I don't rely on feng shui. I believe hard work brings us good

Hear the words of John Gokongwei, a titan of enterprise, who declared: “I don’t rely on feng shui. I believe hard work brings us good luck and success.” These words are not cast idly into the air, but are the distillation of a life of struggle, of one who rose from poverty and hardship to become one of the greatest businessmen of his land. Gokongwei speaks here as one who has walked the road of hunger and humiliation, and who learned by his own hands that fortune does not descend from the stars or from charms upon a table, but from sweat, persistence, and the discipline of toil.

The ancients themselves knew this truth. The Stoic philosophers taught that fate may govern the winds, but the sailor must still raise his sails and steer his ship. To wait upon the alignment of stars while one’s field lies unplowed is to invite ruin. Gokongwei, rejecting the promises of feng shui, proclaims the same wisdom: that men must not lean upon superstition or luck, but upon labor, discipline, and the refusal to yield. For hard work itself becomes a kind of magic, one that shapes destiny more powerfully than omens or rituals.

Consider the life of Gokongwei himself. As a young boy in Cebu, he lost his father and was left with nothing. To survive, he sold peanuts and soap on the streets, riding his bicycle from town to town. If he had waited upon feng shui, hoping for auspicious winds to change his fate, he would have perished in obscurity. But by relentless hard work, he built step upon step, from trading goods to founding great companies, until he stood among the wealthiest and most influential men in Asia. His very life is proof that the truest luck is forged by one’s own labor.

History offers another tale: that of Benjamin Franklin, who rose from a poor apprentice to one of the founding fathers of America. Franklin mocked superstition and urged industriousness, coining the phrase, “Diligence is the mother of good luck.” Like Gokongwei, Franklin saw that fortune favors not the passive dreamer but the relentless worker. Both men, though separated by centuries and continents, carried the same truth: that success is not granted by unseen forces, but built by human hands.

The wisdom of Gokongwei’s words is also a call to courage. For to rely on feng shui, or any superstition, is to place power outside oneself; it is to surrender one’s future to forces beyond control. But to embrace hard work is to claim ownership of one’s fate. It is to say: “I will rise because I choose to rise. I will build because I choose to build.” This mindset transforms weakness into strength and despair into hope. It is not luck that lifts a man, but the fire of determination.

The lesson is clear: do not lean on omens or wait for perfect conditions. Plant your seeds in rocky soil if you must, but plant them. Rise each day and labor with your whole strength. Hard work may not promise ease, but it will always bring growth, and in that growth lies the closest thing to true luck that life will ever grant. Those who labor will always find opportunities where the idle see only misfortune.

Practical wisdom follows: in your life, set aside excuses. Do not wait for fortune, or signs, or the alignment of circumstances. Begin where you are, with what you have, and work with all your might. Discipline your body, sharpen your mind, and harden your will. Let diligence be your compass, and perseverance your strength. If failure comes, learn from it; if victory comes, build upon it. In both, remain steadfast, for true success belongs only to those who endure.

So let these words of John Gokongwei be remembered: “I don’t rely on feng shui. I believe hard work brings us good luck and success.” They are not merely the creed of one man, but a law of life itself. Fortune smiles not upon the idle dreamer, but upon the one who labors in the face of hardship. Embrace this truth, children of tomorrow, and you will discover that the greatest luck is the power within you to rise, again and again, until victory is yours.