Making Money is About Leveraging Resources, Intelligence, and Trends

Those who have read “The Almanack of Naval Ravikant” surely understand the importance of leverage in making money. It’s no exaggeration to say that the most important skill in wealth creation is learning how to “borrow.” It’s a principle we all understood as children playing on seesaws: one person can’t make it move, but with a partner, you can soar. Making money works the same way - grinding alone is less effective than integrating with others. The scale of wealth isn’t determined by who works harder, but by who better understands how to “borrow” - borrowing team hands, expert minds, and trend momentum.

I. Leveraging Resources: Be a Resource Hunter, Not a Lone Hero

Fan Li from the Spring and Autumn period is a perfect example. He discovered that horses were cheap in the north and wanted to transport them south for profit, but the roads were plagued with bandits. Hiring bodyguards himself? Too expensive. Instead, he found cloth merchant Jiang Zidun and offered to transport his cloth for free, in exchange for using his secure trade routes to transport horses. In one trip, Fan Li made a fortune while Jiang Zidun saved on shipping costs. Neither risked their lives, yet both achieved a win-win outcome.

In 2012, when Didi was just starting, Cheng Wei only had 800,000 yuan in startup capital and couldn’t even assemble a complete technical team. He did something brilliant - he directly partnered with Tencent’s tech expert Zhang Bo: “You provide the technology, I handle operations, and we split the profits.” As a result, Didi became an overnight success through WeChat integration.

Being poor isn’t a sin; not knowing how to leverage resources is. When we read or network upward, we’re essentially borrowing the power of those with higher cognition than us. This reflects psychological theories of “social exchange” and “reciprocity” - like when you help a colleague with a PowerPoint and they teach you Excel linking, both parties save time and effort. So, to get something, give first.

In reality, too many people are trapped in the obsession of “I can do it myself.” I have a friend in e-commerce who used to pack and ship orders until dawn every day, working himself into the hospital. Later, he hired two people and focused on product selection and live streaming. Within six months, his team expanded to 20 people and profits multiplied several times. He said: “I used to think money was only secure if I earned it myself. Now I realize that sharing profits allows me to focus on what I do best.”

II. Leveraging Intelligence: One Word from an Expert Beats Ten Years of Trial and Error

How did Gao Qiqiang in “The Knockout” rise from a fish vendor? Two strategies: reading “The Art of War” and latching onto Uncle Tai. Don’t feel ashamed - without that initial humility, there would be no later Gao Qiqiang.

Psychology has a “Rule of 5”: your income is the average of the five people you interact with most. Want to earn a million annually? Start mingling in million-dollar circles first. Jews have an old saying: “To become rich, go stand among rich people, even if just to smell the scent of money.” The human brain unconsciously mimics the thinking patterns of nearby experts. Being a caddy at a golf course is better than toiling among the poor.

In “Blossoms,” A-Bao’s transformation from street vendor to “Mr. Bao” was key because of his uncle’s guidance. His uncle taught him to read K-line charts and avoid policy risks, turning him from a novice into a capital player in three years.

It’s said that when Li Ka-shing’s driver Zhou Shuchun retired, Li Ka-shing, appreciating Zhou’s half-lifetime of dedicated service, gave him a 10 million check for retirement. Zhou not only refused but said: “Boss, I don’t need this money. I have 100 million, enough for retirement.” It turned out that while driving, he overheard Li Ka-shing’s business conversations and learned valuable information - which Hong Kong properties would appreciate significantly, which stocks might rise, what to heavily invest in. He secretly bought some, and thanks to Li Ka-shing’s influence, made over 100 million over the years.

This is “observational learning” - like how children learn to walk not from manuals, but by watching adults take steps.

I heard of a case where a girl wanted to learn social media operations and knowledge monetization. She worked as an assistant to a knowledge monetization expert for three years, mastering course design, user operations, and private domain conversion. When she went solo last year, she directly earned a million annually.

When I started in social media, I also began by imitating others, then gradually found my own approach to topics and writing. Originality isn’t starting from zero - it’s micro-innovation standing on the shoulders of those who already have results.

III. Leveraging Trends: Even Pigs Can Fly in the Right Wind

This phrase has been overused, but the truth is: 99% of people don’t understand what “trends” really mean.

Hu Xueyan’s rise is a textbook case. 1853 was a crucial turning point in his life. The Taiping Rebellion caused massive upheaval in the Jiangnan region, with continuous warfare leading to extreme resource scarcity. Hu Xueyan keenly seized this opportunity, stockpiling 100,000 shi of grain in three days to supply Zuo Zongtang, earning military procurement rights in return.

When Apple released the iPhone in 2007, Nokia engineers mocked: “This thing isn’t drop-resistant, has poor battery life, definitely won’t sell.” The result? The smartphone wave directly killed the century-old giant.

Trends are like subways - miss the first train, and everything after is crowded. Taobao in 2003, WeChat business in 2013, real estate in 2015, TikTok in 2018, live e-commerce in 2020 - each trend created countless wealth myths.

Don’t think you lack skills; this world is essentially improvised. 80% of people see trends and say “let’s wait and see,” 19% say “let’s try,” but only 1% act directly. Yet it’s always that 1% of “reckless ones” who make the big money.

Let’s encourage each other.