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In a conversation rich with insights, Duan Yongping offers guidance for individual investors and startup founders on avoiding common pitfalls by prioritizing "Benfen" (integrity) and “Dare to be the last to act” (敢为天下后), understanding the long game, and resisting the temptation of quick wins over sustainable growth.

Host: Let me introduce today's boss, the creator of two famous brands: Xiaobawang and BBK. He later settled in the United States because he—at around… well, it was about 80 cents, almost a dollar—he bought a large number of NetEase shares and made a net profit of 100 million US dollars, earning him the nickname “Stock God.” We are honored to introduce this boss, Duan Yongping, Chairman of BBK Electronics Industry Co., Ltd. Let’s watch the big screen.

(Video plays)

Host: There were several clips in that introduction that I believe left a deep impression on everyone. You saw several famous figures. What are your impressions of him?

Observer： I think he’s someone who can constantly create miracles, and often creates miracles from the ordinary.

Host: Mr. Hu Haibin, from what angle are you planning to ask questions?

Observer (Hu Haibin)： I should say he’s my senior at university, and also the pride of Zhejiang University. He’s always had a very unique vision. Now, transitioning from an entrepreneur to a capital investor, I’d like to ask about his current situation in the United States and his predictions for the Chinese stock market.

Observer： This question seems tailor-made for Yuan Ming.

Observer (Yuan Ming)： Yes, I’m genuinely interested. Didn’t he just have lunch with Buffett? What did they talk about? I’m very curious. I’m also puzzled. He used Jackie Chan for Xiaobawang’s ads and Jet Li and Schwarzenegger for BBK. Clearly, Mr. Duan has a heroic, dominant air about him—he only works with heroes. But why did he suddenly withdraw from the business world in 2001? Were there any hidden reasons? Did he just stop playing the game?

Host: Okay, we’ll get all of that cleared up. As the saying goes, only the one who tied the knot can untie it. Only he himself can provide all the answers. Let’s welcome, with a round of applause, Mr. Duan Yongping, Chairman of BBK Electronics Industry Co., Ltd.

(Applause)

Host: Hello, welcome Mr. Duan, please have a seat.

Duan Yongping： Hello everyone, my name is Duan Yongping.

Host: You have a very humble demeanor. Have you always been like this, or is it something you’ve cultivated over many years?

Duan Yongping： Well, I’m not sure. When I met Buffett, I felt that his personality was very humble.

Host: I still don’t know what he talked about with Buffett.

Observer (Yuan Ming)： Oh, you want to know the content?

Host: Yes. Isn’t he known for saying that he has money but doesn’t know where to invest it? What should he do? Or what should he do when he has a good project but no money? Are there any answers?

Duan Yongping： I didn’t end up asking that question because he talked about other things, and I felt I didn’t need to ask.

Host: So, what other things did he talk about?

Duan Yongping： For example, he said, “I only want to get rich once.” Meaning, you shouldn’t take unnecessary risks; don’t borrow money. “I only want to get rich once” is a very simple statement. If you borrow money, you might get rich, but then you might suddenly become poor again. Then you might get rich a second or third time, but that second or third time is just wishful thinking; you might not achieve it. So, why do that? It’s the same in business. You need a safety net. Rushing is wrong, but being too slow is also wrong. You need a reasonable pace that you can control—a concept of safety.

Host: Let’s ask Mr. Hu for his thoughts. You mentioned “Fast is slow,” meaning being too fast isn’t necessarily a good thing. Now, stock investors are frantically pouring money into the market, not afraid of high prices, and the pace is very fast—opening accounts is also very fast. What advice do you have?

Observer (Hu Haibin)： First, I don’t want to be a party pooper, but I’ll still tell the truth. If you’re just playing around, that’s fine, but don’t bet your life savings. I can’t say whether the stock market is high or low. If I say it’s high, everyone will be unhappy, although that’s what I truly believe. You should understand.

Host: Let me ask, he just… Mr. Hu just used a phrase that I heard is also one of your online nicknames, is it “Fast is slow”? Is this your nickname? Would you like to explain its meaning?

Duan Yongping： The meaning is “Haste makes waste.” In my business, I’ve always held this view. You’re not trying to do something for a day or two, for a moment of pleasure; you want to run a business for the long term—so-called sustainable operation. It’s a bit like driving a car. If my goal is to reach a destination, and I drive as fast as I can—if my car can go 200 or 300 kilometers per hour, I’ll drive at that speed—that’s very dangerous. I’ve told many people that over the years of driving, I’ve often seen acquaintances on the roadside. Some people might get their cars fixed and you’ll see them again, but some you’ll never see again. This is a metaphor. And we’re talking about a long-distance run, so short bursts of speed are meaningless. If you use a sprinter’s speed in a long-distance run, you definitely won’t finish.

Host: You just mentioned running. Yuan Ming just asked a question: how did you feel like you left the track while running? You just said some friends stopped on the roadside, some got their cars fixed and continued, but you completely left the track in 2001, 2002, suddenly leaving your business and going to the United States.

Duan Yongping： I mainly went to the US because of family reasons. My wife was already in the US before we got married. When we decided to get married, I promised her I would move to the US to live with her. She said, “I’ll help you apply for a green card.” I said, “Okay,” because I thought applying for that takes a long time, many years. After we got married, we moved back to China. I didn’t expect the green card to be approved so quickly. I was really surprised and caught off guard. I wasn’t prepared at first. Of course, I didn’t leave immediately. Later, as our children grew up, we also wanted them to receive education there. We both felt we preferred the education system there, so at the end of 2002, we decided to move.

Host: It’s been almost five years since then. You have a seven-year-old daughter…

Duan Yongping： An eight-year-old son and a five-year-old daughter.

Host: Could you talk about your family? You mentioned your wife, who studied photography. How much time do you spend on family life now? I feel like we’re not talking about a powerful entrepreneur.

Duan Yongping： I go back to China about two or three times a year, staying for about ten days each time. The rest of the time I’m at home.

Host: You three, what did you observe? Mr. Hu?

Observer (Hu Haibin)： I’d say he’s a very responsible person with a peaceful mindset. What he said ultimately shows that he’s very family-oriented. But overall, I feel that you’ve made a lot of money overseas through stock trading, but people really want to see you sell your own shares, meaning BBK. In the current situation, it’s actually a very good opportunity. If you had planned to go public a few years ago, we believe its market value would have been at least tens of billions. I’d like to ask my senior whether you had any plans in this regard a few years ago, and what your plans are now. And have you had any regrets?

Duan Yongping： That’s very interesting. I actually discussed this with Buffett this time, because he asked me about my company’s situation. I ended by saying that our company has always decided not to go public, or decided against going public—it’s the same thing. Buffett didn’t directly say anything, but he told me an example. He said he knew someone (I won’t say who, but you’d definitely know) who was willing to give up half of his wealth to take his company private again. He was indirectly saying that what we’re doing is actually right. Running a business is very boring and dirty. You might be very tired, very stressed, very frustrated, with a lot of repetitive work. I’m unwilling to use the pressure of going public to change the company’s trajectory, because going public can sometimes lead companies to engage in short-sighted behavior. But going public also helps many companies. For example, if you really need capital and you have a great idea but no money, you won’t have the opportunity without going public. So, I think it depends a lot on each individual’s situation. I think things are fine for us as they are.

Host: I’ve noticed something today. Mr. Duan is the only boss who has come to Boss Town and consistently, from the very beginning of the show until now, has referred to “my business” or “my company,” but he hasn’t mentioned the name even once. Did you all notice that?

Duan Yongping： I’m a bit cautious about that on shows. Because this is your show, mentioning my company’s name feels a bit like taking advantage of you.

Host: It doesn’t matter, the show belongs to everyone. If you’re not going to mention your company’s name, you should at least mention mine, right? Just kidding. Let me ask Mr. Liu, what would you like to ask?

Observer (Mr. Liu)： Over the years, I’ve heard him mention two people, besides his wife of course: one is Konosuke Matsushita, and now it feels like his trajectory has gone from Konosuke Matsushita to Warren Buffett. How did this transition happen? Besides the family reasons you mentioned, what were Mr. Duan’s thoughts during this transition?

Duan Yongping： It’s somewhat related to our decision to move to the United States. I thought I needed to find something to do. Later, I read many books and coincidentally came across Buffett’s work. I realized I understood these concepts; reading his work is similar to running a business. So, in my eyes, there’s no fundamental difference between Konosuke Matsushita and Warren Buffett. One is doing it himself, while the other is observing how others do it. You need to provide your products to consumers as conveniently as tap water, while also ensuring quality and convenience. There are many aspects to it. I’ve visited their headquarters, met their former CEO (the current chairman), and saw the characters “素质” (sùzhì, meaning quality or inherent character) there. I guess it’s similar to our company’s “Benfen” (本分), returning to the fundamentals of things, asking what you’re ultimately doing. There are many shared attitudes towards consumers and ideas about products that I resonate with.

Observer： Listening to Mr. Duan’s story, I find it particularly interesting because he suddenly transitioned from an entrepreneur to an investor, seemingly without much connection in between. I’ve been trying to convince myself that because his surname is Duan (段), his life is made up of segments (段 duàn). Really, as you just mentioned, you have a “stop doing list”—things you won’t do. Could you tell me what things you definitely won’t do, whether in your company or in your personal life? Li Zongsheng sings, “Morality is put aside, profit is placed in the middle.” Isn’t there a song like that?

Duan Yongping： Just kidding, one thing is that I don’t lend money to friends. I don’t invest in things I don’t understand. So, if you talk to me about things I don’t understand, I’ll say that unless I can understand them, I won’t touch them. Then many people say that you might miss opportunities. Yes, by the time you understand them, the price might have already gone up. So what? You have many opportunities in your lifetime, but if you try to grab them too quickly, you might fall into a trap. This is the concept of “fast is slow.” So, in my opinion, the most important thing in investing is not losing money, not about grabbing this or that opportunity. Opportunities are always there. Your ability to seize opportunities is limited, and everyone’s ability is different. So, the most important thing is to know what you can do and what you can’t do. The “can’t do” part is especially important. Buffett does the same. Many people ask why Buffett didn’t buy Google, why he didn’t buy Microsoft. For him, he didn’t understand Microsoft’s business; he didn’t figure it out, so he didn’t touch it. There’s nothing wrong with that. Including Google, I remember when I went to his shareholder meeting that year, he kept mentioning Google, but in the end he still didn’t buy it. Why? He still thought it was too expensive. I think there’s nothing wrong with that either, because in his eyes, he didn’t understand the industry well enough. But I know that even at his age, he’s always been working hard to understand things, including how he eventually brought Bill Gates onto his board. I think there’s a connection. Including his being very familiar with Google’s two founders, his understanding of Google is far beyond my imagination. People easily make mistakes. Buffett also said that you might do 99 things right, but one mistake can ruin all your previous accomplishments. I remember someone asked me before what I would do in a crisis. I gave him an example: if I’m driving at 200 kilometers per hour and there’s a wall in front of me, and I’m about to crash, what can I do? There’s nothing I can do; I’m definitely going to die. The most important thing is not to drive that fast in the first place. When running a business, people say, “Faster, faster, crash and that’s it,” but they usually don’t say the last part. Everyone encourages and promotes how quickly someone made money, how fast someone achieved something. Even many people themselves think they can really drive that fast, and they gradually believe their own myths. Sooner or later, something bad will happen.

Host: Isn’t this very similar to your Zhejiang University students? I think they have a strong scientific spirit. I heard that Mr. Duan values seeking truth and innovation, but I also heard that you took the university entrance exam twice?

Duan Yongping： I graduated from high school in 1977. After graduating, there were two opportunities in early and late 1978. The first time I took the exam, I took four subjects, and the total score was over 80 points. The second time, there was about half a year in between, and the average score for the four subjects was over 80 points. I think it was probably during that time that I suddenly understood things, and I also worked very hard. When I went to university, I remember I didn’t even know how to make a phone call. I really hadn’t seen people make calls. I remember when I was in Hangzhou, my uncle was in Hangzhou. I had my uncle’s phone number. I thought when I got to Hangzhou, I was quite depressed in the first couple of days, so I would go find my uncle first. I took the phone number and finally found a phone, but I didn’t know how to use it, because I had a number, but there were no numbers on the phone. Later, I didn’t know who to ask. Luckily, on the first day, there was no one around, but finally someone ran over and picked up the phone and said, “Hello, operator, I need an outside line.” I said, “Oh, so that’s how you make a call.” After they left, I ran over and said, “Hello, operator, I need an outside line.” That’s how I learned.

Host: What moment, you can’t really call it a sudden enlightenment, but perhaps you felt a turning point in your life that led to the Mr. Duan we see today?

Duan Yongping： There were indeed moments of enlightenment. For example, to go back a bit, when I was taking the university entrance exam, I just talked about my experience, and I can still recite “sodium, potassium, rubidium, cesium, francium,” and “sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, aluminum, zinc, iron, tin, lead, zinc.” But after I got into university, I felt particularly lost, suddenly without a goal. I muddled through until the second semester of my junior year, when suddenly one day I had an epiphany. I realized that the reason I had so much fun when I was preparing for the exam was because I was fulfilled and busy every day. Every day I would set goals for myself: I want to do this, I want to do that. And then I discovered that I enjoyed the process, and then I realized that after I achieved those goals, I no longer had that enjoyment. I realized a principle: the enjoyment is in the process. Later, I saw Buffett also wrote that life is actually a journey, you enjoy the process, the places you see, not just the destination. I really had an epiphany about this. Doing business is also related to some of my epiphanies, which is what I just said about doing the right things. If I find something is wrong, I’ll give it up. The first company I worked at in Guangdong still had problems, so I switched to a second one. The second one was Xiaobawang. I actually did quite well there, but in the end I felt that some problems wouldn’t appear immediately. Due to the system, I thought that if I continued in that way, I wouldn’t be able to continue after five to ten years. Since you know you won’t be able to continue after ten years, why continue now? It’s the same with holding stocks. The concept of investment is that you plan to hold the stock for ten or twenty years at today’s price. If you don’t plan to hold it after five years, why hold it now? When people say they’re holding it because someone might buy it tomorrow and they can sell it for a higher price, that’s a different game. That’s not… at least in my eyes, it’s not called investment; I call that a game.

Host: I just have one feeling: in this section, I feel you’re looking for… is it that you’re actually going to do something else? Perhaps you know, but I can’t sense it.

Duan Yongping： I don’t quite understand. Do you think there’s something wrong with what I just said?

Host: No, no, no, no problem. It’s just that this section doesn’t have anything particularly…

Duan Yongping： Because I feel that now is probably the happiest stage of my life, because I’m with my children every day. Although sometimes it’s also annoying when they don’t listen. Some things can’t be measured with money. If I spend one evening with my son, and you offer me 50,000 yuan to spend an evening with you, what are you going to do? I definitely wouldn’t do it. I’m not talking about you specifically, just joking. Because I’ve encountered this kind of situation in China before. Someone called me saying they wanted to talk business and asked to come over tomorrow. I said tomorrow wouldn’t work, because it’s Saturday and I’m spending time with my kids. They said, “What about the day after tomorrow?” That’s Sunday, and I’ve already promised my son. They were very surprised, saying, “I’m talking business, how can you refuse me?” I didn’t know how to answer that. They made me feel like I was their subordinate—like you think your son is more important than me? I thought to myself, of course my son is more important than you. So there’s no need to answer that question.

Host: So this is your overall state. In his life, are those three characters still key? It’s strange. In this episode so far, no one has mentioned these three characters except me, right? BBK (步步高). He hasn’t mentioned it himself, but I have to. Because it’s said that there’s a song, a song specifically written by a Guangdong musician to encourage BBK. Could you tell us the song title? What are the three characters?

Duan Yongping： BBK (步步高).

Host: Oh, finally!

Host: Mr. Duan has shared a lot with us on the show. Now I’d like to invite the three observers to unleash their passion and start asking questions freely.

Observer： Looking back, there are actually many people who run businesses like he did, but some have failed, while others are still persisting and are very successful, but their own destinies haven’t changed much—for example, some very large or collectively owned enterprises. But Duan Ming solved this problem very early, essentially taking control of his own destiny. He's self-employed, not employed by others. Has this period of his life played a very important role for him?

Duan Yongping： Looking back, being your own boss might not necessarily be a wise choice. Everyone’s life priorities might be different.

Observer： For example, if you were to meet Zhang Ruimin now, would you advise him not to be his own boss? Because his current status is still unclear.

Duan Yongping： I don’t want to be too specific. But one thing I just said is that one of the things I’ve realized is that when I find something is wrong, I stop. I’ve told many people that correcting a mistake requires paying a price, but no matter how big the price is, it’s the smallest price you’ll pay. The later you wait, the bigger the price you’ll pay. You just mentioned my change. I think there’s something, including when I was originally in Zhongshan, I thought that when I wanted to leave, I thought if I continued like this, five to ten years later, this wouldn’t be what I was pursuing. Then it would be wrong for me to continue doing this, so I left, no matter how big the price was, it would be the smallest price. Now the facts have indeed proven this. You say I chose to be my own boss; I think it was also a so-called “when conditions are ripe” kind of thing.

Observer (Yuan Ming)： I feel it’s a pity for Mr. Duan. Why? Because Mr. Duan is very sensitive to the industry, and we all know you have very, very strong marketing skills. Your marketing is very successful. With your sensitivity, market acumen, and marketing ability, I always feel that BBK has every possibility, or rather has the opportunity, given China's development in recent years, to become, for example, China's Samsung, China's Panasonic, China's Sony, or even China's Apple.

Duan Yongping： Do you think we aren’t already?

Observer (Yuan Ming)： Of course not. They have core technologies in the industry; they have their own independent innovation that can lead.

Duan Yongping： When you buy something, do you ask this question? Saying is BBK original? I’ll ask you a question. Please tell me what product of Microsoft is original? If you can answer this question, if you can think of a product that you know is original from Microsoft, I’ll pay you. Are you talking about Windows, Office, Word, or Xbox? Everyone thinks about Microsoft. Our company’s slogan is “Dare to be the last to act” (敢为天下后). Actually, the world’s biggest example of “Dare to be the last to act” is Microsoft. No one understands this principle. What has Microsoft done that was done before others? Nothing. We talk about consumer orientation. What original creation? We have a lot of original creations, but we never talk about it, because when you buy something, you don’t care if it’s original. So our company is against simply talking about innovation. We call it consumer orientation. We can’t say that we’re good just because we’re new or different from others. That’s wrong. Why can our products sell well? Why can they be much more expensive than most competitors? Including us (you know, now like our OPPO DVD in the US market, when we are on Amazon, because we only sell online, we are the Amazon Best Seller online, for several months already, always the best selling).

Observer (Yuan Ming)： Thank you, Yuan Ming. You’ve asked a brilliant question that has completely ignited the discussion.

Host: I can now see that Mr. Hu strongly disagrees with his point, absolutely disagrees.

Observer (Hu Haibin)： I partially agree with what you just said, but I strongly disagree with a large part of it. You say Microsoft has no innovation. Microsoft’s Windows, its integration is also a kind of innovation. You can’t say it’s not original, right? A successful technology company should have a lot of forward-looking R&D.

Duan Yongping： Let me tell you a Beijing saying: “Don’t take on porcelain work if you don’t have the diamond drill” (没有金刚钻，不揽瓷器活). Do we have forward-looking vision? We do. If we didn’t, I wouldn’t be here today, right? What is forward-looking vision? It means you must first know who you are. What does “Dare to be the last to act” mean? It means when we look at a market, first, because of the product, people in business know very well that the hardest thing is product education. So, if I think this product is good, and I have to educate people to also think it’s good, a company like ours simply doesn’t have the ability to do that. But if I were, for example, Panasonic or Philips, I might have to do it, because if I don’t, there’s no opportunity.

Observer (Hu Haibin)： But what I want to say is this: because you just said that after your research, why doesn’t BBK go public in China? Because if you go public, you would have more money to do your original creation, your R&D investment.

Duan Yongping： It’s very simple. There are many listed companies in China. There are many listed companies that make home appliances in China. They might not even have as much money as I do. That’s one. Second, among our similar products, give me an example of who does better than us? They are all listed companies. If your logic exists, then they must do better than me and would have defeated me a long time ago, right? You can give me a counterexample.

Observer： May I ask if your goal is those consumer electronics companies in China, or companies like Samsung and Panasonic?

Duan Yongping： We don’t differentiate.

Observer (Hu Haibin): The core question we’re raising today, Senior, is that you completed your initial wealth accumulation faster than our generation of Chinese entrepreneurs. You’re an outstanding representative of the wealthy. So, as an entrepreneur like you, the issues you consider should be more far-reaching than others. Your vision should be global, and perhaps our expectations of you are higher. The questions I’m raising today are also…

Duan Yongping: The problem is that I’m already in this situation, but you’re insisting that I’m not.

Observer (Hu Haibin): But I believe that you’re wealthy now, but your current investment in core original technology is insufficient.

Duan Yongping: Our development capabilities are very strong. How strong? So strong that for any product we enter in China, we eventually achieve a leading position. When we first entered the mobile phone market, we faced very powerful competitors. I wouldn’t dare say that we could compete with Nokia or Motorola in three to five years in that market, but I believe that if you give us five years, if that market still exists, we can definitely do quite well. They are indeed very powerful, but what we can do is focus on a certain area and leverage our advantages. This is what Chairman Mao taught us: “Concentrate superior forces.” This is our strength. For example, when you first come from the countryside, without much education, you go to a company and see those engineers as high-level white-collar workers, and you feel unwilling to accept it. You say I won’t work on the production line anymore; I also want to be a white-collar worker. You can’t do it. You’re just a processor. You have to face reality. But facing reality requires a lot of courage. In business, if I have to say something to everyone, I think the most important thing is that if you want to think long-term, you must first survive. Survival is more important than anything else. You say I want to do something exciting today; that’s easy. For example, I see some merger cases in our company that lose a lot of money. Some things are precursors. We… and many people even scold me, saying I’m a jinx, that I predict people’s demise when they actually die. What was my view at that time? There are things I don’t understand, including this, I don’t want to give specific examples.

Observer (Hu Haibin): But at least one thing, I believe that you’ve made money in the US in recent years, but you haven’t seized the opportunity of the Chinese capital market to develop and expand BBK beyond imagination. As we see it, we still feel a bit regretful. Do you feel this way?

Duan Yongping: I think there are some tendencies in our culture toward being eager for success and seeking quick profits. Our company is doing better than when I was there. Our company’s core values, our most important principle, is what we pursue is “healthier and longer-lasting.” Notice that we didn’t say “bigger.” In 2000, you mentioned the person from Yazhou Zhoukan (Asia Weekly). He interviewed me once and asked me that fifty years from now, if there’s a headline in a media outlet or newspaper about our company, what would you most hope that headline to be? Can you guess my answer? I said any news would be fine; that would mean I’m still alive. Five years from now, I believe our company will still be alive. I can survive. For example, you talk about going public. I see that they raised some capital by going public. To be honest, I don’t need it at all. I have plenty. I have much more money than what they raised. You talk about pursuing a Fortune 500 ranking. That’s not my goal. And think about it simply: there’s a saying in Silicon Valley: “Small is beautiful.” It means small isn’t necessarily bad; it can be good. I myself also say “Fast is slow.” Some people also say “Less is more.” For me, we use what we call the “focus principle,” which means you can’t do too many things. You have to focus on certain areas. So I think some understanding of business is something you have to realize yourself.

Host: Today’s train of thought is quite clear. We all understand that many things can’t be done, right, Yuan Ming?

Observer (Yuan Ming): My question is actually quite simple. I don’t know in China’s large business landscape, how many companies like Mr. Duan’s, like BBK, that don’t pursue building skyscrapers from the ground up, are there? Is he considered an outlier? If he is an outlier, is it because the competition in his industry is very fierce, and many people have fallen, like Aido and many others, he survived, so he has today? Or is it because his personality led his company to be this way? Is there anything we can learn?

Host: Let me ask you, do you think I’m an outlier?

Observer (Yuan Ming): I don’t know. In your industry, you can survive until today, what have you learned? Is it your personality that shaped your BBK like this? Is that so?

Duan Yongping： I personally think the most important thing is rationality. I remember when I went to CEIBS (China Europe International Business School), in the first class, Dean Zhang (he has passed away now) said that there was a statistic that among all these successful CEOs, there was one biggest commonality: integrity. And then you can have all kinds of personalities, and you can still run a successful business. So personality is definitely not the only factor determining your success or failure. For example, like developing this thing, Mr. Hu just mentioned, do you know how much our company’s turnover is? Think about how much R&D funding a company like Panasonic has each year. Their annual R&D funding might be higher than our annual turnover. They have accumulated for decades. You say we don’t have core technology; if we did, that would be a miracle. They wouldn’t have worked for nothing, right? So it’s normal not to have it.

Host: You are an outlier because you spoke the truth. You are an outlier.

Duan Yongping： But the things I’ve come into contact with, for example, why do I read Buffett’s work and feel comfortable? Including when I send him emails, I tell him what I’ve learned from him, which is when I buy a stock, it’s like buying the entire business.

Observer (Yuan Ming): If you use this mindset to face what you want to buy, then it might be right, right? But you did one thing that’s unrelated to ability. There are many people more capable than you who didn’t do it.

Observer (Yuan Ming): Mr. Duan did a very good thing, which is that he and Ding Lei of NetEase raised 40 million US dollars for your alma mater. My question is, I don’t know when you had lunch with Buffett, did you ask him such a question?

Duan Yongping： I didn’t have too much exchange with him about that, because I was thinking, if you keep making money like this, money is actually a trouble for a person. Of course, there are different stages. In the beginning, you desperately need money for your personal life, but once you go beyond that range, money will definitely become a trouble. If I want to give this trouble to my children, I think I would be doing them a great disservice. First, they might… you see how many纨绔子弟(wánkù zǐdì, playboy sons of rich families) come about this way—very rich. So I have to solve this money problem, right? I also can’t wait until the very end, or if I accidentally die in a plane crash—of course, “not would,” it’s best if that doesn’t happen. If something like that happens, you would regret in that instant that you still have many things that haven’t been handled well. We actually started handling these things very early, including that our foundation was established very early, and our wills were also written very early. How many people my age in China write wills? I don’t know. Everyone thinks they’re immortal. But you have to bravely face reality. You will leave one day, no matter which day, and before you leave, you have to handle these things. My feeling is that making money is a kind of enjoyment, but the money I earn is a trouble for me, but if I can use this trouble to help others, then it’s a good thing. Some people say this is a noble thing; I don’t think so. I’m solving my own problem. I’m giving my problem to you, and you’re still very happy. That’s a good thing. And everyone should be clear about the foundation’s money. It’s not my money. Just like many people say Bill Gates has so much money. That’s wrong, because the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s money isn’t Bill Gates’ money; it’s the foundation’s money.

Host: Here's the chance for questions from the audience. Who wants to ask a question?

Observer: Mr. Duan, in a previous interview, you said that you were optimistic about China's A-shares market and had bought a large amount of Vanke stock. You just mentioned “playing around.” So, I’d like to ask if you’ve started reducing your holdings? Thank you.

Duan Yongping: First, I never said I was optimistic about China’s A-shares market. I only said I bought Vanke. This is a very big difference. Second question… Hypothetically, if Buffett were in mainland China, how would he operate or invest in the current A-share market?

Duan Yongping: I don’t know. But I know that before Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett himself organized a partnership to invest in a company specifically for investment. Then one day, he said to everyone, “Brothers, I’m not playing anymore.” So he disbanded that company. Three years later, it proved he was right. If you’re interested, you can look up this history. And then later he founded Berkshire Hathaway, which is his current listed company. His previous one was unlisted, entirely composed of a few people privately. Everyone was friends, and everyone thought he was great, so everyone gave him their money and let him manage it. He did it for many years—I forget how many—and made a lot of money. One day he said that this was no longer the game he wanted to play. I don’t know if I’ve answered your question.

Host: Only the person drinking the water knows whether it’s hot or cold. I believe those who understand will understand. Okay, good. I’ll ask the three observers to give their concluding remarks for today, or even ask more questions if you’d like. Let’s start with Mr. Liu.

Observer (Mr. Liu): I think he should be the one who understands freedom the most. Perhaps in the beginning, he used money to solve the problem of freedom, because there’s such a thing as financial freedom. And then he ultimately uses charity to solve the freedom from money. They seem like different things, but the result is the same. They’re all for… This is my interpretation, but he can’t achieve freedom from life itself.

Host: Okay, that’s a discussion. Let me hear from Yuan Ming.

Observer (Yuan Ming): I feel Mr. Duan is quite interesting because he lives his life very well, in segments. Mr. Duan Yongping, Yongping, what do you hope he is?

Duan Yongping: You say life is in segments. I can tell you that my son’s name is Duan Kaiwen. When we named him, the original meaning was “Kaiwen’s segment.” Actually, life is a segment, but it’s one complete segment.

Observer (Yuan Ming): How do you explain the three characters “Duan Yongping” (段永平)?

Duan Yongping: That’s very interesting. This question… Yongping shouldn’t be interrupted, right? It feels like it’s divided into “segments of peace.” There will definitely be many stages of development. Although it’s segment after segment, overall, it’s still about being safe and sound (平平安安).

Host: I don’t know, because there’s another question to ask the older gentlemen: about being “not perplexed at forty” (四十不惑). What are some insights after passing forty?

Duan Yongping: There’s nothing particularly special. I feel I’m realizing things every day. So I think everyone should cherish their process. When you say whether you should pursue results, whether you should have goals: yes, you should. Without goals, there’s no process. But when you reach a goal, you must find the next goal. If you don’t, you might start feeling depressed again.

Host: We can pass this message on to all the viewers of Boss Town. Today, we have three observers here. We want to ask one thing: can you guess who Mr. Duan Yongping admires the most?

Observer: I think he probably admires himself.

Host: That’s your feeling? Liu Jian?

Observer (Liu Jian): His wife.

Host: Can you reveal if there’s anyone you admire in business?

Duan Yongping: They’re both right. I definitely admire my wife; otherwise, I wouldn’t have married her, after chasing her for so long. In investing, I indeed admire Buffett. In golf, I admire Tiger Woods. I’ve even played golf with Tiger Woods. For example, I admire Konosuke Matsushita. When doing business, I learned a lot from him.

Host: Then we don’t have a mystery to guess. Everyone doesn’t need to ask questions, okay?

Duan Yongping: I’m very afraid of having to say “most,” having to be like, “the only one.” I get dizzy when that happens, because that’s not really the case; I don’t have that.

Host: What would you like to say to all the so-called young people who aspire to success?

Duan Yongping: There’s no shortcut to success. You must put in the effort you should. Not getting results is sometimes due to fate, but the most important thing is to enjoy the process. Even if the results aren’t always as good as you imagined, I hope everyone won’t be too disappointed. And everyone is still very young. Since you just said they are young friends, then you still have plenty of opportunities, so don’t be too anxious.

Host: There will undoubtedly be people in front of the TV who want to ask you, “Which stock should I buy?” What would you like to answer them?

Duan Yongping: If you’re just playing around, buy whichever you want, as long as you can afford to lose.

Host: If this episode later becomes a DVD that you take home for your wife to see, what would you like to say to her now?

Duan Yongping: I love you, Baby.

Host: Do you want to leave a message for your son and daughter today?

Duan Yongping: Dad always says he won’t leave all the money to his children, but of course, it’s not that there won’t be anything at all.

Host: So why not leave all the money to them?

Duan Yongping: I hope they can eventually understand, be understanding, be able to appreciate, and be able to comprehend.