Customer Reviews

Asian Mind Game

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Yes, the book is unsubtle, as some reviewers have complained. And the stereotypes are exaggerated. They're also a bit dated, since the book was written in 1991 -- before China's private economy had blossomed, before Taiwan and Korea had become such important high-tech centers, and before Japan went bust.

The book also sensationalizes the degree to which people may be trying to deceive you, and the degree to which this deceit is based on your being a Westerner. Often the deceit, when it happens, is just a cultural way of dealing with embarrassment.

But when I was a beginner with Asia, I found this book a helpful eye-opener. I'd never heard of "The 36 Stratagems", which another reviewer calls tedious (this was before Asian video games based on Chinese military classics became popular here). It turned out that just about all educated East Asian people I met, men and women, knew them to some degree. The book also describes some relevant differences among East Asian cultures - a cure for the usual Western point of view that lumps Japanese, Koreans, Chinese and others all into one "Asian" category.

By now, most of my time in the past 9-10 years has been spent involved with East Asia and East Asian people. This has been at both a business and personal level, including through marriage and working for a Japanese company. From that perspective, I can also say the book's lack of political correctness and its hype about military strategy are kind of virtues.

How? On its surface, the book is about Asian-Western interactions. But underneath, the book illustrates a lot about how people from different Asian cultures regard each other, both cross-culturally and intraculturally.

Chairman Mao may have used the phrase "politically correct" from time to time, but in its current form it's a Western concept, and a recent one at that. It's also something that comes easier to the lips than to the heart or mind. My friends from Asian countries are usually more direct -- they often express quite stereotypical (and negative) views about people from neighboring countries, even when they make exceptions for individuals. More than once has some really balanced or sweet person mentioned to me after a pause, "But you know, I really can't stand people from X."

Business practices and politics often can be pretty manipulative even against colleagues within the same company. (Watch just about any Japanese TV drama about office life, if you don't have a chance to experience the real thing.) And I've run into plenty of East Asian managers and executives who think they're great strategists in the style of the Chinese classics, even though in fact they're about as clumsy as you or I would be.

Read this book with a grain of salt. But you can definitely benefit from having read it.

OK, this is NOT a recommended title, but I couldn't resistsaying a few words about it here because of its high entertainmentvalue. For 15 years now I have consulted for US companies entering the Japanese market. So naturally I paid close attention to the chapters on Japan. They were very entertaining. They read like the script from a Mr Bad Guy in a 007 movie... Check out the prose, too: "A Japanese samurai worker produces in one day what it takes an American worker two days to produce. To the western world the Japanese stress the importance of free trade because they know that the western worker is no match for the Japanese samurai worker" (p. 125). .. The final section contains precious specific advice such as "respect local culture" and "develop long term objectives". One of the deepest pieces of timeless advise is that "if you drop your chopstick in Asia it means good luck". I guarantee you won't know a thing about doing business in Japan after reading this book, but you may be amused reading it. ... it seems that a ticket to Austin Powers may represent better value. END

With books like this purporting to explain Asia and its people, it is little wonder that the average Westerner is still so misinformed on the subject. Contrary to what the title says, she is not "unlocking any hidden agenda". The fact is, this is well-charted territory, much of which is covered in books millenia-old (Art of War). Another problem with the title is that she is not providing any "survival" advice. She simply shows how Asians operate and negotiate without showing the best way to counter their tactics. Reading this book to learn how to deal with Asians is like studying martial arts to learn how to get beat up. But perhaps the worst quality of the book is the way she imbues each passage with the sense that Westerners shouldn't even bother trying to understand Asia. (Certianly they shouldn't bother learning from her.) In one section she even states explicitly that there are two types of Westerner in Asia -- 1) the Asia-phile who thinks he knows alot but doesn't and 2) the novice who realizes that he knows nothing. But hey, here is the real "secret agenda" of some Asians: when a teacher tells her students that they are still ignorant, the students exalt her as one of the few enlightened ones to whom they can turn. They become dependent on the teacher for her pearls of "wisdom", each one poisoned with the idea that student is ignorant.

I just got back from China as an English teacher, granted I taught in a small city which automatically gave me the celebrity status, but after reading this book all I can say is I wish I picked this up before I went to China in the first place.

For those who want to understand the "Art of War" and the "36 Strategies" this is a good book to learn how it applies not only to war and business, but also to other aspects of working in China. It explained many inner workings about how things are done.

As for the "stereotypes", of course they are not 100% true. But it's a good idea to read her views on the Chinese mind set to understand some of the cultural and historical influences that are shaping China of today. Being there, I met many people older than me who still have been influenced by the Cold War and Mao's "anti-imperialist" propoganda. Many of the youths I met still hate the Japanese with a passion.

Of course, I've only read the 1988 publication of the book, so it doesn't factor in many huge changes in Chinese hisotry, such as the reutrn of Hong Kong and Macau to China or even the alliance with the Communist party and the Nationalist party in Taiwan. You will find no references to the 50 year plan of one country, two systems they use to ease Hong Kong and Macau back into Mainland territory.

My only problem with this book is that even though she writes about the many cultural problems that Westerners will face going in these countries, she doesn't give many good suggestions as to how to surmount them. To tell you the truth, if I ever go back to China, this book does sometimes make me feel paranoid not knowing who is friend or foe.

I read this book many years ago and recall being hugely amused by it and its numerous stereotypes. In fact, I gave it to a sociology PhD candidate studying Chinese culture for a good laugh. I regret parting with it because it is quite a unique artifact, being quite comprehensive in its stereotypes of various Asian nationalities. Nevertheless, I can see the value of the book for those completely unfamiliar with Asian culture and desperately grasping for some way to categorize what seems to be inexplicable behavior, since the first response to unfamiliarity is to attempt to build categories to group and generalize. As such, I might recommend it, but only with the caveat that its contents should not be taken as authoritative.

I have worked in Korea, Vietnam and Singapore and this book has done more to enlighten me to the multi-faceted aspects of working with Asians than almost all other sources combined. Chu Chin-Ning's explanations with numerous examples from Chinese and Asian history do a lot to explain and reinforce the concepts. But I must say that though the first third of the book is important and good stuff, it is a little hard to get "past" all "36 Strategies" or "proverbs" of Chinese war. But enjoy each one as they only pick up speed -- and those 36 "strategies" affect almost all Asian minds, educated or not.

My purchase of this book was made after discovering that I had given all my copies away to friends and colleagues. It is a fantastic resource for those who want to better understand how Asians, especially the Chinese, Japanese and Koreans, think about and do business. Some of the information is old as things are always changing in these places, but most of what you will learn will be of great worth towards achieving your business and personal goals in these places and, most importantly, avoiding fatal mistakes.

This book was not quite as exciting as Thick face Black heart, but was still worth the read! I did find it very intriguing & helpful with gaining new insight regarding doing business with Japanese and Chinese. She shares straight from the heart & doesn't hold anything back when sharing Asian secrets. If you are a Business person or salesman who deals with Asians, YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK! I feel much more adequate to negotiate with Asians now!

Great service, delivered as promised, perfect condition - Read this book if you want to understand the differences between eastern and western thinking.

I lived and worked in Asia for over 8 years. Fortunately, I read it years ago while still there. I found this an invaluable aid. Ms. Chu does a remarkable job in explaining the subtle differences between the various cultures to the Western mind. I wrote this today because once again, I have recommended it to a work group that has interest in Asia. It is timeless.