Edwin Vermeulen’s Post

Monday, February 14, 2005 A day I’ll never forget. I was sitting in a restaurant in Huizhou, Guangdong province, surrounded by new faces. Struggling to use chopsticks to pick up unfamiliar food. Unable to understand a word of what was being said around me. It was my first time in China, and my new work colleagues had invited me to dinner. Sitting there silently, I realized one thing: If I wanted to live and work independently in China, I had to learn the culture and language - fast. So, that’s exactly what I did. For months, I: - Attended daily Chinese lessons. - Learned new words and phrases. - Practiced with locals in markets, shops, and restaurants. - Immersed myself in the culture, step by step. It wasn’t easy. I faced awkward moments, made countless mistakes, and felt uncomfortable more times than I can count. But the more I pushed myself outside my comfort zone, the more confident I became in social situations. That first year in China was my most challenging, but it was also one of the best experiences of my life. Back then, I had no idea how stepping outside my comfort zone would lead to so many incredible opportunities later on. Growth only happens when you’re willing to push yourself beyond what’s comfortable. How will you challenge yourself to achieve more in 2025? #JamesEEnglish #Sales #China

GUANGZHOU

说中文的朋友! 👀 Don't make this common mistake. ⬇️ A company isn't a physical location; it's a legal entity. 📄 Or more simply, it's an idea. 💡 So, we can't go to a company. 🚫 We have to go to a physical location. ✅ We go to the place (e.g., office, factory, store, warehouse, etc.) where the company operates. 🏢 ➡️ Want to see more posts like this? 🤝 Connect: ♦️Eric Ricks 商务英语 #businessenglishguy #businessenglish #english #communication #china #taiwan #hongkong #singapore #malaysia #korea #japan #apac #英语 #商务英语 #英文 #商業英文

The last experience of superior retail experience and customer service was in Australia. The people were consistently top notch. Friendly and knowledgeable. Thailand isn't too far behind. Vietnam catching up fast There is a country where the story goes like this... They stalk you like a SILENT GHOST: following your trails, while staying silent. Sometimes, they only say one word when you enter: YES? Sometimes, feel like replying NO! Other times they stalk you like a HUNGRY GHOST. They keep talking and stalking, hopefully you buy something to feed their hunger and go away in peace. 8 day China visit: -Beijing(Association & Exhibition) -Jinan(Inspur Visit) -Shanghai(Supplier & Exhibition) Eye opening. Tried conversing with as many locals as possible from all walks of life. Objectively, they speak 2-3 times faster than the average person. Subjectively, they think 2-3 times faster than the average person. Our hard skills are only as good as our soft skills, vice-versa.

To all my connections in #China, Jack Gong and his team - Aoki Zhang and Nancy Zhang are currently working on some interesting mandates. For anyone who is interested in the opportunity below or pondering on your next career move, do reach out to them for a further discussion. #中国 #lifesciences #Pharma #MedicalDevices #Biotechnology #招募中

Monday 14th February, 2005   a day I’ll always remember.   Sitting in a restaurant in Huizhou, Guangdong province   surrounded by new faces   struggling to use chopsticks to pick up unfamiliar food not understanding anything people around me were saying.   It was my first time in China and I had just been invited out for dinner by my new work colleagues.   Sitting there silently in that restaurant, I knew I had to learn the culture and language quickly so that I could live and work independently in China.   So, for the next few months that’s what I did.   I attended daily Chinese lessons, learnt new Chinese words and phrases, practiced them by interacting with local people at markets, shops and restaurants and immersed myself in the culture.   It was really difficult at times, I experienced some very awkward situations and I made a lot of mistakes.   But during this process I noticed that the more I pushed myself outside of my comfort zone, the more confident I became in social situations.   My first year in China was by far the most challenging   but it was also one of the best experiences of my life.   Back then I had no idea how pushing myself like that would open up so many exciting opportunities later in life.   Pushing yourself outside your comfort zone is the only way to grow and get what you truly want out of life. How do you push yourself to achieve more?   #JamesEEnglish #Growth #Sales #China

Here is a photo of Chinatown taken just before we headed to the airport for our flight back to Melbourne. Planning our trip to Malaysia was challenging due to the limited time we had to decide where to go. Our main holiday was Taiwan, while the shorter Malaysia leg was dedicated to recording my family history in Batu Gajah and attending Qing Ming, the day when the Wong family visits our ancestors' graves. As a result, our Malaysia trip was extremely tight. Reflecting on our decision-making process, we always had to consider the opportunity costs. We had limited resources—in our case, time. Similarly, in sales, customers make purchase decisions based on opportunity costs. Choosing your product means not choosing your competitors' products and vice versa. Building trust and relationships takes skill and time to reach a point where more decisions favour you. The key is actively figuring out how to achieve this.

🏅4 Olympic Medals in Hong Kong! Joy and Hope in the future 🏅 In the past year, Hong Kong has been struggling with a worrying economy. 😞 People walking at the streets either look frustrated or disappointed with the economy. Our city was full of negative news previously: - closure of retail stores - layoffs - declining property prices  - government deficits ☀ Finally this summer, Hong Kong has exciting news to share. 🔥 In a city of about 7 million people, we have 3 Olympic winners who won us 4 medals! This represents our Hong Kong spirit & capability: ☄ We never give up! ☄ We make use of what’s available to us and maximise our full potential! ☄ We might always fall down but we stand back up and improve and reinvent ourselves with a new and better version. 🚶♀️ Now when I walk at the streets, I see many proud, joyful and happy faces! This is very motivating because our Olympic medallists taught us the mindset of perseverance. 🔶 No matter what your struggle is, keep grinding through. 🔶 We will find a way through darkness and search a way out. 🔶 If what we are doing now is not working, try another path but do not give up. ✨ For more career & personal growth tips, please visit my site at www.thenicolehui.com   I wrote a guide on:   📝 Fixing your CV & LinkedIn in 1 Day: Link: https://lnkd.in/ggNqAK87   🔥 Negotiate for salary increase or promotion! Link: https://lnkd.in/grB-GmX8   📊 Interview Preparation For Success: Link: https://lnkd.in/ghaJcDy4   📈 JUPAS University Interview Admission Tips Link: https://lnkd.in/gj4gz5tF  

Guangzhou is beautiful city.

𝑴𝘼𝑫𝙀 𝙄𝑵 𝑪𝙃𝑰𝙉𝑨 ≠ 𝑳𝙊𝑾 𝑸𝙐𝑨𝙇𝑰𝙏𝒀 Let's clarify a fact: #madeinchina is not (always) equivalent to low quality. Is the buyer who define the standard he/she can comply with. If your standars are high, the partners you agree to work with are carefully chosen not based on price, but based on quality they can deliver. And in this field, the key of success is #communication. ✅ Establish a human #relationship with the suppliers: they are people just like you. Using their local language can let them be more open and honest. ✅ #Explain in simple but professional way what you are looking for, without taking anything for granted. If you need to customize the standard product, don't be afraid to ask them. ✅ Remember that the Chinese you are buying from are manufacturers. If you want to build value, you have to make an effort and add #value to the factory's products. ✅ Study the most efficient way to #communicate the added values of your company's products to your customers. If there are many identical "x product" in the market, why should they choose you? In #arcawellnesscompany I have the advantage of communicating in Chinese with our partners, optimizing the time we invest in the buying process and minimalizing the risks that using English could cause because of language and cultural barriers. At the same time, thanks to our deep knowledge of the Italian and European markets' needs and our cooperation with beauty advisors, we are able to build and deliver products with a strong #madeinitaly sign. So, after all, how much a product can be considered Made in China? Only because it is produced in China, it doesn't mean it does not receive influence from the "outer" world. It's the buyer the one that define the level of quality. Do you agree with me? #madeinchina #purchasing #buyer #communication #chinese #addedvalue