I Stand Corrected ― How Teaching Western Manners in China Became Its Own Unforgettable Lesson

"A fascinating fusion of memoir, manners, and cultural history from a successful businesswoman well-versed in the unique challenges of working in contemporary China. During the course of her long and successful business career, no country has fascinated Eden Collinsworth more than China. After numerous business experiences that might best be called "unusual" by Western standards, she had a crucial insight: despite the growing status of China as a world economy and the unprecedented range of Chinese investments overseas, businessmen in mainland China--well-educated and speaking English--were fundamentally uncomfortable in the company of their Western counterparts. This realization spawned a Western etiquette guide for Chinese businessmen, which went on tobe a huge best seller in China and formed the basis for new curriculum supported by the Chinese Ministry of Education. In I Stand Corrected, Collinsworth tells the story of the year she spent writing that book, creating a counterpart that both explains Chinese practices and reveals much about our own Western culture. She explores topics including the non-negotiable issue of personal hygiene; the rules of the handshake; making sense of foreigners; and that which is considered universally rude. She also scrutinizes some of the Western etiquette that has guided her own business career, one which has unfolded in predominately male company. At the same time, I Stand Corrected is a retrospective journey, a wry but self-effacing reflection on the peripatetic career she led while single-handedly raising her son. Like all parents, she didn't always have answers, and here she details the many, often ludicrous, attempts to strike a balance that was right for both of them"--

EDEN COLLINSWORTH is a former media executive and business consultant. She launched the Los Angeles-based monthly lifestyle magazine, Buzz, after which she became VP & director of cross media business development at Hearst Corporation. In 2011 she launched Collinsworth & Associates, a Beijing-based consulting company, which specializes in intercultural communication. Her Chinese language book The Tao of Improving Your Likeability: A Personal Guide to Effective Business Etiquette in Today's Global World has become a major best seller in mainland China.