After seeing the volume and nature of the responses my three guest posts generated, Dan Harris, gracious host of the China Law Blog, invited me to respond. You can read the responses here, or below. Audiences are often polarized by the claims I make about differences between Chinese and Western mindsets. It’s been no different [...]

Here is the last of my three guest blog posts on the China Law Blog. Again, I recommend scrolling down to see the comments if you read it on the China Law Blog site. Human beings stereotype. It’s part of our wiring. There’s no getting around it. In China you will be dealing with your [...]

Today, esteemed colleague and China Law guru Dan Harris posted the first of three guest posts by me on his multiple-award-winning China Law Blog. Please check it out, as he gives a nice introduction. For archival purposes, I’m putting the post here as well. Imagine for a moment that you’re going to set up a [...]

We’re back. What an adventure. Much to share. At the moment I’m kicking myself a bit for not having my audio recorder running while out and about. Year after year one of the running jokes among China-weary expats I’ve known has been about the decibel level everywhere you go in China, or at least urban [...]

On some level I have no right to complain about what I complained about in yesterday’s post. When I first went to China at 23, I was a roiling mess of self-righteous “concern” for China in its failure to be exactly like the U.S. It’s taken almost 20 years of learning for me to nuance [...]

In today’s online Wall Street Journal, this piece appeared. Reading it was an odd experience. The headline goes like this: “Obama, Hu Highlight Cooperation.” The first three paragraphs are right on point, with high-level summaries of the nature of Hu’s and Obama’s conversations. Then, suddenly, the fourth paragraph: Mr. Obama’s statement also pointedly noted the [...]

Back from a week of consulting in China. The organization is a new company looking to implement a new model of outsourcing. For many reasons I’m optimistic about the company’s prospects, not least of which is that the leadership combines experience from the Mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the U.S. The multiple perspectives will play [...]

Humans are emotional beings through and through, despite our pretensions about “logic” and “rationality.” Still, now and again a logic presents itself that is so compelling that it forces us to take notice. One such logic revolves around how we judge ourselves and others, with culture winding up, per usual, at the center of things. [...]

Any leader needs to be mindful of resources. Leaders are often evaluated on how they use an organization’s resources. The twist here is that in China the stakes are raised to a level that at times approaches the absurd. One small-seeming cultural snafu here or there can cost an enormous amount of time, money and [...]

In any organizational setting, leaders are best off keeping their cool and avoiding big swings — in mood and in direction. This goes tenfold for the Western leader in China, where there’s much more than the standard fare to knock you off your game.