3 Lessons Jack Ma Taught Me (That I Didn’t Understand Until Later)

Sometimes, the most powerful advice doesn’t make sense in the moment.

It sinks in later—after you’ve lived it.

That’s exactly how it was with Jack Ma. When we first started working together, I was excited, nervous, and completely blown away by the fact that this global business icon saw something in me and Pure Placid.

But the things he told me?
At the time, I thought, That’s interesting.
Years later, I’d realize: That was everything.

Here are the 3 lessons Jack Ma taught me that I didn’t fully understand until I lived them:

1. “The more you grow, the less you work for yourself.”

We were just getting started on our project together when he asked me something that completely caught me off guard:

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

I laughed and said, “Of course I do! This is a huge opportunity!”

But then he said this:

“Right now, you work for yourself. You call the shots. But when you grow—when you start making millions—you start working for everyone else. Your investors. Your staff. Your customers. You lose the ability to just work for you.”

At the time, I brushed it off.
Sure, sure. That’s a rich person problem.
But he was right.

As Pure Placid grew, and as my responsibilities grew with it, I started to feel it.

The freedom started to shrink.
There were fires to put out. People to answer to. Pressure to meet bigger numbers.

And I realized—there’s a sweet spot in business.
That zone where you’re still making good money, but you still have your life.

And sometimes, the bigger the dream gets… the less of you is left in it.

2. “Only hire people who are better than you at what you’re hiring them for.”

This one seems obvious. But as a small business owner, you’re used to wearing all the hats. So when you finally start hiring—especially for things you like doing—it gets tricky.

Jack told me:

“If you’re hiring someone, they need to be better than you at that thing. Otherwise, you’ll always feel like you could’ve done it better yourself.”

And yep—he nailed it.

I’ve hired people to help with branding and content before—things I actually enjoy and am naturally good at. And more than once, I found myself thinking…
“I could’ve done this better.”

That’s not a judgment on them—it’s just the wrong fit.
It taught me that I need to hire up.
Hire for the things I’m not great at. Hire people who blow me away with their skill in their zone.

Because that’s how you build a business you can actually grow and trust.

3. “Leverage what you’ve got—even if it’s just a name and a piece of paper.”

This one makes me laugh to this day.

We had just received a huge purchase order—one that would take us from zero to a hundred overnight. And I had no clue how we were going to fund it. I didn’t have a business plan for that kind of growth. I was panicking.

And Jack looked at me and said:

“You have me.
And you have a purchase order.
That’s all you need.”

He told me how, in the early days of Alibaba, he’d kind of “exaggerate” things to get attention from investors. He’d drop a big name in conversation, even if that person wasn’t fully on board yet. And it worked.

It created momentum. It created belief.

He taught me: you don’t always need the whole plan.
You just need something real to leverage.
In my case, it was him—and a signed PO.

And guess what?
That was enough.

I got my first investors.
I got the funding.
I learned how to pitch not from a perfectly polished business plan, but from truth and possibility.

These are the lessons that stuck.
They didn’t come with textbooks or slideshows.
They came in passing conversations and quick moments—but they changed how I think, how I lead, and how I build.

And maybe there’s something in your world right now that you can leverage too.
A connection.
A spark.
An idea.
A moment of credibility you haven’t fully owned yet.

Sometimes, that’s all it takes.

And if you’re not sure you’re ready?

Just remember…
You probably already have everything you need to take your next big step.