Courtesy

The germy handshake

By Arden / March 29, 2012 /

Whenever I teach handshakes in my training seminars or keynote presentations there are always lots of questions. One I’m often asked is “what do I do if I don’t want to shake hands to avoid getting germs?” I’ve been asked this by friends who are also germ phobic and would prefer handshaking just went away.

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The angst of attending events

By Arden / March 20, 2012 /

Have you ever noticed that it is so much easier accepting invitations to events then attending the parties themselves? The invitation comes in and you’re honored your friend invited you, it sounds like a fun party, you don’t have plans that night, etc. But as the event approaches suddenly you start dreading attending.

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The power of words

By Arden / March 14, 2012 /

My husband and I often go someplace warm and sunny in the winter to escape the gray rainy Seattle days for a bit. This year we decided to go to Costa Rica. Many of our friends have been and spoke highly of the country. 

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2012 Academy Awards Musings

By Arden / February 27, 2012 /

On the red carpet, actress Maya Rudolph shared her Oscar advice with Tim Gunn, “have good posture. Stand up straight, shoulders back.” Sage advice for anyone, whether posing in your Academy Awards finery or giving a presentation to clients. Good posture communicates confidence and makes you look more elegant and self-possessed.

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Are we teaching children to be disrespectful?

By Arden / January 23, 2012 /

I occasionally teach children’s etiquette classes and I always introduce myself as Ms. Clise to the children. When I ask the kids in my class how they address their teachers and their parents’ friends the majority of them say they call these adults by their first names. I’m continually shocked by this.

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What not to do on Facebook

By Arden / January 12, 2012 /

A friend emailed me recently asking for advice. She had received a friend request on Facebook from someone she didn’t know, but knew of. She decided to grant the friend request. Immediately afterwards this person wrote on my friend’s wall asking her to like her Facebook page and include a link to the page.

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I’m RSVPing for your party

By Arden / December 14, 2011 /

The holidays are here and that means a lot of parties. Perhaps you’ve received a few invitations for holiday functions. Whether the invitations are for a holiday cocktail party or a summer barbeque the invitation most likely has the acronym RSVP on it. Let’s talk about that acronym and why people add it to their…

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Texting, texting, 1, 2, 3

By Arden / October 17, 2011 /

Recently, I received an email from a colleague who said a hiring manager from a large, somewhat conservative company, texted her the information on her interview. She responded via email because she thought texting him back would be too informal. She emailed me to ask if that was the correct thing to do. I responded…

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What do I do now?

By Arden / August 29, 2011 /

A friend of mine was recently traveling and shared something that happened to her while flying that made her wonder about the etiquette of the situation.

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The house guest who is invited back

By Arden / August 23, 2011 /

I asked my Facebook friends for etiquette dilemmas or issues they wanted me to address in my next blog post. One person asked me to speak to the etiquette of being a house guest. She asked, “What do you do with the bed linens when you’re leaving? If you’ve been there more than 3-4 days…

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