Sounds like everyone has some interesting reading ahead. I'm looking forward to reading more about what you're learning and the thoughts you have to share!
This week I began reading my book, "The Chinese Way to Business." I am thoroughly enjoying it so far and have found a lot of good and useful information that we may be able to utilize during our time in China. During the introduction the author took some time to lay out various cultural aspects of China so that the reader can understand the background of the country before diving into the business side of things. He said that "one of the key aspects of doing business in China is the fact that business ethics and practices are strongly influenced by the cultures of the regional divisions." I found this very interesting as I had no idea that there are different factors of business associated with different areas of the country. It also discussed how job and profession-related titles are very important in the Chinese culture and represent respect and recognition. I thought that this was fascinating because I feel as though all cultures have this mindset in some ways but the Chinese really embrace this fact and observe the ranking of individuals in their society. As I continue to read, I am excited about learning new and innovative ways to associate with the Chinese when it comes to day-to-day life as well as in business dealings.
I'm a history major so it is very interesting to see the business side to this trip. I think it's interesting to note that culture is a big factor in Chinese business dealings. And I am sure that the culture changes with the different regions. Additionally, I think its interesting to note that titles are big in Chinese culture. I feel that in a sense, that resonates with our culture (Title of Dr., CEO, CFO, etc.).
Sounds like a very interesting topic! I am on this tour as a business major along with humanities, and my book is on humanities, so I'm interested in hearing about the business in china from your book.
A lot of the things that are important in Chinese business are also important in business anywhere, I imagine. The Chinese are all about "guanxi," or "relationships." Once you have guanxi with someone one of you will often owe the other one a favor. Here we just call it networking, but there it is networking on steroids. The only purpose, over there, to have a relationship is so that you can get something done, and thus, you now owe someone a favor. What is interesting is to see how the regional cultural differences come into play. This is minimized somewhat now, I think, but 100 years ago regional connections were as solid as blood connections.
This week I began officially reading my book: Made in China. In the first chapter there are many things brought to my attention that I had honestly given little or no thought to. For example, have you ever contemplated the many western entrepreneurs who are always in the spotlight? Namely Bill Gates, Jeff Bazos, Richard Branson, and Steve Jobs are only a few, but why have we never heard about the entrepreneurs who are alive and building the worlds second largest economy (by purchasing power only)? China is home to one of ever five people on the planet. This fist chapter beings opening up the eyes of the reader to notice that we aren't the only ones making change, BIG change.
Your book sounds very interesting and that is a good point that the author brought up about never recognizing Chinese business people and only hearing about western entrepreneurs. It will be very interesting to hear your presentation and what else the author has to say about Chinese businesses.
Your right Seth. It is odd that we do not know more about top business leaders in china. Logically, it is makes since to learn about top business owners and leader in different country's especially china.
I've made some more progress on my book: The People's Emperor Mao. So far, it has been very interesting! The author doesn't bore you with the reading and creates more of an anecdote. So far, I've learned that Mao Zedong was from a poor family that slowly made its way up the social class. He loved reading classical books and defied his father in order to get an education. He had an arranged marriage when he was thirteen to a nineteen year-old girl (awkward), but denounced the arrangement and refused to get married. Even though this is focusing on the earlier part of the 1900s, it is so interesting to see the cultural differences that were/are present. I'm definitely learning a lot more about Chinese culture than I've previously been exposed to and I look forward to learning even more as I continue with the book!
Your book "The People's Emperor Mao," sounds super interesting. I love being able to read the blog posts on the books primarily focused on the history aspect of things, it's a nice change. I think it is very interesting and intriguing to see the cultural differences and how China has changed over the years. I'm looking forward to hearing more about your book on Mao Zedong!
Yes, Mao came from a dirt poor family. Today his home is a place of pilgrimage for Chinese. I visited his home with some Chinese friends a few years ago and the line was a quarter mile long, would have taken more than two hours to get into the home. So my Chinese friends bribed the security guard and I skipped right to the front door... security guard pushing people out of my way like he was Mao himself. I had this immediate feeling of wanting to ask Mao what he might think of a Foreign Devil paying a bribe in a communist country to skip to the front of the line at the communist hero's house. Actually, I didn't pay the bribe. I had guanxi with the family and they paid the bribe... I was helping him with his American college applications, so they owed me. :)
I have officially began reading my book, "How To Do Business In China: 24 Lessons In Engaging The Dragon." So far, the book has been quite interesting. It begins with the lesson on "Better Read Than Dead." Throughout this chapter, the author stresses the significance of being well informed about the history, politics, economics, culture, and literature to name a few. By becoming informed about the country one is interested in visiting or even starting business in, the reader can grasp a better glimpse and understanding of China and its history. The author, Nick Dallas, says, "Being better informed increases the likelihood of making correct decisions as risk is reduced." This being said, the more time one spends searching China's history on the internet, visiting various blog sites on doing business in China, and even observing business-case studies, the more exposure the individual has on how business is conducted in China and the better decisions they can make. I'm looking forward to continue sharing the information I will learn in the later chapters.
This was a book that caught my eye while scrolling through the list. I can agree one hundred percent that if someone is informed on a place or topic, they will be more interested in learning more or visiting. Being informed on politics especially helps people to make decisions that are major for the well being of them, others, and society. I am looking forward to hearing what you have to present to us at the end of the book.
As I was reading there were many things that stood out to me. One that really took me by surprise was from Chinese journalist Xinran Xue. It said that she had once visited a family that was so poor, they had to share and rotate one set of clothing among four children. "The rest would lie naked under a blanket, happily dreaming of their turn to 'wear the clothes.'" This really struck me, I could never imagine or picture a scenario where that would happen.
This post caught my eye because when talking about China people never remember how poverty still exists in China. China is thought of only in terms of business and being a big political power, but rarely is poverty among regular people touched on.
I've only read the preface and a few pages of the first chapter, already this book is intriguing. It's written by a mother of an adoptive daughter (from china) who was adopted in 1991. She pursued the search in Chinese abandonment and adoption because of the questions her daughter started asking at the age of 3. She wanted to have answers to the questions and figured that interviewing parents first hand would be the best way to do so. I haven't gotten into how she went about interviewing parents but I am looking forward to it.
Wow, this sounds like a really good book. I watched a documentary once about children in Asian countries that got dropped off at orphanages, it is so sad. It will be interesting what the mother finds out from the parents she interviews. I think that this book is going to be a good read, and I can't wait to hear more about it.
Now China has a major problem because there aren't enough females to go around, and many young men are angry and frustrated at having so few options for mates.
This sounds like a really interesting book. Defiantly something I would read, I look forward to more posts about your book. I would really like to know what kind of questions she asks and what responses the author will write about. Adoption in China is very popular, many Americans adopt children from China and I think this book might bring some insight into the way the Chinese feel about that, especially from a mother's perspective.
During my time reading "China Fortunes: A Tale of Business" it brings many things to my attention such as the inability of American vendors to supply the necessary amount of product as China could. I believe that back in the 80s that America was still a incredulous superpower, but times like these caused the decline of American power in comparison to China. Not only that, but China also maintained the capability to produce a much higher quantity margin, and still does today. Interesting notion.
The speed of how quickly the Chinese can produce at is absolutely astonishing as well. The book divulges on one instance in which the Americans are discussing how quickly the Chinese can produce a hydroelectric engine with ease and cheap resources but still have a quality product ready to sell. Also, it is always selling due to the density of their population and the ability to sell to the world with high profit margin.
It is amazing! I would think that cheap resources would not be the best and they would make the product a low quality product. But it is amazing how a quality product can come out of that. I look forward to learn more about your book!
I want to learn more about how they can produce at such a high speed. It would be interesting to see if there are any methods in China that help bring about the faster production.
Chinese Business Etiquette and Culture. A person's position in society is very important, criticism and rebellious behavior is not accepted because you're supposed to be content with your position. In China, there is a strongly rigid hierarchical structure, and because of this, children are taught specific rules of conduct to follow for life. A person with higher position are respected more than a normal person, that's why if a foreign company wants to make deals with Chinese business people, the company has to send someone with strong credentials in order to meet more important people. So far, the book has been describing Chinese culture as very strict. I look forward to to learning if it's all seriousness or if it is actually a little different.
Today, I read about the Chinese concept of saving face. While a lot of people talk about face as if it is a bad thing, the authors of the book say that face should be treated with great respect. It is interesting the role that face plays in China. There are three types of honor in China: dignity, respectability, and superiority. Dignity is the basic level of honor, and people who lose their dignity may go to great lengths to get it back. For example, one Chinese man became a government witness against another, reportedly because that man slapped him in the face and made him lose dignity. The second level of honor is respectability, and that refers to having things that others of the same social status would reasonably have. The third level is superiority, and it refers to being more important than others. This is achieved by going to dinner with important people, or similar types of things.
This is important when you are doing business in China because it affects what people buy and how people behave at work. The luxury industry is big in China, not that people can always afford luxury items, but they do it to achieve face. Some people have defaulted on loans because they buy more than they can afford. The book says, "More than 20,000 undergraduates applied for secured loans in amounts totaling more than the equivalent of USD 26.7 million." These loans were mostly for the purchase of Apple products.
Because of the effort to achieve face, a Chinese person will often say yes in front of other people, even when he can't really do what he said he'll do, because if he does he'll cause the other person to lose face. An American businessman learned about face the hard way when he rebuked a Chinese manager in front of everyone; that manager left the meeting and resigned immediately. The section on face helped me learn a lot more about the Chinese perspective on honor and how to communicate better with them.
I think there are a lot of good things to take away from Chinese culture, even applied in a western setting. While saving face isn't an inherent part of our culture, we are still prideful by nature and don't respond well to embarrassment. If you've ever had a manager berate you in front of your coworkers - you know it doesn't give you a warm fuzzy feeling.
Caleb, I found this very interesting. I think that we often overlook the smaller aspects of other cultures. But like you said, it is very important not do that. I had never heard about the concept of face as you discussed it here. I knew that the chines people were very concerned about respect, but I was not aware of the other areas of face. Thank you for sharing this.
When I worked in Taiwan, our American supervisor never got along with the Taiwanese teachers. He felt that they were lying and deceitful when he caught them doing something he'd asked them not to in the past. In fact, the teachers were simply trying to "save face" because he always "called them out" in public, rather than developing a relationship with them and discussing his concerns one on one.
This week while continuing to read my book What Everyone Needs to Know About China's Economy I learned that China learns from the mistakes and successes of other countries. This helps the government know what decisions need to be made in order to help move the country forward. China is also has a "transitional" post-Communist economy. China has learned that economic growth is key to keep political power in place.
This week I started the first chapter of my book. I started with Stratagem 1: Deceive Heaven to Cross the Sea. The idea here is that false perception leads to distracting actions and normality slackens vigilance. The story is told of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty when he was asked to send his troops to support a small country in Koguryo. Knowing that the country was more than a thousand miles away, the Emperor was hesitant to set out. Sensing his lack of decision, the emperor's general invited him and his closest counselors to a tent that he said had been prepared by a wealthy farmer. The emperor and his men spent several days in the tent not realizing that they had walked onto a ship (disguised as a tent). They couldn't see the ocean because it was hidden by ten thousand canvasses. Once the Emperor found out what had happened, he realized that it was too late to turn back so he continued on and led his men all the way to the their destination.
The idea that this story is trying to convey is that Many modern applications of this principle can be found. Gambling casinos are a brilliant example of this stratagem. Casinos used lighting, decorations, and music all to distract their customers so that they will spend as much time and money as possible. They even give VIP service to "high rollers" to make them feel important even as the waste thousands of dollars. Apple uses the concept of distracting customers with a culture that helps consumers spend massive amounts of money that they otherwise would not have.
The take away. Distractions can be a very important part of business. If you can convince people to do things because they are having fun, they will often stick around even after they realized what is happening.
This week as I continued to read "The Beautiful Country and the Middle Kingdom" I have learned that I don't know much about the history of the beautiful country, America, and the Middle Kingdom, China. The book begins in 1776 when America was in the midst of the revolutionary war. Students from Dartmouth College, that were studying to become pastor, dropped out to join the Royal Navy, but when illness killed their captain after being out at sea they returned to back to America, not to continue college but to go on and trade with China. As the book continues it talks about the trade that America did with China. I was fascinated by the amounts of tea that was brought to America in 1840, 19 million pounds of tea, they also brought bue-and-white china, and silk which showed the amount of wealth that Americans had. As I read on, I thought it was really sad how obsessed Americans were with the Chinese culture. The book mentioned one woman named Afong Moy, was displayed in a cage to sell Chinese knickknacks. It is very surprising what Americans did just to get a couple cents. There is plenty of interesting stories that I have read to far and would love to share, but from what I have read so far I highly suggest this book. I can't wait to see what else this book has in store as I continue reading.
The most recent chapter covered cultural and philosophical foundations of Chinese culture. In addition to Buddhism, Daoism, and confucianism, modern Chinese thought has been heavily influenced by Mao Zedong, Sun Zi, Sun Yat Sen, and Deng Xiaoping. There are several cultural traits that can be directly attributed to religion: Wu (Buddhism), is very deep understanding, Yin and Yang (Daoism), and the structured, high power distance inherent in confucianism. There are also foundations for Chinese thought that cannot be attributed to any one teacher or religion - guan xi, zhong jian ren and zheng ti guan niam. Guan xi is a long term reciprocal relationship, often lasting multiple generations. Zhong jian ren is the use of a middleman to handle touchy or controversial issues, similar to how we would use a lawyer in the west. Zhen ti guan niam is a holistic approach to problem solving and thought - looking at all aspects at once rather than sequentially.
Going deep into my book, one of the chapters was called boot camp. As I mentioned before, the Chinese millennial generation is being compared and contrasted with the students of Tiananmen. Ever since the massacre the Communist party has taken measures to control the new generation of millennials by adding boot camp at the beginning of their education, before their freshmen year of college. The whole idea of boot camp, according to Rachael, a Chinese student who is a millennial, is to help this generation with obedience. Millennials are known to be disobedient world-wide by psychologists, parents, and community; and it’s no different in the Chinese world. The communist party added boot camp to help improve discipline within the millennials to help avoid another Tiananmen. Rachael describes her experience growing up as an only child and very spoiled as a typical millennial and how it felt to experience boot camp.
I've never given a lot of thought to the idea of what generalization differences/similarities there would be around word. The idea of the millennial generation is something I've only thought of as an American term. I wonder if the your book talks about why there are the same behavior characteristics between cultures. It seems there would be an underlying reason for the same characteristics to be prevalent. Thanks for sharing.
It's interesting to think about how the problem of millennials or maybe just the pursuit of trying to understand them is discussed all around the world. Like Ryan said, i've never considered millennials in the context of other cultures and what other cultures would do.
This week, I began to read the second part out of six of my book. This part of the book goes on about describing how exactly women being socially forced into marriage hurts them economically. First, I wanted to further describe what the term "leftover women" means. According to Chinese society, "leftover" women are women over the age of 25 who have not yet married. There are different categories of leftover women based on their age. The social stress for women to avoid becoming leftover is seen in TV, News media, social media, and even in the family. The Chinese government fills these spaces with propaganda in order to make women get married in fear of being excluded from society. The women who are being pushed into marriage are often the ones who are highest ranking in the economy. These women include lawyers, businesswomen, and other professionals. While these women and their families contribute to the down payment on houses, the house is still put under the sole proprietorship of the husband. This means two very important things for women. First, if the woman would seek a divorce, she would have no stake in splitting their estate equally due to Chinese laws on marriage. Second, the wife is not gaining any wealth in the home that she is investing money in. This can trap women in unhealthy marriages and also keep them from progressing economically while their husbands continue to sit on the growing pile of wealth as property value increases. This part of the argument is one of the main focuses of this book, but the next chapters go into the general pay gap between males and females and how economic inequality prospers even outside of marriages.
Yes, this is a problem that is exacerbated by parents worried about having no one but their single daughter to care for them into old age. The pressure isn't just from the government.
As I mentioned last week, my book is titled "Myths About Doing Business in China." The myth I read about this week is regarding the idea that the Chinese market will always continue to grow. At the start of each myth is address the topic by covering why that myth exist and one of the reasons for some believe this is that since the 1980's the Chinese market has doubled around every 6 year. Over the whole chapter then covers the realities that this growth as come at a cost, such as environmental concerns, health issues, and income inequality just to name a few. I relate this to the idea I heard in the late 1990's that the "new" US economy and how it was destined to continue growing, but then of course the tech bubble occurred in the early 2000. In conclusion the author shares his thought that China is likely to have some "market crashes" but in the end it will recover.
This week I'm reading the part of my book that describes what it was like for young people to leave home and journey to the factories they were going to be working at. One line from the chapter stuck out to me: "They were sixteen years old, on the loose in one of China's most chaotic boomtowns, raising themselves with no adults in sight. They were prey to all sorts of cons, making life decisions on the barest bits of information." On the next page another line said "There are millions of young women, and each one has a story worth telling." Both of these statements were compelling to me because I don't think as Americans we actually think about how privileged the majority of us are in our teens. The majority of us do not leave home and begin working in a factory with people we don't know and doing work we are unfamiliar with. However, in China, that seems to be relatively normal. I think this really is just a reflection of the difference in our political climates and the values we grow up with. As the statement about women said, each different person has a vastly unique story. Just like us, these are people who feel real human emotion in it's fullest spectrum. But they are willing to make sacrifices to provide for their families. This is one of the qualities I see throughout the reading that is the most apparent. People there seem to be a more collectivist culture. They make decisions based on what is best for the people around them. In America, that sometimes is the case, but I think we often think as individuals and make decisions based off of what we want.
at this part in the book, the book is discussing the environmental challenges that are faced with such a large increase in the automative industry. every Chinese citizen wants a car and they are in extremely high demand. china has gone from having streets that are filled with bicycles to streets that are packed with cars. all the cars being used in china has also brought of questions about energy consumption. in 2003, the motor vehicles in china consumed 1.2 million barrels of oil per day, amounting to about one-third of chinas total oil production. the large amount of cars in highly populated cities has led to many injuries and deaths each day. in 2005, 680 people were killed daily in china from automobile accidents and 48,000 were injured daily. in addition the emission of green house gases into the air from automobiles is effecting the climate in china.
In the beginning of my book Age of Ambition: Truth, faith and fortune, I am learning a lot about the political structure of china during the 1960s. I am also learning about a man from Taiwan who was a honored captain in the military and had left his country and family to visit China. Where he was soon arrested and questioned for being a spy. Many people where not aloud to just travel, marry, or move to different places in China without governments approval. As someone who was born and raised in the states this came as a shock to me. I have so many freedoms in the United States that I take for granted everyday.
My book starts off going into the history of China's international trade. It discussed how China for most of their history has been a great trading nation but then went through this cut off from the world. It wasn't until 1978 when China passed the Open Door Policy for international trade and investment that China started it's journey to becoming one of the greatest trading leaders in the world. I think reading about China's history as a great trading nation was a great way start and have an understanding of how the Chinese have strong traditions in their business culture.
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ReplyDeleteThis week I began reading my book, "The Chinese Way to Business." I am thoroughly enjoying it so far and have found a lot of good and useful information that we may be able to utilize during our time in China. During the introduction the author took some time to lay out various cultural aspects of China so that the reader can understand the background of the country before diving into the business side of things. He said that "one of the key aspects of doing business in China is the fact that business ethics and practices are strongly influenced by the cultures of the regional divisions." I found this very interesting as I had no idea that there are different factors of business associated with different areas of the country. It also discussed how job and profession-related titles are very important in the Chinese culture and represent respect and recognition. I thought that this was fascinating because I feel as though all cultures have this mindset in some ways but the Chinese really embrace this fact and observe the ranking of individuals in their society. As I continue to read, I am excited about learning new and innovative ways to associate with the Chinese when it comes to day-to-day life as well as in business dealings.
ReplyDeleteI'm a history major so it is very interesting to see the business side to this trip. I think it's interesting to note that culture is a big factor in Chinese business dealings. And I am sure that the culture changes with the different regions. Additionally, I think its interesting to note that titles are big in Chinese culture. I feel that in a sense, that resonates with our culture (Title of Dr., CEO, CFO, etc.).
DeleteSounds like a very interesting topic! I am on this tour as a business major along with humanities, and my book is on humanities, so I'm interested in hearing about the business in china from your book.
DeleteA lot of the things that are important in Chinese business are also important in business anywhere, I imagine. The Chinese are all about "guanxi," or "relationships." Once you have guanxi with someone one of you will often owe the other one a favor. Here we just call it networking, but there it is networking on steroids. The only purpose, over there, to have a relationship is so that you can get something done, and thus, you now owe someone a favor. What is interesting is to see how the regional cultural differences come into play. This is minimized somewhat now, I think, but 100 years ago regional connections were as solid as blood connections.
DeleteThis week I began officially reading my book: Made in China. In the first chapter there are many things brought to my attention that I had honestly given little or no thought to. For example, have you ever contemplated the many western entrepreneurs who are always in the spotlight? Namely Bill Gates, Jeff Bazos, Richard Branson, and Steve Jobs are only a few, but why have we never heard about the entrepreneurs who are alive and building the worlds second largest economy (by purchasing power only)? China is home to one of ever five people on the planet. This fist chapter beings opening up the eyes of the reader to notice that we aren't the only ones making change, BIG change.
ReplyDeleteYour book sounds very interesting and that is a good point that the author brought up about never recognizing Chinese business people and only hearing about western entrepreneurs. It will be very interesting to hear your presentation and what else the author has to say about Chinese businesses.
DeleteYour right Seth. It is odd that we do not know more about top business leaders in china. Logically, it is makes since to learn about top business owners and leader in different country's especially china.
DeleteI've made some more progress on my book: The People's Emperor Mao. So far, it has been very interesting! The author doesn't bore you with the reading and creates more of an anecdote. So far, I've learned that Mao Zedong was from a poor family that slowly made its way up the social class. He loved reading classical books and defied his father in order to get an education. He had an arranged marriage when he was thirteen to a nineteen year-old girl (awkward), but denounced the arrangement and refused to get married. Even though this is focusing on the earlier part of the 1900s, it is so interesting to see the cultural differences that were/are present. I'm definitely learning a lot more about Chinese culture than I've previously been exposed to and I look forward to learning even more as I continue with the book!
ReplyDeleteYour book "The People's Emperor Mao," sounds super interesting. I love being able to read the blog posts on the books primarily focused on the history aspect of things, it's a nice change. I think it is very interesting and intriguing to see the cultural differences and how China has changed over the years. I'm looking forward to hearing more about your book on Mao Zedong!
DeleteWhile it's hard to ignore the travesties Mao's leadership led to, he is definitely (as with most dictators) a fascinating historical personality.
DeleteYes, Mao came from a dirt poor family. Today his home is a place of pilgrimage for Chinese. I visited his home with some Chinese friends a few years ago and the line was a quarter mile long, would have taken more than two hours to get into the home. So my Chinese friends bribed the security guard and I skipped right to the front door... security guard pushing people out of my way like he was Mao himself. I had this immediate feeling of wanting to ask Mao what he might think of a Foreign Devil paying a bribe in a communist country to skip to the front of the line at the communist hero's house. Actually, I didn't pay the bribe. I had guanxi with the family and they paid the bribe... I was helping him with his American college applications, so they owed me. :)
DeleteI have officially began reading my book, "How To Do Business In China: 24 Lessons In Engaging The Dragon." So far, the book has been quite interesting. It begins with the lesson on "Better Read Than Dead." Throughout this chapter, the author stresses the significance of being well informed about the history, politics, economics, culture, and literature to name a few. By becoming informed about the country one is interested in visiting or even starting business in, the reader can grasp a better glimpse and understanding of China and its history. The author, Nick Dallas, says, "Being better informed increases the likelihood of making correct decisions as risk is reduced." This being said, the more time one spends searching China's history on the internet, visiting various blog sites on doing business in China, and even observing business-case studies, the more exposure the individual has on how business is conducted in China and the better decisions they can make. I'm looking forward to continue sharing the information I will learn in the later chapters.
ReplyDeleteThis was a book that caught my eye while scrolling through the list. I can agree one hundred percent that if someone is informed on a place or topic, they will be more interested in learning more or visiting. Being informed on politics especially helps people to make decisions that are major for the well being of them, others, and society. I am looking forward to hearing what you have to present to us at the end of the book.
DeleteAs I was reading there were many things that stood out to me. One that really took me by surprise was from Chinese journalist Xinran Xue. It said that she had once visited a family that was so poor, they had to share and rotate one set of clothing among four children. "The rest would lie naked under a blanket, happily dreaming of their turn to 'wear the clothes.'" This really struck me, I could never imagine or picture a scenario where that would happen.
ReplyDeleteThis post caught my eye because when talking about China people never remember how poverty still exists in China. China is thought of only in terms of business and being a big political power, but rarely is poverty among regular people touched on.
DeleteVery interesting quote, I will have to chew on that for a while.
DeleteEven stories of people having to sleep across each other, stacked like wood, on a bed because the beg isn't big enough. Not poor people, but doctors.
DeleteI've only read the preface and a few pages of the first chapter, already this book is intriguing. It's written by a mother of an adoptive daughter (from china) who was adopted in 1991. She pursued the search in Chinese abandonment and adoption because of the questions her daughter started asking at the age of 3. She wanted to have answers to the questions and figured that interviewing parents first hand would be the best way to do so. I haven't gotten into how she went about interviewing parents but I am looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteWow, this sounds like a really good book. I watched a documentary once about children in Asian countries that got dropped off at orphanages, it is so sad. It will be interesting what the mother finds out from the parents she interviews. I think that this book is going to be a good read, and I can't wait to hear more about it.
DeleteNow China has a major problem because there aren't enough females to go around, and many young men are angry and frustrated at having so few options for mates.
DeleteThis sounds like a really interesting book. Defiantly something I would read, I look forward to more posts about your book. I would really like to know what kind of questions she asks and what responses the author will write about. Adoption in China is very popular, many Americans adopt children from China and I think this book might bring some insight into the way the Chinese feel about that, especially from a mother's perspective.
DeleteDuring my time reading "China Fortunes: A Tale of Business" it brings many things to my attention such as the inability of American vendors to supply the necessary amount of product as China could. I believe that back in the 80s that America was still a incredulous superpower, but times like these caused the decline of American power in comparison to China. Not only that, but China also maintained the capability to produce a much higher quantity margin, and still does today. Interesting notion.
ReplyDeleteThe speed of how quickly the Chinese can produce at is absolutely astonishing as well. The book divulges on one instance in which the Americans are discussing how quickly the Chinese can produce a hydroelectric engine with ease and cheap resources but still have a quality product ready to sell. Also, it is always selling due to the density of their population and the ability to sell to the world with high profit margin.
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing! I would think that cheap resources would not be the best and they would make the product a low quality product. But it is amazing how a quality product can come out of that. I look forward to learn more about your book!
DeleteI want to learn more about how they can produce at such a high speed. It would be interesting to see if there are any methods in China that help bring about the faster production.
DeleteChinese Business Etiquette and Culture.
ReplyDeleteA person's position in society is very important, criticism and rebellious behavior is not accepted because you're supposed to be content with your position.
In China, there is a strongly rigid hierarchical structure, and because of this, children are taught specific rules of conduct to follow for life.
A person with higher position are respected more than a normal person, that's why if a foreign company wants to make deals with Chinese business people, the company has to send someone with strong credentials in order to meet more important people.
So far, the book has been describing Chinese culture as very strict. I look forward to to learning if it's all seriousness or if it is actually a little different.
I was initially interested in reading this book in the beginning and I am excited to learn how China's etiquette differs from America.
DeleteIt is interesting to find something in common with Latin America where position in society means everything.
DeleteToday, I read about the Chinese concept of saving face. While a lot of people talk about face as if it is a bad thing, the authors of the book say that face should be treated with great respect. It is interesting the role that face plays in China. There are three types of honor in China: dignity, respectability, and superiority. Dignity is the basic level of honor, and people who lose their dignity may go to great lengths to get it back. For example, one Chinese man became a government witness against another, reportedly because that man slapped him in the face and made him lose dignity. The second level of honor is respectability, and that refers to having things that others of the same social status would reasonably have. The third level is superiority, and it refers to being more important than others. This is achieved by going to dinner with important people, or similar types of things.
ReplyDeleteThis is important when you are doing business in China because it affects what people buy and how people behave at work. The luxury industry is big in China, not that people can always afford luxury items, but they do it to achieve face. Some people have defaulted on loans because they buy more than they can afford. The book says, "More than 20,000 undergraduates applied for secured loans in amounts totaling more than the equivalent of USD 26.7 million." These loans were mostly for the purchase of Apple products.
Because of the effort to achieve face, a Chinese person will often say yes in front of other people, even when he can't really do what he said he'll do, because if he does he'll cause the other person to lose face. An American businessman learned about face the hard way when he rebuked a Chinese manager in front of everyone; that manager left the meeting and resigned immediately. The section on face helped me learn a lot more about the Chinese perspective on honor and how to communicate better with them.
I think there are a lot of good things to take away from Chinese culture, even applied in a western setting. While saving face isn't an inherent part of our culture, we are still prideful by nature and don't respond well to embarrassment. If you've ever had a manager berate you in front of your coworkers - you know it doesn't give you a warm fuzzy feeling.
DeleteCaleb, I found this very interesting. I think that we often overlook the smaller aspects of other cultures. But like you said, it is very important not do that. I had never heard about the concept of face as you discussed it here. I knew that the chines people were very concerned about respect, but I was not aware of the other areas of face. Thank you for sharing this.
DeleteWhen I worked in Taiwan, our American supervisor never got along with the Taiwanese teachers. He felt that they were lying and deceitful when he caught them doing something he'd asked them not to in the past. In fact, the teachers were simply trying to "save face" because he always "called them out" in public, rather than developing a relationship with them and discussing his concerns one on one.
DeleteThis week while continuing to read my book What Everyone Needs to Know About China's Economy I learned that China learns from the mistakes and successes of other countries. This helps the government know what decisions need to be made in order to help move the country forward. China is also has a "transitional" post-Communist economy. China has learned that economic growth is key to keep political power in place.
ReplyDeleteThis week I started the first chapter of my book. I started with Stratagem 1: Deceive Heaven to Cross the Sea. The idea here is that false perception leads to distracting actions and normality slackens vigilance. The story is told of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty when he was asked to send his troops to support a small country in Koguryo. Knowing that the country was more than a thousand miles away, the Emperor was hesitant to set out. Sensing his lack of decision, the emperor's general invited him and his closest counselors to a tent that he said had been prepared by a wealthy farmer. The emperor and his men spent several days in the tent not realizing that they had walked onto a ship (disguised as a tent). They couldn't see the ocean because it was hidden by ten thousand canvasses. Once the Emperor found out what had happened, he realized that it was too late to turn back so he continued on and led his men all the way to the their destination.
ReplyDeleteThe idea that this story is trying to convey is that Many modern applications of this principle can be found. Gambling casinos are a brilliant example of this stratagem. Casinos used lighting, decorations, and music all to distract their customers so that they will spend as much time and money as possible. They even give VIP service to "high rollers" to make them feel important even as the waste thousands of dollars. Apple uses the concept of distracting customers with a culture that helps consumers spend massive amounts of money that they otherwise would not have.
The take away. Distractions can be a very important part of business. If you can convince people to do things because they are having fun, they will often stick around even after they realized what is happening.
This week as I continued to read "The Beautiful Country and the Middle Kingdom" I have learned that I don't know much about the history of the beautiful country, America, and the Middle Kingdom, China. The book begins in 1776 when America was in the midst of the revolutionary war. Students from Dartmouth College, that were studying to become pastor, dropped out to join the Royal Navy, but when illness killed their captain after being out at sea they returned to back to America, not to continue college but to go on and trade with China. As the book continues it talks about the trade that America did with China. I was fascinated by the amounts of tea that was brought to America in 1840, 19 million pounds of tea, they also brought bue-and-white china, and silk which showed the amount of wealth that Americans had. As I read on, I thought it was really sad how obsessed Americans were with the Chinese culture. The book mentioned one woman named Afong Moy, was displayed in a cage to sell Chinese knickknacks. It is very surprising what Americans did just to get a couple cents. There is plenty of interesting stories that I have read to far and would love to share, but from what I have read so far I highly suggest this book. I can't wait to see what else this book has in store as I continue reading.
ReplyDeleteThe most recent chapter covered cultural and philosophical foundations of Chinese culture. In addition to Buddhism, Daoism, and confucianism, modern Chinese thought has been heavily influenced by Mao Zedong, Sun Zi, Sun Yat Sen, and Deng Xiaoping. There are several cultural traits that can be directly attributed to religion: Wu (Buddhism), is very deep understanding, Yin and Yang (Daoism), and the structured, high power distance inherent in confucianism. There are also foundations for Chinese thought that cannot be attributed to any one teacher or religion - guan xi, zhong jian ren and zheng ti guan niam. Guan xi is a long term reciprocal relationship, often lasting multiple generations. Zhong jian ren is the use of a middleman to handle touchy or controversial issues, similar to how we would use a lawyer in the west. Zhen ti guan niam is a holistic approach to problem solving and thought - looking at all aspects at once rather than sequentially.
ReplyDeleteGoing deep into my book, one of the chapters was called boot camp. As I mentioned before, the Chinese millennial generation is being compared and contrasted with the students of Tiananmen. Ever since the massacre the Communist party has taken measures to control the new generation of millennials by adding boot camp at the beginning of their education, before their freshmen year of college. The whole idea of boot camp, according to Rachael, a Chinese student who is a millennial, is to help this generation with obedience. Millennials are known to be disobedient world-wide by psychologists, parents, and community; and it’s no different in the Chinese world. The communist party added boot camp to help improve discipline within the millennials to help avoid another Tiananmen. Rachael describes her experience growing up as an only child and very spoiled as a typical millennial and how it felt to experience boot camp.
ReplyDeleteI've never given a lot of thought to the idea of what generalization differences/similarities there would be around word. The idea of the millennial generation is something I've only thought of as an American term. I wonder if the your book talks about why there are the same behavior characteristics between cultures. It seems there would be an underlying reason for the same characteristics to be prevalent. Thanks for sharing.
DeleteIt's interesting to think about how the problem of millennials or maybe just the pursuit of trying to understand them is discussed all around the world. Like Ryan said, i've never considered millennials in the context of other cultures and what other cultures would do.
DeleteThis week, I began to read the second part out of six of my book. This part of the book goes on about describing how exactly women being socially forced into marriage hurts them economically. First, I wanted to further describe what the term "leftover women" means. According to Chinese society, "leftover" women are women over the age of 25 who have not yet married. There are different categories of leftover women based on their age. The social stress for women to avoid becoming leftover is seen in TV, News media, social media, and even in the family. The Chinese government fills these spaces with propaganda in order to make women get married in fear of being excluded from society. The women who are being pushed into marriage are often the ones who are highest ranking in the economy. These women include lawyers, businesswomen, and other professionals. While these women and their families contribute to the down payment on houses, the house is still put under the sole proprietorship of the husband. This means two very important things for women. First, if the woman would seek a divorce, she would have no stake in splitting their estate equally due to Chinese laws on marriage. Second, the wife is not gaining any wealth in the home that she is investing money in. This can trap women in unhealthy marriages and also keep them from progressing economically while their husbands continue to sit on the growing pile of wealth as property value increases. This part of the argument is one of the main focuses of this book, but the next chapters go into the general pay gap between males and females and how economic inequality prospers even outside of marriages.
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DeleteYes, this is a problem that is exacerbated by parents worried about having no one but their single daughter to care for them into old age. The pressure isn't just from the government.
DeleteAs I mentioned last week, my book is titled "Myths About Doing Business in China." The myth I read about this week is regarding the idea that the Chinese market will always continue to grow. At the start of each myth is address the topic by covering why that myth exist and one of the reasons for some believe this is that since the 1980's the Chinese market has doubled around every 6 year. Over the whole chapter then covers the realities that this growth as come at a cost, such as environmental concerns, health issues, and income inequality just to name a few. I relate this to the idea I heard in the late 1990's that the "new" US economy and how it was destined to continue growing, but then of course the tech bubble occurred in the early 2000. In conclusion the author shares his thought that China is likely to have some "market crashes" but in the end it will recover.
ReplyDeleteThis week I'm reading the part of my book that describes what it was like for young people to leave home and journey to the factories they were going to be working at. One line from the chapter stuck out to me: "They were sixteen years old, on the loose in one of China's most chaotic boomtowns, raising themselves with no adults in sight. They were prey to all sorts of cons, making life decisions on the barest bits of information." On the next page another line said "There are millions of young women, and each one has a story worth telling." Both of these statements were compelling to me because I don't think as Americans we actually think about how privileged the majority of us are in our teens. The majority of us do not leave home and begin working in a factory with people we don't know and doing work we are unfamiliar with. However, in China, that seems to be relatively normal. I think this really is just a reflection of the difference in our political climates and the values we grow up with. As the statement about women said, each different person has a vastly unique story. Just like us, these are people who feel real human emotion in it's fullest spectrum. But they are willing to make sacrifices to provide for their families. This is one of the qualities I see throughout the reading that is the most apparent. People there seem to be a more collectivist culture. They make decisions based on what is best for the people around them. In America, that sometimes is the case, but I think we often think as individuals and make decisions based off of what we want.
ReplyDeleteat this part in the book, the book is discussing the environmental challenges that are faced with such a large increase in the automative industry. every Chinese citizen wants a car and they are in extremely high demand. china has gone from having streets that are filled with bicycles to streets that are packed with cars. all the cars being used in china has also brought of questions about energy consumption. in 2003, the motor vehicles in china consumed 1.2 million barrels of oil per day, amounting to about one-third of chinas total oil production. the large amount of cars in highly populated cities has led to many injuries and deaths each day. in 2005, 680 people were killed daily in china from automobile accidents and 48,000 were injured daily. in addition the emission of green house gases into the air from automobiles is effecting the climate in china.
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning of my book Age of Ambition: Truth, faith and fortune, I am learning a lot about the political structure of china during the 1960s. I am also learning about a man from Taiwan who was a honored captain in the military and had left his country and family to visit China. Where he was soon arrested and questioned for being a spy. Many people where not aloud to just travel, marry, or move to different places in China without governments approval. As someone who was born and raised in the states this came as a shock to me. I have so many freedoms in the United States that I take for granted everyday.
ReplyDeleteMy book starts off going into the history of China's international trade. It discussed how China for most of their history has been a great trading nation but then went through this cut off from the world. It wasn't until 1978 when China passed the Open Door Policy for international trade and investment that China started it's journey to becoming one of the greatest trading leaders in the world. I think reading about China's history as a great trading nation was a great way start and have an understanding of how the Chinese have strong traditions in their business culture.
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