The practice of moderation embodied in the Confucian doctrine of the golden mean is a sensible policy for everyday life but can lead to bizarre corporate interpretations.
Talk to Jiang Wen, an editor in a state publishing house. He has always enjoyed doing his job and so puts in more than his fair share of time and effort into writing and editing. In recent weeks, however, he has slowed.
Why? By working hard and being enthusiastic, he has raised eyebrows among his less ardent colleagues. Now, to conform and be accepted, he works at their pace.
'It is not easy to shine at the workplace without incurring the wrath of your colleagues,' he lamented.
The syndrome is not peculiar to Mr Jiang's publishing house, as it also occurs in firms throughout the world.
On the whole, however, incentive systems in most foreign companies reward excellence and hard work and penalise sloth and mediocrity.