It is vital to market oneself. Some possess a wealth of talent, yet remain unknown, unable to promote themselves, thus failing to realize their potential value. Anything left unsold in storage, though valuable, cannot be converted into tangible worth. If you market yourself effectively, you could be worth two thousand, four thousand, or even more. Therefore, we must consider how to promote ourselves.

First Point: Skills are Crucial in Self-Promotion

Do not assume that because you are a believer, you need not promote yourself, thinking that "good wine needs no bush." The current era is far from that; even the finest wine is useless without promotion. If you do not promote yourself, others will. Observe closely in the workplace, and you will notice that some individuals occupy positions not because they are significantly smarter or more capable, but because they are adept at self-promotion, securing jobs that others miss out on due to a lack of such skills.

This is not mere superstition. Even if you are a Christian blessed by God, you still need to learn to market yourself. What skills do you possess? What value can you create for others? What unique qualities or talents do you have? Some might argue that Apple iPhones need no promotion, but that is not the case. Their marketing is exceptionally effective.

Today, in Apple stores, each new iPhone model sells out quickly, even leading to shortages, due to promotion. Virtually no one can enter the workforce without promoting themselves.

Self-promotion is a critical skill. Some say, "I believe in the Lord, and I trust God will bless me with a job." Yet, even then, self-promotion is necessary. Why? Because it effectively presents you to the leaders of the hiring organization, showcasing your character and qualities.

Packaging oneself is one thing; possessing genuine substance is another. However, having substance without packaging is also not ideal.

For instance, would you buy unpackaged food in a store? If it could sell for $50 with packaging, it might only fetch $10 without it, or even remain unsold. People often prefer to spend $50 on a packaged item rather than $10 on an unpackaged one.

Whether packaging and promotion are equivalent is debatable, but I believe self-promotion requires both inner substance and attractive packaging—genuine quality presented beautifully.

Can you imagine an iPhone wrapped in rags? It is incongruous. Notice how exquisite the packaging box is and how well the contents are arranged. Thus, a talented individual must possess both the ability to promote themselves and genuine skills. These two are indispensable.

Second Point: Character is Key to Education

Whether one possesses character or not, the image they project, even with the same skills, differs significantly. Character is expressed with great charm. We must change our educational philosophy. As times evolve, we constantly discuss educational philosophies. Although not yet universally adopted, this forward-thinking approach allows us to foresee that in ten or twenty years, our educational concepts may no longer be novel.

The Core of Character is Confidence

What is our educational philosophy? Character development is the most crucial aspect of education. The core of character is confidence. Therefore, we build people's confidence, instilling in them a sense of optimism about the future, which they will then express through their character. This character is key to education. With such character, you will find that their skills still need to be cultivated.

Experience Yields Skills

Educational practice shapes character and skills, not just knowledge. We were once taught that "knowledge is power," but we later discovered that much knowledge is unusable and does not generate power. We often say that someone is experienced, implying they are knowledgeable, but knowledge does not necessarily equate to experience.

An experienced person undoubtedly possesses relevant skills, and with those skills comes knowledge. Conversely, having knowledge does not guarantee skills, and having skills does not necessarily mean one has experience.

What is experience? It is what one accumulates by using their skills to solve problems, or by using their skills combined with their knowledge to resolve an issue. The educational philosophy should be to shape a child's character and skills. As for experience, it should be tested in the market, or perhaps gained through some experience in school.

Experience is Gained from Real-World Practice

Real-world practice is real-world practice. School is not yet a real-world battlefield, but it would be ideal to bring students into a controlled real-world environment where they can be trained to become experienced individuals.

Therefore, the key to self-promotion is to showcase the charm of your character. The kind of character you project to others is crucial; character is a form of charm.

Third Point: Character is an Internal Quality

What is character? It is not merely an external attribute but an internal quality. For example, a child with great resilience will exhibit that resilience in their words and actions upon closer interaction. Similarly, a confident character will be evident in their manner of expression.

Thus, character is a vital component. Someone lacking character will likely struggle with self-promotion.

Therefore, how to cultivate character in school or in one's personal life is extremely important. Promoting oneself is promoting one's character.

When someone goes for an interview and promotes themselves, it is fascinating to see the character they display. A person's poor exam results can indicate many things. In fact, someone with character should generally have decent exam results.

Why do many people struggle with exams? It is because their character lacks something, leading to a distorted state that results in poor exam performance and an unappealing character. In an interview, they might say, "Although my grades are not good, it does not mean I cannot learn. I am resourceful because I have focused on developing my expertise in a particular area, and these aspects have been overlooked."

If others find these explanations and stories acceptable, then it is fine. Some stories can even be quite far-fetched. For example, a young man encountered difficulties during an interview and said, "I fell in with bad company for the past three years and learned to play computer games, but now I want to change completely. I am not unintelligent; I can still study well if I try." He still got the job.

Do not think that poor academic performance means everything is ruined. Academic performance only represents the past; what is needed now is to display a certain character to others.

For example, if someone is asked why they only have a junior high school diploma, they might say, "My family was poor, and I needed to work." Many families today are not that poor, but you can still demonstrate your abilities. For instance, despite coming from a poor family, you have been self-studying and might even be stronger than someone with a college diploma because you have honed your skills in the workplace. This is also a form of character.

Therefore, in the process of promoting yourself, cultivate the habit of promoting your character; character is very charming. For example, being persevering, resilient, focused, or decisive, making accurate decisions and judgments. A person who is resourceful, flexible, and skilled in interpersonal relationships has a character that easily fosters a sense of warmth. These are all parts of character.

Fourth Point: The Core Competency of Self-Promotion

A famous person once said that many young people today know a lot of things, but their knowledge is shallow, about an inch deep and a mile wide, which is useless. Because the market needs core competencies, which make the entire society more clearly and finely divided in its cooperation.

If you can do one thing exceptionally well, you are very capable. But many people become frustrated when they lack this core competency. Without a core competency, you are promoting an empty shell. You cannot just sell a box without a phone inside, because that is useless.

Therefore, today, we must know what our core competency is. A brother once told me he was going to pursue a master's degree, and I told him that packaging himself was a good idea. But the question is, if we use the time spent on a master's degree to build our core competency, which would be better? I believe having a core competency is extremely important.

Chinese society is shifting from an era dominated by diplomas to one dominated by core competencies. You must have skills; without genuine abilities and relying only on bluffing, you will not last long in any job. Therefore, you must present your core competency. To build your core competency, you must understand the market. If you do not know the market's needs and build your core competency haphazardly, you are likely to be eliminated by the market.

Fifth Point: Know Yourself, Know the Market Demand

We must understand that everything is driven by the market. A society driven primarily by the market is a market economy. The difference between a market economy and a planned economy is that a market economy is driven by market demand; without market demand, there is no business. Therefore, recognizing market demand is a crucial component.

Know yourself, recognize market demand, and you will know where to develop and what core competencies to equip yourself with. Then, promote your core competency; know how to clearly describe your core competency, and that is promotion. Regarding the market demand for core competencies, I believe it is a good habit to conduct market research, read more, recognize more, and understand more.

For example, if you read the book "Industry 4.0," you will know that many industries will gradually disappear in the coming years. If this is true, then we must be careful not to jump into the ranks of those eliminated by the market; this is called structural unemployment.

Know yourself, recognize market demand, and constantly adjust. Therefore, sometimes I think people must have a long-term vision. A famous person once said, "If I want to see the next few years, I must first look at 30 years, 50 years. Only by seeing the market situation 30 to 50 years from now can you plan for the next three to five years."

Then, based on the three- to five-year plan, adjust your one-month, two-month, or even three-month plan. Know what kind of material you are, what you can do, and what you cannot do. Know what level you have accumulated, what your strengths are, and what your weaknesses are. Then, recognize market demand; this is very important.

I once ministered to a girl who was already twenty-seven or twenty-eight but could be said to have accomplished nothing. Under the teaching of a traditional church, she studied theology for half a year, but she accomplished nothing. Then, I pinpointed her most painful spot, and although she knew I was right, she could not accept it.

Later, she ran to a first-tier city to sell insurance. Did she really understand what the insurance industry is? Did she really know herself? Did she really understand the market's needs? She did not understand. She neither knew herself nor understood the market's needs.

For example, regarding the insurance industry, let me tell you what a veteran does. If you do not have certain savings, savings that can support you for one to two years, do not sell insurance. But many people borrow money to sell insurance; is that not courting death? Today, unless I say, "Believe that you have received it, and you will receive it," may miracles happen to such children. But the problem is that faith is important, but faith does not mean we should deny ourselves.

## Point 6: Learn the Language of Salesmanship

If the business is not on the right track, the returns are barely enough to keep it afloat. Therefore, **knowing oneself and understanding market demands are key to selling oneself.** How you respond to questions asked is essentially addressing market needs and what you possess, what can satisfy the market, even if you embellish the story a bit, it must be credible; you cannot fabricate an unreliable tale.

Learn to speak, to use the language of salesmanship. Every industry has its own way of speaking. Diplomats have diplomatic parlance; salespeople have their sales pitches; self-promotion has its own linguistic patterns. **Cultivate the habit of speaking** appropriately. So today, we, as brothers and sisters, begin to understand how to speak, what kind of words to use. It's not about asking if someone has eaten or had a drink; that's not the language of self-promotion.

The language of self-promotion **must be precise**. It has a **unique characteristic**: it always revolves around the same core. What skills do you have, what problems can you solve, what value can you create, and what market needs can you meet?

I once taught people how to handle job interviews. If the interviewer asks an unrelated question, like, "What are you reading lately?" and you answer, "I'm reading *Water Margin*" or "*Legend of the White Snake*," the interviewer has no interest in that. You must learn to speak appropriately. You should respond by saying, "I've been **researching**..." If you're applying for a job in online marketing, you should be researching online marketing. "I even wrote a short article summarizing the key aspects of online marketing." Then, you take out a printed copy of your summary.

If you've written a booklet, "How to Do Online Marketing," twenty or thirty pages long, and printed it out, that's **the language of salesmanship**. Recruiters don't have time to hear about your reading of *Water Margin*. You need to write **your own legend**. You need to explain what you can do for them. So, what seems like an unrelated question is actually very relevant. Why? Because you must learn to speak pertinently.

Whether I'm serving as a pastor or working as an entrepreneur, I wouldn't say I'm exceptionally good at selling myself, but I think I do a decent job. If I were to look for a pastoral position in an English-speaking country, I don't think it would be too difficult.

For example, during my recent conversation with my pastor in Singapore, I promoted myself quite effectively. What did I promote? I promoted the books I've written. I mentioned that I've written over thirty books, and I presented him with one. He glanced at it, and I highlighted a few key elements: church building, my research findings, and some insights from the Bible. A few words moved him.

I was leaving the next day, but he still wanted me to meet with one of his subordinates to provide some training. Why? Because I had successfully promoted myself. He believed I had genuine talent and knowledge. Whether you have substance or not is one thing, but even if you do, if you can't articulate it, you won't be able to sell yourself. So, **learn to speak, get to the point.**

If you're facing an investor, speak the language of investment. This involves your industry, whether it's currently in a growth phase, your business model, your profit model, and your team. This is the language to use when talking to investors. You need to understand the language of each industry. You don't need to know what's irrelevant to you, but what is relevant, you really need to align yourself with. You need to learn to speak appropriately, not irrelevantly.

For example, if an investor asks me, "What are you reading lately?" I'd say, "I'm reading *The Game of Capital*." Why? Because you're talking to an investor. If you're talking to a novelist, what are you doing? "What are you reading lately?" "I'm reading how to write a novel." What if you haven't read anything? Then read something!

But if you haven't read anything, what can you talk about? "I've heard this book is excellent, but I haven't had time to read it." That's acceptable. I think everyone should cultivate this habit, equipping themselves to be useful members of society, good citizens.

### We Must Equip Ourselves to Be Talents in This Society

I think we should do what we can do and not do what we cannot. As for systemic or institutional issues, those are for others to manage. **Let's be good citizens, equip ourselves well, learn to speak effectively, and promote ourselves properly.** You might say it's the broader social environment. I think China's environment is quite good. Is there a problem with China's environment? There are problems everywhere. Don't be misled by these things.

Look at the chaos and negativity in other countries! Many are pessimistic about China, but I am confident that the next twenty years will be the two decades in which China becomes a powerful, developed nation. China will become one of the leading powers in the world. You must **focus on the big picture**. Are there problems? Yes.

Your task is to equip yourself to be a **talent** in this society. This society needs many stabilizing factors. **We must become stabilizing factors in this society.** As Christians, we pray, but we don't cause trouble. We focus our energy and abilities on positive endeavors, learning to speak, learning the language of self-promotion, and learning to equip ourselves.

## Point 7: Rapidly Equip Yourself, Enhancing Your Knowledge, Skills, and Experience

I watched a video of an old farmer sitting on a bench in a park. He's not a mayor, a Party Secretary, a county head, or a county Party Secretary. He's just sitting there, and the video goes on for a long time. He's talking about how this should be done and how that should be done. I tell you, that's pure nonsense. He doesn't have time to equip himself properly.

England has a place called Hyde Park, where people can say whatever they want. Singapore has also created such a corner where you can say whatever you want.

I think if you have time, **rapidly equip yourself, enhancing your knowledge, skills, and experience.** What is experience? It's what you gain after using your knowledge and skills to solve problems. It's the result of solving problems.

What is a skill? It's having a certain knowledge and creating something with it. It's being able to operate something. What is knowledge? Knowledge is something from books that you put in your head after reading. You don't know if it's practical or not. So, rapidly equip yourself. **If you can, equip yourself with experience; if not, equip yourself with skills.**

But knowledge is, at best, just understanding. If you don't have experience or skills in that area, if you haven't done that kind of work in the market, you can't do it. Even if you just talk about knowledge, you can still promote yourself.

There was a young man who studied computers and engineering. Later, he wanted to find a job in marketing. I told him to read Philip Kotler's *Marketing Management*. It has about twenty chapters, including one on direct sales and online marketing. He read the first two chapters and gained a little knowledge of marketing.

Then he went for an interview and got the job. Why? Because he could speak well. How do people evaluate? Some interviewers aren't good at interviewing, and they can't really tell. It sounds reasonable, but wouldn't the book be reasonable?

So, **rapidly equipping yourself allows you to continuously enhance your knowledge, skills, and experience.** Perhaps you can seize one or two **opportunities**. I think today, we, as brothers and sisters, should start learning how to learn. Once you know the market demands and your own situation, you can start equipping yourself with knowledge, setting up topics, researching certain topics, and starting to improve your skills.

If you have the opportunity, you can gain some practical experience. Today, with computers and the internet, the era has truly changed. For example, circuit design can be done on a computer, and it looks almost the same as soldering. So today, there's too much knowledge and too many skills. There's also NetEase Cloud Classroom. Even if you haven't seen something before, you can watch many videos and understand how it works.

### Successfully Promote Yourself and Find a Job That Suits You

Some time ago, I took everyone to my office. We were renovating, and we had to sand and paint the wood. We watched some videos, listened to the master craftsman, and did a pretty good job. That's called painting experience. In the past, it was difficult, but today, you can equip yourself very quickly with practical experience. For example, to write a program, all you need is a computer, right? To do a live broadcast, all you need is a computer and a camera, right? Many things today can be done quickly. You say you have no experience, no skills, no knowledge. Then what are you selling?

So today, you need to know what skills you have, what knowledge you have, and what experience you have. When you go out to promote yourself, you can reintegrate these things and convert yourself into something valuable. That's how a person's value is realized. Without promotion, there is no value. I think successfully promoting yourself will lead to a very good job. To summarize, if you want to successfully promote yourself, follow the steps I mentioned earlier. Are there limitations in this process? Yes, there are. For example, if you're a doctor and you haven't performed surgery, that's difficult. I once saw a Korean movie about training people to perform surgery. How did they do it? They used a lot of fish bladders and had people cut them. You couldn't cut the surrounding tissue, but you couldn't break the bladder. If you broke the bladder, you failed the exam.

So, successfully promoting yourself, I think, is about finding something that suits you. Some things must be trained in a very limited environment, like doctors. I wouldn't teach people to do that. So today, there are many things that we, as brothers and sisters, can do and choose from. Making a living is hardly a problem today. If you are willing to work hard, learn, and figure things out, and then learn to promote yourself, you will be very successful. I think the path to self-promotion also requires constantly accumulating experience. If you have the opportunity, go out and promote yourself. Even if you already have a job, occasionally send out a resume and go for an interview to see what the market is like. So today, I want to share this with you. Now, let's see how God blesses you.

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