With the process of urbanization and industrial upgrading in China, education related to this has become a very attractive field. Of course, in the past 65,438+07 years, Yu, the founder of New Oriental, has been an important beneficiary of this change.
The entrepreneurial history of "the richest teacher in China"
I believe most young people know the name Yu today. In the eyes of some college students, international students and white-collar workers, Yu's image is like a god, and they "worship" Yu. A friend of the reporter once complained that Yu's fans don't even allow you to describe Yu in "neutral language". It is estimated that 70% of China students come from New Oriental. In China, college students who have never heard Yu's speech are considered to be backward. Is he a good teacher after all? Or a successful businessman by chance? Or a "rogue" who is forced to do nothing? It is of symbolic significance in the "going to sea" wave of contemporary China intellectuals. In 2006, New Oriental went public in America. As the founder and school manager of New Oriental, Yu's wealth soared and he became "the richest teacher in China". What role did Yu play behind this "myth"? What is a real remainder like? Is he a good teacher after all? Or a successful businessman by chance? Or a "rogue" who is forced to do nothing?
Catch up with Liangshan by Peking University.
"Peking University is a place where I have mixed feelings." Yu's feelings for Peking University can be described as "mixed feelings, mixed love and hate". What did Peking University give Yu? Every time Lao Yu talks about Peking University, it seems to be bitter and sour. Talk about how he was marginalized by Peking University and how he was ignored. I have a wonderful self-accusation: "When I entered the university, no girl fell in love with me. I am a loser. " I have been teaching at Peking University for seven years, and I have made no achievements, and I am still a loser. . I didn't take part in any activities or join any groups in Peking University for ten years, and I was a loser ..................................................................................................................................................... . Now some of the spirits of New Oriental, or some methods of doing things, are frankly integrated into the spirit of Peking University. "A lot of times, humiliation and depression will make a person break out, and the rest of the experience is like this. It is said that he often recited English for more than ten hours a day, because the English teacher said in public that his English was "only understood by others".
After teaching at Peking University for four years, Yu was finally assigned a house of 10 square meter, which made him determined to dedicate his life to Peking University. But later, when I saw my classmates and friends going abroad, I couldn't help it. He also began to prepare to go abroad. He didn't do well in Peking University, but after three and a half years of hard work, his dream of studying abroad was shattered. In order to make a living and earn some money to continue his dream of going abroad, he started a TOEFL class outside the school and was busy with his tuition abroad. God often plays tricks on those who just have hope. This time, the blow to Yu was devastating:1one autumn night in 990, drizzle splashed on the quiet unnamed lake, causing ripples and spreading in the night. Yu and his friends had a pleasant drink, talked about family life and described his dream of going abroad gradually. As always, the tweeter of Peking University plays the campus evening broadcast at this time. "You listen to you. Lao Yu, I am talking about you! " The companion exclaimed. It turned out that the decision on the punishment of Yu was being broadcast on the radio. In this extreme way, Peking University announced the punishment for English teachers, which gave four or five reasons. The most important thing is to run a school privately under the banner of Peking University. This punishment decision was broadcast on the tweeter for three days and on the cable TV of Peking University for half a month. The penalty notice was locked in the window of the famous triangle of Peking University for one and a half months. The sudden attack of punishment, the way and the degree are so fierce, which shows the anger of the school. This "courtesy" of Peking University is to make him lose face and stay at Peking University. I was humiliated and had to choose to leave. "Peking University kicked me. I was full of resentment at the time, but now I am full of gratitude. " Yu explained: "If I keep mixing, I may be an associate professor in the English Department of Peking University now." But the Peking University teacher who was kicked out of the house at that time chose to be a "self-employed".
Yu and his colleagues at New Oriental put it humorously: "Lao Yu was punished by Peking University. As a third-rate scholar, he wants to preserve the dignity of scholars, lacks the character of first-class scholars, and dares not sink into the nameless lake. So the next best thing is to resign and become a fugitive. This is called death and afterlife. " But it was this "becoming an outlaw" that inspired his rogue spirit. After being "forced to Liangshan" by Peking University, he embarked on the road of no return.
The riffraff interprets New Oriental.
After leaving Peking University, the first thing I faced was how to adjust myself and change my attitude of "keeping my eyes low and my nose high". Forced to the edge of the cliff, he did not hesitate to get rid of the burden of Peking University and began to believe in the power of business. He began to think about how to market himself and his training courses, and learned to deal with all kinds of people in society and government. A scholar entered the Jianghu.
In the cold wind of winter in Beijing, Yu started his career like this: a broken house of 10 square meters, a broken table, a broken chair, a pile of small advertisements written with a brush, and a plastic bucket for advertisements. On a cold winter night in Beijing, Yu rode a bicycle to brush advertisements on the streets of Beijing. My hands are numb with cold. Pick up Erguotou and take two sips to warm up. Drinking spirit Erguotou, sticking a small advertisement in the cold wind, at this time, I showed the ferocity of the rascal. Everyone in New Oriental has a telephone pole complex, because Old Yu stuck it on the telephone pole one by one. Once, because of municipal construction, someone wanted to tear down two telephone poles outside New Oriental. Lao Yu was anxious and refused to open it. Finally, it took 70,000 yuan to save two telephone poles. After becoming a teacher, Yu gradually showed his business ability. With only three tricks, he established his own country. The first is the price war. At that time, the basic cost was 300 yuan to 400 yuan, and the rest was only 160 yuan. And after 20 free lectures, you don't have to pay if you are not satisfied. The second is to launch the core product, the "little red book" on which he became famous-"GRE vocabulary selection". The third is emotional marketing, which tells students the philosophy of life and carries out successful inspirational education. His humorous teaching method deeply attracts students. Yu believes that his success is related to being a teacher: "Being a teacher is easier to succeed than being an entrepreneur. Because we understand human nature and know how to meet the requirements of students. " Indeed, his understanding of students' psychology is profound, and he makes full use of students' trust and worship of teachers to gain the trust of others.
Blow a bird's head off. Soon, the sinister rivers and lakes made me have a profound experience. Yu's fame is getting bigger and bigger, and more and more students are recruited, but it also cuts off other people's financial resources. China's training market has always been a river and lake full of wars, and the turf wars spread to the telephone poles where advertisements were posted. First, Yu's advertisement was covered by his opponent, then it was torn up on the spot, and Lao Yu's employees were stabbed into the hospital. The opponent had no choice but to take cruel measures. I had to turn to the police. In order to get in touch with the police brothers, I threw caution to the wind, drank more than a catty of Wuliangye and was taken directly to the hospital. How difficult it is to start a business. At this time, I was completely bookish at Peking University. In addition to the thin figure and thick glasses, the rogue spirit is possessed, and the figure of an entrepreneur is gradually clear. It is lonely to start a business alone. I thought of my overseas "brothers" and Bao. So, he didn't go far to find Wan Li and invited them back to run New Oriental together. They came to New Oriental with idealistic passion and yearning for freedom. Relying on this way of gathering righteousness in Liangshan and the enthusiasm for learning English and going abroad at that time, New Oriental began to grow like weeds.
Paradox of rogue spirit
The hooligan spirit of entrepreneurs who want to have a little success. However, after the cause becomes bigger, the laissez-faire of riffraff must be transformed into the rigor of entrepreneurs. From 2000 to 2004, it was the most difficult period for New Oriental, and it suffered a big loss. He wants to complete the transformation from a teacher to an entrepreneur and turn a group of Juyi brothers into a management team. "This process is very painful. From the original way of doing things in Liangshan, it has become a step-by-step and well-defined way of doing things; From the original passionate style of doing things, it has become the rule of calm judgment. This change requires throwing away something in your personality. " This change is not easy for me. At this point, external attacks followed. First, the "9. 1 1" incident, the number of visas to the United States was greatly reduced, and the study market in New Oriental was greatly affected; Then "SARS" struck and classes were suspended for four months, and New Oriental lost over 100 million yuan. In addition, ETS (American Education Testing Center) sued New Oriental for stealing questions, and New Oriental paid more than 6 million yuan for it.
External troubles are temporary, while internal troubles may be fatal. "Brothers work together, and there will be no rules in the end." Interest, emotion and humanity are intertwined, and New Oriental staged a human nature fighting drama, in which the protagonist gave full play to his performance ability. The most important thing is interest. When it grows bigger, how will the shares be divided? How to divide the new market? "At the beginning of the venture, after the partners have been fighting for money in New Oriental, they are no longer satisfied with their share as before, and gradually they have a dispute of interest. Since there was no mechanism to stipulate the ownership of residual interests before, everyone began to argue and make noise. " Two of the "Troika" in New Oriental wanted to leave the organization and submitted their resignations to Yu successively. In addition, Yu's former upper bunk brother Bao also resigned and asked to withdraw his shares. In 2004, the other two pillars, Hu Min and jiang bo, also left. Once "allies" have "rebelled", and the core team of New Oriental is about to collapse. At the same time, these intellectual businessmen began to reflect on the spirit of riffraff and began to adapt to business rules painfully. Yu said, "Everyone panicked. Because we haven't studied business rules and shareholding system before, even limited companies and unlimited companies don't know what is going on. We have no ability to split this interest group. " Wang Qiang recalled: "Everyone has the same pain. For example, how to divide shares? As intellectuals, we must talk about this at the negotiating table. Our feelings have indeed experienced unprecedented challenges. " The difficulties I face are not only the "rebellion" of my brothers, but also the pressure from my wife and mother. Like many private enterprises, New Oriental was founded with his wife. Later, my mother, my wife's sister and my wife's brother-in-law all worked in New Oriental. Not only, but also other entrepreneurs. In addition, Yu's mother's criticism of the company's management also caused dissatisfaction among returnees. To this end, Yu formulated an avoidance principle: immediate family members are not allowed to work in the company. His mother disapproved of this rule from the beginning: "You don't work for me." I still carried it out firmly. As a result, my mother got angry and my wife ignored him for half a year.
In this vigorous internal struggle, he played the role of Liu Bei. He himself said: "I am more like Liu Bei, and I often use tears to win the sympathy of other managers." I am not good at restraining and managing talents with strict discipline. " I use this flexible, even feeling-based management method to move up and down inside and outside New Oriental. The outside world also commented that I don't understand management. "I am a kind person, holding the human. My cowardly character has played a cohesive role in New Oriental, and I will not go to extremes under any circumstances. This is an important reason why New Oriental has not closed down. " This is also the genius of "Liu Bei", who is weak and sad on the surface, but he can achieve his goal every time he plans. Whether it is the joint-stock system construction of New Oriental or the dilution of the family color of enterprises.
Is listing really redemption?
New Oriental is not short of money and does not need to circle money. Why go public? One of the real reasons is the continuation of the above problems. I hope to use the strict management rules of American listed companies to regulate the interior, speak with the system, avoid the dispute between human feelings and interests in front, realize my own redemption and let the enterprise develop smoothly. Yu said frankly: "In New Oriental, it is easy for the backbone to talk about feelings outside the rules and regulations. After listing, external rules are stronger and more powerful than internal rules. " New Oriental has been listed for more than a year and has changed a lot. New Oriental conducts internal management in strict accordance with the requirements of American listed companies, and the system is more perfect, such as establishing employee complaint mailboxes and customer complaint mailboxes. However, the conflict between "doing education" and listing is also highlighted. "As a good listed company, you should increase your income, increase your profits and increase the number of people. But for an educational institution, the greatest guarantee for its sustainable development lies in its teaching quality, not in the number of students increased every year. " This is a contradiction and it is difficult to balance. "I personally prefer to do one thing leisurely. This was destroyed by the listing. "
In fact, Yu has always been ambivalent about whether to go public or not. On the one hand, he wants to standardize enterprises and become a "noble"; On the other hand, he is also worried about how the "riffraff" who are used to being free and loose can stand the constraints. "After listing, my state has been not quite right, not what I want. I am actually a freewheeling person, but now I have to do a lot of things for others, and my space is getting smaller and smaller. " Personal heroism is a complex that he can't give up. The growth of New Oriental now depends on the big mouths of these teachers who dare to speak. Now it has become an American listed company and a regular army. After learning to shut up, I am no longer charming. The legend of New Oriental has gradually faded and turned into a cold listed company.
In the interview, Lao Yu answered questions in a watertight way and carefully. He is no longer the once fearless "rogue" entrepreneur. A T-shirt with the word "Cuba" written on it may be the only expression of his true nature. Now Yu has become a defender. Moreover, he must become a defender. Can listing realize the redemption of New Oriental? It takes time to test. Once full of ruffian spirit, I have begun to go away. Maybe this is fate.
Didi Yu Hongmin
Faith is higher than faith.
When it comes to faith and belief, I have his own statement. He believes that faith is a power from the heart. When there is enough faith in the heart, there is no need for external faith. Just like you are on a rickety bus, you need an armrest to support you to stand up without falling. Having faith is a good thing in itself. However, if I have the perseverance to stand firm, I don't need handrails at all. This is faith. In his mind, faith is higher than faith. He said: Any enterprise, if it has such a firm belief, will go stronger and more stable.
Yusan road
Yu set himself three paths: the first path, stay in New Oriental until he is 80 years old; The second way is to retire from this position slowly, and then live a relaxed and carefree life, travel around the world, write reading notes or travel notes, and spend the rest of your life like Xu Xiake; The third way is to run a real private university for poor children. He often said: "Each of us should grow up like a tree, even if we are nothing now. But as long as you are a seed, even if you are trampled in the mud, you will grow into a towering tree in ten or twenty years. When you grow into a towering tree, you can bring people a shade. You can help others, even if people go and look back, you are still a beautiful scenery on the horizon.
Reporter's notes
I am good at telling stories. The reporter believes that Yu's success is not just a legendary case, but represents the struggle and struggle of an era and a group. The contrast between Yu's Blood Clan of Peking University and his civilian hero image is also quite unforgettable.
Rogue spirit and literati entrepreneurship
The success of New Oriental created the myth of Yu. Many people call him "the godfather of studying abroad" and "the richest teacher". However, Feng Lun, chairman of Vantone's board of directors, said a meaningful sentence: "The secret of the growth of New Oriental: third-rate literati+rogue spirit". In particular, the spirit of this rascal has been summed up very well. Feng Lun wrote a book, "Growing Savagely", which has been a best seller recently. For the growth of private enterprises in China, his description is: "In fact, I prefer to use weeds to describe it. I like that state, as strong as weeds, growing wildly, spreading wantonly, domineering and expanding, and finally gratifying! " In fact, behind this crazy growth is pent-up passion and spewing vitality. This pent-up gushing often shows a rogue spirit, a kind of courage and willpower for an ignorant person to survive without looking forward and backward; A kind of relaxation after despair, a relief when there is nothing. Yu's entrepreneurial history and the growth history of New Oriental are permeated with this rascal spirit. However, Yu is, after all, high flyers and his teacher of Peking University, and a third-rate scholar. Therefore, the "rascal" in Yu's works is different from the vulgarity of street hooligans, from the street hooligans who pretend to see through the world and are self-righteous, and from the nouveau riche who has no principle of right and wrong. His "rascal" is a kind of cruelty after being forced to do nothing. Let's call it a yuppie. Wang Shuo, a famous rascal in Beijing, said, "The rascal is frank, and teachers often pity him." In any case, teachers, ruffians, businessmen, irrelevant nouns, and so mixed together. A generation of "yuppies" is truly embodied in Yu and the generation of intellectuals who went to sea.
I succeed in irony.
Yu's feelings for Peking University are profound or complicated. I was marginalized or even expelled from Peking University, but he didn't escape. He founded New Oriental next to the best public university in China, which is the most famous private educational institution in China today. It is ironic that the two sides confront each other and remind each other. Now, due to his successful career, Peking University often invites him to give a speech.
The success of New Oriental is also a satire on the times. The training of New Oriental is made by irrational enthusiasm for going abroad, enthusiasm for English learning and exam-oriented education (CET-4 and CET-6). Xu Xiaoping himself said that the listing of New Oriental meant the failure of education in China. In fact, the irony is not only exam-oriented education, but also the irrational yearning for the West after China people opened their doors. Source: New Finance
Introduction to Yu
Yu, the founder of New Oriental, is a famous English teaching and management expert. He is currently the chairman and president of New Oriental Education Technology Group, the deputy director of NLD Central Education Committee, the vice president of China Young Entrepreneurs Association and a member of all-china youth federation. Yu, 1962 was born in jiangyin city, Jiangsu province, and 1980 was admitted to the department of western languages in Peking University, where he stayed as a teacher after graduation. 199 1 resigned from Peking university and entered the field of private education. 1993 Beijing New Oriental School was founded. He is currently the chairman of New Oriental Education Group, the vice chairman of China Young Entrepreneurs Association and a member of all-china youth federation.