Transcript
Introduction
"For a long time, I was known as the bulldozer. I don't think this nickname came from my hard-driving work ethic. I imagine that comparing me to a heavy steel body that drives over piles of rubble was not meant to be flattering. It was meant to depict me as an uneducated upstart who dug up the ground first and thought about it later. It's obvious that I did not receive much schooling. But not receiving formal education does not mean one is lacking in wisdom. It is a mistake to think that broad and deep knowledge can only be obtained through formal schooling. I think harder, work harder, have greater courage and I'm more active than others."
"Before starting any project, I spent an enormous amount of time and effort thinking, analyzing, and planning every detail. When it's time to implement these plans, it may look like I'm working off the cuff or even being reckless. But if I hadn't first sat down and planned everything out, the Hyundai Group of today could have never existed. When attempting something difficult, people utter the words 'wrong' or 'impossible'. They said we couldn't build a highway so cheaply. They said it was crazy for us to build a shipyard. They said it wasn't possible to move heavy underwater equipment by barge." It wasn't just once or twice that I received this kind of treatment from people. People who only thought with their common sense and shunned adventure often found my ways of doing things ridiculous and ignorant."
"But I'm someone who believes that if a person limits themselves to the fixed ideas inherent in common sense, they will not be very creative. People with a strong will to succeed have unlimited potential. By bringing together all of this potential, the collective energy of the people can be unleashed. My motto is to shorten the time. This was the surest way for improvement. If you search for a method, it will come to you. If you can't come up with a method, it's because you didn't think hard enough. The Hyundai of today was built by pushing aside all of our problems like a bulldozer. My performance as a bulldozer in thought, calculation, and prediction was the product of a modest intellect, but by thinking and trying harder than others, I continued to push ahead in all of my endeavors."