My big-picture goals were all about creating liquidity by monetizing assets, fund-raising for opportunities on the horizon, and doing great deals. - Sam Zell

In 2006, China was suffering from a dearth of available investment capital. Locals were waving in U.S. and other foreign investors with open arms. As you know by now, I love a market or deal that is starved for investors. It creates an environment where sellers and partners are bending over backward for you. I discovered that advantage over and over in my career, and I’m always on the lookout for that dynamic.

when people live in a balloon, they tend to shy away from the guy holding the needle.

So I wrote an article titled “From Cassandra, With Love” and it ran in the March 1988 Real Estate Issues. Cassandra was a character in Greek legend cursed by Apollo with the ability to make accurate predictions that no one believed.