Some friends of us occasionally complain that they feel trouble in getting along with foreigners because of some unexpected misunderstandings. They really don't know why it happens at all. Actually, being good at English doesn`t equal to understanding foreigners well, they are not the same thing！
The misunderstandings come up because of the different customs and culture of different countries. In the same scene，Chinese people and foreigners generally have different actions. So today we're going to talk about how Chinese people perform in foreigners' eyes！
Being Praise
Foreigner: They would enjoy the nice words and say “thank you”. Futher more, Whether the adults or children would say “thank you”as well, when they get family member`s helps.
Chinese: Facing the words of praise, they would never admit their excellence. Chinese people seldomly say“thank you” to family members or friends, because if they do so, they will doubt whether their relationships are good enough.
Clapping or not
Foreigner: In public presentation, for example, the TED, you woud never see the presenters clapping as well as the audiences.
Chinese: The speakers would stop to clap even on the stage to express thanks to audience.
As a foreigner, if you don't know the customs of Chinese, you would probably recognize Chinese as impolite people. However, on the contrary, Chinese people would feel embarrassed if they do not follow the audience to clap but just stand still at the stage.
Giving Gifts
About the size of gifts:
Foreigner: Proper things are the best.
Chinese : gifts should be in pairs,and the more the better.
About the choice of gifts:
Foreigner: Fruits are gifts for patients.
Chinese: Whenever and wherever, fruits are nice gifts for everyone.
About the time to open gift boxes：
Foreigner: They hope you open the boxes at once, beacuse they would like to see your smile and satiisfaction on their gift.
Chinese: they would put the gift in room and do not open it until the guest leave, because they think it's impolite to open the gift boxes in front of the givers.
The Things On Dinning
Foreigner: They like helping themselves to what they like,
Chinese: They love putting foods into the guest's bowl, they hope the guests eat more and drink more.
Chatting and Greetings
Foreigner: The weather is good today.
Chinese: The weather is good today. By the way, what's your salary? How many people are there in your family？How old are you？When would you marry？......
Chinese people somtimes have too much enthusiasm. They like asking private questions which may make foreigners embarrassed. In fact, they just ask casually with no offence. They just want to tell you that they care about you. If those questions really bother you and you don't want to answer, you can say a “sorry”and let them go.
Anyway, we really hope foreigners and Chinese people could understand each others better after reading this article. Less misunderstangs, more happiness.
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HACOS, Business Services Solutions Master
