The West still hasn’t understood the philosophy of the leader of the world’s second-largest economy. While the U.S. government was sending checks to consumers during the pandemic, China chose a different strategy. The government’s stimulus measures included infrastructure spending and tax cuts for small businesses. In other words, it was a reversal of roles: the capitalist nation cared for its consumers, while the communist giant focused on its companies.

Xi has philosophical objections to Western-style consumption-driven growth, viewing it as wasteful and conflicting with his goal of making China a global industrial and technological power.
Everyone is a product of their time, and Xi is no exception. “Produce first, live later” was a popular slogan in the 1960s, his formative years. Back then, China was focused on the industrial sector, developing, for instance, its nuclear technology while mainly ignoring the livelihoods of its people.

This “live to work” mindset is so ingrained that even today, it dictates how China calculates its quarterly GDP figures. The country uses the production-based account, which prioritizes the value-added of each industry and overlooks final demand. This method also fits well with local officials. They don’t have to worry much about what households are doing. They need to boost factories.

Amid a declining economy, Xi has repeatedly urged them to “eat bitterness”, endure hardships, and learn resilience. He is a product of a generation hungry for the state’s greatness. An increasingly frustrated youth needs to understand this fully.

This will be a significant challenge. Today’s Chinese youth have grown up in a world very different from Xi’s: they have known nothing but prosperity. They are nothing like the migrant workers of the past, living day-to-day and returning to their villages once a year. Most urban youths are educated, and their parents support them. They can afford to take a gap year or two.
Moreover, the young are well-acquainted with the outside world. They’ve travelled and are internet natives. Thus, it’s hard for Xi to advocate for a 1960s-style work-life philosophy. They are trendy on TikTok, and social media influencers discuss finding work-life balance through digital marketing gigs.

Xi’s ideological disconnect with the youth is all the more profound in China due to the economy’s rapid transformation over the last three decades. The President’s main challenge is to connect with this youth, with whom he is in total contradiction. As long as growth was present, everyone could go about their lives. Now, the President’s choices might prove to be socially explosive.