2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 100 Being a Boss is an Art

In April, the weather in Ningbo is very changeable, varying greatly from morning to noon to evening. In the morning, the sky may be clear and blue, but by noon, it can be pouring rain.

The weather was sunny for a few days and rainy for a few days, and Zhang Qingliang was not very familiar with the environment and weather here, which greatly affected the renovation.

Although he was a little anxious, Tan Jincheng knew that this was due to objective reasons and he couldn't rush things. The plaster wasn't dry yet, so he couldn't force the workers to continue the work.
"It's okay, it's okay if it's a little late. Don't rush. Focus on quality and safety; those are the most important things."

After seeing the scene, and seeing his uncle Zhang Qingliang looking embarrassed, Tan Jincheng could only comfort him in this way.

My uncle has a point. If we proceed to the next step before the paint is completely dry, the paint on the wall will easily peel off, which will damage the company's image.

"Yes, I'll hurry up and try not to delay your business," Zhang Qingliang said solemnly.

He also has experience in helping people renovate shops. Shops are not like residential buildings. If you delay for a month, you will lose at least a month's rent. His nephew's office is not small either, so the rent must be expensive.

"Yes, you should also be mindful of the noise level and other things, so as not to disturb other people's work too much."

"Okay, I'll have the workers keep that in mind."

Noise from renovations wasn't regulated as strictly in 05, and there weren't the frequent complaints like in later years. However, the property management did call us to ask us to be mindful of the noise. In reality, people these days are relatively friendly, and there's a lot of mutual understanding.

Perhaps the legal awareness was much weaker than in later generations. On the other hand, these days, people imagine that those who own companies are rich, so ordinary company employees would just tolerate it and wouldn't cause trouble.

"Alright, I'll be going now. Uncle, do you want to come with me?"

"Why would I go with you? I'll stay here and keep an eye on the construction site."

"I'm going to pick up the car, are you really not coming?"

"Really? A BMW?" Zhang Qingliang's eyes lit up upon hearing this.

Although he doesn't have a driver's license, he can drive. His eldest brother's family has a hand tractor, which they borrowed money to buy back then. This hand tractor has made a lot of contributions to the whole family, and all four brothers, including him, can drive it.

He had secretly driven cars before, but it wasn't a big problem. Owning a car is a dream for most men, and Zhang Qingliang was no exception.

"Come on, let's go see. I was wondering why you didn't drive your car today and took a taxi instead."

"Come on, Uncle, you should get a driver's license when you have time. You can drive anyway. How about you become my driver if you don't want to work in the renovation industry anymore?"

"Come on, a company with just a few people doesn't need a driver. It costs money. Besides, a driver can't earn as much as I do in the renovation business. I don't want to always have to rely on you for help."

The prices for the two residences had already been agreed upon, and now this office has cost me an extra amount. All things considered, I can expect a prosperous year ahead, and I should be able to build the house without having to borrow money anymore.

Zhang Qingliang knew perfectly well that his nephew was taking care of him out of respect for his sister. He had previously asked his sister for some money to build a house, but a few months later, his sister called to ask if he had considered not going to Northeast China this year.

Not long after, during the Chinese New Year, my nephew contacted me and offered to "take over" my work for the whole year at a very favorable price.

Knowing is one thing, but Zhang Qingliang couldn't refuse because he really needed the money. Borrowed money always has to be repaid, but he didn't need to use his own earnings, even though he knew there was an element of favoritism involved.

The agreed-upon payment for the two houses was 6 yuan. My sister gave me half during the Spring Festival, and when I arrived in Ningbo, my nephew gave me the other half directly. The work wasn't even finished, and I already had the money. That's how my nephew treats me.

However, while it's good to take care of someone, one should know how to be content. You should know that right now, out of respect for his sister, the nephew won't say anything. But if you, as the uncle, were truly ungrateful and relied on your nephew, things would be very different now.

Is a young man who just turned 18, gave up going to university, went to sea to make his way in the world, and returned to start two companies and have a net worth of over a million within six months as simple as he seems?
Let's keep this favor. My good-for-nothing son doesn't do well in school, and he might come in handy at a crucial moment. Let this cousin help him out.

At the 4S dealership, all the paperwork was completed. This brand-new 2004 BMW 3 Series, with its black body, is still quite stunning even today. As the first generation of the domestically produced BMW 3 Series, it was touted as filling the gap in the luxury B-segment car market when it was first launched, and it was highly sought after by consumers.

The transition between the classic double-kidney grille and the hood is quite natural, and the clean body lines give it a sporty feel, with decent handling performance.

"Drive a BMW, ride in a Mercedes." That's roughly where the saying comes from, describing the selling points and performance of each brand.

Although the manufacturer's suggested retail price is between 34.8 and 40.8 yuan, for these popular models, it's still a bit much for ordinary people to buy them at the suggested retail price. Even in the era of widespread car ownership in later years, it might not be possible to do so.

Tan Jincheng spent a lot of money on this car, including various other things and paying extra to get it earlier. However, since it can be used to offset taxes, the higher price is not a big deal. If it were registered under his personal name, Tan Jincheng would definitely not be the one to be taken advantage of.

Having seen all sorts of car models from later generations, no matter how much hype is put on a classic, in Tan Jincheng's eyes it's just a car. When his grandfather comes up with a classic two-wheeled electric vehicle with a design that's ahead of its time, he'll spend money to hire some media to hype it up.

Actually, the main reason I came back halfway was for this car. He called to tell you the car had arrived, and if you don't mention it, he might not give it to you. There are plenty of people waiting in line.

The automotive market is truly a seller's market these days; manufacturers, dealerships, and even ordinary salespeople are all incredibly powerful.

Thinking about it this way, Tan Jincheng felt the urgency of time even more. He couldn't miss the best time to make money. Even if he couldn't catch up with traditional cars, he had to get a piece of the pie with electric two-wheelers and new energy vehicles.

As for delivering the contract and arranging production at the contract manufacturer, those were just side things. "Come on, Uncle, let me take you for a spin around and let you get familiar with the surroundings." Having just picked up the car, Tan Jincheng was in a good mood.

Seeing that his eldest nephew was in a good mood, Zhang Qingliang couldn't bear to say anything discouraging like "I have to go back to work," so he let him go.

The first stop was naturally Jinpeng Trading. The two sisters, Li Yanning and Li Jinglan, who were looking after the place, were startled when they suddenly saw Boss Tan showing up at their door. The Canton Fair still had more than 10 days left, so why was Boss Tan suddenly back? Had something happened?

"Boss, why are you back at this time? Isn't the Canton Fair still going on?" Li Yanning asked directly, remembering something.

Li Jinglan's eyes darted around, and Tan Jincheng could tell from her expression that she was definitely slacking off, probably wondering if he had caught her.

That's the effect we want. It's inevitable that employees will slack off, but there should still be some deterrent effect. If you let them run wild for a long time, they will only become unruly.

"Nothing's wrong, everything's fine over there. I just brought back some important documents; it's not safe to leave them in the hotel. We're going to get busy now."

Then Tan Jincheng introduced Zhang Qingliang.

“We’ve met before. Xiao Li helped me move before,” Zhang Qingliang said with a smile.

Oh right, I asked Li Yanning for help renting a house for my uncle before. How could I have forgotten about it?

"Alright, Uncle, please have a seat. Jinglan, pour me a glass of water. Sister Li, come to my office for a moment."

With a lot of orders coming up, the workload for the order coordinator will definitely be heavy. It will be difficult for Li Yanning to handle it all by herself. It's time to expand the company and hire new employees.

This is something I have to handle myself. No matter what, I have to manage this batch of orders from the Canton Fair. Zhang Xupeng doesn't have that capability yet.

It's not that Zhang Xupeng's growth rate wasn't fast enough; he had already worked very hard. But after all, this was his first time doing business, unlike Tan Jincheng, who was a reborn person.

The first order he made was James's $10 order, which is over 80 yuan. At this Canton Fair, it has directly exceeded the million-yuan level.

It's already very good that someone like Zhang Xupeng can achieve this. If it were someone less knowledgeable, they would be blinded by these numbers and become arrogant.

"Look, these are our orders for this year. You probably can't handle it all by yourself. I'll hire a few more people later, so don't worry."

Tan Jincheng handed the monthly order plan he had made after returning yesterday to Li Yanning and said with a smile.

Being a boss is an art. For many young employees, income is indeed important, but often their pride is more important. You have to take care of their self-esteem.

Dealing with these young employees is much easier than dealing with those seasoned veterans. If you don't want to use them anymore, you can start from this angle. You'll be able to catch them every time. All that talk about reforming the workplace is nonsense. There are plenty of ways to deal with you.

Tan Jincheng was certain that if he didn't say anything to Li Yanning and just hired a few more order assistants, she would definitely think that the boss was dissatisfied with his work and was thinking of hiring more people so that he could replace him later.

"Huh?" Li Yanning was clearly stunned for a moment, and hesitated for a while before taking the form handed to her by Tan Jincheng.

Li Yanning carefully looked at the production plan, and then her face lit up with joy. She had heard from her peers that the policies had changed this year and the clothing business was not doing well. At that time, she was wondering if the company could receive enough orders.

Now it seems there's no problem with the business being difficult, or any change in policy. Starting next month, orders are booked until March of next year, completely full, especially next month, with a significant number of orders.

"No wonder the boss said he needed to hire a few more people. I thought he was complaining about my high salary because he didn't have enough orders."

With this number of orders, one order coordinator is definitely not enough. Even if I don't take breaks, I still can't keep up. Hiring someone is a must.

With a sigh of relief, Li Yanning put away the production schedule: "Congratulations, boss! With so many orders, the company's performance this year is sure to be excellent. We might even make a name for ourselves in the district."

If an enterprise earns foreign exchange through exports and reaches a certain scale, it becomes a key enterprise in the district. If it were 10 or 20 years ago, enterprises that could earn foreign exchange would be highly valued.

"Okay, you'll be responsible for getting the new order assistants into the company's rhythm. Work hard, and you won't be treated unfairly."

"I understand. Boss, do you want me to help you poach some people? There are a few with very strong business skills at my previous workplace."

"Sure, you can ask around. I'm hiring at the normal pace. If you can find someone with excellent skills, the company will give you an extra bonus, and you'll still be in charge of training them."

"Okay, I'll get back to work then? Next month's production schedule is pretty heavy, I'll go make the arrangements now."

Li Yanning happily replied that Boss Tan always kept his word, and it looked like her salary would be able to reach a new level this year.

However, with more people comes more competition, so I guess I have to work harder! I can't let the new employees outdo me.

"Okay, go ahead and call Li Jinglan over."

(End of this chapter)