reprinted from The Washington Times (October
31, 1996)
by Hillary Chura
The Associated Press
Avoid tragedy of manners at work with etiquette class
Chicago
(AP)—You're at lunch, trying not to embarrass yourself in front
of your boss. But you can't remember—Is that your bread plate
or the boss' on the left? Where to you put your nose? Is it OK to
lick the hollandaise from your knife?
The
answers: It's yours. On your chair. And no, never.
From
Chicago to New Orleans and from East Coast to West, adults are paying
good money for the answers to these and other etiquette questions.
Americans
lacking the social graces—and the experts say there are plenty
in this age of declining civility—are signing up to learn their
manners.
Gloria
Petersen, who has been teaching etiquette in the Chicago area since
1989, mostly at corporate seminars, said business has doubled in the
last three years. "People are tired of being boorish," she
said.
For
$495 for a day of one-on-one instruction—or $2,000 for a group
of up to 50—Petersen will instruct people in the finer points
of introductions, toasts and dining. Her clients range from their
early 20s to their 50s.
It's
money well spent, said Tim Janisch, a human resources executive at
LaSalle Northwest National Bank who has sent 60 people to charm school
for grownups.
"A
lot of our younger employees will be well-equipped with book knowledge,
sales skills and computer skills, but what we find they lack is social
grace the reality is that it does still matter," he said.
Paul
Doyle, assistant director of the masters of business program at Loyola
University said if only he had taken Petersen's course sooner, he
would have been spared embarrassment at a black-tie fund-raiser.
As
he recalled it, he turned to speak to a dining companion and the waiter
tried to take his plate before he had finished eating.
"I
was constantly fighting with waitstaff who wanted to take my plate
away because I misplaced my utensils," he said. "I learned
there is a language or a signal system."
(When
finished eating, place your knife and fore at the 4:20 position.)
Randy
Cross, who owns an executive placement company in Schaumburg, sends
all his clients for lessons on such things as how to dress, carry
themselves, present business cards, shake hands and more.
"It's
so hard to get a good, high-paying job outside of a technical job,
you need every edge you can get," he said. "Why jeopardize
an important career move like that by some annoying mannerism that
you aren't aware of?"
