Billionaire Jack Ma, the founder and ex-CEO of Alibaba Group, as well as one of the most successful Chinese

nternet entrepreneurs, shares his wealth of experiences! Jack Ma" #he mistake re$retted the most In 2001, I made a mistake. I told 18 of my fellow comrades whom embarked on the entrepreneurship journey with me that the highest positions they could go was a managerial role. To fill all our ice !resident and "enior #$ecuti%e positions, we would ha%e to hire from e$ternal parties. &ears later, those I hired were gone, but those whom I doubted their abilities became ice !residents or 'irectors. I belie%e in two principles( &our attitude is more important than your capabilities. "imilarly, your decision is more important than your capabilities) Jack Ma" %ou cannot unif& e'er&one(s thou$hts, but &ou can unif& e'er&one throu$h a common $oal! 1. 'on*t e%en trust that you are able to unify what e%eryone is thinking+ it is impossible. 2. ,0- of all people will ne%er belie%e you. 'o not allow your colleagues and employees to work for you. Instead, let them work for a common goal. ,. It is a lot easier to unite the company under a common goal rather than uniting the company around a particular person. Jack Ma" )hat does a leader ha'e that an emplo&ee doesn(t* . leader should ne%er compare his technical skills with his employee*s. &our employee should ha%e superior technical skills than you. If he doesn*t, it means you ha%e hired the wrong person. /hat, then, makes the leader stands out0 1. . leader should be a %isionary and ha%e more foresight than an employee. 2. . leader should ha%e higher grit and tenacity, and be able to endure what the employees can*t. ,. . leader should ha%e higher endurance and ability to accept and embrace failure. The 1uality of a good leader therefore is his %ision, tenacity, and his capability. Jack Ma" +on(t be in'ol'ed in politics 1. 2ne should always understand that money and political power can ne%er go hand in hand. 2nce you are in politics, don*t e%er think about money anymore. 2nce you are running a business, don*t e%er think of being in%ol%ed in politics.

2. /hen money meets political power, it is similar to a match meeting an e$plosi%e3 waiting to go off. Jack Ma" #he , main -uestions the &oun$ $eneration must ponder on 1. /hat is failure( 4i%ing up is the greatest failure. 2. /hat is resilience( 2nce you ha%e been through hardships, grie%ances and disappointments, only then will you understand what is resilience. ,. /hat your duties are( To be more diligent, hardworking, and ambitious than others. 5. 2nly fools use their mouth to speak. . smart man uses his brain, and a wise man uses his heart. Jack Ma" )e are born to li'e and experience life! I always tell myself that we are born here not to work, but to enjoy life. /e are here to make things better for one another, and not to work. If you are spending your whole life working, you will certainly regret it. 6o matter how successful you are in your career, you must always remember that we are here to li%e. If you keep yourself busy working, you will surely regret it. Jack Ma on competin$ and competition 1. Those that compete aggressi%ely with one another are the foolish ones. 2. If you %iew e%eryone as your enemies, e%eryone around you will be your enemies. ,. /hen you are competing with one another, don*t bring hatred along. 7atred will take you down. 5. 8ompetition is similar to playing a board of chess. If you lose, we can always ha%e another round. 9oth players should ne%er fight. :. . real businessman or entrepreneur has no enemies. 2nce he understand this, the sky*s the limit. Jack Ma" +on(t make complainin$ and whinin$ a habit If you complain or whine once in a while, it is not a big deal. 7owe%er, if it becomes habitual, it will be similar to drinking( the more you drink, the stronger the thirst. 2n the path to success, you will notice that the successful ones are not whiners, nor do they complain often. The world will not remember what you say, but it will certainly not forget what you ha%e done. Jack Ma(s ad'ice to entrepreneurs

1. The opportunities that e%eryone cannot see are the real opportunities. 2. .lways let your employees come to work with a smile. ,. 8ustomers should be number 1, #mployees number 2, and then only your "hareholders come at number ,. 5. .dopt and change before any major trends or changes. :. ;orget the money+ ;orget about earning money. <. =ather than ha%ing small smart tricks to get by, focus on holding on and perse%ering. >. &our attitude determines your altitude. Jack Ma on entrepreneurship 1. . great opportunity is often hard to be e$plained clearly+ things that can be e$plained clearly are often not the best opportunities. 2. &ou should find someone who has complementary skills to start a company with. &ou shouldn*t necessarily look for someone successful. ;ind the right people, not the best people. ,. The most unreliable thing in this world is human relationships. 5. ?;ree@ is the most e$pensi%e word. :. Today is cruel, tomorrow will be worse, but the day after tomorrow will be beautiful. Jack Ma" #he , don(ts of entrepreneurship 1. The scariest things about starting up is the inability to see, to be snobbish, to be unable to understand what is going on, as well as to be unable to keep up with pace. 2. If you do not know where your competitor is, or o%erconfident and snobbish about your competitor, or are unable to comprehend how your competitor became a real threat, you will surely fall behind him. 'on*t be the ?they@ in this idiom( First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win. ,. #%en if your competitor is still small in siAe or weak, you should take him seriously and treat him as a giant. Bikewise, e%en if your competitor is massi%e in siAe, you shouldn*t regard yourself as a weakling. Jack Ma on startin$ &our own compan& /hat starting your company means( you will lose your stable income, your right to apply for a lea%e of absence, and your right to get a bonus.

7owe%er, it also means your income will no longer be limited, you will use your time more effecti%ely, and you will no longer need to beg for fa%ours from people anymore. If you ha%e a different mindset, you will ha%e a different outcome( if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then be different from your peers. Jack Ma on opportunities If there are o%er C0- of the crowd saying ?&es@ to appro%ing a proposal, I will surely dispose the proposal into the bin. The reason is simple( if there are so many people who thinks that the proposal is good, surely there will be many people who would ha%e been working on it, and the opportunity no longer belongs to us. The article is originally published in Chinese, and is translated into English. If you think this was helpful, feel free to share it with your friends. About Jack Ma" Jack Ma is a Chinese nternet entrepreneur! .e is the Executi'e Chairman of Alibaba Group, a famil& of hi$hl& successful nternet-based businesses! .e is also the first mainland Chinese entrepreneur to appear on the co'er of /orbes Ma$a0ine and ranks as one of the world(s billionaires!Ma was named the /inancial #imes( 1234 5erson of the %ear because he personifies the Chinese internet, referrin$ to him as the 6$odfather of China(s scrapp& entrepreneurial spirit!7!