Long-Termism: The Best Shortcut Is No Shortcut
There’s an old Chinese saying: “A gentleman takes ten years to avenge a wrong.” The story of King Goujian of Yue, who endured years of hardship before reclaiming his kingdom, is another timeless reminder. Both embody the philosophy of long-termism—a mindset that transcends revenge or perseverance, and in today’s world, deeply resonates with how we should think about investment, growth, and success.
Too often, we treat investing as a matter of spreadsheets, ratios, and financial models. But beneath the numbers, investing is ultimately about human nature, philosophy, and discipline.
The Impatience Trap
We live in an age of restlessness. Social media is filled with overnight sensations: influencers, livestreamers, and entrepreneurs who seem to achieve instant fame and wealth. Their stories trigger envy, especially among the young, who ask themselves: “Why not me? Why not now?”
But this impatience breeds anxiety. The faster we chase goals, the harder they become to reach. The more we rush, the more disappointment we create. And disappointment fuels even greater anxiety.
The antidote is long-termism. Unlike opportunists, instant-success seekers, or the perpetually hesitant, the long-term thinker accepts a slower path—patiently building endurance, resilience, and substance over time.
Lessons from Wealth and Growth
Amazon’s Jeff Bezos once asked Warren Buffett: “Your investment philosophy is so simple—why doesn’t everyone just copy it?”
Buffett’s reply was telling: “Because no one wants to get rich slowly.”
Indeed, 99.8% of Buffett’s wealth was earned after the age of 50. Long-term compounding, not overnight luck, created his fortune.
This principle applies beyond finance. Consider Joseph Campbell, the mythologist best known for The Hero with a Thousand Faces. During the Great Depression, Campbell withdrew into a forest for five years with little money and a strict study regimen—reading for 12 hours a day. Out of that period came the Hero’s Journey, a framework that influenced everything from Star Wars to Harry Potter. Campbell’s work endures not because it was fast, but because it was deep.
Endurance in Markets and in Life
Amazon’s stock traded at just $5–6 in 2001. By 2020, it exceeded $3,100. The math is simple. The challenge is not. How many investors truly held through two decades of volatility, criticism, and doubt?
Execution is where long-termism is tested.
When headlines scream doom, can you resist selling at the bottom?
When peers buy houses and cars, can you instead invest in learning and growth?
When markets scorn your company, can you, as CEO, still uphold your principles?
It is in these moments—when patience is most difficult—that transformation happens.
Time as a Partner
Being “friends with time” is the essence of long-termism. But it is not easy. It requires cycles of failure, reflection, and change. Stop reflecting and you stop progressing.
Even Buffett, who once avoided IPOs and tech stocks, adapted as the world evolved. Nothing is permanent—not strategies, not markets, not circumstances. Long-termism is not stubbornness. It is the discipline to endure while also evolving intelligently.
History shows that quick winners in bubbles rarely sustain success. Those who accumulate steadily, step by step, often emerge stronger.
The Illusion of Shortcuts
Today’s market is saturated with shortcuts: books and apps promising “financial freedom in 3 months” or “one-month mastery of the stock market.” Influencers sell dreams of instant riches, but in reality, they are harvesting followers, not wealth.
The truth is simple: there is no shortcut. The best shortcut is to not take shortcuts.
As Zhang Yiming, founder of TikTok’s parent company, once observed: “Truly outstanding people all possess delayed gratification.” Half of life’s problems, he added, come from its absence.
Conclusion: The Power of Delayed Gratification
Delayed gratification means trading short-term comfort for long-term achievement. It means resisting small temptations to stay aligned with greater goals. It means embracing the spirit of long-termism.
For investors, entrepreneurs, and individuals alike, the message is clear:
Wealth requires patience.
Growth requires endurance.
Success requires resisting the noise of shortcuts.
To endure hardship today is to build greatness tomorrow. Long-termism is not just an investment strategy—it is a way of life.
