, a good PR move, perhaps, but that's not an obligation.

Do you own a business? I do.
There are benefits to providing good wages and benefits to employees. They stay longer, they are better workers and are loyal. The marketplace has ears. They know businesses that are in it for as much money as they can make and nothing else. The marketplace rewards those who are not out to squeeze every nickle they can out of customers or clients.
Check out Jeff Bezos's business model for Amazon. Profits are a secondary goal. You do not know business.

 

[ElmerMudd]

His company bankruptcies were chapter 11, in other words, reorganization of the debt- not a dissolution of the debt.

Trump was a big risk taker in business. He was either very successful, if you judge success by making money, or a total failure, if you judge failure as losing money. The failures resulted in multiple bankruptcies that allowed him to walk away from the failures relatively unscathed.

He is the same risk taker in politics. He will either be very successful or a huge failure. There will not be any middle ground.
Bankruptcy is not an option when you fail in politics

He turned his messes over to the lenders and let them sort out everything. All 4 bankruptcies ended with eventual discontinuation of the businesses or huge downsizing. Chapter 11 still leaves many people owed money never collecting or collecting pennies on the dollar.

 

[ElmerMudd]

Trump was a big risk taker in business. He was either very successful, if you judge success by making money, or a total failure, if you judge failure as losing money. The failures resulted in multiple bankruptcies that allowed him to walk away from the failures relatively unscathed.

He is the same risk taker in politics. He will either be very successful or a huge failure. There will not be any middle ground.
Bankruptcy is not an option when you fail in politics

What Trump did in business was take advantage of every available tool to make himself a success. That would be a bad strategy to use as President of the United States?

He has used bankruptcy, he has used every possible tax break, he has used law to favor his accomplishments, he even admitted to rubbing elbows and contributing to politicians to get what he wanted.

While he can't use those same tools to run the country, he's learning of the other tools he can use.

I am a business owner who believes in ethics. Laws are only necessary to keep in check those without ethics.
In business, I choose not to do business with people like Trump. Money is more important than ethics or morals. Disgusting.

Well........that's great, but it's also why you'll never be as successful as Trump.

Success is not determined by wealth. Do you think everyone who has more money than you is more successful than you?
There are plenty of individuals with more money than Trump that did not "take advantage of the rules" if it was unethical or immoral. Ethics and morality are not a consideration for Trump.
I definitely could have made more money if I was not guided by ethics and "took advantage of the rules". I had decent success and did not have declare bankruptcy or screw someone over to my advantage just because I could.

It's not about ethics or morality. It's about legality.

I work full-time but have my own side business. Anything my tax preparer says I should do is what I do. I may question it, I may not think it's the right thing to do, but I do it because it's to my advantage.

Yes, success is determined by your wealth in business. That's why a business that's worth 10 million wants to be worth 20. That's why a business that's worth 100 million wants to be worth 200 million. Money IS a measurement of success when it comes to business.

Sone people inherit money, some hit the lottery or get lucky in Vegas or the horse track or something, but we're not talking about people who got lucky enough to win a major lawsuit, we're talking about people who made personal investments and became financially successful. So yes, I do consider the big D a success.

I have feeling I am much more successful than you based on your definition of success.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

What Trump did in business was take advantage of every available tool to make himself a success. That would be a bad strategy to use as President of the United States?

He has used bankruptcy, he has used every possible tax break, he has used law to favor his accomplishments, he even admitted to rubbing elbows and contributing to politicians to get what he wanted.

While he can't use those same tools to run the country, he's learning of the other tools he can use.

I am a business owner who believes in ethics. Laws are only necessary to keep in check those without ethics.
In business, I choose not to do business with people like Trump. Money is more important than ethics or morals. Disgusting.

Well........that's great, but it's also why you'll never be as successful as Trump.

Success is not determined by wealth. Do you think everyone who has more money than you is more successful than you?
There are plenty of individuals with more money than Trump that did not "take advantage of the rules" if it was unethical or immoral. Ethics and morality are not a consideration for Trump.
I definitely could have made more money if I was not guided by ethics and "took advantage of the rules". I had decent success and did not have declare bankruptcy or screw someone over to my advantage just because I could.

It's not about ethics or morality. It's about legality.

I work full-time but have my own side business. Anything my tax preparer says I should do is what I do. I may question it, I may not think it's the right thing to do, but I do it because it's to my advantage.

Yes, success is determined by your wealth in business. That's why a business that's worth 10 million wants to be worth 20. That's why a business that's worth 100 million wants to be worth 200 million. Money IS a measurement of success when it comes to business.

Sone people inherit money, some hit the lottery or get lucky in Vegas or the horse track or something, but we're not talking about people who got lucky enough to win a major lawsuit, we're talking about people who made personal investments and became financially successful. So yes, I do consider the big D a success.

I have feeling I am much more successful than you based on your definition of success.

Good for you. What does that have to do with anything? Trump is way, way more successful than you are.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

As Trump stated, I didn't make the rules, I just use the rules to my advantage.

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

You are completely wrong. A business opens up or operates to provide products or services for a profit. That's it. There are no social obligations of a business. Nobody opens up a business to provide good paying jobs and great benefits. Nobody opens up a business to provide government with tax money.

A nice gesture, a good PR move, perhaps, but that's not an obligation.

Do you own a business? I do.
There are benefits to providing good wages and benefits to employees. They stay longer, they are better workers and are loyal. The marketplace has ears. They know businesses that are in it for as much money as they can make and nothing else. The marketplace rewards those who are not out to squeeze every nickle they can out of customers or clients.
Check out Jeff Bezos's business model for Amazon. Profits are a secondary goal. You do not know business.

I work with business all day long. I've seen success, I've seen failure. I've noted the strategies that businesses use to remain successful.

Now, not all companies are the same. Yes, there are companies that can afford to pay their employees more. It's based on their competition and availability. But there is no way you can afford to pay your workers much more than your competitor.

If you and I both had widget factories, and you pay your workers (on average) four dollars more per hour in wage and benefits than I do, it's only a matter of time before I put you out of business. Why? Because I can sell my widgets at a lower price than you can. That means your customers will eventually be calling me to supply their widgets.

Sometimes price is not the only factor for a customer, but it is in many cases. Take for instance the company Grainger. Now, Grainger sells it's products at a much higher price than other companies. But Grainger is successful because they carry just about everything. Companies don't have time to shop around to see who has what. They know that Grainger is just a phone call away and will have anything a company needs.

I was reading a book about investments. The author held seminars across the country. He always asked people who would invest their money in a store that sold items for a much higher cost than everybody else. Few would raise their hands. He told those people who didn't raise their hand that they lost out on a great opportunity, because that's exactly what 7-11 does. They sell products for a much higher price than a grocery store.

So how did 7-11 become so successful? Convenience. People will pay more money for a product if they can get it conveniently.

 

[depotoo]

And most successful businessmen have failures before they're successful. It's called learning from ones mistakes, moving on to vie not to repeat the same ones. The true sign of success is not throwing in the towel and letting those failures dictate who you are, and continuing to move forward.

His company bankruptcies were chapter 11, in other words, reorganization of the debt- not a dissolution of the debt.

Trump was a big risk taker in business. He was either very successful, if you judge success by making money, or a total failure, if you judge failure as losing money. The failures resulted in multiple bankruptcies that allowed him to walk away from the failures relatively unscathed.

He is the same risk taker in politics. He will either be very successful or a huge failure. There will not be any middle ground.
Bankruptcy is not an option when you fail in politics

He turned his messes over to the lenders and let them sort out everything. All 4 bankruptcies ended with eventual discontinuation of the businesses or huge downsizing. Chapter 11 still leaves many people owed money never collecting or collecting pennies on the dollar.

 

[ElmerMudd]

And therein lies everything that is wrong with american society; an utter lack of any personal responsibility for the current state of anything.

Are we talking about society or a businessman? A businessman who doesn't take responsibility is not a businessman for very long.

Businessmen have responsibility to themself and their business and a responsibility to society. The society includes the marketplace the business makes their money from.
Trump shows very little responsibility toward society in his personal life or his business life.

You are completely wrong. A business opens up or operates to provide products or services for a profit. That's it. There are no social obligations of a business. Nobody opens up a business to provide good paying jobs and great benefits. Nobody opens up a business to provide government with tax money.

A nice gesture, a good PR move, perhaps, but that's not an obligation.

Do you own a business? I do.
There are benefits to providing good wages and benefits to employees. They stay longer, they are better workers and are loyal. The marketplace has ears. They know businesses that are in it for as much money as they can make and nothing else. The marketplace rewards those who are not out to squeeze every nickle they can out of customers or clients.
Check out Jeff Bezos's business model for Amazon. Profits are a secondary goal. You do not know business.

I work with business all day long. I've seen success, I've seen failure. I've noted the strategies that businesses use to remain successful.

Now, not all companies are the same. Yes, there are companies that can afford to pay their employees more. It's based on their competition and availability. But there is no way you can afford to pay your workers much more than your competitor.

If you and I both had widget factories, and you pay your workers (on average) four dollars more per hour in wage and benefits than I do, it's only a matter of time before I put you out of business. Why? Because I can sell my widgets at a lower price than you can. That means your customers will eventually be calling me to supply their widgets.

Sometimes price is not the only factor for a customer, but it is in many cases. Take for instance the company Grainger. Now, Grainger sells it's products at a much higher price than other companies. But Grainger is successful because they carry just about everything. Companies don't have time to shop around to see who has what. They know that Grainger is just a phone call away and will have anything a company needs.

I was reading a book about investments. The author held seminars across the country. He always asked people who would invest their money in a store that sold items for a much higher cost than everybody else. Few would raise their hands. He told those people who didn't raise their hand that they lost out on a great opportunity, because that's exactly what 7-11 does. They sell products for a much higher price than a grocery store.

So how did 7-11 become so successful? Convenience. People will pay more money for a product if they can get it conveniently.

I am impressed with your research but look at the key to success. In all cases you referenced the focus, initially, was on the customer not on the businesses needs. Businesses will be more successful if they focus, first, on the needs of the customer and then on how you can be profitable. I f the business puts their needs first, they usually are not successful.

 

[ElmerMudd]

And most successful businessmen have failures before they're successful. It's called learning from ones mistakes, moving on to vie not to repeat the same ones. The true sign of success is not throwing in the towel and letting those failures dictate who you are, and continuing to move forward.

His company bankruptcies were chapter 11, in other words, reorganization of the debt- not a dissolution of the debt.

Trump was a big risk taker in business. He was either very successful, if you judge success by making money, or a total failure, if you judge failure as losing money. The failures resulted in multiple bankruptcies that allowed him to walk away from the failures relatively unscathed.

He is the same risk taker in politics. He will either be very successful or a huge failure. There will not be any middle ground.
Bankruptcy is not an option when you fail in politics

He turned his messes over to the lenders and let them sort out everything. All 4 bankruptcies ended with eventual discontinuation of the businesses or huge downsizing. Chapter 11 still leaves many people owed money never collecting or collecting pennies on the dollar.

I agree!

 

[ElmerMudd]

I am a business owner who believes in ethics. Laws are only necessary to keep in check those without ethics.
In business, I choose not to do business with people like Trump. Money is more important than ethics or morals. Disgusting.

Well........that's great, but it's also why you'll never be as successful as Trump.

Success is not determined by wealth. Do you think everyone who has more money than you is more successful than you?
There are plenty of individuals with more money than Trump that did not "take advantage of the rules" if it was unethical or immoral. Ethics and morality are not a consideration for Trump.
I definitely could have made more money if I was not guided by ethics and "took advantage of the rules". I had decent success and did not have declare bankruptcy or screw someone over to my advantage just because I could.

It's not about ethics or morality. It's about legality.

I work full-time but have my own side business. Anything my tax preparer says I should do is what I do. I may question it, I may not think it's the right thing to do, but I do it because it's to my advantage.

Yes, success is determined by your wealth in business. That's why a business that's worth 10 million wants to be worth 20. That's why a business that's worth 100 million wants to be worth 200 million. Money IS a measurement of success when it comes to business.

Sone people inherit money, some hit the lottery or get lucky in Vegas or the horse track or something, but we're not talking about people who got lucky enough to win a major lawsuit, we're talking about people who made personal investments and became financially successful. So yes, I do consider the big D a success.

I have feeling I am much more successful than you based on your definition of success.

Good for you. What does that have to do with anything? Trump is way, way more successful than you are.

I do not agree with basing success on the amount of money one has.
Harvey Weinstein has a lot of money but he is a failure as a human being.
If I do have more money than you it does not mean I am more successful than you, in my book.