GoKawiilMake sure you have a cold beverage at the ready because this episode of How Success Happens is fire.
My guest was Jing Gao, founder and CEO of Fly By Jing, the spicy Chinese sauce and noodle brand that transformed the sleepy “international aisle” into the literally hottest spot in grocery stores nationwide. Jing was born in Chengdu in China’s Sichuan province and raised “around the world,” as she puts it. She originally followed a traditional business path, working in tech, before a move back to China pulled her toward food and her cultural roots. She studied with master chefs, opened an award-winning modern Chinese restaurant in Shanghai, and launched Fly By Jing as an underground supper club where she told me guests’ eyes would “light up” the first time they tasted her now-famous Sichuan chili crisp. That pop-up project evolved into a pioneering packaged-food brand that’s now on shelves at over 12,000 retailers across the country.
Watch the video above to see how my taste buds stand up to the chili crisp, and read on for Jing’s insights to help ignite your personal success take off in three, two, one!
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Three Key Insights
1. Fear Is the Price of Admission—Pay It
Jing delayed launching her Kickstarter campaign for months because, she admits, she was a bit terrified. “There was a ton of fear around being so vulnerable — you put your blood, sweat and tears out on the internet for everyone to see and to judge and to decide whether they want to give you their $25,” she told me. But she reframed it as proof of concept: if people wouldn’t back her Kickstarter, why uproot her entire life in Asia to launch in LA? She studied successful campaigns, cold-emailed journalists, and went all in. Within the first day, she was fully funded. The campaign exceeded its goal by several thousand percent and gave her the critical first 1,000 customers she needed.
Takeaway: Reframe the risk of rejection as a proof of concept.
2. Innovate One Step at a Time
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