Small Business Today Magazine JUL 2014 PHENOMENAL PRODUCTS | Page 18
EDITORIALFEATURE
in Chinese but printed in golden letters because
gold is an important and favorable color in the
Chinese culture. Regardless of the ethnic group, it
is important not to write on the business card. It
will be received as a personal slight.
Communication is the most challenging part
of doing business in Malaysia. Malaysians communicate in a very indirect way because they are
careful to remain in harmony with their interlocutor. Maintaining a good relationship and keeping “face,” or honor, is more important than any
business deal. Consequently, nothing negative
should ever be brought up and no accusation
should ever be made publicly. Since Malaysians
eschew negativity, they will never say “no” directly. Therefore, you will be obliged to read their
body language and facial expressions for clues
as to how they react to a proposal. Moreover,
very often they will employ expressions like “I
16 SMALL BUSINESS TODAY MAGAZINE [ JULY 2014 ]
will try” or “I’ll see.” This is one of the polite ways
of saying “no.”
While Malaysia has not traditionally been a
popular place for investments, the opportunity
there is enormous. The multiethnic nature of
the country may seem intimidating but it is by no
means insurmountable as long as proper cultural
sensitivity is employed.
As a graduate of the Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship at
the University of Houston, Ludmila (Mila) Rusakova Golovine,
Founder, CEO, and President of MasterWord Services, Inc., started her company with a vision of seamlessly connecting people
across any language, any time, and any culture. Mila can be
reached by email at [email protected], by phone at
281-589-0810, or visit her website at www.masterword.com.