Etiquette Classes - Georgia and Florida » etiquette

Tips for Graduates

Ginny Brown — Wed, 27 May 2009 12:23:06 +0000

While listening to the news this morning, I heard the story about the difficulty college graduates are having obtaining a job. These are indeed hard economic times. The news clip which I was watching interviewed three recent college graduates with good credentials. All three were being told the same line “We are not hiring at this time”. How frustrating for these young people who are ready to be a part of the job force. While times are difficult, there are some things which you can do to set yourself apart from others.

Make the best first impression that you can. Dress appropriately. Check your appearance for overall neatness. Make sure your hair is combed, clothes are pressed, and shoes are polished. Check your hygiene, make sure your breath smells fresh, go easy on the cologne or perfume, and be conservative with the amount of appropriate jewelry worn.

In addition to the above, look you interviewer in the eye. When meeting your interviewer, shake their hand and shake it correctly. Don’t give a limp handshake and don’t give a bone-crushing shake. A tip to remembering his/her name is to repeat it after he/she has introduced himself/herself. Check your posture. Holding yourself tall gives an impression of confidence. Don’t dominate the conversation. Be prepared to ask questions. Before you arrive, do your homework on the employer. Research the company’s background so you can ask intelligent questions. Here again, look the person in the eye when speaking.

After the interview, write a thank you note. This shows appreciation for the interviewer’s time , shows respect, and keeps your name in front of the other applicants.

Questions or comments are always welcome.

Ginny Brown
The Etiquette School of Northeast Georgia
Hoschton, Georgia (Hamilton Mill area, Dacula, GA)
Email Ginny Brown
770-296-4159 cell

http://etiquette-blog.com

Response to Comment on Courteous Behavior

Ginny Brown — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 13:00:39 +0000

I received a comment about the post which I wrote on Courteous Behavior. Unfortunately, the comment was lost, and I can’t post it. I can paraphrase it. The comment was that I should just get over it! In this comment, I recalled the parking lot situation which my daughter and I experienced. If you haven’t read this earlier post, please do so you will understand what I’m saying.

It wasn’t the fact that we found a cart parked behind the car. I see lots of people leave their carts loose in the parking lots and not in the specific areas designed to hold the carts. I assume that some people may have an emergency, not be physically able to walk to the cart area, and some just don’t care and think that it doesn’t matter. I am one of those people who do put their cart in the designed area. What I got annoyed with in this situation was the fact that the man saw us arriving at the car and still proceeded to block our backing out of the parking space. It wasn’t an issue of his leaving his cart loose in the lot; it was that he left it so that it blocked a car from being able to move. The other action that I was annoyed with was his total disregard for someone else’s property when he shoved the cart and let it go wherever. If it had hit my daughter’s car, it would have done damage. Respect for others just makes good sense, and we are all responsible for our actions.

I don’t think that I should have to “just get over this”. What if everyone acted like this? What if this had been your car, and you weren’t able to keep the cart from slamming into your car? How would you feel about that? Would you deliberately block someone’s car in a lot because you didn’t care if you inconveniced them? If we all acted like this man did and had such little respect for others and their property, what kind of society would we live in now?

Questions or comments are always appreciated.

Ginny Brown
The Etiquette School of Northeast Georgia
Hoschton, Georgia (Hamilton Mill area, Dacula, GA)
Email Ginny Brown
678-889-4814 office
770-296-4159 cell

http://etiquette-blog.com

History of the Word Etiquette

Ginny Brown — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 13:00:38 +0000

Have you ever wondered how the word etiquette came into being? When King LouisXIV of France was ruling his country, he had elaborate parties at his palace. His palace and the grounds were truly magnificent. The grounds had beautiful gardens with all types of flowers, and the lawns were well manicured. King Louis became quite annoyed with his guests because they kept walking all over his gardens trampling the flowers and walking over the manicured lawns. He had his workmen put signs up all over the palace grounds. These signs gave instructions such as: Walk only on the pathways; Do not walk on the grass; Watch out for my beautiful flowers. The french word for the little signs was etiquette. Throughout the years, etiquette started being the word for all the little signs which help us know what to do and what not to do. In our world today, all these signs make up our rules of manners. The signs tell us things such as: ”Don’t talk with food in your mouth.” “Remember when calling someone to come to the phone, please cover the receiver so you are not yelling in the caller’s ear.” “Always remember the basic words thank you and please.” Manners help you know what to do and how to behave in our society. The signs are a guideline to help us interact with one another.

What little signs can you think of that help you get along in today’s world? Are there some that you don’t use as much as you should? Have you forgotten some of your manners altogether? We are never too old to learn something new. As adults, we must remember our manners and help our youth learn and practice theirs.

Questions or comments are always appreciated.

Ginny Brown
The Etiquette School of Northeast Georgia
Hoschton, Georgia (Hamilton Mill area, Dacula, GA)
Email Ginny Brown
678-889-4814 office
770-296-4159 cell

http://etiquette-blog.com

Do You Know The Answers To These Etiquette Questions?

Ginny Brown — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 14:11:18 +0000

Have some fun with the questions below and see what you know!

A male is seated to the right of a female.
Place your napkin in your chair when you excuse yourself from the table.
Elbows are never permitted on the table while dining.
The date on a thank you note always appears in the top right hand corner of the paper.
It is permissible to turn your coffee cup upside down on the saucer indicating that you do not want coffee.
When introducing a person in the same age category and the same sex, it doesn’t matter who is introduced first.
It doesn’t matter which way the blade of the knife rests on your plate while eating.
When served a cream soup, rest the soup spoon on the service plate.
It doesn’t matter when you send a thank you note just as long as you send one.
When shaking someone’s hand, make sure you give them a soft handshake so as not to hurt their hand.

Questions and comments are always appreciated.

Ginny Brown
The Etiquette School of Northeast Georgia
Hoschton, Georgia (Hamilton Mill area, Dacula, GA)
Email Ginny Brown
678-889-4814 office
770-296-4159 cell

http://etiquette-blog.com

Etiquette Behavior

Ginny Brown — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 20:24:48 +0000

I read an article in the paper titled “Love Dies Over Manners at a Table in South Carolina” by Rhonda Rich. I am interested if any of you read this and what you thought. I will paraphrase this in case you didn’t read this. The article was about a lady having a lunch date with a man. The man was quite puzzled over the lady’s nice manners and etiquette. He didn’t understand why she addressed the waitress as “Ma’am. He was also puzzled why she was nice and polite to people. She always addressed people as “Ma’am” or “Sir” and said “Please” and “Thank You”. He truly didn’t understand this behavior. This was basic etiquette to her.

Yes Ma’am and Yes Sir

They talked about how they were raised, and she told him that this type of behavior was just in her nature. When she confronted him if he ever called people “Ma’am” or “Sir” he replied “no”. The reason which he gave was because the people hadn’t earned his respect. She on the other hand had been taught to be kind and friendly to everyone unless they were overly rude to her. She believed in the basic belief of courtesy and respect.

What do you think about this type of behavior? Do you think it is important to be courteous and respectful to others? Does this display good etiquette and good manners? Do you like to be treated with respect? If you have a chance to read this article, it’s a good one and has an appropriate ending.

I would love some feedback on this. Please feel free to comment on what your thoughts are.

Ginny Brown
The Etiquette School of Northeast Georgia
Hoschton, Georgia (Hamilton Mill area, Dacula, GA)
Email Ginny Brown
678-889-4814 office
770-296-4159 cell

http://etiquette-blog.com

Anna Post on Etiquette

Ginny Brown — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 05:21:39 +0000

I read an interesting article in yesterday’s paper. Anna Post, the great-great-granddaughter of Emily Post, was interviewed on etiquette by Deanna Allen of the Gwinnett Daily Post.

It was very interesting to read Ms. Post’s thoughts on the subject for which her family is famous. Ms. Post is the spokeswoman for the Emily Post Institute. She spoke about the need for etiquette in today’s society. I liked her explanation of why it is important to know and practice etiquette. I am going to paraphrase what she said when asked that question. She said that etiquette sets the rules by which we act and helps us to know what behavior to expect from others. Ms. Post talks about being in a business meeting and not having distractions. You don’t want to be in a meeting and be worrying about your etiquette skills. Your etiquette skills “smooth the way for you to focus on business relationships”.

Etiquette and Technology

Ms. Post said that one area that needs improvement in etiquette is technology. I totally agree with her. Think of the times you have experienced someone’s lack of courtesy when using a cell phone, a computer, or a blackberry in public or in a private meeting. Think of the times you have received an inappropriate e-mail. Think of the times when your business e-mails are ignored.

Business And Dining Etiquette

Two other areas Ms. Post talked about were business etiquette and dining etiquette. One thing that I totally agree with her is being as prepared as you can be in your business dealings. There are simple things as being on time which she mentioned. Have you had to wait a long time for a business appointment after arriving? How does that make you feel? Does it make you feel as if your time isn’t valued by the person with whom you have the appointment? What kind of impression does that type of behavior make on you?

I am interested if any of you read this article and what your thoughts are. Have you experienced any of the things mentioned above? Have you thought about your etiquette skills in these different areas? Are they up to par?

Questions or comments are always appreciated.

Ginny Brown
The Etiquette School of Northeast Georgia
Hoschton, Georgia (Hamilton Mill area, Dacula, GA)
Email Ginny Brown
678-889-4814 office
770-296-4159 cell

http://etiquette-blog.com

Courteous Behavior

Ginny Brown — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 05:01:32 +0000

I wrote an article on the blog before titled “Practicing Everyday Etiquette”. I want to make a few more comments on this topic. What do you think when you hear the word etiquette or manners? Do you think of dining manners? Is this the only place you relate these two words? As I mentioned before, etiquette and manners go way beyond the dining skills.

Lack Of Common Courtesy

I’m constantly amazed at people’s lack of common courtesy. I’m not talking about someone’s lack of very polished dining skills. I’m just talking about what most people consider being courteous of another person. I was out of state last week and experienced a situation that baffled me. My daughter and I were walking to her car which was parked in a large lot at a store. The person parked next to her was loading his truck as we were approaching my daughter’s car. The person clearly saw us and saw us arrive at my daughter’s car. This person left their shopping cart right behind my daughter’s car. There was no way she could back up her car without running right into the cart! My daughter and I both looked at each other and couldn’t believe what we had just seen. While the driver of the truck was backing out of his space, my daughter and I commented that the other person was extremely rude. We just looked at the other driver with surprise.

After he backed out, he then got out of his truck, shoved his cart away from our car, and drove off not looking back. What he didn’t realize or care about was the cart then started rolling towards my daughter’s car. Had she not reacted quickly, the cart would have slammed right into the side of her car. We still stood there shocked at this person’s inconsiderate behavior.

Conclusion

Etiquette and manners extend outside of the dining room. They are a part of all aspects of daily life as I mentioned earlier. They affect our interactions with others in any shopping situation, anytime we send an e-mail whether it’s to a friend or a business associate, whenever we are on the telephone land line or cell, to registering a complaint. How you conduct yourself determines how someone will respond to you.

Think about an experience you’ve had that might be similar to the one my daughter and I experienced last week. What did you think? Were you being courteous and someone else wasn’t? Could your experience have been avoided, and if so, how could it? I welcome any comments which you would like to share.

Questions or comments are always appreciated.

Ginny Brown
The Etiquette School of Northeast Georgia
Hoschton, Georgia (Hamilton Mill area, Dacula, GA)
Email Ginny Brown
678-889-4814 office
770-296-4159 cell

http://etiquette-blog.com