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A well known Chinese saying (it seems!) 计划赶不上变化
It means, more or less, that the plans can't keep up with the changes.
People are always talking about how when you live in China you need to have a lot of patience - patience with adapting to the lifestyle and the language,. This is all certainly true. But nobody told me about the ancient and prevelant Chinese culture of 'Nowism'.
This means that the Chinese have a real aversion to planning - ANYTHING! This is a certain ancient Chinese belief that you don't actually have to know anything is happening - until it is actually happening. Someone really should add this to the guidebooks.
OK Case in point - I have just interrupted the writing of this blog to go to a meeting that was scheduled for 4 hours ago, then cancelled. Then a driver turns up at my office to say the meeting is back on and we are going to it now. When I actually arrived the meeting had started and I was supposed to just slot in somewhere. This sort of thing happens all the time and I can see puzzled faces when I express any kind of exasperation at being given 30 seconds notice of a TV interview or a meeting or that l or have to ask what has been already discussed at this meeting that was not going to happen. That look of 'what's your problem?;- this is normal'
I'm sure it's because I am not Chinese so miss some of the communications. But a certain amount of tolerance and stoicism is required. I have figured out that the system is that the workers make themselves available at all times for when the manager declares there is a task to be done or a meeting to happen. So out of the window goes the style of management that involves participation, consultation, enablement and all of those pretty words used in the UK. I think I may have misread that empathetic look from some quarters in the past to actually being 'aaaahhh - so sweet. She'll learn our ways soon'
There are people here that do see the chaos and get equally frustrated by it and my proposal for actually having a system in place for volunteer management are really very keenly met. It's just that getting there involves learning the ways of 'Nowism'.
So now I await the next outbreak of 'Nowism' with absolutely no anticipation (That's the point you see!)
- comments
Nicola well done for handling all the last minute TV interviews and such like. I would be having a nervous breakdown!