The more successful you are on this train journey, the more you should care about the other passengers who may not be as accomplished or resourceful as you are. Have empathy and be just. Be generous to those in need of help. Finally, be fully committed and have the courage to tackle challenges, adversity and changes. There are many decisions during the train journey that are very tough and difficult. Many involve choices that do not produce or guarantee good outcomes. Be courageous and decisive. In the real world, there is no such thing as perfect information. Very often indecision itself can bring about much worse outcomes than picking any one of the seemingly unsatisfactory choices. Life is full of changes and surprises and you will be much better off to embrace them rather than resist them and feel depressed when you are down. 8. So my advice to you, my fellow graduates, is that write down on the back of your train tickets these three words: “Wisdom”, “Morality” and “Courage” (智、仁、勇). Keep on reminding yourself that these are the tips for you if you wish to reach your destination: Success. Success has to be earned, no matter how you define it. While you have your own right to define what you mean by success, I would advise you not to confine yourself just to the material benchmarks, although they are very important. A successful life is a meaningful life, something that money alone cannot buy.
The simple truth is, unless you are on a train, you don’t have the chance to move forward and will never come closer to your destination: Success. BIS central bankers’ speeches  1  5. If you feel that I should not be depicting a rather scary train journey on this auspicious and joyful occasion, then please forgive me and let me try another scenario for you to think about, again using my train journey story. 6. Suppose that you have been bumped off the train once or twice and have found your way back onto the next trains to carry on with the journey. You will gradually realise that there are certain rules and disciplines on the train that determine who get the good seats, who can be upgraded from the economy cabin to the business class and then the first class cabin. There are also rules and booking system that govern who can enjoy a good meal at the dining car and when. So you will come to realise that the train is not a wild jungle filled with animals, or people, trying to eat each other alive. You will also discover that there are some passengers who have got upgraded to the business or first class cabin not just because they are muscular or clever. They are ahead of most other passengers because they possess certain qualities that we in modern time called leadership.