“When we long for life without difficulties, remind us that oaks grow strong in contrary winds and diamonds are made under pressure.”
~Peter Marshall, TV personality~
It has been said that Japan is changing and that the tempers of the young are every bit as explosive as that of American hotheads. The only difference between the cultures being, say the social critics, that the Japanese don’t have easy access to firearms.
Yes, there are an increasing number of senseless, violent crimes happening almost every day in this island-nation, but all in all this country remains one of the safest on the planet.
Japanese don’t take kindly to overt pressure and intimidation. When they are in a proverbial corner, they will bow and look for a non-violent, non-confrontational escape route. Sometimes they will nervously blink and try in vain to act as if their adversary or intimidator doesn’t even exist.
If you are planning to make a frontal, guns blazing approach to doing business here, no doubt you will meet a great yet subtle resistance from the natives.
Don’t mistake silence or nervousness as a sign that you have won the battle or the war. On the contrary, you will make virtually no progress by intimidation.
Inside themselves the Japanese may well be seething, but for you they will mask their displeasure with a somewhat courteous smile.
That perfunctory smile is usually a kiss of death in business relationships.
Always give a Japanese person a clear avenue of escape. When you do so, they will appreciate your sensitivity to their discomfort and perhaps give you another try at making a good impression.
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