Hai Changjiang: Awakened at 21, achieved explosive growth in one year. What exactly did I do right?

01

Self-Reflection

When I was 18, I started my own business. Simply put, I wanted to make more money and be freer, not liking to be managed by others, and even less liking to be constrained.

Because I was born in a very remote rural area in Inner Mongolia, if I didn’t make an effort later on, I would still live a routine life—probably just like the “majority.”

My first entrepreneurial venture lasted three years and was quite successful overall, at least giving me a good start.

By the time I was 21, I realized that if I only continued with offline education, I might spend my whole life like that—stuck in the middle, earning a few million a year, but unable to realize my dream of “全民自律” (national self-discipline). However, I failed to communicate effectively with the company directors, so I chose to leave everything behind and no longer dwell on it.

But maybe because I was overconfident, always believing that with my ability, no matter where I went, I could be the best, I stumbled when I first entered the Internet education field.

Besides speech and time management, I knew almost nothing. That year, in April, I went blind in my left eye, and later, due to excessive stress, I developed vitiligo and severe endocrine disorders, which pushed me to the brink of collapse.

For a long time, I don’t remember exactly how long—maybe about a month—I cried every day, couldn’t sleep all night, and almost every day I would review my past, thinking a lot.

I wondered, was it worth starting over after such brilliance in the past?

I thought about giving up because my body and mind were close to breaking down, but I really couldn’t bear to give up, because if I didn’t do this, I would regret it for the rest of my life.

If I had to pay the price of leaving a lifetime of regret for a relatively comfortable and stable life, I would rather not, and that’s not my style.

Since I was unwilling to give up, I decided to keep going—if one attempt failed, I would try twice; if twice failed, I would keep doing it.

02

Explosive Growth

I admit I hold strict standards for the things I believe in, especially for myself. So I picked myself up and started my second entrepreneurial journey.

To have a place to work, I had my landlord move out the bed because the rented room was less than 5 square meters. I slept on a yoga mat for eight months like that.

Because I didn’t have more money, I could only eat instant noodles and crackers every day. Especially when eating instant noodles, I would soak half the noodles and eat it, and chew the other half dry. I went through several months like that.

To make my voice sound better and more resonant, I practiced outdoors every day before 5 a.m., especially in winter, wearing two layers of down jackets standing in the woods to practice, because it was easier to disturb others’ rest elsewhere.

I used to think I read enough, but once I entered this field, I realized “learning is endless”. That year, I spent almost all my savings on books and courses, reading a total of 718 books.

There was also a lot of work to do every day. Since I no longer had assistants or employees to share the workload, I had to bear everything myself, working over 12 hours daily.

That year, I almost entered a state of “immersive growth.”

I didn’t care about others’ opinions or their slander. No matter how many difficulties, I would endure; no matter how big the problem, I would find a way to solve it. This flow state helped me forge ahead through thorns and thistles.

It was also that year I truly understood what self-discipline really means, which led me to write my first book, “Extreme Self-Discipline: Enjoying Solitude.”

I kept telling myself:

“I can lose, even lose convincingly, but I don’t want to lose because I didn’t try, because I didn’t seek progress, because I was lazy and complacent.”

03

I am indeed young, but not naive

Since starting my business at 18, the phrase “too young” has always lingered in my ears.

These three words became a tool for some people to slander and deny me. Even during my second startup, I was only 21, and in most people’s eyes, my life was just beginning.

But because of that extraordinary experience that year, plus many years of education and coaching, I realized that a person’s age can be divided into “biological age” and “psychological age.”

What truly matters is not biological age but psychological age, which depends on one’s experiences and insights, as well as their thoughts and understanding of life.

It’s not that older means more capable, nor that younger means more ignorant. If someone is more talented than me, even if they’re only 10 years old, I would humbly seek advice.

From 21 to now, I have gained over a million followers, hundreds of partners nationwide, coached hundreds of thousands of students, influenced millions, become a signed author for Ten Point Reading, a bestselling author, once ranked number one in time management live streams, spoken over a thousand times, and own two houses and two cars.

I never explain these to others; I only prove through actions and results.

Being able to achieve all this is because I never set limits for myself. I always compare myself to those who are truly outstanding. These are not related to age but to the achievements and level of cognition they have attained.

Today at 25, I illuminate the future at 30, and I look forward to it just as I always have.