On a serious note, he adds that he needs to be prepared for the battles one is bound to face in life. Outlining the main reason for the survival of his dotcom, after hundreds of similar companies perished as the technology bubble burst this year, Mr Ma says he survived because he was focused. Mr Ma likes to cite lively examples to illustrate his ideas even when he addresses big conferences, captivating his audiences. It's no wonder then that he started his career as a teacher before becoming China's Internet guru. Mr Ma says he is an ordinary man and believes that life is not a bed of roses and tomorrow will be worse than today.
Survival is to live, to live means hope.
He adds that in adversity he finds opportunities. He adds that in adversity he finds opportunities. Before inviting Peter Sutherland to join us, I was walking around this office thinking how to help Chinese companies and foreign companies to come to China. I thought the only person who does is the head of the WTO itself. We made many phone calls and managed to contact him.