How a Poor Household Turned Things Around: His Starting Point Might Be Worse Than Yours

Today, the editor wants to bring you an unusual example and introduce you to a man who was once a famously poor household, so you can see how he turned his life around and became prosperous. Unlike those get-rich experts who make millions or tens of millions, this poor household did not earn a huge amount of money, but he has already taken a big step forward on the road to prosperity.

Many Hardships on the Road to Prosperity

Living inTian Zhengquan of Tangjiapu Village, Enshi, Hubeihis family was once a well-known poor household in the area. Local transportation was inconvenient, there was no industry, and what was worse, Tian Zhengquan and his wife had no technical skills and had never even thought about going out to work. Relying only on their own two hands, they farmed less than four mu of poor land to send their two daughters to school. Watching others gradually become better off, Tian Zhengquan felt envious, but he always thoughtbecoming prosperous was too hard, while the difficulties right in front of him were too many.

Tian Zhengquan said: "Our family is relatively poor, we have no economic income, and we still have two students in school. Now there is no industry in our area either."

Today's Tian Zhengquan family is completely different from before. Walking into Tian Zhengquan's home, you can see all kinds of goods piled beside the heated kang: cured meat, cured fish, and sausages, rich in variety. These are all treasures Tian Zhengquan is preparing to ship out and sell.This single item alone brings in as much each year as several years of income the couple used to get from farming.

So what exactly changed the Tian Zhengquan family, not only reversing their past poverty but also making them a well-off household today?

Learning by Visiting Others

This story begins with a major change in Tian Zhengquan's family. In 2015, the couple's elder daughter was admitted to university. The whole family was thrilled, but Tian Zhengquan soon had a new worry: now that his daughter had gotten into university, not to mention living expenses, justthe tuition of more than 10,000 yuan per yearwas something the family simply could not afford. Tian Zhengquan swallowed his pride and went around borrowing money to cover the first year's tuition, but borrowing every year was not a solution, and besides, what would he use to repay it? After thinking it over, Tian Zhengquan, now deep in debt, made up his mind and began to figure outways to escape poverty。

What projectcould both make money and be quick to learn? Tian Zhengquan had no sharp eye and no clever tricks. He only knew one thing:following capable people is sure to be right. So Tian Zhengquan wandered around the village when he had nothing to do, visiting each household to chat. It looked like visiting relatives, but in fact he was there to learn from them and see how other families lived and what good projects they had. Before long, Tian Zhengquan set his sights on pig farming. Pigs are fairly hardy, they are ready for market quickly, andmany local people also raised pigs, so even if he did not know how, he could ask someone nearby for advice. With borrowed money, Tian Zhengquan bought 10 pigs from relatives to try raising. Who would have thought he would make money in the first year?

Tian Zhengquan said that he raised ten pigs that year, invested five or six hundred yuan, and earned more than 10,000 yuan.

Changing His Thinking to Head Toward Moderate Prosperity

It was the first time Tian Zhengquan had seen so much money, and he was so happy he did not know what to say. But at this point, Tian Zhengquan did not rush to sell all the live pigs. He thought that if he kept some and slaughtered themto make smoked meat, he would both save on feed costs and extend the preservation time. Unexpectedly, the smoked meat made to save money happened to suit local customs, sold extremely well during the Spring Festival that year, and helped Tian Zhengquan earn a big sum.

Tian Zhengquan said: "Five years ago, our annual income was only four or five thousand yuan. Now it is more than 20,000 yuan a year,whichis many times more。”

From then on, Tian Zhengquan's pig farming project included not only selling live pigs, but also cured meat, sausages, and other richprocessed products. Several years of breeding and selling brought Tian Zhengquan into contact with more people and gave him a deeper understanding of business. Tian Zhengquan said: "My plan for the future is still to raise pigs. I plan to raise ten or twenty pigs.To reach moderate prosperity, you still have to rely on yourself。”

Annual income went from four or five thousand to more than 20,000. Compared with the prospering experts we have introduced before, this change is not a large sum. But for Tian Zhengquan's starting point, it is already a very good result. Speaking of the secrets to his success, the editor believes there are two points:

1. Tian Zhengquan has a heart willing to try and change. His own conditions were not good, but a heart that desperately wanted to become prosperous pushed him to make up his mind, start looking for projects, and dare to try.

2. He turned live pigs into cured meat, which in fact was also an attempt to extend his own industry chain.He integrated his own craft into the raw pork, and this alone can make the pork generate more benefits.

Tian Zhengquan found a good path to moderate prosperity through trial and error. We hope you will not hesitate either.The conditions for prosperity are created, not waited for. If you want to get on the road to prosperity, you have to start walking first!

Intern editor: Wang Wanmei

Responsible editor: Zhang Cheng