Top 20 Business Philosophies You Need to Know from Real-World Business Experience

A person purchased a barrel of fine wine and left it in the yard. The next day, only 4/5 of the wine was left, so he put a sign on the barrel that read: 'Do not steal the wine.' The following day, 2/5 of the wine was gone again, so he updated the sign: 'Heavy penalty for stealing wine.' On the third day, the wine was still being stolen, so he added a new sign: 'This is a urine barrel, let's see who dares to drink it now.' On the fourth day, he looked at the barrel, almost crying. It was full again.

The story isn't over yet. On the fifth day, he put the original four words 'Do not steal the wine' back on the barrel. That day, many people cried together.

For business owners, the fear of an unsafe product, lack of status, loss of face, or being inferior to others is real. This is the marketing psychology you need to understand and leverage.

For a typical customer, they seek low prices, gifts, discounts, the chance to negotiate, and the ability to save as much as possible. Understand and capture these two marketing psychologies to your advantage.

A businessman went to a bank on Wall Street to borrow 500 yuan for two weeks. The bank required collateral, so he used his Rolls-Royce, which was parked outside, as security. The bank staff took his car to their garage and gave him the loan. Two weeks later, he returned to repay the loan, with only 15 yuan interest.

The bank staff noticed he had several million in his account and asked why he needed the loan. He replied, 'The parking fee for two weeks was 15 yuan. You can't find a cheaper place to park on Wall Street.'

There are two types of success: One is succeeding at work, and the other is succeeding as a person. If you are not successful as a person, your success in work will only be temporary; if you are successful as a person, then failure is just a passing phase. To succeed at work, you must first succeed as a person.

Churchill once said: 'Success really doesn't have any secrets, but if there are, there are only two: One is perseverance, never giving up; Two is, when you want to give up, reconsider the first one. Nothing is impossible.'

In bowling, there are 10 pins. If you knock down 9 pins each time you bowl, you'll end up with a score of 90. However, if you manage to knock down all 10 pins every time, you will achieve a score of 240. The rules for scoring in society are similar: as long as you are slightly better than others, perseverance will eventually lead to more opportunities.

The more such opportunities arise, the greater the gap between you and others will become.

Zhang San always liked drinking tea that cost 20 yuan. Every time he bought tea from a newly opened shop, the owner would give him half a liang of premium tea as a gift. Zhang San used the fine tea to entertain guests. One day, while relaxing and brewing tea, he decided to try a cup of the premium tea. After enjoying the free, high-quality tea, Zhang San no longer wanted the 20-yuan tea.

No matter how expensive the tea he bought, the owner would always give him half a liang of even better tea. Within six months, Zhang San's tea expenses had increased tenfold compared to before.

A child went to a melon patch with 5,000 yuan to buy a watermelon. The farmer saw the child had so little money and decided to drive him away by pointing to a small watermelon, saying, 'With 5,000 yuan, you can only buy that tiny watermelon over there.'

The child happily agreed and handed the money to the farmer. The watermelon seller, surprised, asked, 'How can you eat this unripe melon?' The child replied, 'I’ve paid for it, so this melon belongs to me. I’ll come back to get it when it’s ripe.'

The young man tells his lover: "I am the best, I promise to bring you a happy life" – This is a form of sales. The young man tells his lover: "My father owns three houses, if you marry me, they will be yours" – This is a promotional offer.

Although the young man does not explicitly express his feelings, the girl is captivated by his charisma and charm. This is marketing. The girl may not know this young man personally, but all her friends have endless praises for him. This is branding.

This famous quote was first introduced by economist Friedman. Its meaning is that even if you don’t pay for the meal, you still have to pay the price for the so-called free lunch. While you're spending time eating, you are missing out on other things. This is the concept of opportunity cost.

If you have 4 apples, don't rush to eat them all. Because by doing so, you will only experience the taste of one apple. But if you give the remaining 3 apples equally to others, you will receive the friendship and goodwill of three different people. People need to learn how to use what they have to exchange for something more valuable and enriching for themselves.

A newcomer in the investment banking field asked, "What is investment banking?"

The senior industry professional took a few spoiled fruits and asked him, "What would you do to sell these fruits?" The rookie thought for a long time and said, "I would handle them by reducing the price to the market rate to sell them off." The experienced mentor shook his head, picked up a fruit knife, peeled and sliced the fruits, cutting away the spoiled parts, turning them into a beautiful fruit platter: "If you do it this way, you can increase the price many times higher than the market selling price."

There are many reasons one could give to justify mistakes or the failure to follow a desired plan. However, that is not a solution, as it doesn’t make you any better since the problem remains unsolved. Instead of searching for excuses, focus on addressing the issue. While solving the problem may not be immediate, you will definitely strengthen your resolve to achieve worthwhile results.

Đôi lúc bạn sẽ cảm thấy mệt mỏi vì các áp lực công việc đến mức muốn bỏ cuộc. Nhất là khi kết quả không như bạn mong muốn. Nhưng không gì có thể giúp được bạn ngoài sự kiên trì. Bạn cho rằng mình đã cố gắng hết sức tập trung hoàn thành nó và nhẽ ra bạn phải được hơn thế, nhưng kết quả lại không phải vậy.

Nhưng đừng dừng lại khi mọi thứ còn đang dang dở, biết đâu cố thêm một chút bạn sẽ thành công. Miễn là bạn tiếp tục thì thành công chắc chắn sẽ đến với bạn.

Đừng để người khác tác động vào con đường kinh doanh của bạn dù đó là điều khó tránh. Vì nếu bạn không tập trung vào việc của mình, với những suy nghĩ cốt lõi trong mô hình kinh doanh của mình thì bạn sẽ mãi ở trong dự định và không đạt được kết quả gì.

Vì vậy, nếu muốn tốt thì hãy bắt đầu gặp những người có cùng chí hướng, có cùng tư tưởng tích cực và có cuộc sống thành công. Lúc ấy bạn sẽ ít bị chi phối bởi các suy nghĩ tiêu cực.

Mỗi thành công lớn đều đòi hỏi những thất bại nhất định. Vì việc trở thành doanh nhân sẽ đòi hỏi rất nhiều yếu tố, không phải dễ dàng và nếu không gặp khó khăn gì thì chắc ai cũng có thể trở thành doanh nhân.

Vì vậy, hãy đấu tranh và đừng bỏ cuộc khi có những khó khăn. Tiếp tục lên phía trước cho đến khi bạn thấy ánh hào quang.

While wealth and money are important, business transactions must be fair and legitimate. Only then can the expenses be justified. Even those born into poverty must follow the right path to achieve wealth. A stable profession is a valuable and lasting asset.

When selling ice cream, it’s essential to start in the winter, as there are fewer customers, forcing you to reduce costs and improve service. If you can survive the winter, you’ll have no fear of competition in the summer. Only by facing difficulties can one truly appreciate the good things in life.

If you want your career to continuously thrive in favorable conditions, you must first endure hardships. This is the Ice Cream Selling Philosophy, introduced by Wang Yung-ching, a renowned entrepreneur from Taiwan.

If you observe travelers around the ages of 30-40, you'll notice that passengers in first class are always reading books, those in business class are mostly reading magazines or working on laptops, while economy class passengers are primarily reading newspapers, watching movies, playing video games, or chatting with others.

At the airport, most people in VIP lounges are reading books, whereas those in general waiting areas are glued to their phones. So, the question arises: Does position influence behavior, or do behaviors shape our positions in life?

A businessman brought two bags of garlic to a place where the locals had never seen it, and they were fascinated by it. As a result, the businessman earned two bags of gold. Another businessman, upon hearing of this, brought two bags of onions, and the locals found onions even more fascinating. They felt that gold could not fully express their gratitude, so they gave him two bags of precious garlic in return.

Though this is just a casual story, it mirrors real life. Those who seize opportunities first gain gold, while those who follow may end up with onions. To pave your own way is the only way to reach paths others have never taken.