Q and A: Apprentice winner shares secrets of success

Before her speech to to undergraduates at a Wharton Women event, The Daily Pennsylvanian spoke with The Apprentice winner Kendra Todd about her experiences and her advice to women in college and the workplace.

The Daily Pennsylvanian: What was it like working with Mr. Trump?

Kendra Todd: Well, Mr. Trump is a perfectionist. He is also a genius when it comes to branding his name and his use of marketing and media, and he's a brilliant negotiator. I really learned so many valuable [skills] from him in the short amount of time that I've been working for the Trump organization, and it's all surrounding real estate, because real estate is my business, so it's been an invaluable experience.

DP: On a daily basis, what do you do at work?

KT: No day is the same. Everyday is very different, very unpredictable. I have my own company, myhousere.com is the name of it. Everyday I'm juggling responsibilities of the Trump golf management project, jump-starting the marketing and sales for the Palm Beach estate, which we will unveil in November and representing The Apprentice, and inspiring people of all ages into action to do something positive with their lives and their careers, and juggling those responsibilities with my company, so everyday is very action packed, to say the least.

DP: Is your company tied to Mr. Trump's in any way?

KT: No, I have a real estate brokerage and investment company.

DP: What was the hardest part of being on The Apprentice?

KT: The lack of individual privacy. There are cameras on you 24 hours a day, you're living and working with the same people. You don't have a moment alone. There's no doors to the rooms. You can't take a moment to have self reflection, to look back on the day and evaluate what you would've done differently or what the team should've done differently, what you did right or wrong so that you can move towards self improvement. So that was challenging. Also the lack of sleep -- zero to two hours a night -- and we filmed for two solid months, no breaks, no day off. So it was mentally and physically the most trying experience of my life.

A positive aspect was that [because] everyday I was confronted with my own fear of failure, I [became] comfortable with being unfamiliar with industries, and working on our tasks. I really came face to face with my own limitations and needed to push past them, and find out what I'm made of. Those were some of the really important things that I got out of being on the show.

DP: Did you plan to end up where you are now when you were in high school and college?

KT: There are some people who just know what they want to do, they're just born with it or they have a vision from the time they're small, and I think it's rare. Some people go their entire lives not knowing what they want to do, what their dream job is.

It was sort of a random occurrence and chain of events that brought me to real estate and that got me to The Apprentice, because I never planned on auditioning or trying out. It wasn't part of my plan. I actually went down to the casting call in Miami with a flyer that said "You're hired!" to recruit people for our own company. I figured it would be all these bright, young, motivated people looking for their big break who were going to be there. So I went down there to recruit people, not be recruited.

DP: But did you always plan on going into business and real estate?

KT: I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up. I sort of fell into it and realized it encompassed everything that I enjoyed about business because in real estate you're a business owner. You're basically your own boss. You have to be self-motivated and sales- and commission-driven, you're a marketer, you're a salesperson, you're in a way an educator, and I give seminars all over the country so now I'm an inspirational speaker and I'm writing a book that comes out next spring, called Risk and Win. So now it's led into so many amazing opportunities.

DP: Has being a woman helped your career or have there been any hardships from it?

KT: I don't think being a woman has hurt or helped my career. I guess it can't hurt. Being a woman in business can't hurt, because I think women can get away with certain things that men cannot. We can be flirtatious without being flirtatious because it's in a woman's nature. Women have a different demeanor in business than men do, so I think we can have more lighthearted business interaction, [whereas] men are a little more proper with one another, a little more serious. Really, I think the only challenge that I've run into is my age. When I was first coming into the business I was 23, and I looked like I was 18. Who wants to write an 18-year-old a check of their entire life savings to invest in property? I work with many sophisticated real estate investors, many of whom have been investing a lot longer than I've even been around, so that was the challenge that I ran into.

DP: Are there any other jobs that you wish you could have, or that you feel like would be interesting to try?

KT: Growing up I always wanted to be a journalist, an anchorwoman. I have the opportunity now to go on Fox News from time to time, as a real estate expert, and I am potentially going to be picking up a spot as a weekly reporter in my hometown, so I may still have that opportunity. I'm living my dreams everyday. I [also] always wanted to be a public speaker, an inspirational speaker, and [now] I am ... so I get to do everything that I've always wanted to do, and I'm loving every minute of it.

DP: Did you major in business?

KT: No, I actually got a degree in linguistics.

DP: Has that helped your career?

KT: Absolutely, because it established a sense of world view. I got a degree in something that will help me in no matter what industry, no matter what field I end up in.

DP: Do you have any advice for college students?

KT: Do some soul searching and find out who you are. Figure out what makes you happy in life because if you have a passion or hobby, it can be a career. There are many non-traditional jobs out there; there's not one path that leads to success and your dream job. You never know what corner it's going to be in.

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