252 CultureShock! China
Redesign your system so that she only washes clothes when
you place them in the blue clothes hamper and only sends
clothes in the red clothes hamper to the dry cleaners.Comments
The answer is . You can assume that most new ayis have
limited experience with both electronic appliances and with
clothes that require special care. It is highly likely that the
care that they give to their own clothes is to wash them in
cold water by hand with bar soap and hang them outside
to dry.
Chances are if you sacked your ayi, you would run into the
exact same situation again with her replacement. The only
way to assure things will be handled properly is to create a
fool-proof system that does not require judgment calls. This
is best done in the case of clothes by designating different
hampers for different kinds of care and sorting the clothes
into these hampers yourself to assure they are handled
properly. The same logic applies to other kinds of decisions in
the house, for example you may need to code different kind
of cleaners for different surfaces, different cleaning cloths
for dishes versus fl oor, different soaps for hand washing and
washing the dog, etc. The more specifi c you are, the less
chance you leave for mistakes.SITUATION 4
You have been invited by the local government to attend
a banquet encouraging foreign investment in the local
economy. Upon arrival at the event, you are escorted from
the door and seated at a table in the centre front. It occurs to
you as others are being seated at the table that you are in the
company of the senior-most people of the 60 in attendance.
The young man who has shown you to your seat advises you
that it would be appreciated if you could make a VIP speech
in just a few minutes. You note photographers and video
cameras being set up. How should you respond to him? Gracefully agree to give the speech and ask what the most
appropriate subject would be.