Verbal and non-verbal communication

Question:What do I need to know about verbal and non-verbal communications?
Local Perspective:

Maintain the same distance as you would in western society. In general, people tend to move away if the personal space is too threatening for them. However, if you are very intimate with strangers, (i.e, less than 2 feet away that one could feel your breath), you need to keep a farther distance from your Chinese partner.

Handshaking is a common practice for both men and women in China unless you are meeting people from the ethnic minority groups in China (e.g., tribes in remote areas). Once you are considered as a "friend", you will find that men will hold hands with men and women would hold hands with women and walk on the street. This may be "weird" in the west, but it is a common, friendly practice for young people/adults in China.

The key is to observe, watch what others do, and then you can decide if you are comfortable to do it. Once your Chinese partners understand where you are coming from, they would not be offended. So communication and respect from both sides are the key for a good relationship.

In a business contact, there is usually no touching involved. Hugging to say goodbye like what Canadians do here is also not a practice. Using handshakes for greetings and to bid farewell is the safest way as a start.

Definitely eye contact should be maintained (not staring) when you speak to your Chinese Partners. Not maintaining eye contact is a very old Chinese practice—when low class citizens met the Royal families—in those days, citizens were not even allowed to have their houses higher than those built in the palace! So time has changed.

If you are conducting a group discussion/teaching, etc, being a "leader/expert" in a formal setting (i.e., if the leaders are there), you must maintain yourself as a leader, and speak in a very direct manner and be in command of the group (though they like group interaction/discussion). Never sit on the table or slouch when you are in a discussion or meeting. How you as a "leader" present yourself when working in the Chinese environment is very important.

Chinese leaders tend not use a lot of hand gestures or facial expressions when they speak. They are accustomed to reading from their speeches, and most of the time, their audience would not pay full attention to these speeches. My Chinese audience told me that they like Canadian presentations, as they tend to be more interactive. My view is that use your body language effectively to help deliver what you intend to do.

When you are working with Chinese leaders, always let the leader lead you: re-where you should sit, when to speak and what to speak. You may discuss your agenda with the Chinese leader before hand. But once the leader is in the group, you let the leader lead.