I. Results Matter

Execution is a key focus for many companies. An effective company must be able to execute its formulated strategies to generate results. No matter how good your strategy is, it is useless if you cannot execute it. Ultimately, it all comes down to execution.

I once attended a lecture where the speaker used an engineering example. This factory was a classic case of lacking execution. They received a project from the aviation department, and before signing the contract, they gathered all the department heads for a meeting. The factory director excitedly announced, I have good news! We got a project from the aviation department. If we complete it, we will achieve... Then he asked the production department head if they could produce the required items. The production head replied, No problem, but we need electricity. The director turned to the head of the equipment department, who said, Having the electrical standard is no problem, but generating electricity requires coal or oil. Finally, he asked the head of the finance department, who said, Having oil is no problem, but we need money, and we don't have any.

After going around in circles, the director was very worried because the problem remained unresolved. The department heads only focused on the difficulties without offering any solutions. Without execution, nothing can be done. Our team must find ways to improve execution. Passing the buck gets nothing resolved; it's useless. Lack of execution affects not only factories and enterprises but also everything else.

Jack Ma once said about the current generation of young people, They may think of a thousand paths at night, but in the morning, they walk the same old path. No matter how many ideas you have, if you don't execute or implement them, they are useless. In Japan and Germany, execution in enterprises is very strong. They value skills and experience in training people, focusing on whether you can get things done. Their blue-collar workers, who are highly skilled technicians, enjoy very high salaries. The same is true for senior blue-collar workers in China. This means this generation desperately needs people who can get things done. It's all about getting things done, about producing results. Words alone are useless.

In recent years, Chinese education has focused too much on knowledge. This is rather detrimental. For example, someone may be incredibly knowledgeable, knowing everything about things that fly in the sky and run on the ground, but in Japan and especially in Germany, such a person would be looked down upon. You must be able to produce results. Many Chinese people have a habit of being boastful and talkative. But as the saying goes, “Is it a mule or a horse? Take it for a walk up the slope and see.” You may be eloquent, like Zhao Benshan or Guo Degang, but many people fail when it comes to real situations. I am also striving to overcome this myself.

Yesterday, I went to the Overseas Students Pioneer Park for an interview because we submitted a project proposal for an Artificial Intelligence Educational Resource Integration Platform. The panel asked, Do you have any interim results? I replied, Not yet, but we will have them next year. In the coming year, we will work diligently to build this AI platform. I am a person of execution; I will definitely accomplish what I set out to do. It's a part of my character. Some people have said that if I decide to do something, I will definitely do it.

I really want to develop the AI educational resource integration platform because it is of great significance and will have a profound impact on the education of the next generation and current individuals. The church is, in fact, an educational institution, educating people to become talented individuals. I want to build a church that is more like a school. It's a place for training people. This is execution. Results matter.

II. Just Do It

There's an English phrase, just do it. People often get stuck on talking about things without actually doing them. I believe that you learn by doing. Initially, you may not know much, but you just have to start small. For example, take renovation. Do I really understand renovation? No! But through renovation, you can learn a tremendous amount. I had never done it before, so I learned as I went, learning quickly as I worked. Therefore, I am eager to train our brothers and sisters' learning abilities. You must become an asset to society, a talented individual, not a burden or a piece of social trash. If you only consume, you are creating social costs. Many people say they don't know what to do. I often encounter such individuals: I don't know. Well, let's start by doing something to figure out what we should do. Figuring out what we should do is doing something, right? For example, with career planning, why do we do it? Because it helps people figure out what they should do, which direction to go. If you want to go there but spend all your time fiddling with wood, you can't become a welder; you can't weld wood. If you want to be a carpenter, you can't work with iron. Blacksmithing and carpentry are two completely different concepts. A blacksmith would rather work on a small project than a large one because even if the work is large it will not fit in; a carpenter would rather work on a large project than a small one because there may be gaps with a small project. I may not be entirely correct, but I know blacksmithing and carpentry are two opposing concepts. If you don't know what to do, study and research what you should do. Remember today, if you don't have a job, finding a job is your job. You need to work hard at finding a job and researching it thoroughly. Some time ago, someone asked me, Pastor, why can't I find a job? I asked, How many resumes do you send out each day? He said, I only send out one resume a day. I replied, It would be a miracle if you found a job! He asked, How many should I send? I said, Sending only one resume a day is not enough! Send out thirty to fifty every day. Get moving, no matter what. That's how you find a job! That's the direction you should take! If you don't move. If you sit in that spot, you'll never go anywhere! Therefore, today, we brothers and sisters must cultivate a habit—the habit of action! You know, I am against religious formalism. I don't like it, so I believe we should actively implement the teachings of the Bible. However, it should not become a mere religious adherence, like the Pharisees. What kind of people were the Pharisees? They were those who could talk but couldn't act. That's how Jesus described them. They placed heavy burdens on others but wouldn't lift a finger themselves. So, we must learn to do things practically. Doing practical things requires execution. Execution involves two aspects: first, initiation, starting to do; and second, persistence, continuing to do it!

III. The Greatest Enemy of Execution is Fear

I have met many people who are afraid. They want to make a change, but they are afraid, fearing this and that. They are unafraid of dying in their current situation, yet they refuse to change. However, remaining in that state is most dangerous. The greatest enemy of execution is fear, which prevents people from starting and taking the first step. Fear makes people think too much and do too little! They don't do anything. If you act, you think a lot. I'm not someone who thinks too much, but I do think. It's not that I don't think at all. You think a lot about what to do, you see all the negatives, this condition, that condition, my dad is not who, my mum is not who, not having this, not having that. By the time all the conditions are ready, you're not needed anymore, because it already exists. In fact, everyone who does something does it when the conditions are not in place. When the conditions are perfect, your effort is not needed. If you think of everything that will follow as unbearable, result will happen! You're just thinking all night, think about all kinds of paths at night, and get up in the morning and take the same path. Just decide not do anything, and go back on the same path. If you are not doing anything, and just take the same path, that is the most dangerous path! I was recently teaching my mother, who is in her eighties, to start changing, selling her house, and investing. She thought it was all great the night before. I told her it was all good, the values increased three hundred dollars every day. This is investment, right! She was excited, but the next morning, she was worried. This won't work, that won't work, many things won't work. It's the same with people, she lacks the ability to execute. Living life is very simple, there is no point in thinking about living with too much expectation, right! Do what you should do, and make sense of the case of living, and get the work of living done. So why do you do it? The key is faith. The basis of starting is either fear or faith. If you are afraid, you have no faith. But I tell you, as I say this as a Christian, as long as you dare to do it, as long as you dare to start, whatever you do, you will surely succeed as long as you don't give up! Believe it or not, it will surely succeed. Why do others ask? Because I believe. And why do you believe? I prefer to believe. Why do you prefer to? I like to believe. Why do I say this way? Because it works like this. If you catch the work of having faith, you have the greatest asset! What is faith? It is the success to go through all the enviornment, the hardships! This era, whoever makes a success has faith. Ma Yun is successful not because he has a diploma, he is successful because he has confidence! Ma Yun has a story that he can tell and not get sick of it, that is he only score 1 for his maths exam. Having 1 for maths test is terrible, the university only tested him for 3 times. He finally went to a really bad high school. The university he went to was just a fourth tier university in Hangzhou. That is not a matter, Ma Yun is a person who chose to do thing. He does things once he begin it. People who are successful has confidence and has character. The environment is not a problem, you talent is not a problem, the problem is can we just do something, the ability to sell in the market. The problem is everyone needs the sales ability, because I think yours is not enough.

There's a story in the Bible about a master who gave one servant one thousand talents, another two thousand talents, and another five thousand talents. When the master came back, the servant with two thousand talents earned another two thousand, and the servant with five thousand talents earned another five thousand, while the servant with one thousand talents did nothing and buried the money. Do you know why? The Bible implies a rule that if you do, you succeed: you need to have the courage to begin thing. With confidence, two thousand can be four thousand. If it is done, God can help, and who can possibly hinder God's work? The master can do anything in walking in faith, no matter the hindrances. But doing nothing means that we are afraid. It is to be believed that with strong commitment, the investment continues to exponential increase: two thousand can be four thousand, four thousand eight thousand, and eight thousand to ten thousand. And now you are free, and all you need to do is to not give up, with the problem being taken care of.

After Starting, the Fourth Point is to Persist

Persistence is faith. Starting is faith, and so is persistence. When Jack Ma was young, his China Yellow Pages venture did not go well initially. Later, he worked as a temporary worker in foreign trade, which also failed. Even with all these failures, he did not give up, and that is where his strength lies. He continued to persist until he eventually created Alibaba. Today, Alibaba is very successful, with its headquarters just two or three kilometers away from our Taobao City. When Alibaba is mentioned today, everyone considers it to be very powerful, but who knows the difficult entrepreneurial history that Jack Ma went through? In the early years of Alibaba, many people said: Alibaba's business model is not good, the technology is not good, the service is not good, the products are not good, there are many fake products on Alibaba's website, and so on, all negative comments. Jack Ma went back and told his colleagues that we are actually doing okay. When others say you are not good, you must have character, you must be able to persevere, you must believe that it will work, and then it will work. Today, Alibaba Taobao is an internal reflection of a person's character, which is faith. Persisting relies on faith, simply believing that I can do it, improving a little bit every day, accumulating over time, and it will become very powerful.

With Faith, One Can Persist

I myself am a person of faith, I am a very persistent person, and I hope that each of our brothers and sisters can inherit this kind of persistence. I hope that every brother and sister can inherit my persistent character, which is this faithful character. I just persist and constantly adjust the ideas in my mind. When I lead the full-time staff in meetings every morning, I keep talking about it, and after I finish talking, they are all very excited. Why? Because I have faith inside. I know what it should look like in the future. Some things have had a great impact on my life. In 2005, when I was a CIO in a university, a student from Shanghai jumped off a building. His parents came to Singapore and then returned with an urn. Everyone also donated some money, but they no longer had their child, so what use was the money? From that year on, I decided that every year when new students enroll, I would gather these foreign students together. I said that if you encounter difficulties, don't jump off a building, come to me, and I might be able to help you. This began the prototype of helping international students solve problems. My work was very busy and tiring, but I still made time and indeed helped some students. In 2008, I was a senior executive in a company. I started a fellowship while working because I saw many Chinese children, and after solving one problem for them, they would come with new problems. Why? Because they had a lot of mental garbage that needed to be adjusted and corrected. Some committed suicide, some went to mental hospitals, and there were all kinds of problems. So I worked and volunteered at the same time, which was very hard, especially when there was a conflict between work and service. I was under a lot of pressure, but I persisted. Today, I am very happy to see so many people being helped and so many people being raised up. Without this persistence, there would be no today. I have an advantage: I often feel good about myself. For example, after I finish speaking on living a life of abundance today, I like to listen to myself again. After listening, I feel that I spoke very well. In fact, in the early days, I was the only one doing it, with no people and no money, and the environment was not good at all. How to move forward in such a difficult environment was very difficult. It brings tears to my eyes just talking about it now. With no people and no money, it all depends on whether you can persist, persist, and persist again. In this process, faith plays a very important role. I believe that the future will be better, I believe that change will be better, I believe that it should be this way. And today it really is this way. Is what we are doing today good enough? Actually, it is not good enough, and I will continue to push forward. For example, artificial intelligence, automatic learning machines, and automatic pastoral care instruments need to be promoted. We are changing every time, we are improving every time, and as a result, we have come to today. Today is good, but there are still many things and many problems that need to be solved. Although I am very tired, I still enjoy this kind of life.

Improve a Little Bit Every Day

There is a key to execution: improve a little bit every day. I often encounter some Chinese children, and what is their problem? They are unwilling to do what they can do; they insist on doing what they cannot do. After they finish doing it, they become negative because they cannot do it. They look down on what they can do and don't want to do it. For example, they make a webpage, and after they finish it, they think it is very ugly, so they delete it, and then they make another webpage and think it is not good, so they delete it again. They don't do what they can do, but they always want to do what they can't do. That is the problem. So today I give you a suggestion: your execution lies in improving a little bit every day.

So I think there is a key to execution. Why do I say that I feel good about myself? I think this is an advantage. I have often encountered some Chinese children, and what is their problem? They are unwilling to do what they can do; they insist on doing what they cannot do. If you insist on doing what you cannot do, aren't you asking for trouble? After you finish doing it, you become negative because you can't do it. They don't want to do what they can do, and they look down on what they can do. For example, they make a webpage, and after they finish it, they think it is too ugly, so they delete it, and then they make another one, and it is very ugly again, so they delete it again. They see how well others do it, but they don't have that level of skill. Isn't that courting death? So you see, they don't do what they can do, but they always want to do what they can't do. That is courting death. So today I give you a suggestion: your execution lies in improving a little bit every day, a little bit every day. It is not to say that your current environment is so good. If you have problems, you can come to me, and I will share with you and show you. Improve a little bit every day, become a little bit smarter every day, and over time, you will become a shrewd person. Right? You have to encourage yourself. One day you will become a shrewd person. Don't look down on yourself today and look down on yourself tomorrow; just keep messing around. That won't work. Today, I think execution lies in improving a little bit every day. And don't look down on what you have done; do it first.

Product Success Lies in Improving a Little Bit Every Day

For example, the text ministry that we did at the beginning, no one really liked it much, but I felt good about myself. There were wrong sentences, words, and things that didn't make sense. But I bound it into a book, and it looked pretty good on the outside. It didn't matter if the words inside weren't smooth, but it was a book. Is it a book? It is a book, a not very good book, but it doesn't matter. One day it will improve to be a very good book. Right? If you look at the iPhone, the Apple phone, the iPhone 1 was disgusting. No one uses it today, and no one wants to look at it after seeing it. The iPhone 2 was also disgusting. The iPhone 3 was barely usable, and the iPhone 3 sold very well. When the iPhone 4 came out, wow, it also sold very well. If you pick up an iPhone 4 today, it doesn't look good at all. You say that my OPPO phone looks much better. All these products improve a little bit every day, right? For example, Japan's Toyota car, it is really good to drive on the road. The car is really good. How did it come about? It came from improving a little bit every day, from the time they produced tanks in World War II until now, the car is good. The cars that we made in China at that time had many problems, but now Chinese cars are also good. For example, BYD is starting to lead the way, leading the trend of new energy. It all starts from improving a little bit every day. This is called execution. Don't be unrealistic, ambitious, and not down-to-earth. How does execution come about? It starts little by little, doing a little bit today, a little bit tomorrow, and a little bit the day after tomorrow, and if you keep persisting, you will be great. I believe that many of our brothers and sisters are actually not less intelligent than the average person. Many people are basically not less intelligent than Jack Ma, and many people are basically not less intelligent than Samuel. That is not the problem. The problem is that you have to have execution, persist today, persist tomorrow, persist the day after tomorrow, and keep persisting.

The Story of the 5-Kilometer Cross-Country Run

Before I finish, I want to tell you a story. What story do I want to tell? When I was in my thirties, my school organized a 5-kilometer cross-country run. As a result, I ran for more than forty minutes that day, and oh my goodness, I was out of breath. It was too embarrassing. Many people ran in front of me, but at that time, there were really many girls who didn't look like they could do it, but they ran in front of me. I was so embarrassed. I tried to stride, and my legs were like they were filled with lead. The action was like slow jogging. The action was beautiful, but it didn't work. It just didn't work. Later, I made a decision. I wasn't going to run with people during the race. I would get up every morning and run two kilometers, taking ten or twenty minutes. I would run about one kilometer, eight hundred meters, one kilometer, two kilometers. After three months, do you know what happened? The school organized the cross-country run again. When the school organized the cross-country run, I ran 5 kilometers in 22 minutes, and when I reached the finish line, I was not out of breath, my chest was not stuffy, my legs were not numb or cramped, and I didn't feel like I was going to collapse. So I summarized an experience. What experience? That is, you improve a little bit every day, just keep practicing like this, persist, and you can succeed. If you don't persist like this, do you know what will happen? Even if you put a gun to your waist and tell me to run, I won't be able to run fast or move, and it just won't work. When it doesn't work, it really doesn't work. I think it is great to improve a little bit every day.

For example, for the full-time staff that I lead, I don't ask for anything else. I just ask them to improve a little bit every day. You must improve every day, read, learn, improve, and then do things, and naturally the efficiency will come up, naturally the execution will come up, naturally the creativity will come out, and naturally all the abilities will come out. Why? Because they persist, they dare to start, start doing, and then persist, improving a little bit every day. If the grades are ABCDEF, F is 0, E is 1, it is not terrible to start from F, but you have to turn F into E. E is not terrible either, you have to turn E into D. D is not terrible either, you have to turn D into C. C is not terrible, you have to turn it into B and then into A. Right? Some people get discouraged when they get an F. I give them a lot of faith, but it is useless. They come to me and say, Pastor, I got an F again, crying like a basket case. What is the use of that? Improve a little bit every day. When they ask me why it is not A, I say, see, you have an E, and with E you have a D, and with D you have a C, and with C you have a B, and with B you have an A. Right? You can't jump from F to A. So it doesn't matter if it is not A, and it doesn't matter if it is not B, but one day I will reach A. That is my view.

Conclusion

I think what is execution? Execution is starting to do, starting to improve, and then persisting. Even if there is no progress, persist, persist, persist, and one day you will grow. Seeing your own growth and seeing your own progress is very important. I want to share with you all here today, and I hope that everyone can emulate such people. Persist, improve every day, and don't stop improving. Persisting without improving is not a solution. Thank you all, brothers and sisters, goodbye.