Tolerance and Competitiveness
Hong Kong is not known for its tolerance. There is not much tolerance for people with a handicap -to which all the steps in the city attest-, special needs children, foreigners, and people in general.
Unfortunately, this also shines through when it come to education. It is preached in schools to be outstanding, but frowned upon when one stands out.
The level of competitiveness has only risen in past years, and this puts a fair amount of pressure on students. It does the same to their parents, but that's self-induced, isn't it?
As a private tutor, I have to give into the competitiveness up until a certain level.
I have to show tolerance.
I've had to learn to deal with this. In the beginning I really disliked having to teach children whose parents were pushy, and they pretty much all were. I had to learn diplomacy. Because that's what it is, diplomacy.
Being in a foreign country, having to deal with unspoken rules you don't agree with.
Well, I lost students in the beginning because of my unwillingness to find a way around it.
It was not until after I spoke with other colleagues from Europe, that I noticed how unwavering they were, and found myself more or less defending those "Tiger Parents", as they are called in Chinese.
That was about 6 years ago.
Since then, things have only gotten worse. But I've learned to deal with it, and more importantly, have learned how to talk with those clients.
It is my business to talk to them, to understand them, and to come to an agreement accordingly.
Tolerance towards their intolerance is the only way for me to stay competitive.....
