The Hard-Working Culture(aspects of the world’s most convincing success story)

[ravi kiran]

Is an unique East Asian thing so hard to explain it clearly. Let me try

"爱拼才会赢" means "A man should fight hard, go in with all he has, sweat and bleed if need to, before he can win"

拼搏
http://cn.bing.com/dict/search?q=拼搏&FORM=BDVSP2&qpvt=拼搏 英语

Kind of like that.

I think you explained it quite well. thanks.

 

[Sam.]

I think you explained it quite well. thanks.

Hard work in our culture too but it's being crushed by western culture due to hundred of years colonial rule.

 

[Aepsilons]

In our culture, there is a spirit called ..
View attachment 201569

There is an old saying:

武士 は 食わねど 高四時

"even when a samurai is hungry, he uses the tooth pick"

 

[Shotgunner51]

five character, 1,love; 2, strive hard; 3,only; 4,can; 5, win
Only by working hard can one achieve success

That's good bro.

Moreover it is more than working normally hard, but ready to sacrifice everything for it kind of hard, like a combatant spirit.

 

[ravi kiran]

Hard work in our culture too but it's being crushed by western culture due to hundred of years colonial rule.

yes Hard work is in our culture thats why we were second largest economy in history after China.
we got Independence but we are still in slave mentality.

 

[Aepsilons]

In 96 BC, on his release from prison, Sima chose to live on as a palace eunuch to complete his histories, rather than commit suicide as was expected of a gentleman-scholar. As Sima Qian himself explained in his Letter to Ren An:

“ If even the lowest slave and scullion maid can bear to commit suicide, why should not one like myself be able to do what has to be done? But the reason I have not refused to bear these ills and have continued to live, dwelling in vileness and disgrace without taking my leave, is that I grieve that I have things in my heart which I have not been able to express fully, and I am shamed to think that after I am gone my writings will not be known to posterity. Too numerous to record are the men of ancient times who were rich and noble and whose names have yet vanished away. It is only those who were masterful and sure, the truly extraordinary men, who are still remembered. ... I too have ventured not to be modest but have entrusted myself to my useless writings. I have gathered up and brought together the old traditions of the world which were scattered and lost. I have examined the deeds and events of the past and investigated the principles behind their success and failure, their rise and decay, in one hundred and thirty chapters. I wished to examine into all that concerns heaven and man, to penetrate the changes of the past and present, completing all as the work of one family. But before I had finished my rough manuscript, I met with this calamity. It is because I regretted that it had not been completed that I submitted to the extreme penalty without rancor. When I have truly completed this work, I shall deposit it in the Famous Mountain. If it may be handed down to men who will appreciate it, and penetrate to the villages and great cities, then though I should suffer a thousand mutilations, what regret should I have?

Excellent example, my friend.

I think what is interesting for me to see is that no matter where in East Asia -- be it Japan, Korea, China -- there is a senes of harmony or the emphasis of harmony. Destitution , dereliction -- is the antithesis of harmony , which our civilizations value above all else. The concept of anarchy is an alien philosophy for East Asia , by nature , and is innately foreign for us. Especially in regards to Japanese -- we value in co-importance : Harmony and Order.

It even emanates in the corporate or professional level. Japanese people tend to accomodate others' opinions rather than speak up for themselves. They attach much importance to harmony. Corporate policies are preaching the the importance of harmony. Companies also form nationwide group. This is called "Goso Sendan Houshiki (Armed Convoy System). The flagship is the Japanese Government. Companies are transport ships and ministries are the warships to protect and support the transport ships which carry the economy.

In feudal times, a lord who owned his castle governed his territory by his own law, with warriors working under him. Members of the general public was at the lowest status. This concept still underlies current Japanese society. A company is the castle, administrative employees are the warriors and clerks are the general public. Employees have strong feelings that they are owned by their company and should to pledge their loyalty to the company. Changing jobs is regarded as disloyalty and is a disadvantage for the next employment opportunity. As more importance is attached to a group than to an individual, a company has more financial confidence than an individual.

In context to this, being an unemployed homeless, purposeless vagabond is equated to a useless member of society. It is ,in Japanese visage, beyond shame.

 

[Gauss]

Yep. Some Japanese even commit suicide than rather live with shame of being unemployed. For me it's always so interesting to see Homeless people in US who live in streets and in shelters. I think I would kill myself if I was put in that kind of position...

This way of thinking about ones self and life is nothing but an indication of a greater intelligence. Only intelligent people think and live this way. Its perfectionist attitude. You know there is a vision of how life should be. That perfect life. And if its nowhere near that then death is better.
just my 2 cents.

 

[Beast]

This is East Asian values, @Nihonjin1051. I don't think Chinese are as hard-working as Japanese and Koreans which have one of the longest working hours per day.

You are very wrong. I read an article about an japanese executive posted to China. He commented the Chinese workers working in the factory is even more hardworking than the Japanese in Japan.

 

[Aepsilons]

You are very wrong. I read an article about an japanese executive posted to China. He commented the Chinese workers working in the factory is even more hardworking than the Japanese in Japan.

Sure, the Chinese now are very exemplary. Think about it -- in just a span of 20 some years, hard working Chinese were the engines of their own success, their hard work and sacrifice is the reason why some 800 million Chinese have been lifted up from poverty.

No Japanese will deny hard working nature of the Chinese.

Besides, if Chinese are not hard working, why would Japanese invest in China ?

 

[SarthakGanguly]

I hope our politicians and bureaucrats are reading this! But even if they do, nothing will change. It's like flogging a dead horse to get up and walk!

Never gonna happen in India. We are a nation of cowards. Unless that changes, nothing is going to change dramatically.

 

[FairAndUnbiased]

Amy Chua is not Chinese. She is a Filipino married to a white man. Real Chinese find her values very questionable, like forcing her kids to learn piano and never go outside to play. The question today of Chinese parents is - are we stressing the kids too hard?

The real value of Chinese culture is recognizing that foundations need to be built first - humbleness in the face of knowledge and history. There is no easy route and no shortcuts.

 

[Sanchez]

I think the people from far east, Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, and to a much lesser extent, Vietnamese, can share the title of hard working. Indians are more imaginative, and lazy! It's getting worse from middle east to africa...

 

[Aepsilons]

I think the people from far east, Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, and to a much lesser extent, Vietnamese, can share the title of hard working. Indians are more imaginative, and lazy! It's getting worse from middle east to africa...

One thing that Chinese-Korean-Japanese share in common is : Punctuality.

 

[FairAndUnbiased]

I think the people from far east, Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, and to a much lesser extent, Vietnamese, can share the title of hard working. Indians are more imaginative, and lazy! It's getting worse from middle east to africa...

I think Chinese are more imaginative than Indians, and we are pretty good at playing. Who invented Majiang, Chinese chess and 三国杀? Indians on the other hand are VERY hard working from what I've seen. The Indian students at my school stay until midnight working on their projects. They will keep slamming their head against the wall doing the same thing over and over again until it works while I give up if it fails twice and try something new.

From what I've heard, Indian high school is harder than Chinese high school, not because of content, but because of how both teachers and parents push their kids to pass the IIT entrance exam. It's worse than Gaokao I think because its either in or out, there's no middle ground.

 

[Azizam]

I think Chinese are more imaginative than Indians, and we are pretty good at playing. Who invented Majiang, Chinese chess and 三国杀? Indians on the other hand are VERY hard working from what I've seen. The Indian students at my school stay until midnight working on their projects. They will keep slamming their head against the wall doing the same thing over and over again until it works while I give up if it fails twice and try something new.

From what I've heard, Indian high school is harder than Chinese high school, not because of content, but because of how both teachers and parents push their kids to pass the IIT entrance exam. It's worse than Gaokao I think because its either in or out, there's no middle ground.

You're quite right, I think it's the same set of value that are shared across Asia (including South Asia) but for some reason they are better practices in East Asia but for some reason East Asia is performing better than South Asia so I wonder what the reason is. My guess is that, it is the cooperation among East Asian ethnic groups that makes all the differences. In South Asia people are more likely to be happy about other people's failure.