[...] The investment of time and effort to get to know the other person before doing business is hard to understand for Westerners. You can talk, talk and talk and the only response you get is a smile or a question in return that makes no sense, and as your blood pressure rises by the minute, you finally leave totally annoyed by those stupid Chinese'. In Western society we do not accept this kind of behavior. We are expected to be assertive, active and one is supposed to contribute to the conversation. 'Keeping quiet' is also a choice from the menu in Western society, but our society, in contrast to Chinese society, does not appreciate the trait or find it appropriate. [...]
[...] This 'keeping quiet' is one of the reasons we think of Chinese people as incomprehensible and judge them negatively. At the first meeting with another person we like to show our best face in an attempt to convince the other that they are dealing with a great person, a genius. [...]
[...] Furthermore I want to mention the term 'face', which I will loosely define as 'respect'. Certainly giving and receiving respect plays a significant role in Western social interaction, but for Chinese 'face' is a concept that encompasses their whole being. Loosing face is by far the most injurious thing that can happen to a Chinese person. While you make the effort to place yourself in the shoes of your Chinese counterpart or worker and appreciate his way of thinking, you will have to keep this sensitivity in mind. For Chinese, face is interrelated with every aspect of their behavior and social interaction. [...]
[...] When we observe two Chinese people meeting for the first time, we are put off by the excessive amount of tact they use as they interact. Their first meetings seem pointless. However, we should not forget that the Chinese have accomplished a great deal using this very behavior over the last twenty years. [...]
Go to Over Compensating with Chinese society
| Keeping quiet within Chinese society |
Over Compensating within Chinese society |
Fighting within Chinese society |
Fleeing within Chinese society |
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| Safety in numbers within Chinese society |
Keeping distance within Chinese society |
Aiming to please within Chinese society |
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