Have you ever felt discouraged when you think about your business’ sales and growth? Do you want to hear something that will inspire you and become the person you want to be?
Hear it from Jack Ma who is the founder of Alibaba. I know that he is not in line with the handmade industry and most of you hate mass-made products especially when they are coming from China, but we can’t deny the fact that he is a very successful online entrepreneur that we can learn from.
Just like most of us, Jack Ma didn’t come from a wealthy family nor from a prestigious university, but he is now the most powerful man in China and the first millionaire from this country which made it onto the cover of Forbes.
Here are a few life advices that Jack Ma is telling his audience during interviews:
1. Customers First Before Competition
According to Jack Ma, everything his business does, depends on the needs of customers. Why? To sustain in the long term, customer satisfaction should be at the crux of your decision-making. “If our customers say ‘Jack you should build more warehouses,'” Ma explained, “We build warehouses. We do it not because there is money; we do it because it is necessary.”
When asked who he saw as Alibaba’s competitor, Ma said he didn’t know. “As entrepreneurs, don’t look at your neighbor Tom as a competitor,” he said. “Do not focus your eyes on the competitor. You are too small to focus on your neighbor or competitor. Focus on your customers. Making your customers happy is important.”
As a matter of fact, for this monster of business, the clients are always first. Second, the employees. Third, the shareholders.
2. Motivate Yourself
There’s no one who can truly inspire you but yourself alone. He’s telling us that we should not get discouraged with what your current condition, how or where you grew up, or what education or training you feel you lack, you can be successful in your chosen endeavor. It is spirit, courage, and resilience that matter more than where you start.
3. Get Out Of The Comfort Zone
If you want to start your handmade business, you may need to give up your stable job. You are at risk of not gaining money from your business. But it you truly believe in what you do then just keep going. Ma said, “Today is very difficult, tomorrow is difficult, but the day after tomorrow is very beautiful.”
4. Think Big
For Ma, a successful business should be global. He believes small businesses should operate internationally to survive in the long term. “If you do not try to globalize your business through the Internet, you may not have a business opportunity,” Ma said. He argued that local businesses will only get more and more competitive. He encouraged small businesses to think about how they could sell products across the world.
In the video below, you will know how he learned English on his own. He was 12 years old and was working every day in a hotel in his city to offer guided tours to tourists in exchange for conversing in English with them. Isn’t that cool?
To watch and listen to Jack Ma, check this video from Motivation Madness.
I hope that this post motivated you. If you are still feeling done, feel free to share your struggles and experiences in the comment box below and we’ll be happy to listen and share our thoughts with you!
Favorite line: “Don’t worry about the money. Money will follow people but people should follow their dreams!”
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