The Unauthorized Guide To Doing Business the Alan Sugar Way

Alan Sugar is a business legend. When it comes to business, Sugar is both feared and fearless. Shrewd businessman, inspirational figure and sweet-talking star of The Apprentice, this man knows how to strike a deal.

The Unauthorized Guide to Doing Business the Alan Sugar Way draws out the universal lessons from Alan Sugar's remarkable success and identifies 10 strategies that can be applied to any business or career:

1. Don't push or shove
2. Start a revolution
3. Know your customer
4. Stay true to your values
5. Learn from your mistakes
6. Drive a hard bargain
7. Invest in the right people
8. Lead from the front
9. Win as a team
10. Hire in haste, repent at leisure

Want to be the best? The secrets of phenomenal success are in your hands.

Check out the other Unauthorized Guides in this series: Richard Branson; Duncan Bannatyne; Jamie Oliver; Bill Gates; and Philip Green.

Acknowledgements ix

The Life and Times of Alan Sugar 1

One: Don’t Push or Shove 15
With a reputation for being belligerent, Alan Sugar may not take any prisoners or suffer fools lightly, but one thing is for sure – he is no bully

Two: Start a Revolution 29
As a young entrepreneur, Sugar blasted onto the scene, crashed through corporate and class barriers, and revolutionized the business world forever

Three: Know Your Customer 45
A natural wheeler and dealer, Sugar has built up an empire from scratch by instinctively knowing exactly what his customer wants

Four: Stay True to Your Values 61
Alan Sugar has based his whole career and personal life around a core set of traditional values, to which he credits his success

Five: Learn from Your Mistakes 77
From business mogul to football chairman to media personality, Sugar has had his fair share of ups and downs, but he has managed to recover from the troubled times with grace and dignity

Six: Drive a Hard Bargain 91
As one of the world’s toughest negotiators, Sugar has never been shy of driving a hard bargain to get what he wants

Seven: Invest in the Right People 107
Sugar considers people to be a company’s most important asset and values loyalty and honesty above all else

Eight: Lead from the Front 121
A born leader, Sugar motivates and inspires his team by using clear, direct communication, coupled with an inclusive management style

Nine: Win as a Team 137
Both a leader and a team player, Sugar understands the importance of working as a united front in order to achieve that all-important goal

Ten: Hire in Haste, Repent at Leisure 155
Sugar uses clever interviewing tactics to test and challenge his prospective employees His hiring model may be tough, but it always gets him the right person for the job

How to Negotiate the Alan Sugar Way 173

The Last Word 181

Notes 185

Index 189

Emma Murray is a freelance writer and ghostwriter specialising in Business, Psychology, History and Memoir. As a fully qualified editor and proofreader, she also works as a tutor for the training company, Editorial Training (www.edittrain.co.uk), teaching writing skills, editing, and proofreading to staff in publishing houses, organisations, and corporations. She also give talks to students and graduates about how to make a career out of freelancing.