China: Best understood by corporate Americans (Part Two)

One of the many small ironies of modern China is the specter of urban street hustlers selling copies of Mao Zedong's Quotations from Chairman Mao, and bartering cheerfully on the price.

I bought three of these "little red books," as they were called when every Chinese youth owned one, to read and to wave a Party rallies in Tian'anmen Square and all over China.

On busses and trains, I idly read them myself. The old Chairman's thoughts read like the "Chairman's Thoughts"—those columns you still see in employee publications even today.

Drawn from his speeches and other writings, the quotations do what they are supposed to do: Leave the Great Helmsman lots of room for latitude.

Ladies and gentlemen, it's a pleasure to introduce Mao Zedong, business consultant:

• On a sense of urgency. "We must not become complacent over any success. We should check our complacency and constantly criticize our shortcomings, just as we should wash our faces and sweep the floor every day to remove the dirt and keep them clean."

• On leadership. "Don't wait until problems pile up and cause a lot of trouble before trying to solve them. Leaders must march ahead of the movement, not lag behind it."

• On problem-solving: "In this world, things are complicated and are decided by many factors. We should look at problems from different aspects, not just one."

• On core values: "We must have faith in the masses and we must have faith in the Party. These are two cardinal principles. If we doubt these principles, we shall accomplish nothing."

• On strategic thinking: "Without preparedness superiority is not real superiority and there can be no initiative either. Having grasped this point, a force which is inferior but prepared can often defeat a superior enemy by surprise attack."

• On behavior: "We should be modest and prudent, guard against arrogance and rashness, and serve the Chinese people heart and soul."

As I'll discuss in my September "Beyond the Lectern" column in SN, clichés and platitudes are still the most popular form of corporate and government rhetoric in China. Chinese platitudipuses make our platitudipuses look like … well, their platitudipuses.

To wit: When Yahoo! China's president stepped down while I was there, he told China Daily, "After working at Yahoo! for one and a half years, maybe I should have a rest and spend more time with my family."