Permanent Dissatisfaction as Fuel

“He has retained the tone of his young man's voice. Who suggested that dissatisfaction is the essence of talent? He remembers Thomas Mann making his hero Gustav Aschenbach say this in Death in Venice.”

“Until his removal from the executive presidency of insurer Generali in April 2010, he held a record of longevity at the head of one of Europe's most prosperous financial groups, founded in Trieste in 1831 and which counted writer Franz Kafka among its fleeting employees. An inveterate bridge player, the man is as complex as his career is atypical.”

“Therefore, people often talk about how Wang Chuanfu still lives in a two-bedroom, one-living room apartment in Kuiyong Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen, drives an old Lexus, and his only valuable possession is an Adidas sports watch, which accurately tells him whether BYD's global institutions are operating during the day or night. Wang Chuanfu is a low-profile person in the auto circle. For most people, the satisfaction derived from self-actualization far exceeds the modest personal enjoyment of "eating well and using good." This former farm boy from Wuwei County, Chaohu, Anhui, fears nothing more than mediocrity.”

“In the Chinese business community, there are many mavericks who have “automotive dreams.” For example, the astonishing Geely Auto President Li Shufu, who is always the center of attention wherever he goes; and the humorous and witty Chairman Yin Mingshan of Chongqing Lifan, who always brings laughter before he even arrives. Only Wang Chuanfu has consistently been silent and stable like an "invisible person." He is not tall, and he walks very quickly. Like most of China's private entrepreneurs, Wang Chuanfu likes to work late into the night. He even has never been to the top of Huangshan, although it is very close to his hometown. Wang Chuanfu said: “I didn't go before because I didn't have the money, now it's because I don't have the time.” When chatting with others, Wang Chuanfu prefers to talk about cars. About himself, he often sums up this way: “I think I still have some adventurous genes in me.””

“The strong impression of the founder of Giordano It's not just the youth. When dealing with Asian businesspeople, a fervent hunger to grow more and become wealthier comes through. In essence, they're hungry. Hence, the forcefulness with which they engage in their work is completely different, regardless of their abilities. The impression I got from Mr. Jimmy Lai, the founder of Giordano, a SPA (Specialty store retailer of Private label Apparel) I met while working in Hong Kong, was intense. Giordano not only produced its own products but also subcontracted for Limited, which used to be the world's largest SPA. What surprised me was the volume of their production, they produced as much as 300,000 pieces for a single item. When I asked Mr. Jimmy Lai about his background, he said that he had swam from mainland China to Hong Kong, an illegal entry so to speak. However, he did not consider this a disadvantage. Instead, he started a business entirely on his own and went on to become wealthy enough to drive a Rolls-Royce. To put it simply, this man has extraordinary vitality. Everybody in Japan is surprised when I tell this story, but if you go to China or ASEAN, you'll encounter as many people like Mr. Jimmy Lai as you want. That's the reality of rapidly growing Asia.”

“Moreover, it is not just the number that is significant. Just as the Japanese people, who dreamed of a prosperous life after the war, sought after the 'Three Sacred Treasures' of television, washing machines, and refrigerators, these four billion people are hungry for prosperity. Their desire to consume is incomprehensible to today's Japanese.”

“By his own account, Masa enjoyed his early childhood, playing hide-and-seek in the haystacks and fishing in the local Daigi river. His first encounter with overt discrimination left a scar, both mental and physical. One afternoon, on his way home from kindergarten, Masa was attacked by Japanese kids taunting him for living in the Korean ghetto. One threw a stone which struck his forehead and drew blood. It was a moment of humiliation but also self-realization: Masa spoke Japanese and he had inherited a Japanese name (‘Yasumoto’), but he was still a pariah.”

“Masa suffered hardship in those first five years, but it was nothing compared to the suffering of his parents’ generation. Their sacrifice was a powerful motivating force for the young boy, leaving him with a profound sense of obligation. Whatever he accomplished in life, however much money he made, he felt he could never erase the debt he owed his parents and grandparents.[14](private://read/01jg9b8njt7zc5haz30afb9n29/#ch02_14)”

“The business that is satisfied with itself—with its product, with its sales, which looks upon itself as having accomplished its purpose—is dead. The actual burial may be postponed; but it is dead because it is not going forward. To my mind, nothing can ever be good enough; I am always dissatisfied; I preach dissatisfaction. I can always see where something might be better; and therefore our business is never at rest—and I never want it to be. The throbbing heart of business is the intense desire to do better. When that desire ceases, the heart stops beating.”

“Yet our culture is one of never being completely satisfied with our results, and we are always looking to do better. We are operating in a rapidly shifting environment where volatility and uncertainty are here to stay, and where consumer trends and habits are changing at an ever accelerating pace. We must therefore be nimble and quick to anticipate new tastes, demands and behaviors, by nurturing a start-up mentality despite being a top-five consumer goods company. We must promote out-of-the-box thinking to bring consumers what they truly want today, tomorrow and in the future.”

“What drives entrepreneurs like Wild on? I have identified this in my book because once an entrepreneur is satisfied with what he has achieved, he stops wanting to become better. Set bigger goals! I referred to this with the term "productive dissatisfaction". Wild calls it "constant dissatisfaction", "when an entrepreneur is not satisfied with what has been achieved, but is always in search of new challenges".”

“Winners live in the future. Every entrepreneur must be future-oriented. But the direction he takes, and the measure of his success, depend not least on the size of his goals. Wild writes that he actually lives in the future: "My thinking, my commitment, my investments had and have distant goals in sight. These are concrete goals that are supposed to make our future safer both in the company itself and beyond."”