These stories are part of the foundation for Chinese people's admiration for people who struggle against the odds and adversity to accomplish something big.
Too often, the list is seen as the accomplishment for the day, reducing the immediate guilt of not working on the tasks at hand by investing energy in the list.
Human capital is more of a challenge. Americans once led the world in educational attainment, but this is now barely rising while other countries have caught up (see article).
Many investors are betting the firm will continue to pump out fat profits even if the creative genius behind many of its biggest successes ultimately has to hand over the helm.