Maodong Xu

Maodong Xu has founded a number of successful technology companies and is also a skilled inventor. He acquired patents for several inventions, including digital asset management systems and point-to-point distributed decentralized systems. Born in a small fishing village in Shandong Province, China, he has spent his career making notable contributions to the technology industry and bringing tech to the masses. Mr. Xu is a billionaire entrepreneur and inventor.

Where did the idea for Fresh2 come from?

In the instance of Fresh2, we had identified the incredible functionality of the Chinese food delivery system in supplying wholesale ingredients and recognized a deficit in serving the Asian specialty food market through conventional U.S. food delivery systems. Conversely, the U.S. eCommerce technology partnered perfectly with the practices that made Chinese food delivery so successful and brought a user-operated interface into the space.

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

I approach each day with a structured framework that invites productivity while leaving room for the creativity required to innovate and perform. I surround myself with a team of trusted creators, visionaries, and implementers who understand the goals and values behind my work. Every day, I prioritize actions that move us forward and leave no mistake about our intended action for the day.

How do you bring ideas to life?

Every idea must have a plan to move it forward into implementation. My team acts as a well-oiled engine, taking ideas to their natural conclusion by realizing them and integrating them into everyday life. My success comes from identifying what needs to happen next and putting the people and systems in place to get it done. Every plan requires recalibration from time to time, and I assign the right people to analyze, implement, and course correct for every project. The destination for each project may look a little different, but the path forward follows the same basic steps.

What’s one trend that excites you?

Blockchain is the basis for much of our work, especially through Roxe. Blockchain technology and open-source platforms and processes are going to revolutionize how the world works online. Web3.0 isn’t just coming, it’s here, and I am intent on bringing the best components of Web3.0 into my projects and utilizing blockchain.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

I maintain a routine that does not waiver. The way I approach my day, my business, and my personal life has not changed since I started my first business. I am adaptable, but I understand the importance of a daily routine and trust my instinct in this as I do in all things.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Keep doing what you are doing. Do not waiver. Do not doubt what you know is true. Then again, if I were to give myself advice, that might soften my edge. I have no regrets in the way I’ve moved my business forward, and I attribute that to trusting my instinct.

Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.

Your instinct is right 99% of the time. If you really know yourself, then trust your internal monologue. The voices from the outside are just noise.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

I approach each endeavor with the same voracity and intention. When I see a business opportunity, I don’t wait. I take action. Missed opportunities can cost you. This tried-and-true practice has brought me much success.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

I never shy away from innovation and risk. My tech groups grew because I followed my instinct, trusted my people, and had a hand in how we moved forward. My enterprises required the same finesse. You understand the work, you put people in place to carry out the work, and you maintain an understanding of how your business operates so that you can scale it when opportunity arises.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

It’s not the big failures where I’ve learned the most. It’s the little, day-to-day try and try again moments that have built my entrepreneurial approach and helped me build companies that are coveted by big names in tech and other sectors. Let yourself learn from the small, daily failures. Then when a big misstep comes, you know how to forge forward, because you’ve managed it on smaller levels.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

Web3.0 is our future. Don’t shy from it. Don’t run from it. Embrace what Web3.0 means, no matter what news outlets and skeptics say. We’re headed toward an online space where blockchain and open-source, user-managed commerce will be the norm. Educate yourself now on what this means for business in the future.

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?

As an entrepreneur who has dedicated much of my life to tech, it’s hard to pick just one bit. I work internationally, and being able to connect remotely with my team throughout the world is invaluable. My phone, zoom, chat functions, and the other software which keeps us connected is vital to continued success.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

I’m going to give you a non-answer that I believe is the most important
answer. Stop reading that one book. Become a lifelong learner. My
recommendation is to read and read often. Read business books. Read
fiction. Read investment books. Read the newspapers. Inform yourself and keep learning. It’s when we learn that we ideate. It’s opening ourselves to new ideas that allows us to innovate. Be your best self by investing daily in learning new things and in reading.

What is your favorite quote?

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.” – Peter Drucker

Key Learnings:

• What you learn informs everything you’ll do going forward. Keep learning. Always.
• Your internal instinct is the compass forward and is informed by your experiences but stands on its own as a guide. Cultivate that instinct and follow it.
• Business building requires an investor mindset. Work your business. Grow your business. Understand your business, but never cease to understand that your business is an investment. The investor mindset opens the door to limitless possibilities.
• Work through your adversities. Invite your failures. Understand how to learn and course correct. That’s how you build your own brand of greatness. Everything else is limiting.