When you see rich people on TV, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?

That they had rich parents?

That they got into the best schools?

That they were insanely smart or had all the right connections?

Or maybe they just hit the jackpot and won the lottery?

If you’re an ambitious person still grinding with little to show for it, it’s easy to fall into that pit of desperation when success feels out of reach.

Here’s the truth: success rarely follows a straight line. It’s not a clean path, it’s a messy trail of setbacks, failures, and “no’s” that most people never hear about.

So next time you’re having a rough day, when success feels like nothing but luck, come back to this short story of a small Chinese guy who went on to become one of the most powerful people in his country: Jack Ma.

Who is Jack Ma?

Jack Ma, born Ma Yun, is a Chinese entrepreneur and philanthropist best known as the co-founder and former executive chairman of Alibaba Group, one of the world’s largest e-commerce giants.

As a kid, Jack made a foreign pen pal who struggled to pronounce “Ma Yun.” Instead, he called him “Jack”, a nickname that stuck for life.

A Chain of Failures

Jack Ma’s life didn’t start with privilege.

Born on September 10, 1964, in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, he grew up in a modest family and faced rejection after rejection long before he found success.

He struggled in school.

He wasn’t strong at math and failed the Chinese high school entrance exam twice before finally passing on his third try – with only 31 points.

In 1982 and 1983, he failed the nationwide college entrance exam twice.

He applied for a job as a waiter at a local hotel. His cousin got the job. Jack was rejected because he was considered “too short and skinny” and would “hurt the restaurant’s reputation.”

He famously applied to Harvard University ten times – and was rejected every single time.

After finally graduating from Hangzhou Normal University in 1988, Jack applied for 31 different entry-level jobs. He was turned down by all of them.

Here’s one of his most quoted stories:

“When KFC came to my city, twenty-four people applied for the job.

Twenty-three were hired. I was the only guy rejected.”

He even tried applying to the police force but was dismissed in the first round.

Alibaba Startup

Despite all the adversity, Jack Ma showed persistence and resilience from a young age.

He had a passion for English and grabbed every opportunity to practice. As a teenager, he would guide foreign tourists around his hometown of Hangzhou, for free, just so he could improve his language skills.

In 1994, Jack visited the United States, where he encountered the internet for the very first time.

At that time, China had virtually no online presence. Jack immediately realized the massive potential this technology could hold for the future.

When he returned to China, he launched China Pages, an online directory for Chinese businesses. The venture eventually failed, but instead of quitting, Jack used it as fuel.

In 1999, determined to try again, he gathered a small group of friends in his apartment in Hangzhou.

Together, they founded Alibaba, a business-to-business online marketplace that would one day grow into one of the largest e-commerce empires in the world.

From an Online Marketplace to a Global Conglomerate

Alibaba began as a simple idea: an online marketplace connecting Chinese manufacturers with international buyers.

In the early days, competing with bigger, well-established e-commerce players was anything but easy.

But in 2003, everything shifted with the launch of Taobao, a consumer-to-consumer platform that quickly became a sensation in China. Its wide range of products, user-friendly features, and local appeal allowed it to outshine foreign competitors.

Over the next decade, Alibaba expanded rapidly.

The company built Alibaba.com, a global B2B marketplace, and launched Alipay, a secure digital payment system that helped establish trust in online transactions at a time when many Chinese consumers were skeptical about e-commerce.

Then came the defining moment: in 2014, Alibaba went public on the New York Stock Exchange, raising a record-breaking $25 billion in its initial public offering (IPO).

It was the largest IPO in history at the time and catapulted Jack Ma into the ranks of the world’s richest individuals.

How Did Jack Ma Succeed?

If you were in Jack Ma’s shoes, would you have kept going after so many rejections?

What if someone told you that success was just one rejection away, would the failures still matter if, in the end, you reached your dreams?

For Jack Ma, failure became routine. And that’s exactly what gave him an edge: he learned to never give up.

He was so used to failing, he cultivated an endless optimism about the future. What could be worse than failing?

”We make mistakes every day, even today. (…) But we learn, we do again, we learn, we do again. That’s the way, that’s the life attitude. (…) Nothing is easy, nothing is free. (…) Easy means – you have to think differently.”

Jack Ma

Jack often says he’s “not smart.”

But in his view, being smart is less important than being creative, innovative, and persistent. His vision and charisma made him one of the most inspiring entrepreneurs in the world.

His story proves that a chain of failures can be the foundation of massive success, if you stay resilient long enough.

It’s a powerful inspiration to anyone, who struggles with motivation to succeed.

Jack Ma

“This is the advice I’m giving myself every day. Today is very hard. Tomorrow is tougher. The day after tomorrow is beautiful, but most people die tomorrow evening.”

Whenever you feel down or struggling and need a quick motivation boost, watch this 4 minutes Jack Ma’s speech or his lecture to the students of Moscow University.

And next time you feel defeated, remember: success could be just one more setback away.

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