Li loves reading books written by American CEO Jack Welch. "He operated such a big company successfully for several decades, there must be something in him that common people cannot achieve," Li says.

His favourite entrepreneur is Ma Yun, founder of Alibaba.com, who "likes to brag but achieved everything he brags about," and Chen Tianqiao, CEO of Shanda Interactive, who "persisted when nobody supported him."

Despite being one of the youngest millionaires in China, Li lives a simple life: he does 30 push-ups before going to bed at 1:30 am and gets up at 7:30 to eat at the canteen of the office tower where each meal generally costs him 10 to 12 yuan. He goes home to Shijiazhuang to visit his parents every one or two months.

His company, which now has 130 staff with an average age of 24, has strict rules. Common staff have to pay 50 yuan (US$6.25) for being late, against a 500 yuan (US$62.5) fine for managers. "I was caught several times," Li says with a smile.

On the wall in his company hangs tables with the monthly goals and status of achievement for each department, even each person. Li insists that one must have clear goals to carry on.

The goal of the company, he says, is that "the turnover of this year doubles from last year, surpasses 100 million yuan (US$12.6 million) next year, and is the largest vertical media group in China in three years." Vertical refers to various information or market sectors for a product.

Li does not like to be compared with big names in business. "I am just a young person who started his business earlier than others."

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