On October 15, Sears, a retail giant with 132 years of history and sales that once reached 1% of U.S. GDP, officially filed for bankruptcy protection, putting 80,000 people at risk of unemployment. Sears was once the world's largest private retail enterprise, inventing retail formats such as department stores, chain stores, and shopping malls. It is no exaggeration to call it the "founding master" of the retail industry. But since 2010, Sears has been in a loss-making state, with cumulative losses of $10 billion and debt of $4 billion. In 2017, Sears Canada had already gone bankrupt and liquidated, resulting in 12,000 job losses. In this era, no business model can last forever, and no competitive advantage is eternal. This applies to companies, and even more so to each of us as individuals. 1 "I defeated all my rivals but lost to the times" On November 20, 2017, Alibaba announced a 22.4 billion yuan deal to acquire RT-Mart, China's largest offline supermarket chain. Subsequently, RT-Mart's nationwide warehousing, logistics, and other first-class supply chain channels were fully integrated into Alibaba's business empire. Within less than three months, six board members were replaced, Alibaba's Daniel Zhang took over as chairman of RT-Mart, and founder Huang Mingduan left. Having opened stores for 19 years without closing a single one, and replacing Carrefour in 2010 as the champion of China's mainland retail industry, RT-Mart was a legend in retail. However, upon leaving, RT-Mart founder Huang Mingduan said: "I defeated all my rivals, but lost to the times." It is truly lamentable. Also forgotten by the times is Kodak, which was once at its peak. At its zenith, Kodak created many myths, once occupying two-thirds of the global film market, employing 145,000 people, with franchised stores worldwide. Kodak once turned countless people's precious moments into eternity; it was not only a symbol of American culture but also synonymous with film. However, with the development and popularization of digital imaging technology, digital products swept the globe with lightning speed, and the traditional film market rapidly shrank. The giant with a century of history was finally forced to file for bankruptcy protection in January 2012. Ironically, the world's first digital camera was invented by Kodak. Lacking foresight, Kodak chose to shelve this new technology to avoid impacting its booming film business, stubbornly sticking to the traditional market. Kodak, unwilling to embrace the changes of the times, was ultimately abandoned by the times and died at its own hands. The world we live in is changing at a geometric rate, and it simply won't stop. When change comes, choosing to adapt to the situation, actively embrace change, and meet challenges, or sticking to old ways, being conservative, and rejecting or ignoring change, will lead to two completely different outcomes. 2 What kills you is often not your opponent Many internet bigwigs highly praise the science fiction novel "The Three-Body Problem," which mentions a term: dimensional reduction strike. It refers to the destruction of two-dimensional beings when three-dimensional beings enter two-dimensional space. In plain language: I destroy you, regardless of you. Dimensional reduction strikes are no longer isolated cases. Let's look at an example: China is the world's largest producer and seller of instant noodles. Since the 1990s, sales have increased for 18 consecutive years. In 2013, total sales reached 46.22 billion packs, with an average of 1,465 packs opened per second. However, starting in 2013, the instant noodle industry began to decline. By 2016, annual sales had fallen to 38.5 billion packs, and domestic instant noodle manufacturers encountered a "cold winter." Why are fewer people eating instant noodles? Is competition among instant noodle manufacturers becoming more intense? Not entirely. A very important reason is the rise of internet food delivery platforms. When Meituan and Ele.me deliver food directly to your doorstep, instant noodles are no longer "instant." At the same time, food delivery offers a wide variety of choices, fast delivery, and not particularly high prices, and all of this requires just a few taps on your phone. There are many more such examples: Nikon's exit from China is not because of intense competition with brands like Canon and Leica, but because the gap between smartphone camera capabilities and professional camera lenses is narrowing, and the entire camera market is shrinking. In the computer antivirus market a decade ago, Rising Antivirus and Kingsoft Antivirus both made profits by charging users directly. When free 360 emerged, everyone turned to this free antivirus software, and Qihoo 360 quickly became the leader in the internet security industry. Dimensional reduction strikes are often the strongest blows because the opponent has no ability to fight back. Even if you are the leader in a certain field, you may be defeated by an opponent using a completely different dimension. In the future, you may never know who your opponent is or when they will strike. Because what kills you may be an opponent you never imagined; any seemingly unrelated new thing can destroy you invisibly. The only thing we can do is maintain a sufficiently broad vision. When new things and new industries emerge, embrace them first, think divergently, and perhaps you will see future opportunities before your opponents. Never think that changes in the times have nothing to do with you. Weakness is not an obstacle to survival; ignorance and narrow-mindedness are. 3 Don't use the cognition of 10 years ago to plan your life 10 years later Earlier this year, a speech by Zhang Quanling, former famous CCTV host and partner of Ziniu Fund, went viral across the internet. She shared her true thoughts when leaving CCTV: "Our generation lives particularly hard. Because the times are changing so fast, but our inner values may remain in the previous era, or even the era before that. For me, a greater fear comes from knowing that the world is changing, changing so fast, so pervasively, entering every aspect of your life. But you don't know how it changes. So even if it's painful, even if I have to leave my comfort zone, even if it causes greater anxiety and insecurity, I still decided to take this step." Not only Zhang Quanling, but many other hosts have left CCTV in recent years: Luo Zhenyu: After leaving CCTV, he entered the knowledge service field and founded the knowledge service provider Dedao APP; Ma Dong: After leaving CCTV, he became famous for iQiyi's self-produced talk show "U Can U Bibi" and founded Miwei Media; Fan Deng: After leaving CCTV, he promoted nationwide reading, and "Fan Deng Reading Club" earns over 100 million yuan annually... As expressed in Zhang Quanling's speech, everyone feels anxiety caused by change; the key is how you view this change. A columnist for Chazuomba, A Xiu, recently spent 200,000 yuan to leave the system. Many people find it unbelievable: Why leave a good big company and pay 200,000 yuan? The cost is really high. A Xiu said: "I increasingly realize that the future trend is not in traditional media. Rather than clinging to comfort while muddling along, it's better to jump into an industry that represents the future and take a gamble. In the future, stability may be a luxury you can't enjoy. That's why I'd rather spend all my savings to jump out of the system. " The times are changing too fast; the peak of many traditional industries has passed. The stability you once thought you had is slowly eroding your competitiveness. Don't use the cognition of 10 years ago to plan your life 10 years later, because no job can be done once and for all, and there is no absolutely stable job in the world. Famous actor Gary Oldman, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor, once said: "If one day you sit in a chair and feel satisfied with everything about yourself, it's actually quite sad. Security is a good thing, but it can easily numb you and then stagnate." You might ask yourself: Are you the frog in warm water? 4 Good opportunities don't come often; when manna falls from heaven, use a bucket to catch it, not a thimble In his 2010 letter to shareholders, Warren Buffett wrote: "Good opportunities don't come often. When manna falls from heaven, use a bucket to catch it, not a thimble." Some opportunities are not visible to everyone; some are visible to all, but only a few will use a bucket to catch them, while onlookers can only watch. In 2012, the WeChat public platform emerged. In six years, it incubated over 20 million public accounts of all sizes, completely changing the ecological pattern of content dissemination and the fate of many people. In the content entrepreneurship circle, known as "South Lin, North Sha," Lin Shao and Sha Xiaopi are not only friends but also have similar experiences. In 2012, Sha Xiaopi, who had graduated four years earlier, lived a nine-to-five life at a state-owned enterprise. One day, he saw a report on a forum: "A high school student earns 20,000 yuan a month using Weibo," which stirred his heart, as he earned only 5,000 yuan a month. Just like today's young people yearn for "Mi Meng's assistant earning 50,000 a month," Sha Xiaopi, who could have stayed stable in the state-owned enterprise, couldn't sit still. By chance, he registered the WeChat public account "Visual Journal" at the end of 2012, which has now become a top account with tens of millions of followers. Cao Guoxiong and Wu Xiaobo, angel investors in Shidian Reading, recalled their first meeting with Lin Shao: "We asked him three questions": "What did you do before?" "Repairing airplanes at Xiamen Airport." "How many people in your company?" "Three: me, my wife, and my brother-in-law." "Where do you work?" "At home." Someone once asked Lin Shao: What is Shidian's value? Lin Shao replied: Our values emphasize embracing change; both the company and individuals must learn to embrace change. Today, "Shidian Reading" has become a top account with 25 million followers. This may not be accidental. The only constant in the world is change. Change brings challenges and opportunities. Those who see change first and seize opportunities first can grasp them and run forward at full speed. Those who don't see change may appear detached from the world, but in reality, they are in crisis: They isolate themselves, their radius of activity shrinks, their interpersonal interactions decrease, they only care about their own small patch, they don't actively engage with external new trends, gradually becoming disconnected from society and blocking their connection to the world. Those who seek stability at all costs and are content with the status quo, and those who are vigilant in peace and act according to circumstances, will inevitably have two completely different lives. 5 Only by embracing change can we embrace the future Famous career planner Gu Dian said: A truly appropriate attitude towards life is that embracing change is more important than career planning. In this rapidly changing era, the only thing we can do is adjust ourselves according to environmental changes, no matter how the big environment changes. Instead of being anxious for no reason, it's better to actively embrace change. 1. Have a long-term vision, a broad perspective, believe in the big trend, and keep up with the times Fu Sheng, founder of Cheetah Mobile, said in his famous cognitive trilogy: Believe in the big trend, don't simply criticize. Once you have an idea, immediately turn it into action, and form cognition through action. Not acting is the worst. Acting makes it possible to falsify. This trend includes not only the latest, most cutting-edge, and most disruptive information within the industry, but also changes in policies, regulations, and national economic development. Some time ago, Chazuomba pushed articles related to the economic environment, and some people commented that we were peddling anxiety. But think carefully: whether as enterprises or individuals, we cannot escape the huge impact of economic development. Being satisfied with earning money in front of you can keep you fed and clothed or moderately well-off, but the speed of wealth accumulation is usually slow. In such a situation, once a black swan event occurs, such as a family member falling ill or mid-career unemployment, the blow is undoubtedly devastating. Only by looking at trends, seizing opportunities, cultivating cross-border integration capabilities, maintaining curiosity, and letting new thoughts and ideas you come into contact with serve the present, can you achieve leapfrog development, escape the impact of industry or company changes, and maintain the courage to start over at any time. 2. Choose something that creates value and make friends with time Li Xiang, founder of Chehejia, said: The only way to make better choices is to make yourself stronger. How to become stronger? Some time ago, an article titled "Peking University Female Professor's Short Commencement Speech Goes Viral: What Simultaneously Causes Success and Passion?" flooded WeChat Moments. The professor said: There is a third factor that simultaneously leads to success and passion: mastery, your mastery of professional skills. When you reach a master level, you will have confidence and a sense of achievement, and success and passion will follow. How to achieve mastery? Through careful study and practice, like cutting and polishing jade, striving for perfection. Throughout history, the answer has never changed: mastery is the result of persistent focus, effort, and continuous practice. Once you see the trend and choose a track, the only thing you need to do is persist. Under the guidance of correct methods, invest a huge amount of time and energy, and keep working hard. You may not see changes in a day or two, but after three to five years, the gap between people cannot be compared on the same dimension, because this persistence brings exponential changes. In summary, it is to make friends with time, choose something that creates value, focus on this core goal, and devote yourself wholeheartedly. 3. Make friends with outstanding people and pay attention to the compound interest from weak ties The world changes too fast, and individual cognition always lags behind the pace of development. What to do? A shortcut is to go out, make friends with outstanding people, get in touch with those better than you, absorb their forward-thinking ideas, and constantly transform your cognitive model. On October 25, Forbes released the latest 2018 Forbes China 400 Richest List. The biggest dark horse was Huang Zheng, who founded Pinduoduo three years ago and has a net worth of 80 billion yuan. Through Ding Lei's introduction, he met his life mentor Duan Yongping. At the age of 26, under Duan's guidance, he had lunch with Warren Buffett, receiving information that ordinary people cannot access. The compound interest from weak ties is one of the important factors in Huang Zheng's success. The essence of weak ties is not connections, but the transmission of information. Generally, outstanding people have more information than you, and it is deeper. If you can get inspiration from this information and put it into practice, the resources you master will increase, and the possibility of success will also grow. So, you should seize every opportunity to contact outstanding people and enjoy the compound interest from weak ties. Luo Zhenyu has a saying called "U-disk survival": "Carry your own information, don't install a system, plug in and out anytime, collaborate freely." Like a U-disk, an individual can unplug and leave at any time, or plug in and collaborate at any time. In the end, it refers to a person's ability to adapt to change. The stronger your adaptability, the stronger your survival ability. In this era, you must keep yourself capable of moving with the wind, actively embrace change, and only then have the opportunity to embrace the future. ► Author: Spring, first published on Chazuomba (ID: chazuomba), the first stop for workplace charging, sharing at 21:21 every night, accompanying people with dreams to grow. Welcome to follow. -END-