CRI听力:More Young Chinese Favor Startups

"Starting my own business has made me more goal-oriented. I was born in the 1990s and I want to live a life different from other people. I think entrepreneurship is a way of life, and a good lifestyle."

Ding Zexin is a recent college graduate.

She established her own company several months ago in an office-block in the city of Yantai in Shandong.

Ding's business sells designer pillows online.

She had generated some 80-thousand yuan in sales during the first two weeks of operation.

Ding Zexin is planning to expand her business and make some 3-million yuan by the end of this year.

She's one of many young people in China who are moving to try to carve out a career on their own.

The latest figures suggest around 480-thousand young people who graduated college last year have chosen to start their own business.

This is up by one-third compared to 2013.

Dong Xuanlin set-up a company which does post-sale upgrades for large commerical vehicles.

"Difficulties are not to be feared. What can really hurt you is not trying when you are faced with difficulties. We shouldn't be afraid of failure. Even if, if the worst happens, the project falls. In the end, other opportunities will be available."

The drive toward entrepeurship isn't limited to the young in China.

A growing number of civil servants are said to be throwing away their "iron rice bowls" to start their own businesses.

Gu Yan worked as an official in the Jiangsu Provincial Government for nearly 10-years.

He and his friends decided to start a farm last year, growing organic vegetables and selling them online.

"My family, is of course, worried about me. If I had stayed in my government job, I would get my pay, rain or shine. The security is obvious. But in terms of this farm, my family is always thinking about the risks ahead. But I've always loved farming. I enjoy doing what I'm interested in."

Lagou.com, a Beijing-based job-listing website for the IT industry, says over half of its users are showing a strong interest in smaller companies and internet start-ups.

For CRI, I'm Yin Xiuqi.