Student Question
I’m a 33-year-old divorced man working at a property management company in Suzhou. The work is idle and I lack motivation — it feels completely unsuitable for me. I’m an energetic, quick-thinking person with strong execution skills who enjoys outdoor activities and extreme challenges. I just want to find an industry that suits me better, but I don’t know where to start.
Master Chi’s Response
First, there are three directions to address this problem.
End of the month — taking a short rest, so no lengthy essays today.
Half a year has passed once again, so let me jot down a few concise thoughts. Some points remain unchanged at their core; others have been lightly updated:
1 - A reminder once more: throughout all of 2023 and into early 2024, this is not the time to charge ahead aggressively in your career. Don’t agonize over the future. If you’re not losing ground and you’re holding your footing steady — that alone is something to be grateful for.
Change is arriving far more swiftly than anyone expects.
The murky complexity unfolding to the north right now is, without question, worthy of being called the opening act of the next great global upheaval.
And yet many people’s attention has drifted slightly off-target.
The chaos itself — that’s not what matters.
Being unable to contain the chaos — that is what matters.
Whatever the final outcome may be, even ten or twenty years from now, you will find that countless events trace back to this foreign turmoil, are intimately bound to it — you could even say it is the source.
Student Question: Hello, Master. On the topic of asset allocation — there’s a theory that says don’t put all your eggs in one basket. But in practice, very few people actually do this well. Especially when the economy is struggling, the assets we’ve so carefully allocated still shrink. Does this mean asset allocation itself is a false proposition?
Master Chi’s Response: In fact, when the economy is struggling, there are always people who come through unscathed.
Student Question: Hello Master, I’m 32 years old. For the past few months, I’ve been building a side business — contributing articles to large accounts and magazines, running a public blog, and I’m now thinking about writing a book. My ideal life is to make a decent living through writing, while still having time to pick my daughter up from school, take her traveling, take photos together, and not constantly rely on my parents for help. At my company, I’m a content director, but the internet industry is brutally competitive and overtime is constant — which is why I want to develop my side income.
Student Question
Hello, Master. My background is in trade sales and middle-management operations. I’m now looking to enter the second-hand luxury goods market, but the barrier to entry is the upfront capital required. I don’t have a deep understanding of how to break into this industry or what the key path forward looks like. I’d like your guidance.
Master Chi’s Response
First, this isn’t as difficult as most people imagine. Within our community, there are already members who have built second-hand luxury businesses from scratch. As long as you have sufficient capital and a stable supply source, you can carve out your share of the market.
Student Question:
Master, I’ve been studying investing lately but can’t quite grasp its meaning. I keep chasing price swings — buying on the way up, selling on the way down. What should an ordinary investor really be focusing on?
Master Chi’s Response:
First, don’t fixate on buying cheap.
Buying shares in a mediocre company at a rock-bottom price is far less rewarding than buying shares in an excellent company at a reasonable price. Only excellent companies can deliver long-term, high-quality returns.
Student Question: Hello, Master. What can reading actually do for us? In ancient culture, there were perhaps three answers to this: “a thousand bushels of grain” (千钟粟), “a house of gold” (黄金屋), and “a beauty like jade” (颜如玉). The promise was that studying would bring official rank, wealth, and a good marriage. Of course, these were the aspirations people once placed on education. So what is it that we truly gain the most from reading?
Student Question:
Master Chi, hello. People take action in order to fulfill their own needs. This group encompasses the majority of people — including those engaged in production and business activities, such as running a side venture or starting their own business. For these people, the primary goal when earning money is to generate the highest possible return on the capital they invest — whether that capital is money or time. So when starting a business or a side venture, how does one achieve the highest possible profit?
Most people know about investing. Yet very few stop to examine what investing actually is.
In reality, investing isn’t limited to financial markets. It shows up everywhere in daily life.
Take this example: the time, energy, and money parents pour into their children’s education — that’s a form of investment. Or suppose you’re running a fruit shop and you hire an experienced manager at a premium salary to drive higher revenue. That’s an investment too.