I visited China in June 2006, at the invitation of then-coaching-company, Top Human. It was the first of two trips I was destined to take to this most amazing country.
It was a very powerful trip; on my return it took me a while to formulate an answer to the question “So, how was China?”, a question as big as the country I visited.
The Arrival
It is an overwhelming place, full of people much like any other people we meet, except they speak a completely different language and have a history, culture, and background that is both ancient and achingly recent – the upheavals which the average person in China has experienced in recent years boggle the imagination. And yet they smile like anyone else, cry and express enthusiasm like anyone else, want to be treated with respect and have a decent quality of life like anyone else – the last of which is definitely a mixed bag in China.
So, here are a few highlights.
Going over was a 14-hour flight during which we crossed a part of Russia with a river so huge (and surprisingly red) and mountains that looked so rugged from our height (we were four hours out of Shanghai at the time) that I was stunned. I was then told that the reason the river was red is that it was polluted recently by an accident in China, and is now lethal. The word colossal comes to mind…
I was told by a Chinese man on the flight that many Chinese people he knows are make their money in the US, then return to retire, as money goes so much further in China. I was later told by a number of people that those with some resources and influence can make a lot of money in China, if they have strong relationships, which is key to doing anything in China. As seems to be the case everywhere, there is always someone ready to take advantage particularly of westerners who do not speak the language (I was offered a 5 Yuan taxi ride for 100 Yuan) – at the same time, there were many people who were exceedingly warm, welcoming, generous, and open.
Catching a cab from the airport was an adventure – my driver knew no English. At one point I tried to ask him a question and he practically stopped on the highway to try to figure out what I was saying. I restrained any further verbal curiosity after that! Once at the hotel I met up with three colleagues who had arrived early, one of whom it turned out has pink hair! She’s an Aussie, and a lot of fun – she took me quite in stride despite my blurting the obvious before I had even said hello.
We managed to pick out a dinner we felt was edible from among “delicacies” of various fish and animal parts that I for one found scary. I had a similar experience in a gourmet restaurant in Paris once…guess I am just hopelessly pedestrian. Then the three of us explored Shanghai together on Sunday, culminating in dinner at the former headquarters of the Shanghai Communist Party at which an additional group member joined us.
The Coaching Piece
Our workshop started bright and early Monday, for which we were joined by my Hungarian roommate and a group of about 10 Koreans, a Taiwanese, and a couple of Chinese-Canadians. We had an interesting example of our different cultural assumptions early on – we did a case study that talked about a salesperson who was not selling what he had committed to sell. The Chinese assumed he was wrong, because his boss had given him instructions he had refused to follow. While we agreed with their basic point that he had agreed to one thing then done something else, I and a couple of others thought that in fact the boss might well be the problem given the specifics cited. The idea of the boss possibly being wrong seemed to be a difficult one for the Chinese to entertain, not surprisingly given the rigidity of their political structure, whereas for me it is just par for the course, rebel that I am….
Our workshop days were full, with two additional presentations every evening. I am pleased to say mine – talking about Birthing a Dancing Star, and highlighting my experiential approach to leadership development using dance as a metaphor for leading and following – was very well received. (I was told I had the best evaluations of the six presentations!) I have to mention my roommate’s effective (if alarming to our hosts) way of warming me up for my presentation. I am often nervous before a talk, so she used laugh therapy on me – taking me and Australian Sue into an unused conference room to laugh noisily and outrageously, which puzzled our hosts but worked a treat. In fact, I was unexpectedly asked to reprieve the dance portion the next day for our cultural exchange with close to 100 coaches, CEOs, and local government officials – the dance piece caught the imagination of a lot of people this trip.
We were given the star treatment on the above-mentioned cultural exchange, complete with local media, cameras, banners, and clapping crowds greeting us as we came off the bus in Haining, an industrial area a couple of hours outside of Shanghai. And me without my lipstick! I may well have made the evening news for the first time in my life…too bad I had no way to watch it, as we kept going until late that evening as well.
The next day we attended a couple of presentations about current conditions in China, one by a “returnee” Chinese American from Price Waterhouse Cooper, and a second by a Hong-Kong professor. They had some interesting observations to make about the financial, political, and social situations – things are changing so fast. Ten years ago, according to one of my seatmates on the plane home, there were mostly bicycles on the roads as few could afford cars. Now cars, new-age “rickshaws”, covered motorscooter taxis and pedestrians all vie with the bicycles for room on the road. Twice in my 10 days in China I had the disconcerting experience of watching a vehicle head down the wrong side of the road into on-coming traffic, one of which I was riding in at the time. There is no such thing as pedestrian rights-of-way that I saw – in fact, they have traffic wardens on the corners of some of the major intersections to ensure cars actually stop when the pedestrian lights are green.
“Returnees” are in an ambivalent position in China – a bit suspect by those who have remained, and unlikely to ever be fully re-integrated, I am told. Yet the ones I spoke to all seemed to care passionately about their homeland, and to want to make a contribution, even tho it is so polluted that they are creating a serious health risk for themselves by living there. Another airplane seatmate – an environmental researcher – told me the particulates in the air are huge, and very worrying from his perspective.
We attended a gala black-tie event Friday night, at which any illusions I might have had that Chinese people might lack enthusiasm and passion were completely dispelled. There were numerous awards given for CEOs adopting a coaching culture in their organizations, and the awards were received with pride and great enthusiasm – one recipient was CEO of a bank, not typically known for passion and enthusiasm at least in my experience.
Touring Around
We toured “the Venice of China” the next day. It was so interesting, having recently been in Venice Italy, to compare the different ways people have developed of being on the water. These Chinese boats were much like gondolas, but with decidedly Chinese appointments…
I went on to Beijing after a tearful parting from my new friends – we’ve since nicknamed our original group The Four Muskateers, and continue to speak regularly.
In Beijing I was met at the airport by a colleague’s cousin and two of his friends, who took me to lunch then ensconced me in a wonderful, world-class hotel that he had arranged for me. Turns out he is quite the negotiator, in addition to running his own media business and having been, on the very day I arrived, newly appointed leader of his local Kuomintang party. Since I thought the Kuomintang was long-banished from mainland China I was very surprised to hear this – I’m told that membership in a party tends to have very long and deep roots, and since China is at least nominally opening up these days, it is perhaps not so surprising, particularly since they were only able to fill twelve of 13 available positions, and so are pretty effectively marginalized. He seems to see it as an opportunity to provide feedback to the government and to work to improve conditions for his fellow citizens…
Had a foot massage to die for that night – an hour and a half, including a soak in a hot tub of water and a mini-back and neck massage – for under $20.
I had managed to tour a bit of the Forbidden City that first day, and the next day my new friend and his girlfriend took me to the Great Wall and one of the largest of the Ming Tombs, both on a scale unknown in the US. They also showed me a huge reservoir about an hour outside of Beijing that was dug by hand by two hundred thousand Chinese workers during the Cultural Revolution – hard to imagine. For one thing, I want to know where they went with all that dirt!
That night, my last in China, I had Peking Duck with my friends and one of our Shanghai hosts who had returned to his home in Beijing. Turns out Peking Duck is actually three courses in China – first sliced, then chopped, then soup, all in the same meal. Every meal I had in China had at least 6 or 7 heaping plates of something interesting (tho no cockroaches, as one friend told me I might expect) – I was told that it is considered a delicacy to throw handfuls of ants on top of the fried rice just before it is served. I want to know how they keep the ants on the plate, as they are live when thrown…
There is more of course – but this is long enough. All I can say is if you get or can create a chance to visit China, absolutely do so – it is fascinating beyond belief.