Western business culture assumes one thing by default:
If someone trusts you, they’ll tell you the truth.

China doesn’t work that way.

In this video, I break down one of the most damaging assumptions foreigners bring into Chinese relationships—the belief that trust and truth are morally linked and rise together over time.

They don’t.

In China:

• Trust is relational
• Truth is conditional
• Communication is ritualized
• Harmony often outweighs disclosure

Chinese cooperation isn’t about lying or deception. It’s about managing risk, preserving Face, and keeping future options open.

Once you understand why Chinese counterparts default to skepticism—and why pressing for clarity often backfires—behaviors that once felt confusing start to make sense.

This episode is part of The Chinese Honeymoon Period series, exploring how trust, guānxì, and perception really work beneath the surface.

🔗 Learn more: https://www.genejhsu.com

#ChineseCulture #ChinaBusiness #Guanxi #ChinesePsychology #LearnMandarin

“Mastering the gray areas is to doing business in China what political correctness is to corporate America: MANDATORY.”

Westerners often parachute into China assuming strength, clarity, and leverage translate cleanly across cultures. They don’t.

China operates in a gray zone—where ambiguity is tactical, patience is power, and absolutist, black-and-white thinking quietly destroys influence.

In this video, I explain why:

• Guānxì (关系) explains HOW relationships operate
• Lìyì (利益) explains WHAT people consider
• Yīnyáng (阴阳) explains WHERE decisions actually live

China’s “maddening vagueness” isn’t incompetence or evasion. It’s a pragmatic system designed to preserve Face, share risk, and keep future options open.

If you’re frustrated by indirect answers, shifting commitments, or a lack of accountability, the problem usually isn’t them—it’s the questions you’re asking.

This episode reframes Yīnyáng not as an ancient philosophy but as a modern psychological operating system that governs leadership, negotiation, ethics, and survival in China’s business landscape.

If you want to lead, negotiate, or build teams in China, mastering the shades of gray isn’t optional.

🔗 Learn more: https://www.genejhsu.com
📘 Speak Less, Guanxi More is now available (PDF & Flipbook still free)

#ChineseCulture #ChinaBusiness #Guanxi #LearnMandarin #SpeakChinese

Was there a FAILED attempted coup in Beijing?

When purges happen at the top in China, it's rarely about loyalty failing overnight.

It's about perceptions shifting—and Guānxì (关系) no longer being enough.

Recent earth-shattering removals of Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli aren't just political headlines. They're reminders of a rule foreigners often miss:

In China, relationships open doors—but they don't shield you when power dynamics realign.

My experiences are a microcosm and can be an invaluable lesson for those venturing inside the Chinese arena, "Is Guānxì Enough? Unveiling the Hidden Dynamics of Chinese Relationships & Power."

What feels like trust can coexist with quiet threat.

What looks stable can become untenable the moment incentives, narratives, or perceived risks change.

At senior levels, Guānxì is structural, conditional, and constantly reassessed. The question is never who you know—it's who you are perceived to be now.

The same logic plays out in business, leadership, and politics.

What scales up is the psychology.

Once you understand why Guānxì alone doesn't protect anyone—on the ground or at the top—you'll be one step closer to understanding "How China Works."

#ChinaCrisis #ChinaPolitics #CCP #ChineseCulture #Guanxi #ChinaBusiness

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/abWot5Ori0A