Learning about business the Chinese way
Learning about business the Chinese way
By Edi Petebang
PONTIANAK, West Kalimantan (JP): At the age of 14 years,
Adijanto worked as a manual laborer in the market. In the
evening, he went to school. Thanks to his perseverance, he
eventually succeeded in establishing his own company.
Adijanto, one of most prominent local businesspeople of
Chinese descent, is now the boss of PT Bumi Raya Utama Group. His
father was a poor farmer.
Adijanto, whose Chinese name is Ahian, was the first owner of
a crumb rubber plant in West Kalimantan.
Djun Phen, popularly known as Prayogo Pangestu, has another
success story. The boss of a number of large companies, including
Barito Pacific Timber Group, who hails from Bengkayang regency,
started earning a living as a kernet, or driver's assistant.
Adijanto and Prayogo are only two of many successful Chinese
businesspeople.
One of their secrets of success is that they had a business
spirit, independence and perseverance implanted while they were
in their mothers' womb, so the wise men say.
Based on 1995 research by Baharudin Frank, a local scientist,
Chinese communities have a tradition of sending messages to their
children asking them to lead self-supporting lives and learn
business at an early age. The famous motto is Sian kuheu tiam
jung ko, which means be prepared to suffer for a happy future.
Or, "it's okay to be a subordinate for one or two days, but
later you must become a boss". The message is that the Chinese
have to be independent and not take orders all their lives.
The message is passed at every occasion in a poetic way and it
becomes a principle in their lives. They are not supposed to
complain while doing their jobs and never denying the profession
of their choice.
The self-supporting principle and hard work make the Chinese
successful in various paths of life. Unfortunately, their success
is often viewed negatively by other ethnic groups, who stereotype
the Chinese as being deceitful and justifying all means and
colluding with government officials.
According to Shin Po, 55, a shinse (Chinese medicine man) in
Pontianak, the Chinese believe everyone has a different talent to
others and it should be developed.
"Everybody has a mind, so they must be given an opportunity to
learn and develop it. To this end, the child has to be entrusted
a growing degree of responsibility, such as doing household
chores, and later overseeing the business their parents started,"
he said.
A child should not be tightly controlled when they are
carrying out the jobs entrusted to them.
The child is entrusted to be creative and encouraged to have
initiative. Remember the message from the ancestors: Everybody
has their own mind and they are free to use and develop it
according to their personal capacity.
Se jiu se ke tal jiu tai ke, so goes the ancestral message,
meaning: Do things according to your capacity, never force
yourself to imitate or be jealous of the success of others that
you can't achieve.
Do your job the best you can. Don't succumb to situations or
become desperate. Work creatively and use common sense. This
corresponds to the principle that goes Nyi jiu sang fat ke,
meaning "keep your mind alive and ticking". Always have
initiative, don't be passive, never wait for orders. Have the
initiative to find work.
Nyin oi hok, hok oi con sin. Man must learn seriously and work
well for the best results. To use common sense, learn from
experience. A good job will win you trust and love. Work
honestly, and don't inflict losses on others. Keep worshiping
God.
Co nyin oi cit sim, oi nyin siong sin, oi sin sim, put ho sit
jim nyim nyin hiat hon, meaning: A man should be honest and
reliable, believe in God, and don't eat or drink the blood or
sweat of others.
Self-confidence is one of the Chinese success secrets.
Jealousy is taboo. Whenever you fail, ask yourself if you have
done your best. Never rely on others' help and don't
underestimate others.
Kok nyin ci siau muncian set: You'd better ridicule your messy
yard than envy others' success.
According to Phang Jhu Kiat, a respected Chinese figure in the
Siantan-Pontianak area, Chinese people are faithful religious
believers. They believe that God sufficiently gives opportunities
and all that people need. But the people must not take it for
granted; they have to work to get it.
He said one must work seriously to get trust and God's
blessing. A portion of the money obtained from working should be
saved, and don't be greedy.
The philosophy says that being rich is not everything in life.
What counts is that one has to work to survive.