24) Xièxiè

I've been in contact before with different manufacturers of different backgrounds. Working with Chinese, it's been a very interesting and exciting experience. I have had many good Chinese friends but, unfortunately, I lost contact with them, specially now when I need them most.

There are tons of books about how to make business with Chinese, a lot of multicultural rules to follow, a lot of research available and there is a lot of on going research, but specially a great fascination for the far east.

It is not a secret how the whole world has turned to sell and “manufacture” in China, but to turn hypocrisy into a smile, either honest or false it is a really argument to write more books. I've read a couple of books about doing business with Chinese, about customs and traditions, Guanxhi, etc, but to really deal with a human person who is willing to make business with you with a “limited budget base” is different, way too different.

I certainly don't think I'm expected to remember the meaning of all the colors in the Chinese culture, nor to know how to greet, even less to behave in a proper way, but so far I've learned that I'm expected to learn and try to remember their national days, greet in a nice way, be flexible and be kind. I've learned, in exchange perhaps without having a need to do it, they will try to remember your important dates. Either national or private. Private are important for me, since they emphasize the real business relation that I am establishing with all the people I've been working to. Nice honest and hard working people (vs the corrupted and criminals that are here and there).

A lot of businesses starts nowadays by messenger, msn messenger is most for business, but Chinese use more QQ messenger, the most popular software in China for chatting perhaps in a friendship-private way, and despite the direct and simple business communication it is handled by QQ or MSN messenger (now you can't forget about remembering with which hand you greet and with which one you give a present) I can't stop thinking that I didn't find in any Chinese inter-cultural book the sentence “Hi, how are you? I meant it, I really want to know how you are doing”, “If there is anything I can help you, please let me know”, “Oh are you too stressed now? It's ok, we can continue later, I'll send you an e-mail”, “You know what? I think it's time for you to go home, we can continue tomorrow, I hope you have a nice dinner”, “Yes it is urgent and I need it now, but I know you can't do anything cause it's out of your hands, so let's hope things will solve soon”, and so on.

I guess, I still need to read much more to find such books, and if you happens to know any with such life advices, please let me know.

Don't be too narrow minded to close yourself to meet great people in a different way, nor to over estimate or under estimate what people on the other side of the computer can and can not do, be “nice”. We all live in stress.