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I have some friends who have been living in the political world for some time now. It's a lot of robbing Peter to pay Paul. If you've got something you want, and that person who has it wants something in return, it quite literally becomes your job to find whatever it is that they want.

A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul.

My Christian Louboutins are also one of the secrets to my not-for-profit success. Here's why - and it's something that everyone who manages employees, whether in a for-profit business or a not-for-profit, should keep in mind: A little extravagance goes a long way.

In the beginning I just wanted to survive. For the first three years, we made zero revenue. I remember many times when I was trying to pay up, the restaurant owner would say, 'Your bill was paid.' And there would be a note saying, 'Mr. Ma, I'm your customer on the Alibaba platform. I made a lot of money, and I know you don't, so I paid the bill.'

There's one thing very important to me in business and for the long-term: always be honest with people. For the past 60 years, I always pay my debts.

I never do anything for money; I get paid a lot of money as a by-product.

I always try to communicate to our people that we can never make enough money. We can never make enough profit.

The secret of my success is that I make other people money. And, never ever, ever, ever be ashamed about trying to earn as much as possible for yourself, if the person you're working with is also making money. That's life!

Whenever you're successful you owe that success to the people in the community, because they are the ones buying your product.

I don't want to do business with those who don't make a profit, because they can't give the best service.