Strict rules govern phone etiquette in professional settings in the West. Cellphones are to be silenced and ignored when in meetings, no matter who you are meeting with and when. If you have to answer, you shamefacedly and silently exit the room.In China, I was shocked the first time somebody answered a phone call while I was in the middle of a meeting with them. I had been in mid-sentence when their phone started ringing, and they immediately answered like it was no big deal. And of course, in China, it really isn’t a big deal.How you handle your phone calls all depends on your status in China. If you’re the most important person in the room, you can take all the calls you want, while other people have no choice but to continue on and pretend like you’re not on the phone with someone else. But if you’re a student in class, for example, and your phone goes off, you have to be a little more cautious – acceptable techniques include ducking your head under the desk to take the call or cupping your hand over your mouth and speaking softly. Which I still find pretty ridiculous sometimes.