和 - Harmony - Basis of Anything Japanese

I am just out of a cross cultural training. Basically it was a discussion. My take from the discussion was one kanji 和-wa. This Kanji represents Japan and anything Japanese. Like 和食(washoku - Japanese cuisine) 和服（wafuku - Japanese attire) etc. The meaning of this kanji is harmony. And that is the basis of anything Japanese.

When doing business, there is a harmony that you should create. That is your buildup time when you will be meeting customers, sharing good time and still get no business. If you set this up, business can flow on that. As long as you maintain that harmony. They will also maintain. So even you fail one project, they will come back. As long as you did not "disrupt the harmony". You can make error - but accept and apologise properly.

This is true in a meeting too. You present a new idea and you expect feedbacks. You get only staring faces. Or sleeping ones. Or in between. No dynamic lips at all. Why? There is no harmony to talk. If you want a discussion to happen, you should have sent this out earlier, had enough of background meetings etc. Or, you should have had that relation that keeps discussions flowing.

Now someone is talking about something. You are not expected to say a blunt NO. Why? Thats against the harmony of the meeting - of the group. Make a round about suggestion that you probably dont think it is correct. Or talk after the meeting. Thats so common. Post meeting and side meeting discussions. Where information flow will happen. The formal meetings are only meant for sustaining the harmony.

Well, this I guess is true about India too. We all love harmony. Job security. Morning and evening tea has no alternatives. Though we are getting bastardised with the American corporate thinking of late. We are now being told to say NO when we do not agree. The Boss is not always right; tell him on the face etcetera. I am not saying which is right and which is wrong. But I guess we Indians still love harmony at heart. We feel hurt otherwise.

May people think Japan is inefficient because of the round and round discussions and the delay in taking decisions. I would say this is a short sighted view. Harmony is in fact the most efficient system, right? What we call Impedance matching in electrical world. Thats where the whole system becomes efficient. When Japanese talk, the system is something that cuts across so many years in lenagth and so many people in width.

For all people leaders too, I guess we have to learn this harmony and the art of building and maintaining harmony. Unless we are sure that the entire team is okay with the American style of working. If all are American, then that system may be efficient too.