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"I call Alibaba '1,001 mistakes.' We expanded too fast, and then in the dot-com bubble, we had to have layoffs. By 2002, we had only enough cash to survive for 18 months. We had a lot of free members using our site, and we didn't know how we'd make money. So we developed a product for China exporters to meet U.S. buyers online. This model saved us."
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"The more I come to know about the outside world's perception of China, the more I feel there are all sorts of misunderstandings, and to a certain extent, people do not get the full picture from the media. A lot of foreigners have few opportunities to visit China, and a lot of Chinese people do not have the chance to go to Europe or to the West."
Globalization
"The lessons I learned from the dark days at Alibaba are that you've got to make your team have value, innovation, and vision. Also, if you don't give up, you still have a chance. And, when you are small, you have to be very focused and rely on your brain, not your strength."
Leadership
"As a business person, I want the world to share the prosperity together."
Business Philosophy
"In the beginning I just wanted to survive. For the first three years, we made zero revenue. I remember many times when I was trying to pay up, the restaurant owner would say, 'Your bill was paid.' And there would be a note saying, 'Mr. Ma, I'm your customer on the Alibaba platform. I made a lot of money, and I know you don't, so I paid the bill.'"
Entrepreneurship
"The world is getting so small. Young people are mobile; they want to travel around the world. When you travel around the world, you exchange culture, you want to make friends, you want to exchange things."
Globalization
"I flunked my exam for university two times before I was accepted by what was considered my city's worst university, Hangzhou Teachers University. I was studying to be a high school English teacher. In my university, I was elected student chairman and later became chairman of the city's Students Federation."
Personal Growth
"I want to change history, do something important in my life, and influence individuals like we have with millions of small businesses on Alibaba. Then they love and respect you because you made their life important."
Leadership
"When I was 12 years old, I got interested in learning English."
Personal Growth
"We should keep on going along the path of globalization. Globalization is good... when trade stops, war comes."
Globalization
"I don't think I'm a workaholic. Every weekend, I invite my colleagues and friends to my home to play cards. And people, my neighbors, are always surprised because I live on the second floor apartment, and there are usually 40 pairs of shoes in front of my gate, and people play cards inside and play chess. We have a lot of fun."
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"Everyone has a business idea. But few have a team... and very few a vision."
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Personal Development
"Do not waste your life, in search for a job. Use your special gifts to create work for yourself."
Author Name
Personal Development
"People have come to the erroneous conclusion that if they're not willing to start something separate, world-changing, and risky, they have no business starting anything. Somehow, we've fooled ourselves into believing that the project has to have a name, a building, and a stock ticker symbol to matter."
Author Name
Personal Development
"We all have the DNA of an entrepreneur.Some are building their own dreams.While most are building other people's dreams. Entrepreneurs are Dream Builders. Are you building yours?"
Author Name
Personal Development
"Start lifting your brand off the ground with an excelling mentality becoming best at what you do. You can't afford to be an average person although you may have begun from a level below average."
Author Name
Personal Development
"Convert your fans into your customers by adding value to what you do."
Author Name
Personal Development
"We are all not called to be entrepreneurs but we can all be enterprising in our chosen fields."
Author Name
Personal Development
"An entrepreneur with strong network makes money even when he is asleep."
Author Name
Personal Development
"What is the robbing of a bank compared to the founding of a bank?"
Author Name
Personal Development
"Employment deprives you of innovations."
Author Name
Personal Development
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