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The Real Reason You Were Fired
September 19, 2004
Bradford, you were stupid. But you weren’t stupid for the reasons that Trump may have led you and all of us to believe. Yes, your decision to give up your exemption status was foolhardy… but even Trump would allow that it could be seen as noble, moral, and magnanimous in its own risky way. No, you were stupid, not for having a momentary lapse of judgment, but because you saw the writing on the wall and did nothing smart about it. You saw a billion dollar ego barreling down on you, intent on making an example of you, and you did nothing to get out of the way. You knew that Trump was upset with you. You knew it as soon as it he called you stupid for a second time and wouldn’t let go—and you really knew it—I saw it in your eye—when he told Jen, “You’re just as bad as Bradford.” You knew it. You tried to laugh it off; you tried to put on a brave face; but, admit it—you’re not a dumb guy—you knew it.
So what did you do? You did what many people would do. You did what your mom most likely taught you to do. You admitted your mistake. You agreed with him. Mr. Trump, you are right—I was stupid. Big mistake. Bigger even than your first. Bigger because you had time to think about it. Bigger still because you kept on making it. Bigger most of all because you didn’t see you were making it. Why? It’s simple. Your first mistake was forgivable.
Trump—if you had been listening with your mind and not just with your ears—kept on telling you as much. Trump gave you every opportunity to speak, to say something, to undo what you had wrought. The man liked you; he told you were the best person in the room. Trump was practically begging you to save yourself. Give me a reason, he was saying, not to do what I’m going to do. But instead, you agreed with him. You gave him no choice. You were on the firing line, and you gave the man more ammunition. You gave him the bullet to kill you.
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“So?” I’m sure you’re asking, “What was I supposed to do? The die was cast. I had made a fatal, unrecoverable error. I went down honorably.” Bradford, you poor stupid bastard. What am I to do with you? Have you learned nothing from your time in the boardroom? Don’t you see? No, of course, you don’t. Well, that’s why you’re stupid. You could have dodged that bullet. You could have recovered. You could have come out on top. You should have looked the man square in the eye and said, “I want my exemption back.” If you had, you would have lived another day. More than that, you would have earned his respect. You would have come out pure money.
What’s that? You say no way. You say that Trump would have killed you for that. Well, he did kill you. So what do you know? Shut up for a second and listen.
Sit down for once, Bradford, and think. Where did you go wrong? What didn’t you consider? You made your grand gesture, thinking that it would restore you in the eyes of your teammates. You thought it would put you in good stead for the weeks ahead and make up for your power trip the week before. You thought you had done a good job and no one would deny it. What you failed to consider though was how the man in front of you might react. So how did he react? He took great umbrage. He saw right through your cunning, saw your highly calculated line of reasoning, and saw just how self-serving your motives truly were. But that’s not the reason he got upset. If that’s all it was, he may have commended you for a hand well played.
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You saw a billion dollar ego barreling down on you, intent on making an example of you, and you did nothing to get out of the way.
