Chinese, Masters of the No-Look Pass!
10 more reasons why driving in China is like doing business in China. While some don’t like this analogy, the more I drive the more appropriate I find the analogy. My first installment of Driving and Business is here. And more on driving tests in China here.My theory here is that people have personalities that become obvious in routine events—like driving or working in the same office/factory each day. We’re creatures of habit. People don’t drive different on Thursdays than they do on Tuesdays. And we don’t make business deals differently on Wednesdays as opposed to Fridays. We all do the same things over and over and when we think that the situations are similar we tend to do what’s familiar. Even when we’re in different countries, unless we’re told differently, we act just like we would back home.1. Local drivers know where the speed traps are.Most driving is done between the two cameras. When you drive in China, you don’t need to know the laws to stay out of traffic-cop trouble, you only need to know where the traffic cameras and check points are. As long as you’re not speeding past a camera or driving the wrong way down a street that’s monitored, then you’re OK. 99% of driving is done in where there are no cameras.I think that business here is much the same. As long as you aware of whom the government is looking for today or where the “check points” are set up, then you can pretty much do whatever else you want. How many Chinese factories are afraid that Governmental Agency X is ever going to show up and check on what they are doing—as long as they keep their heads down (and their wallets open), they won’t get them chopped off no matter what they do.I think that this fits in with the larger cultural issues of shame (vs. guilt). There is no absolute right or wrong, only shame if you get caught.2. Driving in the middle of the road, in two lanes at a time, is the best way to keep all your options open.Why limit yourself to just one lane (or one line of business) when you there is no one else on the road? You’ll move if you have too, right? This isn’t bad driving or inconsiderate, it’s smart. On a road that may be under construction and un-marked, or an off-ramp that may not be marked until after the exit, this is often the only way to stay alive!Business is no different. Consider rules that change, laws that are just now being enforced for the first time, new international products and standards. Laws about business (hell, real, enforced laws in general) are relative new to China. And the legal culture that is so common in the West is just not here. In this changing environment—where the signs of change are often posted AFTER the off ramp—you have to leave all your options open. Driving down the middle of the road means nothing hits you coming from the blind sides. It means you move when you have to, when you see an on coming car, but the rest of the time the roads yours.3. Ignorance is an acceptable excuse, and sometimes it’s the truth!Most people that are driving in China (I read this I swear, but I can’t find it now) have only had their licenses for less than 2 years. That means, for those of you counting at home, most drivers here are as about as experienced at driving as your average high school senior. Yup. They really don’t know what to do yet. Throw in the fact that a ton (who knows the number?!) just bought their license and never took Driver’s Ed or even a test at all and you can see why driving here is taking your life into your own hands. But hey! Not knowing how to drive is no reason not to get behind the wheel, right?!Business changes so fast and there are so many new opportunities coming to China that much of the factory personnel are in the same boat—they just got their factory or their college degree and they’ve got to hit the ground running. Actual experience is optional. Sure they’ve heard of your product. Sure they make something similar. Sure they have some of the same machines that you’ve seen back home—but that doesn’t mean that they can do what you’re expecting.Remember, outside of Guangdong province China has only been open for business since the early ‘90’s (and Guangdong only started to open up in ’81 with Shenzhen). Almost no one in this entire country has been doing business here for more than 20 years—no one!!
Side Note: Ignorance works for foreigners too. I’ve been stopped while driving in Taiwan, China and Thailand. In each case I spoke anything BUT the language that the policeman spoke—So in Thailand I spoke Mandarin and in China and Taiwan I spoke Thai. Works like a charm. I shrug my shoulders, act completely ignorant of whatever is being said and pretty soon they get so frustrated that they can’t communicate with they let me go.
4. Just back up and try it again!When drivers have missed a freeway exit, no problem, just back up (into on coming traffic) and try it again. Of course it’s stupid to go miles out of your way to keep going to the next exit and loop around (remember rule #1—no one’s looking)! And if you’ve gone to far to back up, just turn around and drive against traffic for a few km. Just go slow and honk a lot and you’ll be fine.How many times have factories just figured, “We’ll just adjust fix the current (rejected) product.” They don’t want to remake molds. They don’t want to throw out product and do it (right) again. They want to just “fix” what they’ve got completed already. Just go back and do as little as possible to get it as close to “right” as possible without doing it over again.One of my biggest frustrations about working here is that there doesn’t seem to be any point where suppliers are willing to say, “You're right, it can't be fixed,” or “You're right we'll just have to do it all over again.” Sometimes you can't fix it--a pig with lipstick is still a pig. Sometimes there just isn’t “one more chance” to try to get it right. Sometimes opportunities are really just gone.5. The infrastructure is to blame.I used to get mad at all the traffic problems. Then I started driving myself—now I know that it’s not all their fault. For example, how can people know to get off on a specific exit if the sign for that exit is physically posted at or even after the exit itself!? You can’t be a good driver if they signs are working against you.Just like line workers who may know what you really want but usually can’t make any changes themselves unless everyone from the top down approves the change first. Social infrastructure can be just as limiting as physical infrastructure. Often one person, usually a manager, that misunderstands or wants to save money can sabotage a project even though everyone else knows what’s right.6. If you never make eye contact you don’t have to stop, slow down or admit that you did something wrong.If you don’t make eye contact with the guy you just cut off, who cares if he’s screaming and giving you the finger?!It’s the same for working with the government—if you never interact with them, you’re never going to get punished by them. If you keep your head down and don’t actually embarrass anyone (in public) then you’ll be just fine, no matter how many rules you break.I think that this is often the attitude with clients as well. Just get the product on the container without too much info/emails/photos/contact with the client and there will be little or no time for them to complain/reject/change the product before it’s done.7. Just break the rules so egregiously that no one can believe it.This is the guy driving the wrong way down the left lane of the freeway with his hazard lights on to get back to his exit. Everyone honks and says “I can’t believe that guy.” But nothing happens to him.In business, this would be “Chaodan” (Jordan) brand shoes or the Chinese “Sony” brand of electronics or the guys that sell all the knock off movies from actual store fronts. Or the entire Shenzhen Louhu Commercial Shopping Center (at the train station) that is owned by the government, run by gangs and filled to the top floor with fake and/or illegal products. Or the factories that are selling molds that belong to other clients, or selling product from their client’s molds to other clients.8. If you have a really really nice car then you don’t have to follow the rules at all.Until the laws changed just a few months ago, all anyone had to do was to pay all their tickets and they could keep their license and keep driving. So rich people just ignored all laws, speed around as fast as they wanted and then paid the fines each month.Now it’s a bit different, if you get too many tickets you lose your license—but what are the chances that you’re going to get stopped and arrested for driving without a license? Something close to 1 in a million, no doubt. So now people are driving without their licenses.This is still the way that it’s done here. Make payments and you’ll stay in business. We’ve had factories tell us that they are not worried about pollution, labor violations, tax evasion and other issues specifically because of the “check-points” they’ve already passed prior to the point of actually doing business. One factory told us when they built their new building they set up an official company bank account and put a specific amount of money in it each year but then gave all access to a local govt official. One company told us that they gave officials sheets of signed but otherwise blank company letter head and had no idea what they will ever be used for. These are extreme examples, but they are true.Less fantastic examples are factories that are set up especially for clients and inspectors and to meet govt regulation while most of the production is done somewhere else. Or middle men that set up a tour of a factory that is great, but will never make your product once you’re gone. Or product that is specifically selected to meet testing standards but then production doesn’t meet these standards.9. If everyone breaks the law, is it really illegal?When driving it’s illegal to enter a crosswalk when there are pedestrians there already—does anyone in Guangdong province follow this law? No. Here the “culture” is cars have the right of way—probably because of rule #8.“This is how it’s done in China,” I hear all the time from foreigners who are breaking the law and Chinese that don’t want to keep their contracted commitments. For some reason, “illegal” and “culture” are often considered to be synonyms. And when I have the gall to point out that it’s illegal in China too, the foreigners usually say I’m being ethnocentric and the Chinese just shake their heads and tell me I don’t get it.10. Getting forgiveness is much easier than getting permission.Why ask if you can drive the wrong way down a one-way road or park on the sidewalk?! Just do it. Probably someone will yell at you. The worst that can happen is that maybe you’ll get a parking ticket. But likely you’ll get nothing but the best parking spot in the lot—for free!Similarly, if you don’t ask if you can do something or not, chances are you won’t get caught or told no. Why ask if some great deal is illegal if you can at least get the first round paid for and then just pay your way out of any complications that crop up in later orders?There are personal habits and general cultures that people follow regardless of if they are driving or working. People don’t magically change their respect for the law after they’ve parked their car in the garage and entered the office door. You think Chinese traffic is crazy? You should try doing business!