 Hey everybody, David Chang here and welcome to another episode of the art of thinking smart where we learn to live and think smarter lives. Now today's guests, I'm very excited, I've had them before and just because of so much interesting stuff that we can learn from him, I have Michael North and his wife, Xiaofeng Zhou North, and both of them are co-founders of Asia Pacific Group, so they do quite a bit of business in China and also the co-founders of the Zhou Enlai Peace Institute which I do want to spend a small segment talking about who Zhou Enlai was and what the Peace Institute does. The topic of today's show is doing business in China and tips for success and why it's so important to do so. Even if you are a small entrepreneur in your hometown or even just kind of being a manager or an employee of a business, why is it important to learn about global infrastructure or cultures and especially China? And one of the key things that we all know, China is the largest country in the world with over 1.3 billion people and their growth has been phenomenal and they are now the second largest economy in the world. So they overtook Japan just a few years ago and at their current growth rate it's only a matter of years that they probably will overtake the United States when it comes to the size of their economy. So today I do want to talk about how the world is becoming a smaller place and as a result of it with internet, with technology, it's very important that we understand other cultures particularly China because they are a major kid on the block and it's very important that we take them seriously and learn about our partners and about the Chinese people and their culture just as though we would want them to learn about us. So Mike, thanks for coming on the show, I really appreciate it. And then also thanks for Xiaofeng being there and what I want to first do is before we get into the China side, I want to go back a little bit of history and talk about Zhou Enlai. I love history and I studied him and I think he's a marvelous person and for those that don't know who Zhou Enlai is, he was the premier, second in command of China back when Mao Zedong was the ruler of China after the Communist Revolution in 1949 all the way up into the early 70s when he passed away and he's also known for the ping-pong diplomacy where if you ever see the movie Forced Gump and you see him going back and forth when he's in China, Zhou Enlai is the one who started that and has credited it with a lot of stuff. So Mike, maybe if you want to just spend a few moments of talking about who is Zhou Enlai, why is he an important figure for people to know about and why he created the Zhou Enlai Peace Institute? Yeah, we created the Zhou Enlai Peace Institute because we felt that there was a need for people to be able to understand China, I would say, to study Martin Luther King. Right. Even just between those two tragedies, you can understand, right? Right. Right. Which by the way, the Chinese love A-Watch. That would be great and to also note that she is related to Zhou Enlai so that it's also very helpful that she has internalized a lot of the values that Zhou Enlai had and for our listeners and those watching the show, I think they, if you do understand history a little bit, China during the 50s, 60s, and 70s went through some difficult time periods with the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, where many of those educated business people, those that were professors, were systematically purged and Zhou Enlai, even though he's second to command, he was the one who protected a lot of those people and in fact, he himself almost was purged but because of his relationships that he had with people, he was able to save himself but those are, I would love to hear from Xiaofang, I love just kind of the story she has about him and the great things that he did. Okay, I'm going to pass the phone to Xiaofang now for a moment. Hi, David. Hi, Xiaofang. How are you today? Thank you for being on our show and we're just talking about a few minutes of Zhou Enlai and before we get into our topic of doing business in China and tips for success because I think it's very important for us to understand someone like Zhou Enlai to have a better view of working with the Chinese and what he represents and so if you can give us a few minutes of what he meant to the Chinese people and why you created the Peace Institute, the Zhou Enlai Peace Institute. Yeah, thank you, David. You know, when you mentioned Zhou Enlai, the name, in China anyway, regardless of being a taxi or a hotel or on the street, everybody, they just put their hands in their heart and this is how people feel, remembering him, not, yes, he is the first Premier of China, he is also First Ministry, Foreign Minister, but he is also like uncle, like a father to the people. He has no offspring, he has no children, but he adopted so many orphans during the war that he is really deeply not just a respect, but loved by the people of China. So I was shooting their documentary, follow the footsteps of Zhou Enlai the year before and then we'll continue to go following these footsteps because these footsteps are all over China, all over the world, except America. So, you know, the reason for us to create the Zhou Enlai Peace Institute, like what Michael just said, we really like to bring the family value regardless of the politics, the cultural differences, but family. You know, the common goal, the common interest, and we could Zhou Enlai wanted to say, you know, it's a cold existence and now it's a 21st century, we really need a cold, not only cold existence, but collaboration. It's so important. And through all our ancestors, you know, the battle, the war, the death, the bloodshedded for freedom, for peace. Got it. And this, yeah, this has to be continued, not just for China, for America, for people, for humanity. And that's why, you know, the backbone of the Peace Institute. But Zhou Enlai is the channel to what he did for the people of China, for the people of the, you know, to the world. We really need, this is our journey, this is our time, and this is our responsibility to continue to carry their legacy and do what we've got to do. Got it. Now, thank you so much, Afang, really do appreciate it. It's good. And those listening and watching, you can go to ZhouEnlaiPeaceInstitute.org. So Zhou Enlai is his name, the first premier of China, and Institute.org to get more information. And now what I want to do is, is now switch gears a bit and talk about doing business in China and the importance of understanding the Chinese and why it's so important for us to do so. So Mike, are you there right now? Michael, you want to talk to Michael? Yes, please. Hey, what's up, Mike? So yeah, wanted to now circle back about talking about doing business in China. And we talked about, well, you know, 1.3 billion people is growing. It's the second largest economy. It'll soon be the largest. And with Chinese having purchasing power. So you founded the Asia Pacific Group with a variety of other folks. And so what I wanted to do is just touch on briefly. Okay, if somebody is thinking about I want to go global and I understand the importance of growing global. How do I start? Now the Chinese have a certain culture. And unlike us Americans where things are done in a very business like very professional, get it done as quickly as you can matter, the Chinese are very much into patience time. Let's get to know each other. So maybe if you want to spend a few moments to talk about what are the cultural differences between the Chinese and Americans? And what is it that Americans need to know about when doing business in China? Okay, here is a really simple decoder ring. It's very simplified. So don't take it as the final answer. It's a one dimensional one. But here is one thing that I know you've noticed it. Americans begin with this. They begin with the transaction. They begin with the deal. I am this. I have that. You want this? Let's make a deal. Here's the price. Where's the order? Lunch, dinner, family, perhaps over a period of years. They like to exchange emails, you know, see each other on a vacation, meet each other's mess. Maybe the relationship involves a little bit of bio, you know, that white light night liquor. Yeah, the liquor, right, right. Maybe it's a little green tea. It's an experience without talking business. Without talking numbers, price, let's make a deal. No, if you do that too soon, in a relationship with Chinese, you kill. So really, it's just like, you know, dating somebody, you don't want to just propose without getting to know them, you want to spend the time to date them, get to know who they are. And then after a relationship is established, then move into that next step in the relationship then. Then the deal happens. Then it deal happens. It's a natural course, right? But it doesn't happen. You can't force it. You can't put a deadline on it. If you try to hurry it, you slow it down. If you push it too much, then if you chase it, it runs away. Got it. Got it. So that is a really key difference. And I would say if if someone is, let's say we have a young entrepreneur, got it, there's the Chinese chamber. So the you can get tuned into one of those. Got it. So the first thing is is learning about it. Obviously, you can learn about China through books, through talking about it, but it's important to actually experience it. And one of the best ways that you're saying to experience it is to go with people who are familiar with it, just like a trade group, chamber of commerce, any type of organization, and establish that relationship beforehand. Now, if somebody is looking to crack into they okay, they obviously we have a global business world today and really business, you know, people could do it from their own home with their phone, because very mobile. How does somebody, okay, they go to China, they meet some people, how would you say that they get started on establishing a business and how should they structure it to prepare themselves for the future? Engineer to be global from the very beginning. Okay, what does that mean? And that means, and that means mobile. Okay, everything, all your communication has to be multi lingual, so that you can switch it into do with several of the big, but in this case, we're talking about Chinese, you can not only translate Chinese website, you'll get got it. So you get to save money there time by doing that. And so that's I think extremely important is having you know, before everyone had to learn English, but now it's it's a matter of us being able to take that step forward and saying, Okay, you know what, we want to learn Chinese, and be able to meet the Chinese halfway and making sure that all of our materials are translated so they can read it. Now just kind of switching gears a little bit, you know, you're in China a lot, I've traveled there with you, we've met quite a few people. And there's just so many opportunities. Want to talk about what kind of what what do you think is the opportunity of of the future if somebody is looking or if they're in a business and is looking to kind of start a new branch or or say you know what we want to do business China because we know that's the future. What type of industries do you recommend looking at or doing research on something to add? So anything that needs that can look at to human undersold, when you come to agriculture information, information, when you come to health information, even you have that can work in those fields is extremely valuable. Got it, got it. Okay, that's great. So understanding that the different industries in China, obviously, is very important. And you see that big growth that they have there. Now, what are some of the precautions that people should have? You know, you've heard, you know, back 20 years ago, when the law or or some of the rules and regulations weren't as strict as they are now, you had some issues of corruption or some counterfeit items goods. What would you say is is a something that people should be aware of? When do you visit China and how to protect themselves? And it's like they're right, the universal. Like, yeah, okay, that's interesting. I mean, I'll tell you, right, their credit baggers, they have something. Let's make a deal. Let's do this. He came here, consulting. He just gave me a retainer. Okay. No, no, no, no. We've seen that game. We sell tide soap. And we sell starbucks. They don't want to copy America. They don't see America. They see America as a series of less, maybe not so much. One belt, one road. You may not know what it is. But if you type in one belt, we're begun 40 years ago. Got it. Got it. And the idea of one belt, one road is China is investing in all the economies of the world. Right. They want to be at the center. You know, for example, in India, they want to be at the center of economics into the power infrastructure of India. Right. And I think you know, as much as you know, I think we can have another show on the one belt, one road. I think for those that listening watching, that's something definitely to to do some research on and and I think that's something that we should probably revisit. But Mike, I want to thank you and Xiaofang. I think it's important for us that we know that okay, you know what Joe and lie is one of the most important figures in China and understanding him and what you've done to really spread knowledge about him and the work that he's done. And also coming back to you know, what China is a major player to work with. And what we're looking to do is learn about their local culture, the customs, and make sure that you work with those on the ground visit to do business in China. And you have to end the show here. I want to thank you again, Mike, Xiaofang for being on here. And I want to thank those that have watched and listened. And I look forward to seeing you on our next show for the art of thinking smart where we all learn to think and live smarter lives. Thanks so much.