Quotes from Jack Ma

Our focused customers are small business and young people. We did a great job in China. How can we help those young people in India, in Pakistan, in Africa. If they can use in the same ways.

The big businesses are less willing to take risks. I talked to some young people in Hong Kong, and they said they are lost. Young people indeed have fewer opportunities than before. But is it true that there are no more opportunities for them? No!

I tell the government, if people have no jobs, you are in trouble. Government will be in trouble. My job is to help more people have jobs.

If we are a good team and know what we want to do, one of us can defeat tons of them.

If you're doing business, not that simple to only buy. You have to create something. You have to create something that never exist for the future.

In the beginning I just wanted to survive. For the first three years, we made zero revenue. I remember many times when I was trying to pay up, the restaurant owner would say, 'Your bill was paid.' And there would be a note saying, 'Mr. Ma, I'm your customer on the Alibaba platform. I made a lot of money, and I know you don't, so I paid the bill.'

I try to make myself happy, no, because I know that if I'm not happy, my colleagues are not happy and my shareholders are not happy and my customers are not happy.

My job is making money, helping other people make money. I am spending money, trying to make sure more people get rich, because you cannot spend a lot of money, right? So my job is spending money, helping others. This is a headache.

Luck is very important. Of course you can't wait for luck, because it won't come. While you start a journey, luck may eventually come to you.

My job is to help more people have jobs.

If you want to invest in us, we believe customer number one, employee number two, shareholder number three. If they don't want to buy that, that's fine. If they regret, they can sell us.

The competition between me and Bill Gates, probably: Who can spend money more effectively that can do better philanthropy.

The American multinational companies made millions and millions of dollars from globalization.

When I am myself, I am happy and have a good result.

Hong Kong people say Hong Kong needs to preserve its uniqueness. I say Hong Kong's uniqueness is in its diversity, its tolerance of difference cultures... China does not want to see Hong Kong in decline. I have full confidence in its future.

When I graduated from university I tried to buy a beeper, and it cost me $250. My pay at the time was $10 a month.

When we first started our internet company, 'China Pages', in 1995, and we were just making home pages for a lot of Chinese companies. We went to the big owners, the big companies, and they didn't want to do it. We go to state-owned companies, and they didn't want to do it. Only the small and medium companies really want to do it.

A startup for entrepreneurs is like a baby, and I have five babies so far - experienced father.

I think globalization is a great thing. And now a lot of people complain about globalization; a lot of people don't like, you know, the globalize of the concept, the idea of the results. I think the globalization is a great idea and to create a lot of jobs.

Life is so short, so beautiful. Don't be so serious about work. Enjoy the lives.

30% of all people will never believe you. Do not allow your colleagues and employees to work for you. Instead, let them work for a common goal.

Always let your employees come to work with a smile.

We will make it because we are young and we will never, never give up.

Consumption is still going up on Alibaba. This is because when the economy goes down people look online to Alibaba to buy cheaper things.