charvey in Vietnam

Do I Not Bleed?

Westerners and Vietnamese ask me all the time "How do you work with and manage Vietnamese here?  Vietnamese are so different from Americans!"  Then they look at me expectantly, thinking I'll spin some anecdote about how inscrutable and mysterious Vietnamese people are.

This question always reminds me of Shylock's impassioned speech in Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice." [I've taken a few liberties to suit the context.]

"Hath not an American eyes? Hath not an American hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions; fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, heal'd by the same means, warm'd and cool'd by the same winter and summer as a Vietnamese is? If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh?  If you poison us, do we not die?"

My point here is that I've found that Americans and Vietnamese are 95% the same in our humanity and only 5% different in our culture.  We only think that we're oil and water because we focus on the small differences and ignore the overwhelming similarities. 

In all the important ways we're 100% the same.  We both like to feel like an important part of a team.  We both like to feel appreciated.  We're both satisfied by meaningful achievement after hard work and sacrifice.  We both like to feel like we're constantly learning and moving forward in our careers.  These are human qualities.  They are not the sole province of any nationality.  I can relate to people here because they are human just like I am.  We both bleed when pricked.

Of course, there are some cultural differences and it's important to be sensitive and pay attention to them.  An example is learning to interpret the indirect communication style of Vietnamese.  But now I'm familiar with it and I can read the tea leaves just fine.  [I've even learned a bit about the subtle art of how things left unsaid speak volumes.]  But the cultural elements are peripheral to the central humanity that I share with my colleagues.  It's easy to relate to them.

So my answer is always "No, I find that people here are exactly like they are in America." 

America the Plentiful

I'm sitting in the Hong Kong airport on my way back to Saigon.  Just took a shower after a combined 17 hours of flying, not counting the layover time in Chicago.  I feel like a new man!    Only 2.5 more flying hours to go.

Last week I visited my mom and sister in Vermont and my dad in Naples, Florida.  Each time I go back, I'm always struck by things that have become more noticeable after living abroad for a while.  One was that now there are flat panel TV screens everywhere.  Another is the how young people are completely digitized now.  I landed in Boston instead of Burlington on my way in due to a late flight from Hong Kong.  So I stayed with my uncle in Boston on Friday night and took a bus to Burlington on Saturday.  The bus was filled with college students and 20-somethings, all texting or iphone-ing the whole 5 hour trip.  I think of myself as pretty digital, but sometimes wonder if I'm losing touch with tech trends as I near 40.  For example, I feel a little stronger about privacy than they do.  Things change.

Another big takeaway was how wealthy America is and how wasteful our culture is.  I especially got this impression in Naples.  Nearly everyone drives big, spotless, late-model cars.  The stores are huge and packed full of every good imaginable at super low prices.  I visited a Super Target in Florida and was blown away even though I had visited these stores before when I lived in the US.  I wanted a battery-powered electric toothbrush and the models were all new, with two vibrating doohickies to clean your teeth better instead of the one I remember.  It made me think about capitalism and consumerism, always pushing ahead with the next new thing to render your old -- but good enough -- thing obsolete so you'll buy the new one.  I stopped by McDonald's (always a favorite) and was a little surprised by how much waste my meal generated.

Don't get me wrong -- I'm an unabashed and unreconstructed capitalist.  It's the best system so far for creating wealth and lifting people out of poverty.  It's just that, at times, it seems excessive.  Oops, I gotta get on my flight soon.  Will have to gather my thoughts and revisit this topic again.

Book Review: "A Better War"

 “You know, it’s too bad.  Abrams is very good.  He deserves a better war.”

Robert Shaplen
New Yorker correspondent
Saigon 1969

Lewis Sorley’s “A Better War: The Unexamined Victories and Final Tragedy of America’s Last Years in Vietnam” is a thought-provoking book that casts doubt on whether the outcome of the Vietnam War (known here in Vietnam as the “American War”) was as inevitable as the conventionally-accepted view suggests.  I discovered it by reading a review in the “Wall Street Journal” that described how the book has influenced the thinking among military and political strategists for America’s current effort in Iraq.

The book primarily covers the reign of General Creighton W. Abrams’ years as commander of US forces in the allied effort from 1968 to 1972.  Abrams took over from the previous commander, William C. Westmoreland, in mid-1968.  Westmoreland had been in command since January 1964, presiding over a massive American escalation to pursue his disastrous strategy of “search and destroy.” 

Abrams saw the war differently.  “The tactics changed within 15 minutes of Abrams’ taking command,” said his deputy, General Fred Weyand. 

Abrams believed that a high body count would not lead to a victory.  Instead, he emphasized the political nature of the conflict.  He saw that military victory in battles was pointless unless territory could be held by a stable government where the people felt safe.  Among other things, he de-emphasized large unit actions combing through the jungle to find nothing and re-emphasized small unit actions to protect the population and disrupt enemy logistics and infrastructure.  He also gave a great deal of attention to increasing the strength and effectiveness of provincial militias.

By 1972, Sorley argues convincingly that allied forces had gained a large measure of success under Abrams' leadership.  The insurgent “shadow government” that had held sway over much of the countryside largely had been destroyed or rendered ineffective.  Life returned to normal in many places, with record agricultural harvests and economic activity.  Regular enemy forces had been dealt a series of setbacks and were on their heels.  The Northern Easter Offensive of 1972 was defeated decisively by South Vietnamese ground forces supported by US air power.

Things fell apart after that.  Despite the Nixon Administration’s repeated assurances that the US would stand by its ally in case of violation of the 1973 Paris Peace Accords, a war-weary US Congress limited the President’s freedom of action to respond to nearly immediate violations through operational restrictions and cutting off funding.  In rapid succession, the US pulled all political, logistical, financial and air power support for the Southern government.  Sorley argues that US withdrawal of support was the key factor in the outcome of the conflict, and that with more time or support things may have ended differently.  Although that certainly was a key factor, I'm not entirely convinced.  Large swathes of the Southern military were poorly led, a result of political meddling by a Southern government fearful of a coup.

Politics aside, “A Better War” contains some powerful leadership lessons.  Among my favorites:

• The Top Leader is Key.  “A Better War” shows yet again the importance of the top leader.  Everything flows from him.  He sets the direction and tone.  He decides on strategic direction and what is important.  Only he and he alone can steer the ship in a new direction.  Abrams had a different philosophy on how to manage the conflict and changed the direction of the ship immediately.  And he got results.  I love the quote “The tactics changed within 15 minutes of Abrams’ taking command.”  That says it all. 
  
  
• Other Leaders are Key Too.  While the top leader sets direction, it’s the leaders on the ground that make things happen.  A poor leader renders everyone below him or her ineffective no matter how good top leadership is.  The Southern army suffered greatly from incompetent leadership at the middle and high levels.
  
  
• Simple Strategy Guides Action.  The most powerful ideas are the simplest ones.  Abrams boiled his strategy down to a few simple ideas – “Protect the population” and “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” [referring to cutting the “logistics nose” of the enemy].  These simple ideas provided clarity and guided action. 
  
  
• Repeat Repeat Repeat.  Leaders set the direction, but one word or one meeting is rarely enough to get others sharing your vision and moving with you.  Abrams never missed an opportunity to repeat his message. 
  

• Straight Talk.  Abrams insisted that his staff deliver all news in a straight manner – the complete truth and no sugar-coating or downplaying of bad news.  This allowed him a clear-eyed view of the situation, vital to making proper decisions.

I'd like to learn more about the leadership and viewpoints of the Northern side of the conflict.

Jitterbug Stroll

It's a tradition for a different group at our company to to a "Team Show" at our monthly All Hands meeting.  This month Hang and I performed.  Hang and I are the only ones on the VietnamWorks Management Team.  All the rest of the people on my team have their own groups and their own teams to help them in their missions.  Hang, our Senior Business Analyst, is the only person whose sole responsibility is to help me with management and analysis.  She's awesome.   Together we're a team of two.  So for our show we decided to perform the Jitterbug Stroll, a super fun dance routine that I learned in Saigon Swing .  Enjoy.

Đại gia và Chân dài

A few weeks ago I traveled to Hanoi to join our Hanoi company party and chaperone the North sales team on their reward trip for kicking arse in 2009.  This pic was taken in a small village in the mountains about 5 hours from Hanoi at the minority tribe guest house where we stayed. 

The team joked that I was the "Đại gia" [pronounced "day za"] and they were the "Chân dài" [pronounced "chun zai"].  "Đại gia" translates loosely to the American slang "sugar daddy" while "Chân dài" literally means "long legs" or, more generally, pretty girls hanging around the Đại gia.  Needless to say I've gotten a lot of mileage out of this word because it's a joke that never gets old.  I think it's especially funny to hear a foreigner say "Đại gia" in my funny accent.

I had a ball during the weekend.  On display were many of the Vietnamese characteristics I admire and enjoy -- the closeness in a group, the joking and fun, the zeal and enthusiasm with which they engage in fun activities.  We climbed a few hundred meters up the side of a mountain to visit a big cave.  One girl insisted on doing it in her 7cm purple pumps.  I asked why.  She replied with a smile "Because I like them!  And it's a challenge!"  At one point they taught me a card game that's kinda like the American drinking game "President" but with some rule variations.  They ran rings around me.  The loser had to have a charcoal mark put on their face and they had a blast with me. 

One of those cultural differences you never expect emerged during the weekend too.  The first time our bus stopped for a toilet break, about 1/3 of the team got off the bus and promptly hurled their breakfasts on the pavement.  It turns out that car sickness is very common, especially in Hanoi.  Makes sense -- they didn't grow up riding in cars or buses. 

All in all, a great weekend.  I love spending time with the North team.  Their "mau lua" -- fire in the blood -- energizes and inspires me.

You can see the photos from the trip above.  The first half is our company party, the second half from the weekend trip [look closely for the purple pumps.]  The costumes you see are worn by our directors for our show.  We played characters from a Chinese TV serial that's very famous in Vietnam, "Journey to the West."  The team loved it!  I was the evil general and was vanquished by the good Monkey.  Each team put on a show, including a "Sexy Show" [yes Virginia, there's no such thing as political correctness in Vietnam].  Good times, good times....