The Tao of Business

So, whether you're starting a small business, or in a big company and struggling to navigate the labyrinthine pathways of doing of business in China, Ansgar Gerstner's new book, The Tao of Business, is for you. Gerstner argues that from a strategic point of view, the Daodejing – the classic Taoist text – can offer answers for many of the issues in modern business management. Based part-time in Shanghai, Gerstner is a martial arts trainer and expert in Taoist philosophy with a PhD in Chinese studies from Germany's Trier University. His interest in business, particularly management issues, stems from his conversations with friends in business and the topics he has encountered in training and coaching. We caught up with Dr. Gerstner below...

Give us the Tao as it relates to business in 25 words or less...
A traditional Chinese reply to “give us the Tao” could have consisted of much less than 25 words. It could have resulted in silence, since the Tao cannot be grasped by mere words and the intellect. There is no fast way; there is no highway to the Tao. The question is reflective of a Western style approach of getting quick answers. The Tao, however, is mainly about long-term strategies and long-term execution. It is about agility. It is about sustainable utilization of potential. And it is about far-sighted and pro-active actions. All this is business related, all this needs commitment. With regard to business I think it is best to see the Tao in the context of corporate strategy and culture. You are not going to dabble with quick fixes there. On an individual level, looking at an individual entrepreneur or manager for instance, following the Tao would imply a life-long journey of learning and adapting.

OK, patience. What advice can the Tao give a foreigner who is thinking of starting a small business in Shanghai?
To a certain degree the advice would not be any different from any professional advice regarding all the issues that have to be looked into for starting a successful small business in Shanghai, legally, culturally, regarding one’s target market, the initial budget and so on. One that might stick out, however, is besides any professional requirements to have a very close look at the personality of your partners and work on your own. Since personality and the eagerness for personal development would be seen as complexly linked with a perfect choice of and execution of the strategies you adopt for doing business. As mentioned before, Taoism is about sustainable long-term results. For this you need responsible, trustworthy, mature, curious, innovative colleagues and partners. Rather than leaning too much towards price-competitiveness, go with quality. Finding such colleagues and partners might be more time and cost-intensive in the beginning, but it will save you money, energy and nerves in the long run, increase the efficiency and agility of your operations and help you enjoy work which in return...

Can you give us some real life examples – both positive and negative – of the Tao working in Chinese business?
So far this has not been my focus, yet, so I cannot really offer you a satisfying answer at this moment. But after having made a first step providing a conceptual framework for Taoist style management with The Tao of Business, presenting real life examples of Chinese businesses adopting this approach will be one of my future projects.

Let's flip this: What Western book would you recommend Chinese businessmen read?
A very good question! At the moment no individual book comes to my mind that would be some kind of an equivalent to the Daodejing, the major Taoist text that I am focusing on. But I would have the following suggestion. While China was hampered by its socio-political developments during the '60s and '70s of the 20th century, a wide variety of topics challenging mainstream attitudes, strategies and assumptions popular in Western growth economies were fervently discussed there during that period. Among them were environmental protection, sustainability, alternative energy sources and many, many others. A lot of these issues being smiled at or sneered upon at the time by the mainstream have in the meantime been professionalized and commercialized. Now these same issues are important topics in business and management literature. I think for Chinese business people it is helpful to get some better understanding of the arguments and the reasoning behind these critical discourses. Because for China’s economy to keep on walking on a healthy growth path, addressing the above-mentioned issues is mandatory. And besides, this will also offer a wide range of business opportunities. This means good business on the one hand and doing something helpful and constructive for society and the environment on the other.

Who are the leading proponents of Taoism that we should be listening to today?
For me, the leading proponents of Taoism are still the same as more than 2,000 years ago. It is the two great books of Taoist philosophy, the Daodejing and the Zhuangzi. Contemporary voices help to interpret, adapt and tailor actions to individual current needs, options and opportunities. And you need to be looking for individual proponents matching your personal requirements, interests and potential. But it is these two books just mentioned that provide a strategic and philosophical framework which is by far exceeding the scope of any individual voice.

Do many Chinese businesses operate on Taoist principles? If not, why?
It all depends on what you define as Taoist. Hanfeizi, a legalist philosopher of the 3rd century B.C. was the first commentator of the Daodejing who exploited Taoist strategies in a very scheming fashion. I strongly disagree with Hanfeizi’s narrowly focusing on the strategic aspects while completely missing out the nurturing qualities constituting the contextual framework of the Daodejing. His interpretation, however, has been one of several influential interpretations in Chinese history and keeps to provide inspiration for an overly utilitaristic application also in modern Chinese business. So I would say, those very pragmatic Taoist strategies, especially the ones from the Daodejing like “defeating the hard and strong by being soft and agile,” stripped of their wider context of attentiveness, responsibility and sustainability, can be found to be widely applied by Chinese businessmen for instance in negotiating deals. A more well-rounded and thorough application of concepts and strategies of the Daodejing as I describe them in The Tao of Business, however, are much, much harder to find in real-life business. And such businesses should definitely be highlighted.

If Taoism is a philosophy of moderation, how does a Taoist businessman deal with great success? Is there a conflict between Taoism and the accumulation of great wealth?
It all depends on what you do with your wealth. Taoism is not against enjoying life. But if you attain a good portion of wealth, you also have a higher responsibility towards your fellow beings and the environment.

What makes today's market conditions particularly well-suited to Taoist business practices?
As the global economic crisis clearly shows, there are enough examples for executives, not just of small and mid-size companies, not acting in a far-sighted and sustainable way. The crisis also teaches us that responsible, ethical leadership furthermore is nothing that can automatically be expected from executives. From a strategic point of view, Taoist business practices are all focused around long-term success. Agility, responsiveness and excellent communication and coordination are essential components of a Taoist style management that never loses sight of the social and natural environment it is operating in; more important, also sees itself responsible for. In this respect, Taoist business practices are a powerful antidote to the kinds of attitudes and practices that caused this crisis and will cause further crises in the future.