As I had anticipated, after Camel made his appearance as a professional driver, Jiang Jinshan, who was sitting by the window reading a newspaper, naturally glanced at me.
Capturing this moment, I put on an air and said to Camel, "Because of your mistake, my upcoming meeting will inevitably be delayed."
"If the business can be successfully negotiated, it would be fine. But if being late leaves a bad impression and causes the deal to fall through..."
"Starting tomorrow, you don't need to come in!"
Jiang Jinshan, sitting next to me, heard every word I said.
As soon as I finished speaking, I stood up, put my arm around my companion, and walked out of the Four Seasons Hotel.
Although I had no direct interaction with Jiang Jinshan, my attire and demeanor, from our initial encounter across the distance, had already left some impression on him.
The task for the next three days was to continuously consolidate and deepen that impression.
Jiang Jinshan, possessing the same basic faculties as most people, was more successful than the majority because he excelled at seizing opportunities.
These intangible opportunities were present around all of us, varying only in quantity.
Of course, the most crucial aspect was the ability to discover them, as opportunities often lay hidden with people you would least expect!
I was certain that my appearance that day had planted a seed in Jiang Jinshan's mind.
The name of this seed was: Curiosity!
...
After leaving, I had Camel drive me to a nearby advertising company to print business cards.
To reel in the big fish, Jiang Jinshan, displaying my identity through business cards was indispensable.
Have you ever seen a successful person dressed formally who didn't carry business cards?
A small business card could lead to significant opportunities.
Therefore, business cards were a must.
As a professional gambler, although I had many business cards on hand, they were prepared for ordinary marks and lacked the necessary status and prestige.
Jiang Jinshan was a big catch, and using my old business cards to match his social standing would not suffice. I had to be extremely cautious to add more credibility to the identity I was currently fabricating.
As long as my identity could match Jiang Jinshan's, or even slightly surpass his, his curiosity and interest would grow.
After all, as the saying goes, "More friends mean more paths!"
Befriending the poor would only narrow your paths, lower your perspective and vision, and deplete your wallet.
However, befriending the rich would broaden your paths, expand your vision and outlook, and increase your wealth!
The business cards I had the advertising company print indicated my position as a senior executive in a certain group company in Jiangsu Province. It wasn't overly high, but it wasn't too low either.
People with experience and insight could tell at a glance the high value of such cards.
For no other reason than my age, holding a senior executive position in a group company implied either that the company was family-owned or that I was a top-tier talent.
The former represented substantial family wealth, while the latter indicated personal excellence.
Either of these identities was worthy of being courted and flattered, in hopes of gaining some advantages and benefits.
In fact, the most challenging part of printing business cards was the title and identity.
Once the identity and title were settled, the next crucial step was material selection!
Business cards with low-quality materials could diminish one's status. Conversely, excessively high-quality cards might seem fake and even arouse unnecessary suspicion.
After much consideration, I decided to compromise and opt for a mid-to-high price range for business card printing in 2008, with a production cost of 5 yuan per card.
At the market price of that time, the highest cost for printing a single business card was 8 yuan per card.
Note that I'm referring to the market price; more expensive cards certainly existed, but those were custom orders with prices that could go up indefinitely.
The price I chose resulted in relatively high-end business cards, with durable material and uniform color, ensuring quality without appearing overly flashy.
Most importantly, they had a specific scope of business, unlike some sales representatives from insurance companies in later years.
Their business cards were of poor quality, easily damaged, and listed an overwhelming number of business scopes, including many secondary referral businesses unrelated to insurance itself.
These insurance sales representatives were generally unsuccessful, and even when they closed deals, it was often by exploiting their existing network, relying on friends and family to help them secure sales.
The few strangers they could convert were either nonexistent or pitifully few.
Do you know why? It all stemmed from the following statement.
Details determine success!
At the very least, I am someone who pays great attention to detail. If an insurance salesperson were to give me their card and try to sell me insurance, I could accept their eloquent pitch, as sales professionals rely on their speaking skills. However...
The moment I saw the jumble of businesses on their card, along with titles like "Manager" or "Director," I would immediately cease any pleasant conversation.
Jack of all trades, master of none.
Those who reach the pinnacle in any profession have always been dedicated and focused.
Such individuals would rather spend more time and effort in the early stages to build a solid foundation of clients than to hastily pursue more money by taking on multiple, unfamiliar businesses.
...
After paying an extra hundred yuan for expedited printing and waiting to receive the business cards the same day, I then took out the fake seals that I had Camel have engraved a couple of days prior and began having the advertising company help me forge contracts.
In those days, forging contracts at an advertising company was a matter of turning a blind eye as long as you paid and didn't ask them to affix their own seals, regardless of what the fake contracts were for.
I had already found contract templates online and saved them to a USB drive. I simply needed to replace the original company names in the numerous real estate project development cooperation contracts with the fabricated company name on my business card.
Once the contracts were done, it was time for the main event.
I distinctly recall Uncle Tuo telling me that before his reputation was fully established, he had used this very method to lure big fish and target wealthy clients.
Once the target fell into the trap and was engaged, the profits were unimaginably substantial!
"You might not do business for three years, but when you do, you'll eat for three years!"