SavvySugar

I'm Asking: Who Are Your Finance-Savvy Role Models?

SavvySugar — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 08:30:22 -0700

Lately, there's been a whole lotta hoopla surrounding Ivanka Trump - her wedding, for one, her new book, The Trump Card, another. But, it's not just that. I've seen her face cropping up next to finance-related advice columns in Glamour and appearing on daytime talk shows to chat, obviously, about the Donald and The Apprentice, but also to talk shop about her own career successes.

Overall, her rep as a young female business icon seems well-deserved, if not, totally destined. Clearly, Ivanka has learned quite a bit from dad - and she seems to know what she's talking about. So, while I've never been of fan of Mr. Trump, his (more down-to-Earth) daughter seems to have a handle on the business world and a fresh perspective on the economy - when she dishes out advice, it just might be worth taking. What do you think, does Ivanka make for a savvy role model? If not, tell me, who do you look to for business advice?

11 Real-Life Lessons Learned From the Celebrity Apprentice

SavvySugar — Tue, 12 May 2009 10:30:06 -0700

NBC has already given the nod to a ninth season of Donald Trump's Apprentice, so the show must be speaking to viewers. Sure, it's reality entertainment, but there are real-life lessons to be found in each episode of this season's Celebrity Apprentice. We had to get something valuable out of those two-hour segments, right?

If you were too distracted by the celebrity drama to deduce your own career-minded conclusions, Trump University's Lessons Learned Blog kept track for you. Randal Pinkett (winner of The Apprentice Season 4) runs the blog and he came up with several lessons from each episode, so I've selected the best ones from each week.

Episode 1: "Disagree behind closed doors all you want at work. That's part of teamwork. But never badmouth your team to outsiders. You need to present a strong image to the people who judge your performance."
Episode 2: "Cultivate the ability to adjust quickly. In today's fast-paced world of business, flexible people win out over the rigid."
Episode 3: "Remember, leaders don't shoulder their way into the spotlight. They know that the more they can let their team members excel, the brighter their own success will be."

To see eight more lessons, just read more.

Episode 4: "If you want to succeed in business, you have to stand on your own. If you cannot fight your own battles, you're not ready to succeed."
Episode 5: "Remember that simple systems free your mind to focus on the big picture. In times of confusion, even a little organization saves the day!"
Episode 6: "Stand by your word. Even if you don't realize it yet, a good reputation is your most powerful career asset."
Episode 7: "Never rely 100 percent on technology, because things go wrong. Hard drives crash. Power outages occur. The graphic you send at the last moment could be in a format that the recipient can't use."
Episode 8.1: "There will be times when you will feel shut out of some inner circle at work. If that happens, focus on the excellence of your work. You are not in junior high school anymore. Your feelings are no longer your top concern. It is time to get the job done."
Episode 8.2: "Remember that simply meeting demands is not always enough. Research and creativity will carry you into the winner's circle."
Episode 9: "In your career, take any hand you are dealt and play it to win. If you apply that strategy consistently, you will build small victory on small victory and move ahead."
Episode 10: "If you don't set specific goals and know how to reach them, you can never expect to succeed. You can't wander into success, you have to plan it."

Photo courtesy of NBC

Celebrity Apprentice: Did Trump Make the Right Decision?

SavvySugar — Mon, 11 May 2009 12:00:31 -0700

Last night was the three-hour battle royale for the title of The Celebrity Apprentice. Joan Rivers and Annie Duke found themselves facing each other head to head, and Donald Trump described the duo saying, "they're both tough, they're both smart, and they both hate each other." Joan wins the final challenge and the Celebrity Apprentice crown. I know it was music to many ears when Donald said, "Annie, you're fired," but do you think he made the right choice?

Photo courtesy of NBC

Celebrity Apprentice: Were the Right Candidates Fired?

SavvySugar — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 12:00:12 -0700

Kotu had a rough time on last night's episode of The Celebrity Apprentice. The team lost half its members between the two challenges, leaving only Joan Rivers and Clint Black (who haven't had the smoothest personal history on the show) to represent Kotu.

Natalie Gulbis was fired for her lack of fund-raising and for making poor decisions when selecting the jewelry for the runway show featuring Ivanka Trump's jewelry line. Joan Rivers was in tears when Donald Trump asked her to name someone on her team to be fired, so Trump broke it down clearly: Clint Black was terrible at his job as auctioneer, but his performance didn't directly contribute to the reason Kotu lost.

The second challenge leads to Herschel Walker's departure from the show. He was Kotu's project manager in making a new frozen meal for Schwan's and developing a marketing plan for it. The executives liked Athena's meal better, primarily because Kotu's dessert was complicated to assemble and their chicken dish didn't stand out from the other items the company already offers. Herschel was behind both ideas, so Donald fires him but not without apprehension and says, "I am not a gay man, and I love you Herschel. But Herschel, you're fired."

Photo courtesy of NBC

Celebrity Apprentice: Was the Right Candidate Fired?

SavvySugar — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:30:23 -0700

The challenge on last night's Celebrity Apprentice was for the teams to design in-store displays for an identity-theft-protection company, and the episode was pretty uneventful until more than halfway through the two-hour show.

Brian McKnight is the project manager for Athena, and he does a great job with the presentation. The executives thought the team's display hit brand messaging, but it was a spin on what they already had done. Natalie Gulbis is Kotu's project manager and the executives liked the use of celebrities to promote the product but didn't like that the display couldn't hold the item for sale. Kotu is chosen as the winner for the challenge because its concept was more original than Athena's, and Brian chooses Brande Roderick and Melissa Rivers to face Donald Trump in the boardroom.

The only drama occurs an hour into the show, when Joan throws her wine glass and breaks it because she's angry Melissa is in the boardroom. Annie Duke had told Joan the night before that Brande should go home but then said nothing to Trump, so Joan calls Annie a snake. After Brian is fired for being the project manager of the losing team, both teams are called back into the boardroom to immediately begin their next task.

Next week should provide a lot of drama with Joan and Annie going head-to-head as project managers and Piers Morgan returning to keep an eye on things. But what did you think of the way the boardroom went down this week? Did The Donald make the right decision?

Photo courtesy of NBC

Guess How Much: Celebrity Apprentice Compensation

SavvySugar — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 07:00:53 -0700

Every contestant on The Celebrity Apprentice says they said yes to participating in the show because it's an opportunity to raise a lot of money for charities they care about. While it's true the show raises a solid amount for good causes, the celebrities on the show aren't offering their time free of charge. I've always wondered how much the celebs are compensated for appearing on the show, and finally got an answer while browsing through a recent Us Weekly. Can you guess how much the celebrity contestants are paid? Take the quiz!

Photo courtesy of NBC

Take the quiz

Celebrity Apprentice: Were the Right Candidates Fired?

SavvySugar — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 11:30:28 -0700

With only four men left in the running to become The Celebrity Apprentice, Donald Trump opened last night's episode by mixing up the teams and creating new co-ed versions of Kotu and Athena. The teams are challenged to create viral online videos for All laundry detergent, and Perez Hilton makes a remote appearance to judge the projects on originality, buzzworthiness, and branding.

While the Athena team has high hopes for their video that was loved by Perez, the All executives found both videos offensive and ineffective to their target demographic. Neither team is declared winner of the viral video challenge and Trump asks the project managers to each choose two people to keep in the boardroom; the teams are shocked to learn that two candidates will be fired.

First, Tionne Watkins is fired for the sole reason that she volunteered to go to the boardroom when project manager Melissa Rivers asked who would stand by her if the situation arose. Trump tells Melissa she would have been fired had Tionne not volunteered. Then, Khloe Kardashian is fired from Kotu (Clint Black was the team's project manager) because she has a DUI that Trump didn't know about before and he can't stand people who drink and drive.

Neither decision seems to be based on the challenge at hand, but do you think he made the right choices?

Photo courtesy of NBC

Celebrity Apprentice: Was the Right Candidate Fired?

SavvySugar — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 13:30:24 -0700

On last night's The Celebrity Apprentice, the teams are given five rooms at the Lowes Regency Hotel and asked to indulge their guests' needs and desires. The celebs aren't shy about putting on hotel uniforms and getting down and dirty - both teams jump in fulfilling household tasks like cleaning rooms, delivering room service, and managing the concierge. While watching the teams get up close and personal with the housekeeping industry was entertaining, the challenge was all about good service. Out of a possible score of 100, in terms of service and other criteria, the men, lead by Dennis Rodman, scored an 86 and the women, lead by Tionne Watkins, scored a 91.

At the end of the day, Donald Trump fires Dennis Rodman in a sort of intervention board room meeting where many of the contestants suggest Dennis has a drinking problem and needs to regain control of his life. Do you think Trump made the right choice to send Rodman home, or do you think he'd be better off amid friends?
Photos courtesy of NBC

Celebrity Apprentice: Was the Right Candidate Fired?

SavvySugar — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 13:30:35 -0700

On last night's The Celebrity Apprentice the male and female teams are challenged to host a live event to launch a new video phone. A heated exchange between Dennis Rodman, who has been on thin ice in weeks past for partying too hard, and Clint Black threatens the men's unity before the task even begins. On the women's team, a previous engagement sends Joan Rivers out of town, which in the words of project manager Claudia Jordan, leaves the gals "like the Patriots at the Super Bowl with no Tom Brady." To see what happens and who is sent packing, read more.

The men win the challenge by a landslide - 386 to 61. The contestants seem to be unanimous in believing Clint and Brian McKnight's years of working a crowd gave the fellas a leg up. Claudia, who is a Deal or No Deal model, Khloe Kardashian, and Melissa Rivers are all put in the hot seat when the Claudia suggests Khloe doesn't take initiative and airs her creative and personal differences with Melissa. Ultimately, Claudia is fired for being unable to keep her personal issues with a team member (Melissa) separate from the task and her leadership role. She is the first female to be booted off the show. Do you think Donald made the right call?

Photos courtesy of NBC and Source

Celebrity Apprentice: Was the Right Candidate Fired?

SavvySugar — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 11:30:01 -0700

The celebrity candidates were challenged to sell 125 wedding dresses from an empty shop last night on The Celebrity Apprentice, prompting retail jitters from both teams. For the second time this season the celebrities phoned friends in order to get ahead, and both sides fought to sell dresses on short notice despite their lack of sales experience.

The women's team seemed to have a natural advantage on the topic of wedding dresses and used their connections in the industry to decorate their shop and make it look lively; However, with the exception of a $5,000 donation from Khloe Kardashian's friend Joe Francis, the female team, which was led by Playboy Playmate Brande Roderick, struggled to get friends to chip in for charity. The male team, which was led by a very hung over and tardy comedian Tom Green, made great sales at first, but had to scramble throughout the day and had some serious morale and commitment setbacks. Dennis Rodman failed to show up after a night of binge drinking with Green (Rodman had a very suspicious story about a dog or cat allergy).

By the end of the day the men's team sold 21 dresses for $63,450, and the women's team sold 22 dresses for $103,000. Tom Green was put in the hot seat for showing up late to his challenge, not raising any money and defending his party partner Rodman. Trump seemed to have a tough choice picking between a leader that didn't have command of his team and a no-show, but ultimately sent Green packing. Do you think he made the right choice?

Photos courtesy of NBC