Not eating the whole fish is not only a principle of doing business but also a principle of being a person

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Let me start with a story. I have told this story to my colleagues and friends many times, and it has had a profound impact on me. ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ In the 1980s, Gao Wenguang opened a small company in Tianjin that dealt in hardware and electrical equipment. By adhering to the principle of delivering even a single box of screws to the customer’s door, the business gradually grew larger over time. The company’s customers are mostly wholesalers who have gradually become lazy; when employees deliver the goods, they are even required to help place them on the shelves, or sometimes the employees are asked to deliver the goods directly to the end-users. In other words, these wholesalers don’t have to do anything at all and can simply earn a profit from the price difference. The company’s employees were very dissatisfied about this, but Gao Wenguang said, “The lazier the customers, the more work we have.” ” Once, another employee was assigned by the wholesaler to deliver goods directly to customers. Seizing this opportunity, he gave the customer his business card and suggested that they order goods directly from him in the future, thereby avoiding the wholesaler and getting a lower price. The customer was very pleased at this idea, and the two reached an agreement right away. The employees happily reported this matter to Gao Wenguang, but to their great surprise, instead of praise, they received a harsh scolding, with it being made clear that no one was allowed to do such a thing again! Everyone was very confused. Gao Wen Guang said, “If you take all the money in the world for yourself and no one else has any money left, then from whom will you make your profits?” ” This is Gao Wen Guang’s business philosophy—not to eat the whole fish. In 2012, Tianjin Wenguang Group had an annual turnover of over 500 million yuan and employed more than 1,000 people. Not eating the whole fish is not only a principle in business but also a principle in life. Some say that wealth is like water; with a cup of water, you can enjoy it all by yourself ； A bucket of water – you can keep it at home ； But if it’s a river, you have to learn to share it with others. In our lives, there are many opposite examples: some people want to have the whole fish, only to end up losing even the small shrimp as well. We are freight forwarders who act as intermediaries between clients and carriers; there are very complex processes and relationships that need to be coordinated in this role. However, some clients only see the simplest outcome: the goods arrive, some procedures are completed before they are shipped, and then they are willing to pay you. Once, a client thought that since the railways were now open, he could deal directly with them, as part of what’s known as streamlining transactions by eliminating intermediate steps. It sounds beautiful, but reality is cruel. As a result, first of all, the funds need to be paid in advance ； Second, all the procedures have to be handled personally, including but not limited to customs, commodity inspection, ports, railways, maritime authorities, shipping companies, freight forwarders, and so on ； Third, special situations arise that need to be handled by oneself, and all the knowledge regarding how to deal with these so-called special situations is the result of years of experience gained through paying countless fees; now the client has to pay again from scratch ； Fourth, all relationships need to be maintained directly. In China, there are still many things that cannot be resolved with money; you understand this. When it comes to professional matters, if they’re not left to professionals, the outcome can only be disappointing. The freight forwarding industry is an amazing one, and there are no fixed procedures in it. I dare say that it won’t disappear nor be replaced by intelligent robots, because the complexity of this industry is on par with the complexity of women’s hearts. Take our main business, the Eurasian Land Bridge railway transportation, as an example: to the left are customers from around the world, with different levels of development, different languages, and different cultural backgrounds; to the right are the railways in China, which are just beginning to be marketized, as well as the Central Asian railways, which are even more characteristic of Chinese railway systems. Is this time difference just five blocks? In this world, the big fish must survive, the small fish must survive too, and the shrimps must also survive; each has its own way of staying alive. If there are no shrimps, how can the small fish survive? If there are no small fish, how can the big fish survive? It’s such a simple principle, but some people just can’t understand it. If one insists on having everything, the result is that nothing is eaten. I will conclude this article with what I consider the most beautiful definition of \"emotional intelligence\": emotional intelligence is the ability to strive for win-win situations. Source: Internet