If you do business in Myanmar, what is more valuable than speaking Burmese?Understanding Chinlone.What is Chinlone?Chinlone is the ultimate national sport par excellence. It is similar to hacky-sack, but with hundreds of years of development that has incorporated traditional dance and Buddhist philosophy into its gameplay style. Playing it well is an art, but the basic rules are simple:1. Do not control the ball with your hands e2. Try to keep the ball high during the game. At the start of the game, the men form a circle and warm up by passing a rattan ball between each other using every part of their bodies except their hands. When the time is right, one of the players enters the circle and becomes the soloist or the prince. The prince juggles the ball using techniques that evolved from traditional Burmese dance forms. The prince's goal is to perform the most difficult moves with the most beautiful form. Success is a measure of how aesthetically satisfying a move is. The other players dance around him in a circle. They support him by preparing him with good passes and keeping the ball high when it goes away from the prince. False starts and turnovers are part of the game and are essential to understanding the Burmese character. Burmese love children. Most children have countless adults who make time to adore and spoil them. Older siblings are taught to sacrifice themselves for their younger brothers and sisters. Everyone shares everything. When children meet strangers, they are taught to call everyone aunt, uncle, big brother or little sister. Everyone is physically affectionate and caring. Burmese children think life is great. As they get older, they become protagonists... middle of paper... they are rewarded. With this new system, many people feel dissatisfied because their basic cultural needs are still motivated by the same desire for group unity, harmony, and concern that chinlone exemplifies but that modern lifestyles often fail to satisfy . Understanding chinlone means understanding what drives the Burmese and how to motivate them. So when we meet friends or are negotiating deals we should decide whether we want to become th-nge-gyin: or just meiq-s'we and then check our actions to see if they are building trust or building barriers. We should also remember that Burmese culture emphasizes consensus and seeks agreement. That true friends sacrifice for each other and that people who never need help, never need friends. And that people sometimes drop the ball and that it's as much a part of life as the game is, so if it happens, accept it and move on..