It’s no secret that Jack Ma has been under a lot of pressure since Alibaba launched its IPO last year – which has made him, at times, sad. He first disclosed that in a CNBC interview that “if he is not happy he’s jumping like monkeys.”
Well, it appears Ma has jumped in a new direction that perhaps his stockholders would call a smidge crazy. No, he’s not monkeying around anymore, as he’s moved from the eCommerce business to greener pastures. According to sources close to the matter, it appears that Ma has been inspired by his favorite movie character Forrest Gump, as mentioned in that interview, to give up his role at Alibaba and run across China.
It was disclosed that Ma snuck out of the company quietly about a month ago, but news of his departure was just disclosed last week using the new messaging platform on Alipay.
What inspired this run, Ma said, was months of listening to the same old mixed tape of mix-mood music to de-stress after a long day at the office. It’s a combo of Kenny G saxophone, Michael Bublé R&B and, believe it or not, a little bit country with Garth Brooks. Who knew Ma was so Westernized? Ma, it was said, complained to colleagues that if it wasn’t a regulator showing up at his house, it was a merchant sending him WeChat messages to entice him to work with Tencent on more cross-border deals. And finally, enough was enough. Ma simply said he’s tired of all noise, and he’s giving up his beloved company to do something more meaningful.
“You get to a point where one man can only have so much money,” Ma said in an interview last week. “Alibaba doesn’t need me anymore, and I’ve decided it’s time to let someone else take over as I search for my next journey. I’m not sure where that journey will take me, but by golly, by running across China, I am sure I’ll find it.“
Ma provided further details in a Skype interview yesterday (March 31) about diving into his metaphorical box of chocolates.
“I just felt like running,” he said, taking a page out of Gump’s book. “You never know where you’re going to get to.”
But just like the movie character, Ma’s journey has inspired a faithful following of runners who have joined Ma’s cause. Ma said the list includes former Wall Street bankers and payments executives who said they weren’t cut out for the grind anymore, either.
“Ma is an inspiration to us all. He’s a true leader,” said a former banker who asked to remain anonymous. “For 20 years, I worked 90 hours a week — and sure, it gave me a great life — but I came out here to the Himalayas to meet up with Ma and it changed my perspective. I’ll probably go back to the financial world, eventually, but for now I’m just enjoying the view.”
Keeping in tune with Ma’s personality, the former eCommerce leader said he’s humbled by the following. While he didn’t indicate how much longer this journey will continue, he did say he’s learned a lot along the way.
“At Alibaba, I learned a lot about how to start a company from scratch, but here, in the wild, I’ve learned how to connect with myself and help give back to people in a whole new way,” Ma said. “I still listen to that same mixed tape from time to time to remind myself of the hectic IPO days of the company, but for now I’m content not knowing what’s coming next.”
Someday, though, Ma said he’ll go back to being a businessman. Or maybe, he said, he’ll go back to his roots of being an English teacher. That would certainly take off the pressure of being too rich.
For now, he’ll just keep on running.
Run, Jack, run.
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Editor’s Note: This article is part of the PYMNTS.com special April Fools’ edition and is purely fictional. Any connection to fact is purely coincidental.
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