Synopsis

What you don't know you don't know (unknown unknowns) can have significant ramifications doing business across cultures. Unfortunately, most Westerners never acquire enough cultural awareness to avoid disappointment. America's strategic engagement since Nixon has elevated China's economy, influence, and assertiveness on the global stage. Still, it has not made China more democratic, nor have most Chinese adopted our Western values.

As Chinese attitudes evolve with China's rise, so too must we adjust our approach to achieve our desired outcomes. A China Leadership Dilemma (CLD) is an unexpected disappointment that all foreigners in China encounter after their HONEYMOON PERIOD ends. The Chinese culture of giving Face in the form of extending goodwill and lavishing praise creates a false sense of agreement that does not exist in reality.

Gene J. Hsu is an American who lived and worked in China as a leader, manager, instructor, consultant, entrepreneur, mentor, and husband for over 15 years. He is 100% fluent in Mandarin Chinese and discovered that knowing how to speak Chinese doesn't mean you know what to say in Chinese, but knowing what to say is a win in any language. Gene's INNER VOICE is the antagonist whose comments and perceptions slowly change after each China Leadership Dilemma.

Sales arguments

• The China Leadership Dilemma analyzes the fundamental reasons why America's strategic engagement with China since Nixon has not led it towards greater democracy or a shared system of values and provides the reader a blueprint to achieve more favorable outcomes across all business endeavors in China.
• Innate cultural biases, mistrust, and xenophobia are leading us towards a devastating clash of civilizations. This book will enable individuals across this cultural divide to achieve greater harmony with each other and become a grassroots movement to heal the wounds between China and America that the COVID-19 pandemic as exposed.
• Gene hosts free virtual Meetups to 10K+ members and is growing a community to socialize how to bridge the cultural differences between America and China rather than use them as an excuse for failure.

Similar titles

• How to Manage a Successful Business in China, Johan Bjorksten, World Scientific Publishing, 2010, this book provides a lot of great information about doing business in China, but it doesn't address the attitude and mindset adjustments necessary to address your own emotions (EQ), cultural biases, nor the psychology or biases of Chinese people.
• One Billion Customers: Lessons from the Front Lines of Doing Business in China, James McGregor, A Wall Street Journal Book Published by Free Press, 2005, this book provides good historical context, but is outdated relative to the rapidly evolving attitudes of everyday Chinese people, especially the attitudes toward America.
• Culture Hacks: Deciphering Differences in American, Chinese, and Japanese Thinking, Richard Conrad, Lioncrest Publishing, 2019, this book is more academic and does not have direct applications for business.

Audience

The reader for The China Leadership Dilemma is an English-speaking businessperson who travels frequently and/or is assigned to work in Mainland China who says, "I have great Chinese friends, but I am frustrated with my Chinese employees, partners, and government officials. Employees lack loyalty and can't provide me straight answers to direct questions, partners say on thing and do another, and government bureaucracies are vague and frustratingly slow, which makes it difficult to move forward."