Jack Ma is one of China’s richest men, with a current estimated net-worth of $20 billion; this also places him as one of the 50 richest people in the entire world! Ma is better known as the founder of Alibaba Group. Although there are many companies and affiliates related to the group, Alibaba.com is the website that really set the way. If you’re a small business, you may very well be aware of this website as it is the world’s biggest online business-to-business trading platform. What makes Jack Ma so special, amongst many of the other richest men in the world, is his rags-to-riches story and vibrant character. So here are some facts about the billionaire which make him truly inspirational:
Facts
- Ma was born and raised in communist China, and his family didn’t have much money when they were young. He was also beaten by his father growing up.
- In school, he often got into fights with classmates because they teased him for being small and scrawny. However he was never afraid of anyone bigger than him. He is now just over 5 feet tall.
- To learn English, he rode his bike for 40 minutes every day to a nearby hotel so he could converse with tourists. He offered to be a free guide to practice and perfect his English. He did this for 8 years.
- Due to Ma’s circumstances, he felt that the only way he could get ahead was through education. He failed his university entrance exams twice before being accepted by a university that’s perceived as being one of the worst in his city.
- After graduation, he was rejected by dozens of employers in his town, including KFC. He was then eventually hired as an English teacher at a local university, for roughly $12 to $15 a month.
- Ma went on to become a translator after setting up his own company. However he still had to sell goods on the streets to get by. In 1995, he visited the USA to help a Chinese firm recover a payment. Not only did his efforts fail, but the American who owed the firm money pulled a gun on him.
- During his trip to the US, he was also first exposed to the internet by a friend. He was fascinated. He also realised that there wasn’t much data on China, on the internet. With hardly any computing experience at all, he returned home to launch a site called China Pages; a directory of various Chinese companies looking for international customers. This company was a flop.
- Four years after his site failed, he went on to attempt another internet business after convincing 17 of his friends in his one-bedroom apartment. He wanted them to invest in him and his vision for an online market place called Alibaba. They collectively invested $60,000 to start Alibaba. Since then, to put Alibaba’s success in perspective, it now makes more profit than Amazon and eBay combined.
- Ma knows the importance of hard work, but he has always helped create a fun atmosphere at the company. When Alibaba first became profitable, he provided every employee with a can of Silly String to go wild with. He’s also known to get his teams to do handstands during breaks to keep their energy levels high.
- In endless interviews, Jack Ma claims that he still doesn’t know code or understand computers, despite having so much success in technology.
- He is a very humble and down-to-earth character. His friends claim that he is still the same person he was many years ago, with the same hobbies, which include kung fu novels and tai chi. He’s known to wear all sorts of snazzy attire, and he also sang the Lion King theme in front of thousands of employees.
- Jack Ma is often labelled as “Crazy Jack.” This is because of his animated presence and his wild, yet brave goals.
- He is an environmentalist who also cares about medicine and education. As a result he has donated shares to help finance initiatives related to these areas, in China.
“Today is cruel. Tomorrow is crueller. And the day after tomorrow is beautiful.” – Jack Ma
Author: Vex King
I am the founder and owner of the Bon Vita lifestyle brand. I could give myself a title and call myself a lifestyle entrepreneur, personal mentor, writer, designer, innovator, CEO, or anything else I see as fitting. However no title can define me as an individual. I’m just an optimist, a visionary, a philanthropist and jack of many trades. I’m using my positive influence to redefine the creative industries using Good Vibes Only #GVO so that people can fulfil their dreams, purposefully, and enjoy The Good Life #TGL. My daily words of intent are to make people… Think, look & feel GOOD!
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