Hi everyone, I’m Ally
In today’s video, let’s take a look at how to do business according to ancient Chinese wisdom
And let’s learn from the wealthiest man from Chinese history on how he managed his wealth
If you want to become a successful business person, you have to be generous
In ancient China, people used measuring instruments such as Sheng or Dou to sell rice
It looks like this bowl, except it’s much larger in size
So if you want to buy one Sheng of rice, the seller would fill it up all the way to the top and then flatten it to make it even
But then most merchants would add some extra rice on top as a little bonus for the customer
And because every seller would do the same thing, a saying 無商不尖 was created, meaning “all merchants give pointy tops”
This was a common practice, not just among the rice merchants
Textile sellers would give three extra inches after measuring a whole yard of fabric
Oil and vinegar sellers would give an extra spoonful at the end
So giving the customer a little extra, a little bonus has been an industry standard in ancient China
And it certainly helps the business in the long run
There’s obviously no need to stress the importance of this point. It’s also true in ancient China
Chinese merchants believed they would lose luck and fortune if they cheated the customer
and if they dared to do it in large amount, then their lives would end earlier
There were many stories of how ancient Chinese merchants’ sacrifice their own profit for other people’s sake
For example, there was someone named Chen Ce. He bought a mule that can’t be saddled and therefore is useless
Chen didn’t want to sell it to others creating trouble for someone else, so he kept it in a shack to wait for it to die naturally
Chen’s son and business partner, however, covered up the problem and secretly sold the mule to a traveler
When Chen found out, he rushed out and chased down the traveler, explained the situation and took the useless mule back
There’s another story of someone named Zeng Shuqing. He once imported some pots to trade in the north
But a natural disaster just broke out and there’s no way of selling pots in the north anymore
One day a businessman asked to purchase his pots in full. Zeng gave all the pots to him and accepted the money
But before they closed the deal, Zeng asked him, “Where are you planning on selling these pots to?”
The businessman answered, “I’m planning on doing what you were going to do”
After hearing that, Zeng said to him, “How can I not tell you about the situation and help you prevent potential losses?”
So Zeng told him about the disaster in the north and called off the deal, despite him being in extreme poverty at the time
The poet Li Bai wrote a famous line, “A thousand gold coins given away, more will turn up again.”
This is based on the story of Fan Li, a legendary man from the Spring and Autumn period
He is famous in several ways. First of all, Fan is considered as the wealthiest person in Chinese history
He became extremely rich three times, and each time gave away everything he had
But before Fan became a businessman, he first spent 20 years helping King Goujian revive his state
After their victory, he turned down the king’s offer and left empty handed
Fan was then offered to be the chancellor of another state
He only stayed in the position for a short while and then gave away all his wealth and also gave up his title
And after that, he stepped away from government roles and focused on doing business
And again, he reached a thousand gold coins in total assets three times within 19 years, but he gave everything away each time
Fan was not attached to his rank and money. He understood that one can only gain if one is willing to let go
So he used his money to help others. And in turn, money flowed like water and came back to him every single time
Here are some words of wisdom from 2,500 years ago
Confucius said, “Wealth and honor are what people desire; if they cannot be obtained in the proper way, do not dwell in them
Poverty and lowly rank are what people hate; If they cannot be avoided in the proper way, they should not be avoided.”
Ancient Chinese people believed in Gods and karmic retribution
If something belonged to them, it would not be lost even if it was stolen from them
but what they earned in an unethical way would not stay, and would ultimately cost them
What do you think is the most important principle in doing business? Let me know in the comments below
I’ll be making more videos about traditional Chinese culture and universal values so don’t forget to subscribe if you want to learn more
I’ll see you next time!