“Don’t judge a book by its cover” is a saying we are all too familiar with as most parents probably raise their children with this concept. However, let us be honest, more than often we do judge a book by its cover and first impressions do count. Yes, what is on the “inside” may sometimes be more important, but naturally most people will look at the packaging before looking at its content. Why? Because people make up their mind about you in the first 5-7 seconds of meeting yo

Business etiquette, international business etiquette, travel etiquette or social etiquette – depending on the situation and circumstance, you will have to read up, adjust and learn about each depending on your purpose. In any case, you should not see etiquette as a set of rules, but rather as a notion of communication. Like language, we need to learn the customs of a culture we are dealing with or of the country we are living in. Growing up in a country, you learn it automati

Why is it that some people seem to succeed in all they do? What is the difference between the colleague who gets promoted into higher positions a lot quicker and his colleague who seems to stay put with where he is in his career and who is not climbing the corporate ladder no matter how hard he thinks he is trying? It might not be obvious at first sight, but you will find that the more successful colleague has mastered the fine nuances of etiquette. Etiquette, or in this case

I will never forget one of the dilemmas I ran into when I went on my first trip to the Philippines. My husband introduced me to one of his best friends, but had to leave the room to welcome his other buddies. We were left alone, sitting in awkward silence. Me, being Western thought it would be polite to ask some questions and get to know his best friend. However, I noticed he would never answer my questions. He would simply raise his eyebrows quickly up and down every time I

I was very surprised and maybe somewhat shocked recently when I was told I should not be offended by something that was said to my husband when I shared to a friend something I had observed. Why was I surprised? Well, I was not offended in any kind of way. Why did the person think I was offended? Because the person thought I had been implying my discontent when I had merely stated what I had observed. What happened here? This is a simple but typical example of communication p

What exactly do we mean when we talk about culture? Is communication just about talking and getting your point across? Just as culture is not just about visible differences, nor is communication just about talking. Let us start by looking at the meaning of ‘culture’. Many people who have spent a considerable time in a foreign country would probably agree that your own culture is something you take for granted until you are actually out of your usual environment. It is only th