Two questions that entrepreneurs need to figure out

Guide: Ma Yun once said, entrepreneurs must think clearly two questions: "First, what do you want to do?" It's not what other people ask you to do, it's not what others are doing, but what you want to do. Second, what do you need to do? What to do? Not what you can do. ”

"Deep-concave cheekbones, twisted hair, mischievous grin, a 5-foot-tall, 100-pound urchin." July 17, 2000, Ma Yun became the first mainland entrepreneur to board on the cover of Forbes. From the founder of the Chinese Yellow Pages to the helm of Alibaba, Ma Yun with dreams, commitment and perseverance strung his undertaking. Ma Yun since "a riding on the blind tiger Body of the blind", holding a simply do not understand what will be the mentality of the future, he has survived a difficult time to start a business.

Many successful people's first entrepreneurial projects are not the same as the real big business, Ma Yun. 1991, Ma Yuncheng ("Hopenhagen" transliteration) translation agency, the result of the first month income of 700 yuan, the rent 2000 yuan. The morale shook, Ma Yun alone back up the big sack to Yiwu, put stall sell small gifts, flowers, clothes, flashlight ... Two years later, he not only support the translation agency, but also organized the first English corner of Hangzhou. Ma Yun later recalls, "I thought the translation society must have the demand, should be able to succeed." ”

Opportunity always favors the prepared mind. 1995, Ma Yun because of English ability is very strong by Zhejiang Province Communications Department commissioned to the United States Dunning debt, accidentally contact the Internet in Seattle. Believe that the "urgent, who" Ma Yun identified the internet is a gold mine, after his return, he pooled 20,000 yuan to start the fund to create a network, launched the Chinese Yellow Pages project.

Blind riding the Blind Tiger, Ma said, he is a Blur embarked on the road of entrepreneurship. "After discovering the internet, I was almost ignorant of the technology, so far, my understanding of the computer or stay in the mail and browsing page, I still do not know how to use a U disk on the computer." But it's not important, it's what you dream about. Many people think thousands of ways in the evening, get up in the morning and go the same way, do not take action, you never have the chance to succeed. ”

After the ideal, the most important thing is to give yourself a commitment. 1995 Many people do not know why the Internet, the promotion of the Chinese Yellow pages of Ma Yun by many people as a "liar." It is rumored that Ma Yun's first time on CCTV on the director told reporters, "This person is not like a good man!" "In adversity, Ma Yun reminded himself every day:" The Internet is the impact of human life in the future 30 years of 3000 meters long-distance running, you must run as fast as a rabbit, but also like a turtle run. ”

At the end of 1997, the Chinese Yellow Pages have found a profit model and created a 7 million annual turnover miracle. The Chinese yellow Pages to make China's Yahoo has become the goal of Ma Yun. However, the failure of the joint venture with Hangzhou Telecom announced the disillusionment of this dream. In the end, Mr Ma had to resign to the north and had to be forced to give up all his shares.

"Every blow, as long as you carry over, you will become stronger." Usually the higher the expectations, the greater the disappointment, so I always think that tomorrow will be bad luck, then tomorrow really hit, I will not be afraid. What else can you do but hit me hard? Come on, I can carry it. Ma Yun said afterwards.

"Shadow" Jack Ma and Alibaba

Ma Yun once said that entrepreneurs must think clearly two questions: "First, what do you want to do?" It's not what other people ask you to do, it's not what others are doing, but what you want to do. Second, what do you need to do? What to do? Not what you can do. Ma Yun firmly believes that, "in this world than you can do, than you have the conditions to do a lot of people, but more than you want to do this thing, the world only you alone." "So entrepreneurs not only give themselves a dream, a commitment, but also to give themselves a stick." Alibaba's 13-year entrepreneurial path confirms this.

After leaving the Chinese yellow pages, Ma Yun and his team in Beijing developed the Moftec official website, the online Chinese commodity trading market, such as a series of national-level sites. In this process, Ma Yun's business-to-business thinking gradually mature, February 1999, Ma Yun back to Hangzhou founded Alibaba. At that time, China actually did not have the conditions to do e-commerce: no integrity system, no bank payment system. But Ma Yun and his "18 arhat" that there are infinite treasures inside. As for why Alibaba chose to serve small and medium enterprises rather than large enterprises, Ma Yun played an analogy: "heard of lobster rich, never heard of whaling rich." ”

Ma Yun likes "know person wisdom, self-knowledge person Ming" This sentence, he and ordinary people have love and fear. Ma's entrepreneurial fear is the origin of his entrepreneurial logic.

At the beginning of entrepreneurship, MA is afraid of premature death. Ma Yun has a famous self-reminding: "Tomorrow is very cruel, the next day is very beautiful, but you generally do not live to the day after tomorrow!" "His solution is to sell dreams, sell inside, and sell around the outside." In the words of Ma Yun, "This is a big reason for our survival before 1999, the reason why we live well today is that we always believe in ourselves." ”

Alibaba's original "stronghold" is the 100-square-metre apartment in the Hangzhou Lakeside Garden. The Wall Street Journal reporter who visited Alibaba wrote: "Work day and night, there is a sleeping bag on the floor of the house, who gets tired and goes to sleep for a while." "Forbes magazine Reporter describes:" 20 customer service staff crowded in the living room office, Ma Yun and financial and marketing staff in one of the bedrooms, 25 website maintenance and other personnel in another bedroom. ”

In the words of Ma Yun, at that time Alibaba is basically a "three without" enterprise, no funds, no technology, no plan. "The lesson I learned in those dark days is that you have to maintain the value, innovation and vision of the team." As long as you don't give up, you still have a chance. When your power is small, you have to be very focused, living on your brain, not your strength. ”

8 years later, Alibaba listed in Hong Kong as one of the most valuable internet companies in China. "There are times when luck is important, but the luck comes because of what you believe in, because of what you have promised yourself." Ma said.

Alibaba's success let Ma gradually be put on the altar, although Ma is also afraid to be deified. He said internally: "Sometimes people give you the apotheosis, but God will be stripped off the counter." ”

2011, from Taobao fake storm to "kill" Wei, from Alipay incident to "Taobao injury City" incident, Ma Yun suffered a serial robbery. This time, Ma Yun was grilled a little bit miserable. As the spiritual leader of Alibaba, Ma Yun has borne the most controversy and censure. He even wrote a madman's Diary: "Dark is the day is the night." The Zhao family's dog is barking again. "In the face of personal entrepreneurship in the history of the most vital to date a test, Ma Yun used" do not pretend to do their own "to resolve the dangerous" SpongeBob "crisis.

Since then, Ma Yun showed a retreat from the stage of mentality, he began to transfer power, more hidden behind the scenes. In the outside world, Ma Yun is more like a "shadow control" king, behind the scenes firmly grasp Alibaba all, only in the most critical juncture, such as fire pioneer.

After 2011 years of robbery, Alibaba's values and Mr Ma's idealistic ambitions phased in close to some border bottlenecks. Today's Ma Yun most afraid of the value of the problem, he made the goalkeeper, the company's sense of mission, values as their first stick to things. Ma Yun said, Alibaba's success is because he read the human nature, through a sense of mission, values of good young people to enlarge the good side.

13 years of trials and hardships, Ma Yun said, "The way I am most proud of the things I have not achieved, not to survive, but to resolve every crisis, overcome every setback." "Alibaba's story continues, Ma Yun's record has not been continued."