Quote from: TheFootMan on February 19, 2014, 10:14:24 PM

Quote from: ericmoulton on February 19, 2014, 06:06:02 AM

They are a senior management team of a huge business. This is what executives do - this is their whole job. This is part and parcel for someone with an MBA in senior management role. They don't sit around with their feet on their desks (as much as we like to make them into cartoons that way). Ask a few entrepreneurs who grew large businesses and they will tell you that upper management lives and breathes financial strategy. They don't walk into a meeting with the Japanese Gov't and say "sup? we're screwed, what do we do?" They walk in with a business plan. That's what they do - and most senior executives are very bright - that's how they get to the top. It's not luck. They create effective strategies - it's the whole job.

Taking over Magic The Gathering exchange was just pure luck.

Taking over a lemonade stand and turning it into Tropicana in just a few years, however, is not just luck.

It's planning, clever strategy, careful risk assessment, a compelling pitch, building relationships with sharp backers with deep pockets, large-scale financial management, contract negotiation, mitigating legal nuances and lawsuits, possibly some corruption, and a little luck.

You have every right to hate this guy. Every right. But - he did something that I doubt most of us have the ability to pull off (or you'd be doing it right now and making millions on millions 2 years from now.. and most of us probably aren't halfway through building our multi-million dollar empire - that only takes us about 3 years to build up). And as it was stated earlier, he did it with no formal education - a testament to either the intelligence/experience of his team, or to his own intelligence and extraordinary luck. It's unlikely that it was any one of the three - it often is some combination thereof.