Zhang Shuihua gave up her position as a nurse in a public top-tier hospital—the so-called "iron rice bowl"—but where did her confidence to make this move come from?
It's quite surprising that Zhang Shuihua actually resigned, especially right after winning a championship on New Year's Day. Looking at online comments, some people support her decision, while others worry for her, arguing that she can't run marathons for many more years and that abandoning a secure job isn't worth it.
In reality, dismissing Zhang Shuihua's resignation as foolish, impulsive, or unwise is a mistake; every decision is ultimately a result of weighing potential gains and losses. Her willingness to leave a stable position surely stems from underlying confidence.
So, where does this confidence come from? It comes from her projected future income and her available fallback options. Let's first examine her potential earnings, which can be broken down into several streams.
The first stream is prize money from marathon competitions. In late December, it was reported that Zhang Shuihua had participated in four marathons within 50 days, earning over 200,000 yuan in total prize money. On New Year's Day this year, she won the Heilongjiang Dongji New Year Marathon, broke a record, and received a 15,000 yuan bonus. With numerous marathon events held nationwide, if Zhang Shuihua runs full-time, the number of races she can enter annually will increase significantly. Even if she doesn't win every time, given her current performance level, earning several hundred thousand yuan per year from prizes alone seems very feasible.
However, by 2026, Zhang Shuihua will be 35 years old, and it's true her competitive running career has a limited timeframe. The second income stream comes from self-media revenue, including advertising and live-streaming sales. Industry insiders suggest Zhang Shuihua has already signed with an MCN agency, although this isn't yet indicated on her Douyin account. Currently, she has just over 90,000 followers, meaning she missed capturing the massive wave of attention from last year, so her follower count is relatively low. But that's not a major issue; with proper management, her follower growth should accelerate quickly. Even with fewer than 100,000 followers, her commercial value remains quite high, and securing advertising deals should be relatively easy. Regarding live-streaming commerce, she could focus on tourism-related broadcasts, an approach she already tested during her trip to Heilongjiang. The idea of promoting local products after each marathon is a viable strategy. Therefore, signing with an MCN agency is almost inevitable, as managing everything alone with her husband would be overwhelming; a professional team is needed for effective operations.
The third income stream involves commercial partnerships. Given Zhang Shuihua's current achievements and growing fame, her commercial value is significant, and numerous brands are likely interested in collaborating. There are various forms of commercial cooperation, including brand endorsements, sponsorships, participation in offline events, and promotion of specific products. For instance, Nike hosts thousands of commercial events annually, frequently inviting sports figures and athletic influencers. Even before reaching her current level of popularity, Zhang Shuihua had collaborated with 361°; now, with higher recognition, securing partnerships should be even easier. So, even if Zhang Shuihua can only compete at a high level for another two or three years, if managed well, the money she earns could set her up for life.
Taking a step back, even if Zhang Shuihua doesn't earn an extraordinary amount in the next few years, she still has at least two solid fallback options. The first is pursuing a coaching career. She is more than qualified to be a coach, whether for professional teams or at sports training institutions, given her impressive results and proven abilities. The second option is returning to nursing. As an experienced nurse from a major top-tier hospital, finding another nursing position likely wouldn't be too difficult. If not in a public hospital, private hospitals would be an option, and they would probably be eager to hire a nurse with such high public recognition.
Ultimately, a simple calculation makes the situation clear. The annual pre-tax income for a nurse in a top-tier hospital in Fuzhou is approximately 150,000 yuan. If Zhang Shuihua, now 35, worked until retirement at 55 without any salary increases, her total earnings would be around 3 million yuan. Compare that to her potential post-resignation income: even at a conservative estimate of 300,000 yuan annually from races, she could earn nearly 1 million yuan over three years. Combined with revenue from self-media advertising, live-streaming sales, and commercial partnerships, if managed effectively, earning several million yuan per year is entirely achievable. Zhang Shuihua represents a very positive figure; she has withstood external pressure and proven her capabilities through solid achievements. Her future development is certainly something to look forward to.