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Not your grandmother’s etiquette

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Hello and welcome to the Clise Etiquette blog, a place to discuss savvy and not so savvy decorum. Etiquette may sound like a stuffy or old-fashioned topic, but it’s really just about making yourself and others more comfortable by being respectful, kind and professional.

I am an etiquette consultant, speaker, trainer, coach and author of Spinach in Your Boss’s Teeth: Essential Etiquette for Professional Success. I share etiquette and protocol tips, stories and techniques that you can use to feel more confident, at ease and successful socially and in the workplace.

I invite you to share your thoughts and questions on the situations in life that confuse you, anger you, give you pause or make you proud. Please feel free to let me know if there are topics you’d like me to discuss or hear more about. Some of my best posts come from questions or stories readers share with me.

Thank you for stopping by. I invite you to subscribe to my blog by clicking on the green button.

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Dogs on the Loose

By Arden | Mar 17, 2010 | Courtesy,  Pet etiquette | 2 Comments
I was recently walking around Greenlake with a friend on a sunny, therefore packed, day. Twice I encountered dogs that were running loose, their owners unconcerned. In the first situation we were rounding a corner and I saw a dog running towards the water across the concrete path in a very congested area. A rollerbladder…
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The Academy Awards: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

By Arden | Mar 8, 2010 | Civility,  Courtesy,  Protocol,  Public speaking
As I do every year, I watched the Academy Awards with a few friends. We meet at one friend’s house, enjoy a potluck dinner and gab about the dresses, the emcee(s), the Academy winners and losers. This year had its usual fill of beautiful and not so beautiful moments. We can learn many etiquette lessons by…
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Are you Polly Poise or Freak-Out Fred?

By Arden | Mar 4, 2010 | Business Etiquette,  Courtesy,  Etiquette for Children,  Professional image,  Social Etiquette
I recently taught a social skills etiquette class to some high school students from Puget Sound Community School. One of the topics I covered was poise. I asked my students what poise meant to them. They replied “good posture”, “being confident” and “grace”. While those are part of poise there is more to it.
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Public Speaking Tips

By Arden | Feb 15, 2010 | Business Etiquette,  Public speaking
I’ve been working with a client who is preparing for an important speech. One of the things we discussed is the protocol of introducing someone. Many speakers are unaware of proper speaking protocol, so I thought I’d share some tips.
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Job Search Etiquette

By Arden | Feb 1, 2010 | Business Etiquette,  Dining Etiquette,  Interview etiquette,  Networking etiquette
I asked my Facebook fans for ideas for a blog post and got some really good questions. They were focused on job search etiquette. Q. When meeting a potential employer for coffee or a meal to discuss the possibility of working together who picks up the tab? And how do you handle the awkwardness when…
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Don’t Be Nosy

By Arden | Jan 25, 2010 | Courtesy,  Social Etiquette
I stopped in the grocery store the other day, looking for a special item in addition to the ginger snap cookies my husband had requested. I didn’t find what I wanted but in addition to the ginger snaps I grabbed a bag of potato chips that were calling to me and some jelly beans for…
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The Trouble with “You Guys”

By Arden | Jan 17, 2010 | Professional image,  Public speaking | 16 Comments
I have a problem. It’s something I’ve struggled with for a long time and until recently didn’t realize how serious the problem was. I’m working on changing, but it hasn’t been easy, especially since most people have the same problem. It’s a “you guys” problem. As in, “Have you guys seen the movie Avatar?” Those…
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A Special Tea

By Arden | Jan 12, 2010 | Social Etiquette,  Tea etiquette | 2 Comments
A second cousin of mine, who I have been corresponding with via email and through letters, mentioned she was coming to Seattle for her grandnephew’s baptism. I was excited to see her as it had been probably 30 years since I’d seen her last. I invited her over for afternoon tea. I have a cute…
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Make Kindness Your New Year’s Resolution

By Arden | Dec 30, 2009 | Civility,  Courtesy | 2 Comments
I recently wrapped up my 14 week kindness “class”. This class was offered to the general public by the Puget Sound Community School, a private school in Seattle for 11 to 18 year olds. The school founder, Andy Smallman, created the class “to start ripples of kindness that will be felt in far away places,…
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Is Chivalry Still Appropriate Today?

By Arden | Dec 23, 2009 | Civility,  Courtesy,  Etiquette for Children | 8 Comments
I’ve been asked to teach a kid’s etiquette class to both boys and girls. As I’ve been putting together the curriculum, I had to pause when it came to teaching appropriate behavior for boys for treating girls and women in this modern day. I wondered should men still be expected to open the door for a woman,…
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