(lighthearted music)
- That's Chinese for hello.
I am not destroying important evidence.
(flame whooshes)
I'm Miss Communication, and if you're watching this,
it means you're as passionate about language
as I am about maintaining my innocence.
Today's lesson will demonstrate the perils of misusing
one word when interviewing for your dream job.
Let's travel to Shanghai.
(upbeat music)
Meet John, John is a farm boy from Montana,
but he's just moved to Shanghai because he landed
his dream job working for a company that designs jeans
that zip off into shorts.
Today he's meeting his new CEO, Mr. Wong.
John wanted this job so bad that he may have exaggerated
how fluent he was in Mandarin.
But it worked, and he's about to sign his contract.
(bell dings) (relaxing instrumental music)
(bell dings) (ominous music)
John has encountered a very serious problem.
He meant to tell his boss that the hardest part
of moving was selling his ma, which means horse.
But he used the wrong tone, and said ma, which means mother.
Let's see how the situation unfolds.
(bell dings)
(zipper whooshes)
(unzips slowly) (bell dings)
Poor John, this is the only company in the world
that manufactures zip-off jeans.
He'll never get his dream job now.
Shall we go back and let him redo everything,
knowing how to properly pronounce ma?
Let's do it.
(easygoing music)
(bell dings)
(laughs)
(suspenseful drum roll)
(speaks in foreign language) (zipper whooshes)
(John gasps)
(dramatic music) (sign creaks)