Two people with the same box is a rare
Editor’s note: This article comes from the WeChat public account “Investment circle” (ID: pedaily2012) . p>
Original title: “Just now, Sequoia Shen Nanpeng and Heishi Shi Shimin’s rare dialogue” p>
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This is a rare scene in the global venture capital circle-On April 23, Sequoia Capital Global Managing Partner Shen Nanpeng and Blackstone Group Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO Steve Schwarzman were on Douyin. There was a peak conversation through the video connection. p>
As Yale alumni, the two top investors discussed the new changes in the global economic situation, how to adjust corporate management and investment strategies in the current environment, and the issues of life ideals and career choices that young people care about today. , The frequent golden sentences on the scene are thought-provoking. p>
It ’s rare that the two are in the same frame. For the first time, we excerpted some of the wonderful viewpoints for readers. p>
Shen Nanpeng: p>
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To talk about the secret of our success in China over the past 10 to 15 years, it is that we continue to “strengthen China.” Now is the time to reinvest in China in many industries. p> li>
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Digital technologies, including the Internet, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things, are transforming all aspects of China ’s service industry and manufacturing industry. In the context of the New Crown Epidemic, these transformation processes will be further accelerated. p> li>
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Many leading companies are able to overcome their difficulties because they continue to grow bigger and stronger in their respective industries. Even in the face of the “darkest moment”, they can take the initiative to gain a higher market share. p> li>
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Young people should have a sincere heart for what you really love, and choose to enter an exciting industry-this industry has good development prospects not only in the short term, but also in the medium and long term. p> li>
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Following the wind in a growing industry is definitely much better than going forward. p> li>
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For young entrepreneurs, I suggest that they focus on the survival of the company during this extraordinary period. Straightening the company’s cash flow is the only way to ensure the company’s survival. p> li>
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Companies should focus on products because the crisis will always pass. Really differentiated products can make you appear in the market with a stronger attitude after the storm. p> li>
ul>Su Shimin: p>
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After coming out of the economic downturn brought about by the epidemic, China is likely to be the strongest growth country in the world. p> li>
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When you see the general trend, you must act boldly. If you move ahead of the megatrends, your probability of success will increase greatly, because at this time, most people will be scared to do nothing. p> li>
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You ca n’t control what everyone does, the only thing you can do is teach them good values. p> li>
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If we want to recruit people, we must recruit very smart people. We must recruit honest and upright people. We firmly believe in high-level cooperation. I believe in a zero-defect culture, which means you can make mistakes in your judgment, but you can never make mistakes in your work. Work must always be accurate. The work that leaves your desk and is handed over to others must be perfect. p> li>
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Blackstone has 500,000 employees, but I have always regarded it as a small and micro enterprise. p> li>
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Blackstone ’s culture is not to have bystanders. If you are present, you must speak. You must say your own thoughts, not the thoughts of others. p> li>
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In Blackstone, even if you are only 23 years old, the information you have is no less than that of senior company employees. We strive to treat everyone as the most important person in the company. This is a very American style, very flat, not vertical. p> li>
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When you treat very talented people as extremely important people, they will devote themselves wholeheartedly to the interests of the company, because their thinking is unified with you. p> li>
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Each of us has something we love and are better at. If you stick to your talented field, you will find that your life will be more successful. p> li>
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The following is the content of the translated dialogue, which is presented in an original way: strong> p>
After the epidemic, Where will China and the world economy go? span>
h2>Shen Nanpeng: Good evening. I think we should first talk about the overall economic situation. Mr. Su, what should we do to help the global economy resume growth and help people regain confidence after this new crown pandemic? p>
Su Shimin: The economic situation we are seeing is unprecedented. Countries around the world have previously put forward demands to shut down economic activities to curb the spread of the new coronavirus. And now is the time, just as China has controlled the epidemic, to restart economic activities. I think there are a few things that must be done. p>
First of all, people are sometimes afraid of returning to work, fearing that they will be infected with viruses from others. Therefore, especially now in Western countries-China may have experienced this stage-what we need is a large-scale virus detection. If you know that there are no problems with the people around you, then you can also know that you will not be infected with the virus. Therefore, I think countries will redouble their efforts to ensure that the amount of testing can be significantly increased. If it can be done, people can resume work faster. The recovery will not be very slow, but much faster. People will be more confident, and they will be able to return to their normal lives. Therefore, I think the inspection work is very important. p>
Second, the recovery of Western countries will be later than that of China. At least in Western countries, it will take a year to a year and a half to make breakthroughs in the treatment of new coronary diseases or to finally develop a vaccine. Therefore, for the world, if it is a year to a year and a half, people do not have to fear at all. They should return to work. The recovery process will not be smooth, because all sectors of the economy cannot resume work synchronously and achieve the same results. If we can speed up this process, the world will be better off. p>
China is already at a different stage. China has launched a strong anti-epidemic work. However, this morning in the US, China reported that China ’s economy fell 6.7 percentage points (actually 6.8%) in the first quarter. As far as anyone ’s record is concerned, this is the first time the Chinese economy has experienced a downturn. Therefore, people should regard it as the bottom and a great opportunity for China’s economic growth in the future. p>
Shen Nanpeng: Some countries are planning to move their production and supply chain back to China. What is your opinion on this? Does this indicate that the world is going against globalization? how are youLooking at the direction of the future development of the world? p>
Su Shimin: I think this is not just a statement about globalization. I think what happened is that many companies have experienced serious misalignment in their ability to obtain product supply from China, because China is the manufacturing capital of the world. I know a boss in the fashion industry. He said, “My supply is 100% from China. I can’t get anything now-my company is going to go bankrupt because I can’t get it at all.” p>
Therefore, once this situation has been encountered, and it has nothing to do with government directives, ordinary businessmen will say that I can no longer concentrate my risk exposure in one place-no matter what country-I You must diversify your supply chain. I think that people from all over the world have learned this lesson, not necessarily against China. p>
Maybe other countries that closed their borders. Closing the border was definitely the first time in my lifetime. Except for the World War, it was the first time that the supply could not be obtained from other countries. Therefore, the effect it brings is that it awakens almost every businessman. At least they need to re-examine their supply chain status. At present, I think what may happen is that instead of withdrawing existing business, it is better to say that incremental business may return to more places closer to the country. Because businessmen from all walks of life are saying, I just do n’t want to concentrate all business in one country. p>
Shen Nanpeng: Do you think that whether it is an industry or a country, it should obviously strive to optimize its supply chain and avoid excessive concentration? This is the most beneficial to the country and industry. p>
Su Shimin: Yes, I think so. But even so, those highly competitive countries, such as China, will still be in an advantageous position. The only question is, how much share will they occupy in the supply chain in the future? Of course, some countries have shifted production to China to meet domestic consumption in China. After coming out of the economic downturn brought about by the epidemic, China is likely to be the strongest growth country in the world. Therefore, China’s economy has natural development advantages, and these advantages continue to be internalized. p>
Shen Nanpeng: I agree. Obviously, China has many huge advantages, such as in terms of industrial layout. p>
Su Shimin: In understanding the Chinese market, you are the top investor in the world. Regarding investment opportunities in China, which industries or regions do you think are more interesting? I can also learn from it. p>
Shen Nanpeng: Thank you. Blackstone is very active in China. Over the past 15 years, we have been investing in China and have experienced several economic cycle ups and downs. Many leading companies are able to get out of trouble because they continue to grow bigger and stronger in their respective industries. Even in the face of the “darkest moment”, they can take the initiative to gain a higher market share. p>
I think the same is true for investors. The current environment actually provides us with some great opportunities for us to support those long-distance champions in various industries. To say the past 10 to 1For 5 years, what is the secret of our success in China, that is, we continue to “strengthen China”. Now is a good time to reinvest in China in many industries. And I think China clearly has many attractive investment themes, the most important of which is around technology and innovation. You also know that digital technologies, including the Internet, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things, are transforming all aspects of China’s service industry and manufacturing, and in the context of the new crown epidemic, these transformation processes may be further accelerated. p>
In China, the public health system will be further upgraded. The health care industry is expected to grow faster, as investment from the private and public sectors will increase. This will cover vaccines, innovative drugs, medical devices, medical services, etc. In the broader life and health field, we will also see many new innovations and growth. p>
Uncertainty rises, how should entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs act? span>
h2>Shen Nanpeng: Let us now come back and talk about your book. You talked about a lot of content related to core values and cultural concepts. So, what core values are necessary for successful entrepreneurs? How should entrepreneurs respond to the environment that is now apparently increasingly uncertain? p>
Su Shimin: I think that in the process of working with entrepreneurs and starting your own business, you must also realize that there are some core values. The first is that you must be able to withstand a lot of frustration and suffering. You have to have a very strong psychology, stable emotions and huge energy, because you will continue to encounter setbacks. p>
Second, you need to learn from your mistakes and debug yourself. People make mistakes, but most people who make mistakes may pretend that these mistakes never happened. They do not analyze the mistakes made. They will not analyze errors, find the crux, and avoid making the same mistake again. I think this is another core value that entrepreneurs should have. p>
Again, there is a dream worth pursuing. Just imitating what others are doing, yes, but it is not enough for having a great dream. Therefore, I think that entrepreneurs need to look at the world and think about how to make better use of their talents to create things that do not yet exist, but will be rushed by others if you break them. p>
Another core value, or core competitiveness, is that entrepreneurs generally have to be persuasive. They must be able to convince customers, suppliers, and others to join their team. Therefore, it is difficult for an entrepreneur to succeed alone. They must allow all these parties to form a system. They must understand the ways and means of dealing with others. So, these are the values I mentioned above. Of course, in many cases, it is best to have a basic understanding of finance and numbers to ensure that you do n’t run out of money when starting a business. p>
Finally there is awe. Fear is very useful, Because it not only allows you to redouble your efforts, but also helps you avoid some possible mistakes. If you are afraid of failure, you may use this awe to make some risk-reducing decisions that you might not normally consider. Without adopting these risk controls, you may fail. Therefore, these are the essential qualities of a good entrepreneur. p>
Shen Nanpeng: Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs? Compared with the past, we are entering a world full of uncertainty. Do you have any specific suggestions for these entrepreneurs? p>
Su Shimin: You also know that I have experienced many economic downturns, maybe five or six times in my career. They all looked scary at the time. This time it looked extreme. You will think, well, people should not hide at home. People are social animals. They will want to get out of their homes, they will want to go back to work. Now that we know people’s tendencies, and we know that the outbreak cycle may be at most a year and a half. During this period, medical staff and medication will continue to improve. So, we know that people will resume work. We can be pretty sure that once the resumption of work begins, the world economy will move towards recovery. Therefore, it is important not to have an emotional response to this, but to look at it objectively and ask what will be recovered first? What will be the last recovered? What will be adjusted and not restored? p>
More people will meet online, just like your conversation. Therefore, this may impact industries such as tourism, but it is beneficial to the technology industry. For entrepreneurs, you must form your own view of such a new world pattern, understand where the demand is, and how to raise capital to invest in some areas that may succeed in the future. When you think about a career that will succeed, you will act decisively and make a full investment commitment of 100% to 120%. This way you will succeed, and others may not survive the winter. p>
This is the nature of bold action when you see the general trend. If you move before the big trend, you have a high probability of success. Most people are scared to do nothing. p>
Why “culture is more important than management”? p>
Shen Nanpeng: You mentioned in the book that corporate culture is more important than management. Can you elaborate on this idea? How does Blackstone shape a differentiated culture that is different from other companies? What measures have you taken to establish this very unique culture? p>
Su Shimin: You know, no matter how good it is, no one can know all kinds of skills. You ca n’t control what everyone does, the only thing you can do is teach them good values. Teach them your faith, let them retain the core of your faith, and give them the autonomy to do things. We have various principles that must be adhered to in Blackstone. If we want to recruit people, we must recruit very smart people. We must recruit honest and upright people. We firmly believe in high-level cooperation. I believe in a zero-defect culture, which means you can make mistakes in your judgment, but you can never make mistakes in your work. Work must always be accurate. Leave your desk, payThe results of work in the hands of others must be perfect. p>
I believe, and we caution everyone that collective decision making is better than individual decision making. And the decision should be based on in-depth analysis. In any decision-making process, all risk factors should be listed, and then 6 to 8 very smart people should be called to form a team and let them analyze this information in an open manner. p>
Our black stone culture is not to have bystanders. If you are present, you must speak. You must say your own thoughts, not the thoughts of others. p>
I do n’t believe there are so-called “paying viewers” in the enterprise. You are here to contribute to the meeting, not to sit there and watch others use their talents. We will have a very heated debate in Blackstone-this is part of our corporate culture, and every decision will be made-but never for individuals. Because in most organizations, if you give a different opinion from another person, in the eyes of others, you are actually attacking another person. This effect is not good. Therefore, people are reluctant to tell the truth. p>
But in Blackstone, we create an environment where you must tell the truth and tell your true thoughts, not for individuals. Once everyone knows that every meeting is like this, you can appreciate the benefits of brainstorming, which is very important. Moreover, we also have other core values, which is to help society and give employees the opportunity to help organizations outside the company that they care about personally. And we treat everyone in the company like family. p>
I regard Blackstone as a small and micro enterprise. Now, we have more than 500,000 employees. The parent company has about 3,000 people, and then the others are scattered among the companies and assets we hold. But I tried my best to ensure that Blackstone ’s executive team took time every Monday to hold a video conference with everyone in each business line. Because if you want to communicate your values and thinking about the world, you can’t send an email. You have to appear in person. The video conference has changed the way companies are managed. Therefore, for example, a meeting with all employees of the private equity investment group, followed by the real estate business group, then the credit group, and the tactical opportunity group. The four of us spent a whole day sitting in the same room, meeting with about 250 to 300 professionals and employees from various business lines. We will sort out everything that happened in the world and let everyone have comprehensive information. Even if you are only 23 years old, the information you have is not inferior to the company’s senior employees. We strive to treat everyone as the most important person in the company. This is a very American style, very flat, not vertical. p>
When you treat very talented people as extremely important people, then they will pay their full attention to the company’s interests, because their thinking is unified with you. Therefore, this style of building an organization is very powerful, and each employee will reflect your values when they respond independently. You don’t need to tell them what to say. They know thatSay what. p>
Shen Nanpeng: This is a very unique corporate culture. And for a large organization like Blackstone, it is obviously not easy to make all employees feel that they are part of a family. I think this is a very powerful corporate culture. You mentioned talent several times and said that you want to recruit first-rate team members. You said in the book, “You can use 9 points of talent to build a successful business, but you need to use 10 points of talent to develop new businesses. They are all self-driven.” So, how do you know someone is a “10 point” talent? How did you evaluate? p>
Su Shimin: Nan Peng, you are a “10 points” talent. How do I know you are 10 points? One criterion I measure is that for people over the age of 40, personal reputation is their ability. If people who know you say you are amazing, then I probably think you are amazing too. The situation I actually learned is the same, you are a very amazing person. p>
Shen Nanpeng: Thank you. p>
Su Shimin: People are more difficult to judge when they are young, because they haven’t been completely finalized. I have interviewed many people in my life. I have been working in the business world for more than 50 years. Interview is one of my favorite things. I like it because when a job applicant walks in, it is difficult to predict what will happen. So, this is like an adventure, it is not like your other daily work. p>
Usually I will get the resume or resume of the candidate. Usually, at least in Western countries, especially for young people, they will describe their background, and then there will be an “interest” column at the bottom of the resume. Maybe they have climbed Everest, maybe they are the best swimmers, won silver medals in the Olympic Games, or they are American chess champions under four years old-in short, some interesting facts. So my experience is that since they put this information in their resume, then I will ask them. I always ask, because this is the usual way of expressing friendliness, and because they seem to make such a request. Then the content of our chat will turn to other aspects. No matter what the content is, I will follow the lead. p>
Sometimes, I may have done a very interesting thing just before the interview. For example, the video we made today will spread throughout China. I will say to the next person who sees me, oh my god, I just did something amazing. I just felt that I was having a conversation with 100 million Chinese audience. How interesting is it? If the other party does n’t answer me, it ’s a bit strange, because I ’m not describing what a person does every day. Therefore, my experience is that if the other party does not respond at all, it means that his curiosity is not strong. I want to recruit people who are active, intelligent, flexible, and curious. p>
If we start talking about things that job applicants do n’t know, and I do n’t have background knowledge, then they will either find ways to play, and then show a little bit of trouble.Or they will say that I have no background knowledge in this field at all. I can make the following statement, but this is not my area of expertise. p>
What I am looking for is someone who can not panic under pressure. When you are not under pressure, it is not difficult to be calm. Everyone knows this very well, because the interview environment will stimulate the job seeker’s nervousness, but it will not do to me. Therefore, I will try to examine the performance of job seekers under this pressure. Do they like being stressed? Can stress stimulate their vitality? Or after you ask them some questions, do you see them sitting back, symbolically trying to stay away from you? If you see such a situation, then there is no hope. p>
I will also think about the situation after this job applicant joined Blackstone. Will I still want to see this person again? Did they show something I did n’t know about? Tell me how to look at a thing differently, is it in my non-expert case? In this way, you can quickly figure out the level of this person. p>
When it ’s my turn to interview others, can the job applicant be qualified for the job? The other employees of the company have already checked me out. It’s impossible to tell me to come to the interview first. Usually in our company’s system, job seekers have to interview fifteen to twenty people before they get to my round. So my judgment at this stage is, how much potential do they have? If I meet a person, I actually had a person about 9 months ago to start a new business in our growth equity investment. This person is very outstanding. I was just going to meet him for half an hour, but I couldn’t stop talking with him at all. So after talking for an hour and a half, I said that although I have not obtained the consent of others, but everyone thinks you are very good, we decided to hire. You’re great. I look forward to working with you very much. Of course, this does not happen very often, because the talents who get 10 points must be rare. In any case, hiring talents and judging their potential are essential elements for a great organization. p>
You must have some experience. This is our housekeeping skills. Continue to interview others, try to figure out their ideas, and investigate whether their internal drive, talent, wisdom, and flexibility can help you achieve a career. Sometimes in the venture capital industry, a great talent also has great ideas, but the world is unpredictable, and that investment may not perform well. But these people will succeed in other projects, because they are extraordinary talents. p>
What investment and life principles can help you through the cycle? h2>
Shen Nanpeng: This suggestion is very good. How business managers should talk to job seekers. The reason why you can make these judgments and decisions during interviews is because you have always had very successful investment results. Let us move on to the next topic. p>
As you mentioned in the book, you have a business guiding principle that is “don’t lose money forever”. Can you explain in detail? Are there other investment principles that you want to share with everyone, especially the younger generationAnother principle. Nanpeng, I will use Blackstone’s real estate business as an example. When we saw the Internet sing forward, we shot the assets held in large shopping centers and shopping malls. In Western countries, it is wise not to own such assets. We took the cash out and the additional capital, and bought warehousing assets. Why should we buy a warehouse? Because all Internet sales companies, whether Alibaba or JD.com, need warehouses to prepare goods for delivery and deliver the goods to customers. Therefore, warehousing assets have become the best performers in the real estate field globally. In the past ten years, we have been the world’s largest purchaser of warehousing assets. Our investment strategy is to identify the growth field and the direction of social change, dispose of assets that are considered to be weak, and invest huge capital in the themes we have identified. p>
Shen Nanpeng: Yes, it is better to go down the wind in a growth industry than to move forward. There are many young people in China reading your book, not just for investment, but also for seeking advice that is beneficial to their career and life. If only they could be given a suggestion, what would it be? p>
Su Shimin: I think one of the suggestions, especially for the younger generation, is to devote to your favorite career. You will find that in life, if you can find a career that is your natural counterpart-your interests and abilities are suitable for a certain type of work-then you can do it to the extreme. Give an interesting example. There is a basketball player in the United States called Michael Jordan. He should be the best basketball player ever, an amazing player. After his father passed away, he was very depressed. He gave up basketball and tried another sport-baseball. But Jordan is a bad baseball player. In this example, the best player in one sport chooses to engage in another sport, and the performance is mediocre. p>
How is this possible? Both are sports. A year and a half later, Jordan decided to go back and play basketball. I went to watch his second game after his return. He hadn’t touched basketball in two years, but he scored 40 points in the second game. This is a particularly high score because he is very talented. Each of us has something we love and are better at. If you stick to your talented field, you will find that your life will be more successful. You will be happier and more likely to have greater success. p>
Su Shimin: Nan Peng, I would also like to ask: Seeing the current troubles caused by the epidemic to the Chinese economy, what is your primary career suggestion for everyone? p>
Shen Nanpeng: Whether or not there is interference from the epidemic situation, this rule has always been applicable. You also made a wonderful elaboration on this, that is, to have a child’s heart for your work and career, and for the things you really love. In addition, I think you can choose to enter an exciting industry-this industry has not only short-term, but also has a good development prospects in the medium and long term. It is recommended that young university graduates pay attention to these job selection criteria, because
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