Comparison of Business Traits

I talked to an Indian Malaysian about Jewish, Chinese, Indian and Western business traits.

He said Chinese are almost equally entrepreneurial as Jews - Chinese would rather set up a stand and sell drinks on the footpath than accept a job and become an employee. 

It's because Chinese loath being subservient to a boss, unlike Westerners.

Like Jews they very much stick to their own ethnicity.

They feel they have an advantage over whites because they know both languages. 

A Chinese would usually only marry a non-Chinese if the non-Chinese partner had something (financial) to bring to the marriage and to the extended family.

But the difference with Jews is their ethics, my friend said. Jews are guided by an ethical tradition - but Chinese are corrupt.

Jews won't usually try to rip you off. They can be firm - but there is always mutual benefit in their transactions. But Chinese can be sly. Chinese culture doesn't have the long heritage in Torah morals that Jews have to adhere to.

Jews like to deal with other Jews - but they're also more willing to work with non-Jews than Chinese are willing to employ non-Chinese.

He said Jews are hardworking, and demand good work - but are very fair.

They knock-off early on Friday to observe the sabbath with their families every Saturday. 

It makes them very family-oriented, not just business-oriented.

Gives them a balance between business and family, profit and ethics. Productiveness and leisure.

Whereas Chinese can get an imbalance of business over family, profit over ethics, performance over enjoyment.

After resting Saturdays, his Jewish bosses would work Sundays - but they didn't expect their employees to work Sundays.

So when he and his fellow-employees turned up to work on Mondays, they found their bosses had already worked Sunday and prepared their week's work for them.

This set them up to have a more productive work-week than their non-Jewish competitors.

It also bred a feeling of respectful admiration, because the employees saw that their bosses worked harder and longer than they expected them to. But their employers did expect their employees to work well too.

As for Indians. Well Indian society has a caste system. People are born into a caste. One caste is called the Untouchables. 

This effects business relations. And like the Chinese, Indians are not guided by an ethical code. My friend seemed cynical and untrusting of Indians, even though he was of Indian ancestry himself.

:)