When we were little, our parents stood not far away, and we would stand up, toddle into their arms, and that’s how we learned to walk.
As we grew older, we learned to eat with a spoon, dress ourselves… then speak, recognize characters, and recite ancient poems.
Later, we entered school, starting with 1, 2, 3, 4, and slowly learned more and more knowledge.
Then, as we grew into adults, especially standing at the threshold of adulthood around 17 or 18, we often felt that among all the knowledge we had acquired, something was still missing.
So, she said to her students, "I hope you treat 'making money' as a practice workbook. Let’s learn something different."
If life is a vast sea, they are now temporary companions on the same ship, aiming to successfully sail toward the next island.
They need tacit partners, sufficient equipment, precise navigation instruments, and, most importantly, a correct map.
Lin Wanxing and the students sat in the captain’s cabin, spreading out this map together.
"You’ve probably heard teachers talk about this before. Using learning as an example: previewing, listening to lectures, practicing, correcting mistakes, reflecting…"
Standing at the podium of Yuan Yuan Cram School, Lin Wanxing had just reached this point when the boys made exasperated expressions.
"Don’t use learning as an example. It’ll get boring right away!"
The boys wore pained looks and protested.
Lin Wanxing realized that her very first lesson here was already facing resistance from the students. She laughed and said, "What I mean is, you’ve actually learned a lot of this content before, but because you haven’t put it into practice, it feels difficult. Or maybe you tried but had some failures, which made you think it’s useless. But in reality, the fundamental methods that run through all industries don’t differ much."
"What fundamental methods?"
"The methods for setting goals and sticking to them."
Lin Wanxing didn’t want to discuss too much methodology with the students. Often, taking action and receiving successful feedback is far more important than learning the methods themselves.
She picked up a piece of chalk and wrote a word on the blackboard: Specific.
"First, the key to setting a goal is that it must be specific. If you ask how specific, the answer is: the more specific, the better."
Qi Liang, sitting in his seat, drawled in a clearly mocking tone: "How specific? For example~ how many places do I want to move up in the next exam?"
"Pay attention to walking independently, Qi Liang." Lin Wanxing tossed the chalk and caught it herself, smiling. "Is your goal for learning just to surpass others, rather than mastering the knowledge yourself?"
Qi Liang: "..."
Lin Wanxing wrote three numbers on the blackboard: 7920, 10989, 13200.
"Taking making money as an example, a detailed and specific goal would be: I want to earn xxx amount of money. Discuss the specific target amount among yourselves. The benefit of certain specific numbers is that they are easily measurable."
Lin Wanxing wrote a second word on the left side of the blackboard: Measurable.
Lin Wanxing: "In this process, the accumulation of every cent is visible. As the numbers grow, you get closer to your goal. That’s what measurable means."
The third word was: Actionable."As the name suggests, 'can be achieved through action'." Lin Wanxing drew a line under each word, "I want to lose 5 pounds through exercise—this is a specific, measurable goal. The key with action verbs like 'exercise' is that you know exactly what actions to take, rather than simply saying 'I want to lose weight'."
"Don't even think about it, teacher! Look at your skinny arms and legs!"
"You should build muscle, understand? Teacher!"
The boys protested one after another.
Lin Wanxing smiled and wrote the fourth word on the blackboard: Relatable.
She said, "See, this is exactly what I meant earlier about the inappropriateness of the 'weight loss goal'—it doesn't align with my actual situation. For you, since you need money to buy gym session passes, you should aim to earn that specific amount through effort, rather than setting 'earning 100 million' as your current goal. Breaking down each major goal into interconnected smaller goals, experiencing the process of achieving them step by step, and gaining positive feedback and successful experiences—this is very important."
"So don't aim too high."
"Be down-to-earth and take it step by step!"
"What else?"
The students asked.
Time-bound.
"If you don't set a time limit for your goal, you're like a player who only says 'I love you' without meaning it." Lin Wanxing paused, then told the students, "The time limit for this 'money-making' plan is set by me—10 days, no, 9 days."
Lin Wanxing said this.
"Why should you decide?" the students retorted.
"Because I'll cover your three gym training fees during these 9 days," Lin Wanxing replied.
Lin Lu suddenly realized: "So, we have to earn this money before the coach leaves?"
"Teacher, were you just calling the coach a player?" Qi Liang asked.
Lin Wanxing was taken aback: "Probably not, it was just a casual example, and he's never said 'I love you' anyway."
The students teased her a bit, but Lin Wanxing remained composed. She knew better than anyone that Wang Fa would be leaving soon and wouldn't stay.
She turned around and wrote the sixth word on the blackboard: Evaluate.
"Only a few people know exactly what to do and how to do it from the start. Most of us figure things out gradually while executing our plans. That's why we need to regularly review our major goals and the smaller ones we've broken them into—how they're progressing—and make timely adjustments."
Qin Ao said, "So, each of us sets a minimum goal: earn 720 yuan in 9 days. Break this big goal into smaller ones, like earning 80 yuan per day. This makes the number feasible and measurable. Then we summarize our daily earnings and losses, and work together to earn the money. Is that the idea?"
Lin Wanxing neither confirmed nor denied: "I'm only teaching the method. How you specifically do it is up to you to discuss and decide. Remember, you need to allocate time for training and earning money yourselves. The coach and I will only assist."
The boys collectively scoffed, as if they were long used to her way of speaking and didn't mind it at all.
They were enthusiastic and eager, as if they were about to dive into passionate discussions to plan their money-making strategies.
So, Lin Wanxing finally wrote one last word on the blackboard: Reward."The benefit of earning money is that you receive a tangible reward every day. If you achieve your goals, you can use the money you've earned to buy the gym membership you need. There's no better reward than that."
"What if we can't earn enough?" Chen Jianghe retorted.
Lin Wanxing smiled and used the chalk to circle the first letters of the seven words on the blackboard, forming a new word "SMARTER." She said, "Regardless of the outcome, you've at least learned a few more English words. That's not so bad, is it?"
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