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Business Rule #14:
Perception Counts
December 17, 2004
(PAGE 2 of 6)
Running out of steam, Kevin heard those two dreaded words: You’re fired!
The real estate mogul chose Kelly during a live broadcast from Lincoln Center in New York. Practically everyone present thought that Perdew was the man for the job. It was a virtual landslide for Kelly with almost no support for Jennifer. The 37-year old software exec will now follow in the footsteps of previous Apprentice winner Bill Rancic and receive a six-figure salary for it.
Right before Kelly heard those magical words, “You’re hired,” Jennifer heard those horrible-but-yet-beautiful words, “You’re fired.” The reason I say that these two undignified words are beautiful is because in a world where words often mean so little, these two words, however dreaded, still ring true. You’re fired is unquestionable. What else could it mean? It means: go and pack your belongings; security is waiting to escort you from the building.
Did anyone else notice that when Jennifer was fired, her eyes bugged out because she really thought he was going to say you’re HIRED? Now, I’m no sadist, but that was pretty damn funny. This officially makes Kwame the only person never formally fired or hired in the history of The Apprentice.
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Trump himself said that Perdew is “smart and tough,” while Massey is “smart and manipulative.” Trump based his decision not on accolades, not on how well they both acted under pressure, but on perception.
It’s a hard fact of life that perception is often more important than reality. This sad truth is especially the case in business, where people can be dogged by impressions even when they are completely untrue. Here’s just one example: plenty of people would rather believe in a guy hawking, “How to Make a Trillion Dollars Overnight With NO MONEY DOWN” books and tapes on late-night TV rather than a guy who is out there in the market everyday, making deals and watching them either succeed or fall apart. Some people don’t even realize that the people on late night TV selling real estate courses are making more money selling the courses than in real estate itself!
So was Kelly the best choice? I doubt it. I really would have liked Raj to have won it. Trump seems to feel that he always has to be the center of the spotlight and a young guy—or a new Trump, if you will—would have stolen some of that spotlight away from him. Sure Raj made some mistakes, but who hasn’t in this competition? I really liked the stance that Raj took in the final task: “I really don’t care about Kelly. I don’t care if he wins; I just want to be on the winning team.” That’s the perfect attitude to take to make sure that your team wins: not to care personally about your boss, but to care that the TEAM wins.
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It’s a hard fact of life that perception is often more important than reality.
