Quotes from Daymond John

Life is a cruel teacher. She loves to give you the test first and the lesson later.

I started FUBU in 1989 but ran out of money three times and closed it down.

I value an entrepreneur I can get behind and trust, because I know they are attempting to move forward in life.

My parents always taught me that my day job would never make me rich; it'd be my homework.

One of my business partners would remind me that no fashion line lasts forever, that we would hit the down curve eventually, and that we needed to look for new brands that complement the first one.

I've come to learn that my initial investment is more about the person versus the product that I am buying into. I've also learned that I really do enjoy giving worthy people an opportunity of a lifetime.

I like to look at things that have been developed and re-developed over the course of time so I know the bugs are worked out of it. And in the business itself, I like to look at sales, by far. I want to see that there is a vetted track record of sales to show the price point has worked.

Make sure you're doing something that you love, that you're willing to do for the rest of your life. If you're doing it for money, that's the only thing you won't make.

As an entrepreneur, you love your business like a child, and you're taught to be laser-focused on the business.

If I invest in a CEO, I need him or her to have experience in sales.

I consider each business investment based on concept and revenue.

A savvy entrepreneur will not always look for investment money, first.

When looking at trends I always ask myself basic and timeless questions about business, and the one I seem to always come back to is, 'How is this different than anything else in the marketplace?'

Good grooming is integral, and impeccable style is a must. If you don't look the part, no one will want to give you time or money.

I believe the last thing I read at night will likely manifest when I'm sleeping. You become what you think about the most.

I'm the kind of person that when I saw a lack of African Americans in the apparel business, that was something I set out to do, and I lead by example.

Fortunately, right now 'entrepreneurship' is one of the business world's biggest buzz words and so many young people in our country are looking up to this new generation of CEO's as their modern day rock stars. Whenever you have that effect, it makes the job of promoting entrepreneurship much easier.

In the founders, I look for a person I feel is trustworthy, driven and smart. I invest in the person first, because in the event the business fails, the person and I can move forward and create another business.

There really is no shortcut just because you have a name, or you have some kind of access or some way you can solve all the problems. And I think one of the things I learned with FUBU, you have to understand that there's really only two ways of operating a business: more sales, or lower overhead.

Mentors, by far, are the most important aspects of businesses.

I always tried to align myself with strategic partners, friends, and information to help me with the things that I did not know, and ultimately, I made it.

If you don't educate yourself, you'll never get out of the starting block because you'll spend all your money making foolish decisions.

You don't have to work for a big corporation if you don't want to.

I look to work with businesses that know what they are doing but need larger distribution or exposure.