Alibaba CEO Jack Ma Says If You're Still Poor At 35, It Is Your Fault

Alibaba executive chairman and cofounder Jack Ma has provided a reality check for those wondering why they haven't been blessed with success.

The recently-crowned richest man in China wrote an op-ed claiming that if someone is still poor at 35 years old, that person has no one to blame but him or herself.

Translated from Chinese by Vulcan Post, the article begins with Ma recalling the opposition he faced when he first proposed the idea for Alibaba to 24 of his friends.

He wrote,

After discussing for a full two hours, they were still confused — I have to say that I may not have put myself across in a clear manner then. The verdict: 23 out of the 24 people in the room told me to drop the idea, for a multitude of reasons, such as ‘you do not know anything about the Internet, and more prominently, you do not have the start-up capital for this’ etc, etc.

But Ma soon realized that all he had to do was work his hardest to be a success in his own right.

After accepting that the journey truly is the destination, the 50-year-old never found a reason to stop working or dreaming.

He outlines his four main reasons that people "lose out in life."

Translated by Vulcan Post:

1. Being myopic to opportunity

2. Looking down on opportunities

3. Lacking understanding

4. Failing to act quickly enough

He then writes,

In this world, there are things that are deemed unfathomable, but there is nothing in this world that cannot be done. The depth of one’s ambition determines the potential of one's future.

And if this wasn't brutally honest enough, Ma finishes his piece by reminding readers that being poor doesn't always warrant charity and love from others.

He wrote (translated by Vulcan Post):

• When your family deems you worthless, no one will pity you.

• When your parents do not have money to pay the medical bills, no one will pity you.

• When you are beaten by your competitors, no one will pity you.

• When your loved ones abandon you, no one will pity you.

• When you have not accomplished anything by the time you are 35, no one will pity you.

The article ends with Ma instructing readers to "go big or go home" because that's what being a young adult is all about.

via Vulcan Post, Photo Credit: Getty Images