Written by Jonathan Jackson
Jordan Belfort, America’s most infamous entrepreneur, earned $50 million a year at the height of his powers, but blew it all in a haze of drugs and fraud and spent 22 months in prison. Today, Jordan is a reformed man who travels the global speaking circuit espousing the virtues of transformation and success principles.
Most would know Jordan Belfort as the ‘Wolf of Wall St’. A man who presided over a firm that swindled investors out of $200 million in a shares fraud that landed him in Federal prison at age 36.
There is no doubting the man’s talent as a businessman, yet he will forever be answering questions about his moral integrity. Yachts, planes, women, drugs – stockbroker, in his mind Jordan had it all. As a 31-year-old multimillionaire, he once landed his helicopter on his back lawn, flying with just one eye open because he was so stoned he had double vision. He was lucky not to lose his life; it was the only thing he had left, albeit in tatters, when his excess and greed brought
him down.
Along the way, he managed to provide over $1billion of financing for various public companies, and held controlling stakes in more than 30 of them.
Jordan served his time, is 12 years sober and now a worldrenowned motivational speaker, who assists both people and organisations in breaking through whatever barriers hold them back from achieving success.
His life story is currently being examined by Martin Scorcese, with Scorcese’s muse Leonardo DiCaprio playing the Wolf. Filming is to begin in 2010.
“To be clear, Jordan is more than a cautionary tale,” DiCaprio says. “For all that he may have done wrong he still stands as an example of the transformative qualities of ambition and hard work. In that regard, he is a motivator without peer. I’ve known Jordan for two years and I’ve been in his company many times but there is nothing quite like his public speaking.”
Jordan’s two bestselling books have been published in 43 countries and translated into 18 different languages.
He is a frequent guest-commentator on CNN, CNBC, Headlines News and the BBC.
He’s acted as a consultant to more than 50 public companies, and has been written about in virtually every major newspaper and magazine in the world, from The London
Times to Rolling Stone magazine.
Recently, he told his cautionary tale to an Australian audience, presenting four success principles which could be applied to any business, big or small:
How do these principles apply to business? We take a look at Rob Cecconi’s Sportsnet Corporation which currently has 26 employees and in 2009/2010 will turn over $15 million in sales.
Founded in 1998, Sportsnet Holidays which was founded by Rob was sold to a large travel firm in 2005 who were preparing their company for a listing on the ASX.
Their attempts failed and in 2007, the company was placed in the hands of Administrators. Rob purchased the business and its assets back from the Administrators in March 2007 and has built it ever since.
Rob is a member of the Entrepreneur Organisation, becoming President on 1 July 2009.
Below is how Rob has applied Jordan’s four success principles.
