A Land of Opportunity--For the Opportunistic...

Hello Chengdu Peach Blossom Run (pic courtesy of Nancy Thao)

Perhaps I've had it wrong all along, because from what I've experienced thus far, China seems to be the Land of Opportunity. Or at least for a select portion of the young adult American population.

Take this week for example, I was offered a possible opportunity to develop, produce, and possibly host my own radio segment. I have zero experience in radio (aside from being an avid NPR listener and podcast consumer). My friend who connected me to this opportunity, hobnobbed with the top interpreter in China (worked with the vice president when hey visited recently) over hotpot. I am constantly finding part-time (and full time, for those with a bachelors degree) English teaching jobs that pay 150-200rmb/hour ($24-32.00USD). I can spend the day, a full 18 hours+, at a luxurious spa (and I mean luxurious by American standards) for, oh, around $35USD. I can rent a nice apartment for less than it would cost me to rent a room in America.

But does it all come at a price?

For starters, one has to be acutely aware of how one is managing one's guanxi. What is guanxi? Apparently its everything. It can prevent you from getting proper treatment in a busy hospital. Its crucial in the role of finding a job (mostly for Chinese people). It can get your children into a good school and it can sometimes help them get out of trouble. Guanxi is your network of contacts. For those anthropology majors out there, its a great example of balanced reciprocity. If you have good guanxi, you have gone to the trouble of establishing yourself as a trustworthy resource with many contacts. Taking someone out to dinner, tutoring their child, or sharing any type of special knowledge are all example of things that can be done to build your gaunxi. In return, it is expected that when you call on the person for help with something in the future, they will reciprocate the favor. Many USAC students have been taken out to dinner several times by someone and then asked to help tutor their child, or their friends child.

The interesting thing about guanxi it that its transferable. For instance, if you helped me move to a new apartment, then I found out your son needed help passing the HSK, and I knew a person who could help your son study for the test, I would offer to take them out to dinner a couple of times (my treat, of course) and then ask them to help tutor your son.

It can get a bit complicated, not to mention time-consuming and frustrating. Many foreigners who learn about gaunxi have an adverse reaction. I sometimes struggle with trying not to feel like I'm being used, and that all I am is a resource. It is more then possible to develop close, meaningful relationships with Chinese people. To me, its a simple difference of expectations. Unlike most relationships in America, the expectations are more clearly implied.

That's not to say that every interaction is bred of a desire to 'get something' from the other person. This article has many good examples of the every day kindnesses you often receive from the people around you (and it doesn't just apply to mothers with babies). Its not all business, but a hell of a lot of it is. Having good guanxi is crucial to having a deep and meaningful experience in China. It can afford you some exciting and memorable opportunities!