"Belief" has its own pendulum, but innovation never stops | 5Y View
Time rewards the builders who create insane value.
Author
Ye Yuan, Partner at 5Y Capital
When it comes to "belief," there seems to be a kind of pendulum effect. Sometimes people believe without a second thought; other times, they believe with extreme caution. The psychology of belief likely involves cognition, emotion, motivation, values, social influence, and many other factors.
The Internal and External Cycles of Belief
Everyone has a different self-concept and emotional state, and these influence how people receive and process information. People are more inclined to believe information that aligns with their self-concept and emotional state, and to reject information that contradicts it. These tendencies are described as "self-verification" and "emotional resonance."
Everyone also lives in a social environment, with various connections and interactions to different groups and individuals, toward whom they feel varying degrees of identification or opposition. This, too, affects how people receive and process information — a tendency described as "social identity."
"Self-verification" and "emotional resonance" constitute the internal cycle of belief, analogous to "rotation on one's own axis." "Social identity" constitutes the external cycle of belief, analogous to "revolution around a larger body." From this perspective, when people are in the "afternoon" of "summer," they are more willing to "believe"; conversely, they tend toward pessimism. Understanding this state helps people better perceive and regulate their own "belief."
And no matter how the pendulum of belief swings, technological innovation never stops.
Innovation Never Stops
Innovation stems from dissatisfaction with the status quo and imagination about the future. It requires the courage and patience to challenge established rules and common sense, exploring the possibilities of unknown territory.
If we sketch a rough outline of China's tech entrepreneurship from 2010 to 2020, we'd find that every year, outstanding startups were born or accelerated their growth — and correspondingly, every year brought investment opportunities in outstanding startups. What's interesting is that when people are more generous in giving their "belief," it often produces more mediocre opportunities, sometimes even traps for entrepreneurs and investors. And when people are more stingy with their "belief," some independently thinking entrepreneurs are quietly working to innovate — and they will eventually be believed by more people in the future.
Maintain the courage and endurance to believe. Those innovations that seem to be in the deep winter night are also the seeds with the strongest vitality. Time will nourish those builders who create insane value.
Belief has its own pendulum — and innovation never stops.
Share & Win
What do you truly believe in? How do you think about belief? Welcome to share your thoughts in the comments. We will select 2 featured comments and send each a mystery gift package from 5Y Capital portfolio companies (Deadline: June 22).
5Y Capital seeks out, supports, and inspires lonely entrepreneurs, providing them with support from the spiritual to the operational. We believe that if the "crazy" you in others' eyes begins to be believed, the world will become a different place.
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