Five Secrets Behind Successful Family Businesses
Miguel Ángel Gallo, Daniela Montemerlo, Josep Tàpies, Kristin Cappuyns, Salvatore Tomaselli, Sabine Klein



Original document:
From the Founder to Multigenerational Family Business: The Family
Year: 2006





Maintaining the delicate balance among members of a family business isn't always easy; people have different personalities and goals that can complicate their interactions. However, maintaining a high level of family functioning is crucial for a business's long-term survival. Though founders may be fully committed to the business, passing that commitment on to subsequent generations can prove challenging - even impossible. Yet, many family businesses manage to thrive for three generations or more. In "From the Founder to Multigenerational Family Business: The Family's Crucial Role as an Owner for Longevity," authors Miguel A. Gallo, Sabine Klein, Daniela Montemerlo, Josep Tàpies, Salvatore Tomaselli, and Kristin Cappuyns analyze their secrets for success.

Though a business's founders may start with strong "potential motivation" to improve their own and their families' lives, turning such motivation into "current motivation" is difficult, for two main reasons. First, when founders prepare to leave the business, they may resist transferring the business to the next generation or changing strategy or organization. Second, subsequent generations may choose not to be involved, and founders may opt to sell the business to ensure family members' financial security. Yet, many multigenerational family businesses (MGFBs) thrive - and "the key lies in the qualities of the people who form the ownership group."

Any exploration of human qualities and behavior requires delving into the fields of philosophy and psychology. One important theory of human behavior is agency theory, which proposes that man is "a rational actor, motivated only by extrinsic rewards." Some researchers, however, have suggested that this theory is flawed and that man's behavior, according to stewardship theory, "is ordered such that pro-organizational, collectivistic behaviors have higher utility than individualistic, self-serving behaviors." The stewardship theory looks at the motivational drivers "intrinsic" to the human being and helps us understand human characteristics and the idea that "rationality" guides human decision processes and behaviors in a organizational context.

The present work builds on this line of reasoning and proposes a "realistic model of man" which is founded on an anthropological conception inspired by Aristotelian and Tomistic (Tomas Aquino) philosophy. This "realistic model of man" has formed the basis of entire research project and in contrast to both previous theories, in this model the emphasis is placed on the different ways in which human beings are motivated, the basis for the skills they learn, the essential quality of being a free agent, and knowledge and will as the two facets of their freedom, which are basic characteristics of both families and businesses.

Moreover, through the exercise of rationality, people are able to identify "the good" in accordance with their own nature. By expressing their wishes and practicing virtues, they dominate their desires and exercise their liberty to improve themselves or their situation.

People are complex creatures with unique sets of characteristics. So what drives people to act? People are motivated by different types of needs, including material needs ("the possession of things," in its most general definition); cognitive needs ("needs related to our ability to do things, to achieve what we want"); and affective needs ("linked to the achievement of suitable relationships with other people"). Each type of need leads to different types of motives: extrinsic, intrinsic, and transcendent, respectively. These motives compel people to take action.

These philosophical and psychological musings help us to understand the individuals behind any family business. Keeping all of this in mind, we can look at the secrets of successful MGFBs and the families who run them.

The CAVA model
Four major categories of principles, structures, and rules are evident in an evolving family business that combine to form the CAVA model. The name of the model comes from the description of the four groups of principles, the different structures and the rules that combine to form the model: C = Committed, A= Active, V= Virtuous, A= Advanced Business Families. That is, the family business as a community of people; committed business families; power as a service; and estate transfer as a responsibility. Successful development of these areas bodes well for the longevity of the business, and exploring these categories in greater depth gives a better-rounded picture of what being a committed business family (CBF) entails.

First, the fact that the family business is a community of people suggests that financial success isn't the only requirement for survival. A family business "includes owners, managers and people who work within it, and these people must be organized in accordance with the proper formal structures of responsibilities and management systems." Families must set up membership rules, commit themselves to the development of members' professional skills, compensate their members fairly according to a transparent and logical structure, and "meet the 'social mortgage' attached to any kind of ownership."

Second, for family members to be united and committed to the business, there must be a structure in the form of "a combination of values, principle systems and rules." In fact, the values that lie at the heart of these structures are to some degree an attempt by the owner family to formalize some of its beliefs with a view to establishing a long-lasting family business.

Moreover, it is important to stress that each of the three structures of freedom, participation and entrepreneurship make it necessary to provide family members with a clear framework for action, so that each and every one of them knows the requirements for participation and how they can be a part of the process. Members participate effectively, make decisions fairly, and support the family's entrepreneurial spirit.

Third, the idea of power as a service means that the decision makers in a family business must "demonstrate high-quality motivational balance, since their decisions must take account of transcendent motives and not just intrinsic and extrinsic arguments." There are two types of power: potestas, which is "the power to decide that is afforded by law," and auctoritas, which is "the power to decide that is afforded by the possession of the required professional competence." The different powers exercised by owners and shareholders must be balanced an important challenge that's vital to the formation of a CBF.

Finally, the idea of estate transfer as a responsibility means that plans must be made for the transfer of "ethical, human, intellectual, financial and other resources." The future of the business must be of utmost importance when making transference decisions, and "the common good takes precedence over the personal good." Tyranny must be avoided by selecting "good and decent beneficiaries who intend to organize governance in a collegiate way."

Committing to a family business brings a great deal of responsibility, and when people make this commitment, they may feel a certain degree of ownership over that business even when they are not, in fact, the owners - a phenomenon called "psychological ownership." This can negatively affect the unity of the group. However, in multi-generational family companies, this feeling can also be positive: feeling ownership "generates commitment, a desire to make an effort to give something back to the family and the business, because so much of what an individual possess has been received from them."

This kind of intense commitment and involvement is what business families must strive for in order to survive through multiple generations. Instead, given the ever changing cycles of people's life's, as well as the changing circumstances in the family business, no perfect solution can ever be found. Companies are constantly evolving and family members must continually renew their commitment to the business. By understanding what drives people's behavior, and by analyzing the characteristics of successful multigenerational family businesses, business families can begin to strengthen and become, one day, committed business families with a business that will stay viable even when they themselves are gone.

Entrepreneurs Struggle To Hand Over the Reins

By RANDYE HODER
Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal.

From The Wall Street Journal Online


Last spring, the husband-and-wife team who founded Internet telecommunications company telezoo.com began to tackle one of the toughest challenges facing them: They looked to replace themselves as heads of the business.

"There is always the fear that you will hire someone who will take the company where you don't want it to go," says Sharmine Narwani, who along with her spouse, Elias Shams, started telezoo from the basement of their Washington, D.C., home in March 1999. "You don't just hire someone overnight to take over a company that your sweat and blood went into."

But telezoo, having landed $3 million in investment by Lazard Technology partners, had reached a size and complexity that made it clear to Ms. Narwani, a former journalist, and Mr. Shams, a network engineer, that they needed an experienced manager. The couple recently spent five months sorting through stacks of resumes and interviewing dozens of candidates.

Many an entrepreneur has found that a start-up requires a leader with experience to guide it into the future. Often, outside investors make such a hire a condition of funding. But how does an entrepreneur know when it's time to hand over the reins? And how does he or she go about picking the right person?

"I have heard people compare it to cutting off a finger," says Victor Hwang, chief operating officer of the Los Angeles Regional Technology Alliance, which supports high-tech companies in Southern California. "It takes discipline to step aside and let a new CEO implement his own vision."

For some founders, gauging when to let go can be tough. "We have always thought that what we would do is best for the company, and right now that has been to keep me in this job," says Jeb Britton, CEO of Invesmart Inc., a Pittsburgh provider of retirement plans and financial services that he helped found in May 1999. The 55-year-old Mr. Britton has nearly three decades of industry experience and previously served as the CEO of a community bank.

But he can foresee a day when a better-known chief executive might be useful in cultivating relationships on Wall Street. He'd still be disappointed, he concedes, to watch someone else at the helm. "It's almost like who marries your daughter," he says. "They are never good enough."

Sometimes, even when founders acknowledge they need help, they turn to headhunters to find a chief financial officer or chief operating officer -- anyone but the CEO. Or when they do finally look for a CEO, they fall into what observers call the "Yes, but" syndrome. "You hire a search firm, you get CEOs who are extremely qualified, but the founder continually finds a reason to reject them," explains Brad Jones, a partner with Redpoint Ventures, a Los Angeles venture-capital firm specializing in Internet and broadband technology. "You go through a process that eventually fails or is fraught with problems."

It's Good to Give Way

Many management experts say that, in general, the faster a callow entrepreneur can make way for a more seasoned CEO, the better. "It's an issue of credibility," says Jon Goodman, executive director of EC2, an Internet incubator at the University of Southern California. "The fact is, growing a business of size is not fool's play."

Brian Johnson, 26 years old, was one of the lucky ones. In the fall of 1998, he started eteamz.com, a Web site devoted to amateur sports that features everything from schedules and standings to rosters, weather reports and photos for some 120,000 teams in more than 50 countries. For the first nine months, Mr. Johnson ran the company in classic start-up fashion: Though he held the lofty CEO title, most days he could be found sitting in his pajamas in his living room in Pittsburgh, working through the initial $10,000 he raised from "cracking open some pretty small piggy banks." He tried to save money by eating a steady diet of canned tuna.

Then he caught a big break. He and a friend, a student at UCLA's John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management, won the school's New Venture Competition, with eteamz's business plan. Some $5 million in venture capital soon followed. So did the realization that it was now the right moment to bring in someone with more experience -- someone whom Mr. Johnson could look to as a mentor. "I knew that as we grew I would be in over my head quickly," Mr. Johnson says.

He signed up Korn/Ferry International, a Los Angeles-based executive recruiter, to help him find a new CEO. The firm quickly fixed on Steve Wynne, who for some time had been planning to step down as CEO of Adidas America. Mr. Wynne, 48, had figured on taking some time off and sharpening his golf game. But he was caught up by Mr. Johnson's enthusiasm.

"With the market crashing all around the dot-com universe, I felt this was a company that was worthy of being saved," Mr. Wynne says. "And I knew I could do that."

For his part, Mr. Johnson says he knew that Mr. Wynne was the perfect choice after talking with him for just a few minutes. "I understood right away that he got our business."

The recent boom in technology start-ups has made the hunt for chief executives a thriving sub industry. Randy Frasinelli, managing principal of Grant-Williams Associates, an executive-search firm based in Pittsburgh, says that 90% of his executive-recruiting practice is now devoted to finding top executives for start-ups. That's up from a mere 10% two years ago.

Be Selective

Finding the right match is tricky, he says. Just as not every entrepreneur can adjust to the demands of managing an up-and-coming business, not every veteran executive can thrive at a bare-bones start-up. "Not everyone from the AT&Ts and the IBMs can do it," Mr. Frasinelli says. "Most people think they are pioneers, but the reality is that most people are settlers. It has to be someone with the experience, but someone who can also take off that three-piece suit."

At Arlington, Va.-based telezoo, the online B-to-B marketplace for telecommunications equipment and services, the 33-year-old Ms. Narwani and Mr. Shams, 37, began by handing an executive recruiter a wish list of attributes for their dream CEO. Among other things, they wanted someone with a great work ethic; online telecommunications expertise; sales and marketing know-how; experience at a public company; the ability to communicate with investors, analysts and the media; and a track record of helping a business achieve strong growth. "We were going for a star," says Ms. Narwani.

They interviewed executives from MCI Communications Corp., AT&T Corp., Lucent Technologies Inc. and Nortel Networks Corp. One by one, the applicants were rejected for being too technical, not having the right mix of skills, and having suffered too many past failures.

But mostly, Ms. Narwani says, the rejects just wouldn't have fit into telezoo's playful culture, which is built around the notion that the telecommunications industry is a jungle in need of taming. One would-be CEO "came in with the most starched, pinstriped suit you could possibly imagine," Ms. Narwani recalls. "Others couldn't recognize passion if it hit them over the head."

'King Comm'

Finally, she and Mr. Shams settled in August on Giulio Gianturco, who had 17 years of experience as a senior executive in the industry, including stints at Newbridge Networks, Cabletron Systems Inc., Digital Equipment Corp. and Lucent. And how did they know he was right for telezoo?

"Anyone who is OK with being dubbed 'King Comm of Telecom,' was going to fit in," says Ms. Narwani, who as telezoo's senior marketing executive herself carries the title "Queen of the Jungle." Mr. Shams, who continues to oversee technology development, is "Chief Zoo Keeper."

Mr. Gianturco made it clear during an interview that he was comfortable in the jungle. "We were sitting around during the third interview, and he was doing all the right things and sounding very CEOish," Ms. Narwani remembers. Then, out of the blue, she asked him this question: "What is the best animal sound you can make?"

Mr. Gianturco didn't hesitate. "I just figured that if I was going to dive off this cliff, I should just do it," he says. And so he let loose with a thunderous roar.

"We were in love," says Ms. Narwani. "It was the clincher."

Ms. Hoder is a writer in Los Angeles.

Email your comments to sjeditor@dowjones.com.

Five to Help You Thrive

The five critical business relationships every entrepreneur must nurture

RISMEDIA, Feb. 13, 2007-You've probably heard it said that entrepreneurs are "married to their work." It's true. Running a company requires amazing quantities of time, energy, and devotion. But there is one big difference: while matrimony is all about maintaining a healthy relationship with another person, being married to a business is all about maintaining healthy (and profitable!) relationships with several groups of people. In fact, according to entrepreneurial expert Ty Freyvogel, there are five main relationships that small business owners must nurture: relationships with customers, employees, vendors, bankers, and mentors.

"Smart entrepreneurs never forget their own success is intertwined with a complex network of other people and organizations," says Freyvogel, founder of EntrepreneursLab.com, a new site with a plethora of great business advice for any entrepreneur. "All of those relationships must be constantly tended and nurtured. Even though your interaction with each of these five groups will be different, your reason for creating positive relationships with them will be the same-building a successful business."

Entrepreneurs, here are the five most critical relationships to focus on . . . and why your efforts with these people and organizations can make or break your business:

1. Customers. Of course, any business owner wants his customers to be happy. But you need to ask yourself, Am I really going that extra mile to ensure that my customers have the ultimate positive experience? "Particularly if you're a small business owner, your customers are your bread and butter," says Freyvogel. "Not only do you want them to be so happy with your service that they come back, you also want them to go tell someone else that they loved the experience they had with your business. Learn as much as you can about your customers, so that when their needs change, you can be the one to provide them with the new services they need-not one of your competitors! Constantly ask them, 'How can we continue to provide value for your company?' They'll appreciate your efforts to help them be as successful as possible. Always treat them with the utmost respect and do everything in your power to make them happy. That may mean anything from throwing them the occasional discount that's 'especially for them' to remembering their kids' birthdays. Take care of all of the little things and not only will your customers be coming back, but they'll be bringing their friends along."

2. Employees. The importance of seeking out the most dedicated, honest, and passionate employees you can find can't be stressed enough. After all, you have to trust these people to serve your customers, protect your brand, and help your company grow. When you have found the best employees for your business, do everything in your power to hold onto them. "Your employees are the face of your organization when you aren't there," says Freyvogel. "So they must feel like they have a stake in the business. Encourage a sense of ownership among your employees. There's no better way to keep them happy than by giving them the recognition they deserve. Have one-on-one conversations with each of your employees on a regular basis to let them share their problems with you and to give you a chance to recognize their good work. Make sure you find out which jobs within the organization they are the most passionate about and put the right people in those positions. Remember, passion equates to hard work! Nurturing your employees to love your business as much as you do will strengthen your company's foundation-and your business will be that much more likely to survive setbacks and grow to great heights."

3. Vendors. It's important to nurture relationships with those people who aren't necessarily working for you but who service you or your company regularly. This can mean anyone from the package delivery guy who stops by every day to the materials supplier who keeps your warehouse stocked to the designer who keeps your website updated. Think of your vendors as "honorary employees." Show them that you appreciate what they do for you and also that you care about them and their companies. Get their email addresses and cell phone numbers and stay in touch with them. You never know when an emergency might arise in which you could use their help. Your company may not always grow 10 percent a year, and you may have to ask for an extra 30 to 60 days to make your payment. If you already have a good relationship with them, they will be more willing to give you extra time and to work with you to get back on track. Never treat them like they are serving you. Always acknowledge when they have gone above and beyond the call of duty to make you happy. It's also important that you make sure your vendors are getting as much value out of their relationship with you as you are with them.

4. Bankers. At the beginning of your venture, it's likely that you will require a start-up loan of some kind. Therefore, the best way to nurture your banker is to make sure you always have enough money in your account to make your monthly loan payments on time. "With my businesses, I always made sure I had some emergency cash saved up to use in case I had a rough month," says Freyvogel. "You don't want to gain a reputation with your bank as someone who doesn't make loan payments on time. Staying close to your bankers can also help you secure your finances. Make sure you set up a safety system with them to ensure that all of your deposits are going through on time. I once had a manager who was embezzling money from one of my businesses. I had a close relationship with my bank and the bank manager noticed that something wasn't adding up with my account. He called me to let me know and we were able to set up the necessary precautions with them to ensure that no one was ever able to embezzle from me again. Thanks to my close relationship with him, I was able to correct a problem before it became even more costly for me."

5. Mentors. It's great to have someone to go to when you are first starting your own business and when you run into problems along the way once it is up and running. Find a successful fellow entrepreneur whom you respect and ask her to be your mentor. Always show her the respect she deserves and let her know you are thankful for her help. It's also a great idea to put your mentor on your business's advisory board. "It's likely that your mentor will have many connections in many different areas," says Freyvogel. "You want to have a close relationship with her so that she is willing to go that extra mile to help you build your business. Don't contact your mentor only when you have a problem. Regularly contact her even if it is just to give her an update on how things are going. You never know, she might tell you about a contact that could help you in a certain aspect of your business, for instance, or tell you where she sees a hang up. Always send a thank you note after she's done something to help you-it's a small gesture that has a big impact."

Here's the bottom line: no matter how determined, hardworking, and talented you may be, you simply can't be a successful entrepreneur all by yourself. It takes a village to run a company. Never forgetting that fact is critical to your success.

"Always be on the lookout for ways to show these key players that you want to be their favorite business owner," says Freyvogel. "Make sure they are getting as much out of the relationship as you are. Show them you care. Creating and nurturing these positive relationships will make being an entrepreneur a hugely rewarding experience. The more people who care about you and your business, the more successful you're going to be."

Ty Freyvogel is a visionary entrepreneur who has launched and grown numerous successful small businesses over the course of a 35-year career. He started his first venture in 1975 following graduation from college and a stint as an officer in the United States Army. Before the breakup of the AT&T monopoly in the mid-1970s, Ty saw the potential for growth in the telecommunications market and launched a consulting firm to provide client businesses with communication services. Today, 33 years later, Ty's consulting firm (now called Freyvogel Communications) is still serving the telecommunications needs of Fortune 500 and mid-sized businesses.

For more information, call (828) 325-4966.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

Power of Personas

A Note to Readers

"Know Your Customer" is the mantra of any good marketer. But then it gets trickier… what, exactly, must you know about your customer? What's crucial to recognize? What's the best way to develop a profile or persona of a customer? And wait a sec… what is is a persona, anyway?

A persona is essentially a representative customer profile, which distills a key demographic target. It puts a "real face" on a market and, from a business perspective, gets everyone in your company on the same page.

We've been preaching about the Power of Personas for a few years now. But the concept has been gaining more and more traction of late, particularly because some high-profile companies like Microsoft, Amazon and Yahoo! use them. But a surprising number of small companies do, too, because these abstract representations of customers can be a powerful device to help companies build better user experiences into their products, services and promotions.

This Wednesday and Thursday, we are holding two back-to-back virtual seminars on creating and running successful persona programs at your company. Tamara Adlin will offer both big- and small-company examples on the whys and hows personas. As Managing Editor Val Frazee wrote, Tamara "will show you which marketing objectives personas support, and she will help you identify whether a personas program would be a good fit for your marketing strategy."

I'm personally excited about this series, because in my mind, personas are one of the most powerful but misunderstood tools you can store in your marketing toolshed. So check out Tamara's seminar series here and here.

See you there!

Until next week,

Ann Handley
ann@marketingprofs.com
Chief Content Officer
MarketingProfs

Entrepreneurial DNA:

Do you have what it takes to succeed?

by Michael Sexton

Michael Sexton interviews Thomas L. Harrison, author of Instinct: Tapping Your Entrepreneurial DNA to Achieve Your Business Goals

Thomas L. Harrison might be America’s most unusual CEO. He began his career as a research scientist and cell biologist. As the pull of entrepreneurship became stronger and stronger for him, he finally hung up his lab coat and plunged into the world of business. Today, he is Chairman and CEO of Omnicom Group’s Diversified Agency Services, the world’s largest holding group of marketing services companies.

Harrison’s deep insight into parallel disciplines - genetics, psychology, and management, to name just a few - led him to write Instinct: Tapping Your Entrepreneurial DNA to Achieve Your Business Goals. In this book, he maps a strategy for using knowledge of your own genetic makeup to achieve success.

In the conversation that follows, Trump University’s President Michael Sexton talks with Harrison about the link between DNA and success.

Michael Sexton: Is there really such a thing as entrepreneurial DNA?

Thomas L. Harrison: I believe there is. As a cell biologist and physiologist, I noticed many years ago that certain people possess particular traits that allow them to become successful more easily than other people can.

Now, that doesn’t mean that other people can’t be successful. They can! In fact, my book is really about helping people identify where they might lack a little DNA-given entrepreneurial talent. Once they know where their strengths and weaknesses are, they can work to develop the skills they need to get to the top.

MS: What is the first thing you notice when you see someone with great entrepreneurial DNA?

TLH: The most visible thing is the ability to handle risk, which really means two things. First the comfort to take risks; and second, the ability to manage risks. Those skills come much more easily to entrepreneurs than they do to others. They are the foundation of success.

MS: How can you understand your own genetic odds of success and what you need to work on?

TLH: You need to look at how strong or weak you are in what I call the Five Genetic Personality Traits:
Openness to Experience - Your receptiveness to new experiences and ideas.
Conscientiousness - Your ability to overcome impulsiveness and achieve goals.
Extroversion - Your level of ease in seeking out other people and connecting with them.
Agreeableness - Your ability to cooperate with other people.
Neuroticism - Your habitual reactions to the stresses of life.

The first chapter of my book includes an Entrepreneurial Personality Quiz that helps readers understand how they stack up in those areas. In later chapters, people use the results of that quiz to counterbalance any weak areas. Instinct does not provide a “one size fits all” prescription for success, but provides a personalized roadmap, based on one’s genetically inherited success and personality traits.

People tell me that my book, which provides both a tool for self-analysis and guidelines for addressing specific shortcomings, is practical and unique. It works!

MS: And to succeed, you need to have those traits working at equal strength?

TLH: Strongly, yes, but not necessarily equally. Different strengths create different personalities. After all, Donald Trump and Richard Branson are both successful entrepreneurs, but nobody would say that they have similar styles or outlooks.

MS: Can you tell me about the Picture Painting Gene, one of the eight critical success genes that you describe in your book? Is that a gene that helps successful people visualize their own success?

TLH: It is. The Picture Painting Gene is a turned-on ability to see yourself in success. In their minds before competitions, top athletes play and replay images of how they will perform. Not want to . . . but will perform. In great detail, they visualize how they will run their sprints, perform their backstrokes and win their marathons. And they win, because they have visualized themselves as winners.

Of all the Eight Success Promoters I describe in my book, the Picture Painting gene is one of the most important. If you can’t visualize yourself as successful, you’re not going to get there. But visualize success, and you’ll focus, move forward and attract people and events around you that will help you get to success. The success that fits your personal, genetic makeup.

For more insights on turning your entrepreneurial potential into real-world success, get involved in The Entrepreneurship Mastery Program from Trump University. Classes are forming now.
Michael Sexton is President of Trump University.
Posted on March 2 2007 at 7:18 AM
Category: Entrepreneurship
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3 Comments Post a comment

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Posted by Leesa for (c) DB7 International (LLC) on 03/02/2007 6:02 PM
I do believe that some people are genetically predisposed to greatness or inbred. Scientists say that it can be traced back generations!

Some other personality traits are evident in early childhood, such as leadership, initiative and drive. I'm sure that during entrepreneur week at elementary schools was evidence of those who were seemingly interested...gravitating to it, though having no understanding as of yet.

Although these skills can be learned, I feel that nature usually outlines the peking order along the way....
"I'm the king of the castle, and you're the dirty rascal..."
Survival of the fittest is usually defined in the beginning, unless late bloomers come along to catch up.
I wonder if Donald Trump ever had a kool-aide stand?
Posted by lightwayvez on 03/02/2007 8:23 PM
'TLH: It is. The Picture Painting Gene is a turned-on ability to see yourself in success. In their minds before competitions, top athletes play and replay images of how they will perform. Not want to . . . but will perform. In great detail, they visualize how they will run their sprints, perform their backstrokes and win their marathons. And they win, because they have visualized themselves as winners.'

Perhaps this why I see Mr Trump with such great form when I think skydiving with theworldteam
Posted by user89187 on 03/02/2007 8:26 PM
Cool, very cool!