As I’ve often said, I get inspiration for this career success blog in odd places.  I’ve been having some pain in my right heel lately.  Last week I went to see a podiatrist about it – Dr. Gene Rosenthall.  Usually, I don’t enjoy doctor visits – long waits, doctors who are condescending, few answers to my problem.

I had the exact opposite experience with Gene Rosethall.  He saw me within two or three minutes of my scheduled appointment — and apologized for keeping me waiting.  He came in an introduced himself as “Gene Rosenthall,” not “Dr. Rosenthall,” putting us on an even footing; two people who were meeting to solve a problem.  He showed me the results of the X-Ray taken by his assistant, and then asked if it were OK with me if he left for a minute to plug in the computer, so he wouldn’t lose any data.  In short, he was extremely polite and engaging.

I enjoyed this visit and didn’t even mind that the X-Ray showed that I have a bone spur on my right heel – probably as a result of all those years on the rugby pitch.  If you need a podiatrist in Denver, you need to see Dr. Gene Rosenthall at Rose Medical Center.

There is a career success point here.  Gene Rosenthall is a gentleman.  Being a gentleman never goes out of style.  Tweet 76 in my career advice book Success Tweets says “Always act like a lady or gentleman.  It’s not old fashioned.  It’s smart business and leads to your life and career success.”

Last year, I did a series of podcasts on career and life success.  Lydia Ramsey was one of my guests.  Lydia is the author of a great book, Manners That Sell.  She is a leading authority on business etiquette and protocol.  She works with corporations, non-profit and educational institutions, helping people avoid the faux pas that can derail a career.  She also writes a weekly business etiquette column in the Savannah Morning News.  Recently, Lydia and I coauthored a book called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.

Here is an excerpt of my interview with Lydia.

Bud:  One of the things I’d like to discuss is a word I use a lot.  And that word is “gentleman”.  I tell people that I try to conduct myself as a gentleman at all times.  When I say this, I sometimes get some pretty weird looks.  I’m wondering what your take is on this.  Is being a gentleman or being a lady a dated concept?

Lydia:  Well, in some ways I think that it has become that way.  We’ve gotten so politically correct with the terms that we use that we’ve lost some important words in our language, like gentleman and lady.  We’re just overly cautious.  Many people in business don’t necessarily want to be referred to as gentlemen and ladies.  They want to be men and ladies.  On the other hand, there are organizations like the Ritz Carlton who want everybody to be referred to, including their own employees, as ladies and gentlemen.  Their motto is “ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen”.

Bud:  That’s really interesting.  I take it just from what you write and your whole focus on etiquette that being a gentleman or a lady can never be harmful to your career.

Lydia:  Right, you can never be too nice.  And you can never be too courteous and respectful of other people.  That’s really what etiquette is about and what manners are about.

Bud:  I agree.  So why are manners and etiquette so important for success?

Lydia:  Well, I like to think about etiquette and manners as not necessarily about the rules, but about the relationships that we have with people and the way that we treat people.  And all of this, as you know, is really built on relationships… relationships with your clients, with your customers, with your coworkers.  Treating people well and with courtesy and respect is a way to build those relationships and to maintain them.

Bud:  That’s interesting.  Tell me a little bit more about this – not rules, but relationships.  I’m interested because I think a lot of people feel they need to pull out their Amy Vanderbilt or Emily Post book and make sure that they do things exactly correct.  What I’m hearing you say is that’s not as important as the way you treat other people.

Lydia:  That’s right.  If your mindset is really about being courteous to other people and just basically being nice to other people then you’re going to be exhibiting good manners.  That’s really what it’s about.  It’s not about a whole set of rules that somebody came up with that were designed to make us all a little crazy or paranoid or whatever.  But it’s really about knowing what to do in certain cases.  Obviously you want to do the right thing.  But you will be doing the right thing if you’re thinking about the other person’s comfort and the other person’s ease.

Bud:  So the real key thing is to think about the other person, put yourself in their place, try to make them feel comfortable and you’re likely to not go too far wrong from an etiquette or a manners point.

Lydia:  That’s right.

I like Lydia Ramsey’s common sense approach to etiquette and how it can help you create the life and career success you deserve:

• Think about other people.
• Put yourself in their place.
• Try to make them feel comfortable.

If you do this, you won’t go wrong from an etiquette or manners standpoint.  What could be easier or more common sense?  In other words, most etiquette comes down to behaving like a lady or gentleman – the point I make in Success Tweet 76.

Zach Bussey is a Twitter friend of mine.  He lives in Toronto and I live in Denver.  Isn’t the Internet a great thing?  Zach really understands social media.  A while back, Zach and I exchanged a few tweets on the importance of saying thank you.  Here’s one of the tweets Zach sent me…

“The word ‘thanks’ is used less and less.  It’s unfortunate, because it’s the kind of word that can change someone’s day.”

I agree.  A sincere “thank you” always makes my day.  I really appreciate the people who take the time to thank me for these blog posts and my daily success quotes.  My day gets a little brighter every time someone thanks me.

That’s why I end every one of my blog posts with, “Thanks for reading my daily musings on life and career success.”  I really appreciate the time you take to read my blog.  Thanking you is the least I can do to show this appreciation.

The career success coach point here is simple common sense.   Etiquette is a matter of common sense.  Lydia Ramsey, a leading etiquette consultant, says it’s as simple as one, two, three: 1) Think about other people; 2) Put yourself in their place; 3) Do whatever you can to make them feel comfortable.  Follow the career advice in Tweet 76 in Success Tweets.  “Always act like a lady or gentleman.  It’s not old-fashioned; it’s smart business and leads to a successful life and career.”  Ladies and gentlemen are gracious.  They don’t worry about the rules.  They worry about making other people feel comfortable and accepted.  Saying “Thank you” often is a great way to brand yourself as a lady or gentleman.  And, as Zach Bussey points out, “The word ‘thanks’ is used less and less.  It’s unfortunate, because it’s the kind of word that can change someone’s day.”  Go ahead, be a lady or gentleman.  Other people will like you, you’ll like yourself more, and you’ll be on the road to the career success you deserve.

That’s my career advice prompted by a visit to Dr. Gene Rosenthall.  What do you think?  Please take a minute to share your thoughts with us in a comment.  And as always, thanks for reading my daily musings on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, please download a free copy of my popular career advice book Success Tweets and its companion piece Success Tweets Explained.  The first gives you 140 bits of career success advice tweet style — in 140 characters or less.  The second is a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

PPS: I opened a membership site on September 1.  It’s called My Corporate Climb and is devoted to helping people create career success inside large corporations.  To celebrate the grand opening, I’m giving away a new career advice book I’ve written called I Want YOU…To Succeed in Your Corporate Climb.  You can find out about the membership site and get the career advice in I Want YOU… for free by going to http://www.mycorporateclimb.

As I’ve often said, I get inspiration for this career success blog in odd places.  I’ve been having some pain in my right heel lately.  Last week I went to see a podiatrist about it – Dr. Gene Rosenthall.  Usually, I don’t enjoy doctor visits – long waits, doctors who are condescending, few answers to my problem.

I had the exact opposite experience with Gene Rosethall.  He saw me within two or three minutes of my scheduled appointment — and apologized for keeping me waiting.  He came in an introduced himself as “Gene Rosenthall,” not “Dr. Rosenthall,” putting us on an even footing; two people who were meeting to solve a problem.  He showed me the results of the X-Ray taken by his assistant, and then asked if it were OK with me if he left for a minute to plug in the computer, so he wouldn’t lose any data.  In short, he was extremely polite and engaging.

I enjoyed this visit and didn’t even mind that the X-Ray showed that I have a bone spur on my right heel – probably as a result of all those years on the rugby pitch.  If you need a podiatrist in Denver, you need to see Dr. Gene Rosenthall at Rose Medical Center.

There is a career success point here.  Gene Rosenthall is a gentleman.  Being a gentleman never goes out of style.  Tweet 76 in my career advice book Success Tweets says “Always act like a lady or gentleman.  It’s not old fashioned.  It’s smart business and leads to your life and career success.”

Last year, I did a series of podcasts on career and life success.  Lydia Ramsey was one of my guests.  Lydia is the author of a great book, Manners That Sell.  She is a leading authority on business etiquette and protocol.  She works with corporations, non-profit and educational institutions, helping people avoid the faux pas that can derail a career.  She also writes a weekly business etiquette column in the Savannah Morning News.  Recently, Lydia and I coauthored a book called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.

Here is an excerpt of my interview with Lydia.

Bud:  One of the things I’d like to discuss is a word I use a lot.  And that word is “gentleman”.  I tell people that I try to conduct myself as a gentleman at all times.  When I say this, I sometimes get some pretty weird looks.  I’m wondering what your take is on this.  Is being a gentleman or being a lady a dated concept?

Lydia:  Well, in some ways I think that it has become that way.  We’ve gotten so politically correct with the terms that we use that we’ve lost some important words in our language, like gentleman and lady.  We’re just overly cautious.  Many people in business don’t necessarily want to be referred to as gentlemen and ladies.  They want to be men and ladies.  On the other hand, there are organizations like the Ritz Carlton who want everybody to be referred to, including their own employees, as ladies and gentlemen.  Their motto is “ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen”.

Bud:  That’s really interesting.  I take it just from what you write and your whole focus on etiquette that being a gentleman or a lady can never be harmful to your career.

Lydia:  Right, you can never be too nice.  And you can never be too courteous and respectful of other people.  That’s really what etiquette is about and what manners are about.

Bud:  I agree.  So why are manners and etiquette so important for success?

Lydia:  Well, I like to think about etiquette and manners as not necessarily about the rules, but about the relationships that we have with people and the way that we treat people.  And all of this, as you know, is really built on relationships… relationships with your clients, with your customers, with your coworkers.  Treating people well and with courtesy and respect is a way to build those relationships and to maintain them.

Bud:  That’s interesting.  Tell me a little bit more about this – not rules, but relationships.  I’m interested because I think a lot of people feel they need to pull out their Amy Vanderbilt or Emily Post book and make sure that they do things exactly correct.  What I’m hearing you say is that’s not as important as the way you treat other people.

Lydia:  That’s right.  If your mindset is really about being courteous to other people and just basically being nice to other people then you’re going to be exhibiting good manners.  That’s really what it’s about.  It’s not about a whole set of rules that somebody came up with that were designed to make us all a little crazy or paranoid or whatever.  But it’s really about knowing what to do in certain cases.  Obviously you want to do the right thing.  But you will be doing the right thing if you’re thinking about the other person’s comfort and the other person’s ease.

Bud:  So the real key thing is to think about the other person, put yourself in their place, try to make them feel comfortable and you’re likely to not go too far wrong from an etiquette or a manners point.

Lydia:  That’s right.

I like Lydia Ramsey’s common sense approach to etiquette and how it can help you create the life and career success you deserve:

• Think about other people.
• Put yourself in their place.
• Try to make them feel comfortable.

If you do this, you won’t go wrong from an etiquette or manners standpoint.  What could be easier or more common sense?  In other words, most etiquette comes down to behaving like a lady or gentleman – the point I make in Success Tweet 76.

Zach Bussey is a Twitter friend of mine.  He lives in Toronto and I live in Denver.  Isn’t the Internet a great thing?  Zach really understands social media.  A while back, Zach and I exchanged a few tweets on the importance of saying thank you.  Here’s one of the tweets Zach sent me…

“The word ‘thanks’ is used less and less.  It’s unfortunate, because it’s the kind of word that can change someone’s day.”

I agree.  A sincere “thank you” always makes my day.  I really appreciate the people who take the time to thank me for these blog posts and my daily success quotes.  My day gets a little brighter every time someone thanks me.

That’s why I end every one of my blog posts with, “Thanks for reading my daily musings on life and career success.”  I really appreciate the time you take to read my blog.  Thanking you is the least I can do to show this appreciation.

The career success coach point here is simple common sense.   Etiquette is a matter of common sense.  Lydia Ramsey, a leading etiquette consultant, says it’s as simple as one, two, three: 1) Think about other people; 2) Put yourself in their place; 3) Do whatever you can to make them feel comfortable.  Follow the career advice in Tweet 76 in Success Tweets.  “Always act like a lady or gentleman.  It’s not old-fashioned; it’s smart business and leads to a successful life and career.”  Ladies and gentlemen are gracious.  They don’t worry about the rules.  They worry about making other people feel comfortable and accepted.  Saying “Thank you” often is a great way to brand yourself as a lady or gentleman.  And, as Zach Bussey points out, “The word ‘thanks’ is used less and less.  It’s unfortunate, because it’s the kind of word that can change someone’s day.”  Go ahead, be a lady or gentleman.  Other people will like you, you’ll like yourself more, and you’ll be on the road to the career success you deserve.

That’s my career advice prompted by a visit to Dr. Gene Rosenthall.  What do you think?  Please take a minute to share your thoughts with us in a comment.  And as always, thanks for reading my daily musings on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, please download a free copy of my popular career advice book Success Tweets and its companion piece Success Tweets Explained.  The first gives you 140 bits of career success advice tweet style — in 140 characters or less.  The second is a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

PPS: I opened a membership site on September 1.  It’s called My Corporate Climb and is devoted to helping people create career success inside large corporations.  To celebrate the grand opening, I’m giving away a new career advice book I’ve written called I Want YOU…To Succeed in Your Corporate Climb.  You can find out about the membership site and get the career advice in I Want YOU… for free by going to http://www.mycorporateclimb.

As I mentioned in my Monday August 1 post, I have a new career advice book being released this month.  It’s called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  Lydia Ramsey of Manners that Sell is my coauthor.

I’ve decided to give readers of this career success blog a sneak peek at the common sense tweets in Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact this week.  Here are some of the common sense tweets you’ll find inside the book.

Meeting Manners

• If you are a first-timer in a group that meets regularly, ask where you should sit.  Otherwise you risk taking someone’s usual seat.
• Don’t try to look more important than you are.  Constantly checking your watch or cell phone is distracting and rude to those around you.
• Pay attention to your body language.  If you are slumping, slouching and looking about the room, you are sending a negative message.
• If you have a valid reason for leaving a meeting early, tell the speaker in advance to avoid any misunderstanding or appearing rude.
• Prepare for the meeting.  If an agenda is sent out in advance, read it, take a copy with you, and be ready to participate or take action.
• Arrive on time.  When you arrive late, you send a message that your time is more valuable than others or the meeting is not important.
• Close your laptop, shut off your phone.  Respect the other people in the meeting by giving them your full attention.

Business Introductions

• When you encounter someone you don’t know, immediately introduce yourself.  Don’t wait for someone else to do it for you.
• When you encounter someone you have not seen for a while, reintroduce yourself.  Possibly that person has forgotten your name.
• When you can’t remember someone’s name, reintroduce yourself.  Most likely he or she will respond in kind with their name.
• When making business introductions, introduce junior people to senior people.  Start by saying the name of the senior person first.
• Never avoid an introduction because you can’t remember someone’s name.  Confess your memory lapse and ask for the name.

The Business Handshake

• People will judge you by your handshake.  Yours should be firm, brief and inviting, not limp or bone-crushing.
• Men and women in business shake hands in the same manner.  A man no longer needs to wait for the woman to extend her hand first.
• Always stand to shake hands.  It shows courtesy and respect for the other person.  By not standing, the business person loses credibility.
• If for some reason, such as an injury, you are unable to shake hands, always offer an apology and an explanation.

Customer Courtesy

• The three essentials of customer courtesy, which is the same as customer service, are eye contact, a smile, and using your customer’s name.
• When addressing customers, use their title (Mr., Mrs., or Ms.) until they give you permission to call them by their first name.
• Be yourself, as Mom told you.  Don’t put on airs to impress clients.  They will see right through you and soon become former clients.

International Business

• Be prepared before you travel.  Read as much as you can and talk to other people about the countries where you will be doing business.
• The handshake is the universal business greeting.  While there are variations on the firmness and length, the right hand is always used.
• Hugging and kissing are common greetings in business settings in parts of Europe and Asia.  Do your homework and know what to expect.
• Learn to bow.  Most Asian cultures have adapted to the handshake.  Show respect by learning their traditional customs as well.
• Business attire is as important in other countries as it is here.  Dress to the culture, which is often more conservative than U.S. dress.
• Always send your host a hand-written thank you note.  This is one tradition that will hopefully never change, no matter where you are.

One More Thing…

• Knowing is not enough.  Poised and polished professionals will read and act on this career advice.  Be poised, polished and professional.

I hope you found these common sense tweets to be helpful in your journey to the life and career success you want and deserve.  I’ll let you know when Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact will be available. It will be out sometime in August 2011.  As always, thanks for reading my daily thoughts on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, you can download a free copy of my latest career success book Success Tweets Explained.  It’s a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

As I mentioned in my Monday August 1 post, I have a new career advice book being released this month.  It’s called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  Lydia Ramsey of Manners that Sell is my coauthor.

I’ve decided to give readers of this career success blog a sneak peek at the common sense tweets in Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact this week.  Here are some of the common sense tweets you’ll find inside the book.

Networking Etiquette

• Make the most of networking events by arriving five minutes early.  That gives you the opportunity to speak to people as they enter.
• Make it a point to work the room and speak to as many people as possible.  Set a goal of how many people you want to connect with.
• When you meet someone at a networking function, make sure you remember and use his or her name.  People love the sound of their name.
• Be warm, pleasant, gracious and sensitive to the interpersonal needs and anxieties of others at networking events.
• Speak from your heart.  Show that you care about yourself and the person with whom you are in conversation.
• Demonstrate your understanding of others’ points of view.  Listen well; ask questions if you don’t understand.
• Use the 2/3 – 1/3 rule in networking conversations.  Listen two-thirds of the time; speak one-third of the time.
• Focus your complete attention on the person with whom you are speaking.  Don’t look for others with whom you want to connect.
• Look for common ground with people you meet at networking functions.  Find out about them, their life, their passions.
• Never approach two people in conversation.  You may be interrupting a private discussion.  Find groups of three or more or someone alone.
• Go prepared with conversation starters.  Have at least three topics you can discuss if the conversation lags.  Stick with safe subjects.
• Make sure you have an exit line in case you get stuck with one person.  Offer your exit line after you have finished speaking.
• Follow up after the event.  If you promised to call, pick up the phone the next day to arrange that meeting or lunch you suggested.

Business Cards

• Never leave your office without plenty of your business cards.  There is nothing more unprofessional than not having them with you.
• Keep your cards in a business card case that protects them from wear and tear.  A crumpled business card makes a poor impression.
• Know where your business cards are at all times.  The person who has to go through a self body search to find them loses credibility.
• Hand them out with discretion.  Doling them out in multiples of 12 says your cards are of little value.
• Give and receive cards with your right hand—the hand of discretion.  This makes a big difference when doing business internationally.
• Give the card so the person who is receiving it can read it without having to turn it around.
• Always comment on a card you receive.  Note the logo, the business name or other piece of information to place value on the card.
• Keep your business cards up-to-date.  When any information changes, run, don’t walk, to your nearest printer for new cards.
• Don’t write notes to yourself on someone else’s business card during the exchange.  Do that later out of sight.
• Don’t be aggressive when handing out your business cards.  Wait to be asked or request the other person’s card first.

Email Etiquette

• Email is now the dominant form of business communication.  Uniform policies regarding its use and format should be in place.
• Keep it brief.  Email is intended to be fast and efficient.  If your message is lengthy, it will not be read.
• To be appealing, your email message should be made up of short sentences, short paragraphs and lots of white space.
• Make sure that your subject line is a summary of your message; that it aligns with the content and what the reader is expecting to see.
• Limit your email to one topic.  You’ll find your results go up when you keep to a single subject.  Create another email for another topic.
• Email has no tone of voice or body language.  Choose your words carefully so that your message will not be misunderstood.
• Email is not for disagreements.  Never argue in email.  Walk down the hall or pick up the phone for sensitive discussions.
• Use spell check, but remember to go beyond spell check.  It only knows if the word is spelled correctly, not whether it is used correctly.
• Email is not private, so write nothing in your message that you couldn’t bear to see on a billboard on your way into work.
• Watch those email threads that grow like tumbleweeds.  Before you hit “reply,” review the chain of messages and consider “delete.”

Telephone Courtesy

• Whether you are placing or answering a call, identify yourself immediately.  The person on the other end should not have to ask your name.
• Ask permission before placing callers on hold and wait until you hear their answer before doing so.
• Before you transfer a call, make sure the person to whom you are sending your caller is available and has the correct information.
• Eating, drinking or chewing while talking on the phone is rude.  The other person may not be able to see you, but will surely hear you.
• Give callers your full attention.  It is obvious when people are multi-tasking while on the phone and it devalues the other person.
• Live people take precedence over phone calls.  Continue in-person conversations rather than answering your cell phone.
• Cell phones should be kept off and out of sight when you are meeting with others.  Just having yours on vibrate sends the wrong message.

Successful Social Media

• The common sense rules of courtesy and civility that apply to in-person relationships are more important online.
• Social networks allow you to get known and help others.  Give value and you will build a strong reputation online.
• Social networking is reciprocal.  When you help people, they’ll be more likely to remember you and return the favor.
• Avoid being overly aggressive in social networking.  If you are too persistent in pushing your agenda, you can damage your reputation.
• LinkedIn is the best social network for business professionals.  Get active on it.
• For online profiles, use your real information and pictures.  Your cat may be adorable, but that isn’t the face you want to present to the world.
• Post nothing you wouldn’t want a would-be boss to see.  Potential employers will Google you and make judgments based on what they find.
• Preserve your online reputation.  Keep your promises when offering to facilitate a personal introduction or find a phone number.
• Use a different account or profile for your personal connections or websites.  Remember, it is best not to mix business and pleasure.
• Offer real value, ideas and links to ideas that people can use to help their career or their business.
• Create screen names that reflect how you want to present yourself.  Clever is good; cute is inappropriate.  Your name is often the best choice.
• Twitter is a great site to share information, meet new people and build your brand.  Tweet items that have benefit for others.
• Retweet items that you think will be beneficial to others.  You will gain more Twitter followers this way.
• Check out the people that befriend you or follow you.  Others will judge you by the company you keep.  Unwanted “friends” can cause harm.
• Compose your posts, updates or tweets in a word processing document before you post them, so you can check spelling and grammar.
• Remember there are no guarantees of privacy in social networks (even with settings).  Anything can be cut, pasted, and sent.
• Never put anything on the Internet that you wouldn’t want your boss, your coworkers or clients to see.  It is not a secure place.
• Check your Klout score frequently.  Others do.

I hope you found these tweets to be helpful in your journey to the life and career success you want and deserve.  Come back tomorrow for more common sense tweets from Lydia Ramsey and my forthcoming book Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  As always, thanks for reading my daily thoughts on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, you can download a free copy of my latest career success book Success Tweets Explained.  It’s a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

As I mentioned in my Monday August 1 post, I have a new career advice book being released this month.  It’s called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  Lydia Ramsey of Manners that Sell is my coauthor.

I’ve decided to give readers of this career success blog a sneak peek at the common sense tweets in Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact this week.  Here are some of the common sense tweets you’ll find inside the book.

Networking Etiquette

• Make the most of networking events by arriving five minutes early.  That gives you the opportunity to speak to people as they enter.
• Make it a point to work the room and speak to as many people as possible.  Set a goal of how many people you want to connect with.
• When you meet someone at a networking function, make sure you remember and use his or her name.  People love the sound of their name.
• Be warm, pleasant, gracious and sensitive to the interpersonal needs and anxieties of others at networking events.
• Speak from your heart.  Show that you care about yourself and the person with whom you are in conversation.
• Demonstrate your understanding of others’ points of view.  Listen well; ask questions if you don’t understand.
• Use the 2/3 – 1/3 rule in networking conversations.  Listen two-thirds of the time; speak one-third of the time.
• Focus your complete attention on the person with whom you are speaking.  Don’t look for others with whom you want to connect.
• Look for common ground with people you meet at networking functions.  Find out about them, their life, their passions.
• Never approach two people in conversation.  You may be interrupting a private discussion.  Find groups of three or more or someone alone.
• Go prepared with conversation starters.  Have at least three topics you can discuss if the conversation lags.  Stick with safe subjects.
• Make sure you have an exit line in case you get stuck with one person.  Offer your exit line after you have finished speaking.
• Follow up after the event.  If you promised to call, pick up the phone the next day to arrange that meeting or lunch you suggested.

Business Cards

• Never leave your office without plenty of your business cards.  There is nothing more unprofessional than not having them with you.
• Keep your cards in a business card case that protects them from wear and tear.  A crumpled business card makes a poor impression.
• Know where your business cards are at all times.  The person who has to go through a self body search to find them loses credibility.
• Hand them out with discretion.  Doling them out in multiples of 12 says your cards are of little value.
• Give and receive cards with your right hand—the hand of discretion.  This makes a big difference when doing business internationally.
• Give the card so the person who is receiving it can read it without having to turn it around.
• Always comment on a card you receive.  Note the logo, the business name or other piece of information to place value on the card.
• Keep your business cards up-to-date.  When any information changes, run, don’t walk, to your nearest printer for new cards.
• Don’t write notes to yourself on someone else’s business card during the exchange.  Do that later out of sight.
• Don’t be aggressive when handing out your business cards.  Wait to be asked or request the other person’s card first.

Email Etiquette

• Email is now the dominant form of business communication.  Uniform policies regarding its use and format should be in place.
• Keep it brief.  Email is intended to be fast and efficient.  If your message is lengthy, it will not be read.
• To be appealing, your email message should be made up of short sentences, short paragraphs and lots of white space.
• Make sure that your subject line is a summary of your message; that it aligns with the content and what the reader is expecting to see.
• Limit your email to one topic.  You’ll find your results go up when you keep to a single subject.  Create another email for another topic.
• Email has no tone of voice or body language.  Choose your words carefully so that your message will not be misunderstood.
• Email is not for disagreements.  Never argue in email.  Walk down the hall or pick up the phone for sensitive discussions.
• Use spell check, but remember to go beyond spell check.  It only knows if the word is spelled correctly, not whether it is used correctly.
• Email is not private, so write nothing in your message that you couldn’t bear to see on a billboard on your way into work.
• Watch those email threads that grow like tumbleweeds.  Before you hit “reply,” review the chain of messages and consider “delete.”

Telephone Courtesy

• Whether you are placing or answering a call, identify yourself immediately.  The person on the other end should not have to ask your name.
• Ask permission before placing callers on hold and wait until you hear their answer before doing so.
• Before you transfer a call, make sure the person to whom you are sending your caller is available and has the correct information.
• Eating, drinking or chewing while talking on the phone is rude.  The other person may not be able to see you, but will surely hear you.
• Give callers your full attention.  It is obvious when people are multi-tasking while on the phone and it devalues the other person.
• Live people take precedence over phone calls.  Continue in-person conversations rather than answering your cell phone.
• Cell phones should be kept off and out of sight when you are meeting with others.  Just having yours on vibrate sends the wrong message.

Successful Social Media

• The common sense rules of courtesy and civility that apply to in-person relationships are more important online.
• Social networks allow you to get known and help others.  Give value and you will build a strong reputation online.
• Social networking is reciprocal.  When you help people, they’ll be more likely to remember you and return the favor.
• Avoid being overly aggressive in social networking.  If you are too persistent in pushing your agenda, you can damage your reputation.
• LinkedIn is the best social network for business professionals.  Get active on it.
• For online profiles, use your real information and pictures.  Your cat may be adorable, but that isn’t the face you want to present to the world.
• Post nothing you wouldn’t want a would-be boss to see.  Potential employers will Google you and make judgments based on what they find.
• Preserve your online reputation.  Keep your promises when offering to facilitate a personal introduction or find a phone number.
• Use a different account or profile for your personal connections or websites.  Remember, it is best not to mix business and pleasure.
• Offer real value, ideas and links to ideas that people can use to help their career or their business.
• Create screen names that reflect how you want to present yourself.  Clever is good; cute is inappropriate.  Your name is often the best choice.
• Twitter is a great site to share information, meet new people and build your brand.  Tweet items that have benefit for others.
• Retweet items that you think will be beneficial to others.  You will gain more Twitter followers this way.
• Check out the people that befriend you or follow you.  Others will judge you by the company you keep.  Unwanted “friends” can cause harm.
• Compose your posts, updates or tweets in a word processing document before you post them, so you can check spelling and grammar.
• Remember there are no guarantees of privacy in social networks (even with settings).  Anything can be cut, pasted, and sent.
• Never put anything on the Internet that you wouldn’t want your boss, your coworkers or clients to see.  It is not a secure place.
• Check your Klout score frequently.  Others do.

I hope you found these tweets to be helpful in your journey to the life and career success you want and deserve.  Come back tomorrow for more common sense tweets from Lydia Ramsey and my forthcoming book Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  As always, thanks for reading my daily thoughts on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, you can download a free copy of my latest career success book Success Tweets Explained.  It’s a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

As I mentioned in my Monday August 1 post, I have a new career advice book being released this month.  It’s called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  Lydia Ramsey of Manners that Sell is my coauthor.

I’ve decided to give readers of this career success blog a sneak peek at the common sense tweets in Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact this week.  Here are some of the common sense tweets you’ll find inside the book.

Business Meal Etiquette

• Do you have trouble remembering which is your bread-and-butter plate?  Think of a BMW.  Left to right, it’s bread, meat and water.
• Flatware is used from the outside in.  Start with the utensils to the far left or far right of your plate or bowl.
• The napkin goes into your lap after everyone is seated.  It never goes back on the table until all are finished and rising from the table.
• Never begin eating until everyone at your table is served.  If someone’s meal is late and he or she suggests you begin, you may do so.
• Bread is broken, never cut.  Tear off one small piece at a time.  Biting into the entire roll at once is a major faux pas.
• The coffee cup remains upright on your saucer even if you don’t care for coffee.  Turn it over only if the server asks you to.
• The red wine glass is held by the bowl to keep the wine at room temperature.  The white wine glass is held by the stem to keep it cool.
• At the beginning of the meal, food such as bread is passed to the right.  The waiter serves from the left so this helps avoid collisions.
• When hosting a business meal, make sure that the server knows to bring you the check to avoid any embarrassing or awkward moments.
• The host decides when to discuss business over a meal.  For a business lunch, this usually occurs as soon as the orders are placed.
• Business dinners are more social occasions where the focus is on building relationships rather than closing deals.
• As a guest, order in the mid-price range on the menu.  It is equally offensive to order the cheapest item as to select the most costly.
• Engage others in conversation at a business meal.  Speak to the people seated to your left and your right.  Never let someone sit alone and silent.
• Keep your breath fresh.  Brush, or use the strips after meals and coffee.  Don’t chew gum.  Ever.  It makes you look like a cow.

Building Strong Relationships

• Get genuinely interested in others.  Help bring out the best in everyone you know.  Others will gravitate to you.
• Keep confidences and avoid gossip.  Don’t embarrass others by repeating what they share with you – even if it isn’t in confidence.
• Use every social interaction to build and strengthen relationships.  Strong relationships help you create positive personal impact.
• Everyone has something to offer.  Never dismiss anyone out of hand.  Take the time to learn about other people.
• Get to know yourself.  Use your self-knowledge to better understand and relate to others.
• Pay it forward.  Build relationships by giving with no expectation of return.
• When meeting someone new ask yourself, “What can I do to help this person?”  You’ll build stronger relationships thinking this way.
• There is no quid pro quo in effective relationships.  Do for others without being asked or waiting for them to do for you.
• Be generous.  When you give, you’ll be surprised at how much comes back to you.
• Be happy to see others succeed.  Use their success to motivate you to create your greater success.
• Trust is the glue that holds relationships together.  The more you trust others, the more they will trust you.
• Become widely trusted.  Deliver on what you say you’ll do.  If you can’t meet a commitment, let the other person know right away.
• Resolve conflict positively.  Treat it as an opportunity to strengthen, not destroy, relationships you’ve worked hard to build.
• Settle disputes and resolve differences quickly.  Don’t let them drag on.  Engage the other person in meaningful dialogue.
• Be a consensus builder.  Focus on where you agree with others.  It’s easier to create agreement this way.
• Be responsible for yourself.  No one can “make you angry.”  Choose to act in a civil, constructive manner in tense situations.
• Do your job.  Give credit to others for doing theirs.  Everyone likes to work with people who share the credit for a job well done.
• We all make mistakes.  Own up to yours.  You’ll become known as a straight shooter, honest with yourself and others.
• Punctuality is a simple way to show courtesy and respect for others.  It should be valued as the heart and soul of good business.
• Savvy business people know that “RSVP” means to send a reply regardless of whether they plan to attend an event or not.

I hope you found these common sense tweets to be helpful in your journey to the life and career success you want and deserve.  Come back tomorrow for more common sense tweets from Lydia Ramsey and my forthcoming book Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  As always, thanks for reading my daily thoughts on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, you can download a free copy of my latest career success book Success Tweets Explained.  It’s a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

As I mentioned in my Monday August 1 post, I have a new career advice book being released this month.  It’s called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  Lydia Ramsey of Manners that Sell is my coauthor.

I’ve decided to give readers of this career success blog a sneak peek at the common sense tweets in Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact this week.  Here are some of the common sense tweets you’ll find inside the book.

Business Meal Etiquette

• Do you have trouble remembering which is your bread-and-butter plate?  Think of a BMW.  Left to right, it’s bread, meat and water.
• Flatware is used from the outside in.  Start with the utensils to the far left or far right of your plate or bowl.
• The napkin goes into your lap after everyone is seated.  It never goes back on the table until all are finished and rising from the table.
• Never begin eating until everyone at your table is served.  If someone’s meal is late and he or she suggests you begin, you may do so.
• Bread is broken, never cut.  Tear off one small piece at a time.  Biting into the entire roll at once is a major faux pas.
• The coffee cup remains upright on your saucer even if you don’t care for coffee.  Turn it over only if the server asks you to.
• The red wine glass is held by the bowl to keep the wine at room temperature.  The white wine glass is held by the stem to keep it cool.
• At the beginning of the meal, food such as bread is passed to the right.  The waiter serves from the left so this helps avoid collisions.
• When hosting a business meal, make sure that the server knows to bring you the check to avoid any embarrassing or awkward moments.
• The host decides when to discuss business over a meal.  For a business lunch, this usually occurs as soon as the orders are placed.
• Business dinners are more social occasions where the focus is on building relationships rather than closing deals.
• As a guest, order in the mid-price range on the menu.  It is equally offensive to order the cheapest item as to select the most costly.
• Engage others in conversation at a business meal.  Speak to the people seated to your left and your right.  Never let someone sit alone and silent.
• Keep your breath fresh.  Brush, or use the strips after meals and coffee.  Don’t chew gum.  Ever.  It makes you look like a cow.

Building Strong Relationships

• Get genuinely interested in others.  Help bring out the best in everyone you know.  Others will gravitate to you.
• Keep confidences and avoid gossip.  Don’t embarrass others by repeating what they share with you – even if it isn’t in confidence.
• Use every social interaction to build and strengthen relationships.  Strong relationships help you create positive personal impact.
• Everyone has something to offer.  Never dismiss anyone out of hand.  Take the time to learn about other people.
• Get to know yourself.  Use your self-knowledge to better understand and relate to others.
• Pay it forward.  Build relationships by giving with no expectation of return.
• When meeting someone new ask yourself, “What can I do to help this person?”  You’ll build stronger relationships thinking this way.
• There is no quid pro quo in effective relationships.  Do for others without being asked or waiting for them to do for you.
• Be generous.  When you give, you’ll be surprised at how much comes back to you.
• Be happy to see others succeed.  Use their success to motivate you to create your greater success.
• Trust is the glue that holds relationships together.  The more you trust others, the more they will trust you.
• Become widely trusted.  Deliver on what you say you’ll do.  If you can’t meet a commitment, let the other person know right away.
• Resolve conflict positively.  Treat it as an opportunity to strengthen, not destroy, relationships you’ve worked hard to build.
• Settle disputes and resolve differences quickly.  Don’t let them drag on.  Engage the other person in meaningful dialogue.
• Be a consensus builder.  Focus on where you agree with others.  It’s easier to create agreement this way.
• Be responsible for yourself.  No one can “make you angry.”  Choose to act in a civil, constructive manner in tense situations.
• Do your job.  Give credit to others for doing theirs.  Everyone likes to work with people who share the credit for a job well done.
• We all make mistakes.  Own up to yours.  You’ll become known as a straight shooter, honest with yourself and others.
• Punctuality is a simple way to show courtesy and respect for others.  It should be valued as the heart and soul of good business.
• Savvy business people know that “RSVP” means to send a reply regardless of whether they plan to attend an event or not.

I hope you found these common sense tweets to be helpful in your journey to the life and career success you want and deserve.  Come back tomorrow for more common sense tweets from Lydia Ramsey and my forthcoming book Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  As always, thanks for reading my daily thoughts on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, you can download a free copy of my latest career success book Success Tweets Explained.  It’s a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

As I mentioned in my Monday August 1 post, I have a new career advice book being released this month.  It’s called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  Lydia Ramsey of Manners that Sell is my coauthor.

I’ve decided to give readers of this career success blog a sneak peek at the common sense tweets in Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact this week.  Here are some of the tweets you’ll find inside the book.

In General

• Learn and use the basic rules of etiquette.  Social faux pas might not ruin your career, but they certainly won’t help it.
• Be gracious, kind and engaging.  Everybody likes to be around polite and mannerly people.
• Always act like a lady or gentleman.  It’s not old-fashioned; it’s smart business and leads to life and career success.
• Be courteous.  It costs you nothing and it can mean everything to someone else.  It also helps in getting what you want.
• It’s great to know the rules, but the most important etiquette tip is to help other people feel comfortable.

Personal Branding

• Stand and be known for something.  Create and nurture your unique personal brand.
• Build your personal brand by being consistent and constant.  Make sure everything you do is on brand, consistently and constantly.
• Your personal brand should be uniquely you, but built on integrity.  Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is looking.
• Build your brand by being visible.  Volunteer for tough jobs.  Brand yourself as someone who makes significant contributions.
• Personal branding takes work.  Do whatever it takes to make sure people will think of you in the way you want them to.
• A good personal brand highlights your uniqueness.  Be unconventional, break a few rules.  But don’t get too far out there.
• Nurture your network.  What your friends, colleagues and customers say about you is how others will think of you and your brand.
• Say “thank you” often.  You’ll succeed, build a strong personal brand and leave a legacy of being a nice person.

Dressing for Success

• Demonstrate self-respect and respect for others in your attire.  Be impeccable in your presentation of self.
• Be well-groomed and appropriate for every situation.  Always dress one level up from what is expected.  You’ll stand out from the crowd.
• Observe successful people in your company.  What do they wear?  Dress like them and you won’t go wrong.
• “Business” is the first and most important word in “business casual.”  Dress as if you’re going to work, not a sporting event or club.
• The definition of business casual is to dress down one notch from business professional so you can’t go from your suit and tie to your favorite old jeans and t-shirt.
• A man’s most professional dress is a business suit with matching coat and trousers, accompanied by a blue or white shirt and solid tie.
• The most professional look for a business woman is a skirted suit.  That means a knee-length skirt with a matching jacket.
• Pay attention to your shoes. Whether you do or not, others will. Keep them in good condition, polished not scuffed, and professional.
• Pants’ length matters in business. For both men and women, trousers should break gently at the top of your foot or shoe.
• Men need to make sure that their shoes and belt match each other: both black or both brown.  Both in good condition.
• Socks count.  Be sure that yours match what you are wearing, either your shoes or your pants and definitely each other. No white socks.
• Keep your clothes in good condition. The rumpled, unpressed look can derail your career.
• At business social events, keep in mind that your attire still needs to look professional.  Your clothing choices matter.
• Accessories make a difference.  From handbags to laptop cases, watches to earrings, all need to be of good quality and conservative.

I hope you found these common sense tweets to be helpful in your journey to the life and career success you want and deserve.  Come back tomorrow for more common sense tweets from Lydia Ramsey and my forthcoming book Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  As always, thanks for reading my daily thoughts on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, you can download a free copy of my latest career success book Success Tweets Explained.  It’s a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

As I mentioned in my Monday August 1 post, I have a new career advice book being released this month.  It’s called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  Lydia Ramsey of Manners that Sell is my coauthor.

I’ve decided to give readers of this career success blog a sneak peek at the common sense tweets in Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact this week.  Here are some of the tweets you’ll find inside the book.

In General

• Learn and use the basic rules of etiquette.  Social faux pas might not ruin your career, but they certainly won’t help it.
• Be gracious, kind and engaging.  Everybody likes to be around polite and mannerly people.
• Always act like a lady or gentleman.  It’s not old-fashioned; it’s smart business and leads to life and career success.
• Be courteous.  It costs you nothing and it can mean everything to someone else.  It also helps in getting what you want.
• It’s great to know the rules, but the most important etiquette tip is to help other people feel comfortable.

Personal Branding

• Stand and be known for something.  Create and nurture your unique personal brand.
• Build your personal brand by being consistent and constant.  Make sure everything you do is on brand, consistently and constantly.
• Your personal brand should be uniquely you, but built on integrity.  Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is looking.
• Build your brand by being visible.  Volunteer for tough jobs.  Brand yourself as someone who makes significant contributions.
• Personal branding takes work.  Do whatever it takes to make sure people will think of you in the way you want them to.
• A good personal brand highlights your uniqueness.  Be unconventional, break a few rules.  But don’t get too far out there.
• Nurture your network.  What your friends, colleagues and customers say about you is how others will think of you and your brand.
• Say “thank you” often.  You’ll succeed, build a strong personal brand and leave a legacy of being a nice person.

Dressing for Success

• Demonstrate self-respect and respect for others in your attire.  Be impeccable in your presentation of self.
• Be well-groomed and appropriate for every situation.  Always dress one level up from what is expected.  You’ll stand out from the crowd.
• Observe successful people in your company.  What do they wear?  Dress like them and you won’t go wrong.
• “Business” is the first and most important word in “business casual.”  Dress as if you’re going to work, not a sporting event or club.
• The definition of business casual is to dress down one notch from business professional so you can’t go from your suit and tie to your favorite old jeans and t-shirt.
• A man’s most professional dress is a business suit with matching coat and trousers, accompanied by a blue or white shirt and solid tie.
• The most professional look for a business woman is a skirted suit.  That means a knee-length skirt with a matching jacket.
• Pay attention to your shoes. Whether you do or not, others will. Keep them in good condition, polished not scuffed, and professional.
• Pants’ length matters in business. For both men and women, trousers should break gently at the top of your foot or shoe.
• Men need to make sure that their shoes and belt match each other: both black or both brown.  Both in good condition.
• Socks count.  Be sure that yours match what you are wearing, either your shoes or your pants and definitely each other. No white socks.
• Keep your clothes in good condition. The rumpled, unpressed look can derail your career.
• At business social events, keep in mind that your attire still needs to look professional.  Your clothing choices matter.
• Accessories make a difference.  From handbags to laptop cases, watches to earrings, all need to be of good quality and conservative.

I hope you found these common sense tweets to be helpful in your journey to the life and career success you want and deserve.  Come back tomorrow for more common sense tweets from Lydia Ramsey and my forthcoming book Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  As always, thanks for reading my daily thoughts on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, you can download a free copy of my latest career success book Success Tweets Explained.  It’s a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.

A recent issue of Bloomberg Business Week had an article called “Get a Raise – Guaranteed.”  While some of it was tongue in cheek, some of it was actually some good career success advice.  The article listed eight things to do to get a raise or a promotion:

1. Spread flattering gossip about yourself.
2. Don’t dress like a moron.
3. Pick your icebreaker wisely.
4. Chart your value.
5. Don’t smell like a snook.
6. Choose the right time.
7. Go for the sob story.
8. Think like a hostage negotiator.

Some of these eight piece of career success advice are clearly meant to be a joke.  Some, like number 8, make a good point that is hidden in the headline.  Here’s what it has to say, “Once he or she (your boss) thinks you have their (sic) interests in mind, it’s time to begin making demands.”  This echoes the career advice in Tweet 135 in my book Success Tweets.  “Be a consensus builder.  Focus on where you agree with others.  It will be easier to resolve differences and create agreement.”  Starting from a place of agreement, being on the same side always makes negotiations go a little smoother and can help you get the promotion that will put you on the road to career success.

My best career advice on getting a raise or promotion is simple common sense – become an outstanding performer.  To become an outstanding performer you need to do five things:

• Get and stay competent in your field.  Become a lifelong learner.
• Understand the numbers.  Develop a good working knowledge of budgets and P&L statements.
• Create positive personal impact.  Become an in demand person in your company.
• Become a dynamic communicator – in conversation, writing and presenting.
• Build and maintain strong, mutually beneficial relationships with the important people in your life.

The Bloomberg Business Week article on how to get a raise focused primarily on what I call creating positive personal impact.  Lydia Ramsey and I will be releasing a new book this month called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  In this book, we will focus on 15 keys for creating positive personal impact.

1. Basic Ideas
2. Personal Branding
3. Dressing for Success
4. Business Meal Etiquette
5. Building Strong Relationships
6. Networking Etiquette
7. Business Cards
8. Email Etiquette
9. Telephone Courtesy
10. Successful Social Media
11. Meeting Manners
12. Business Introductions
13. The Business Handshake
14. Customer Courtesy
15. International Business

All 15 of these keys are important career advice.  You need to build your skills in each of them.  In the days to come, I will be sharing the common sense tweets Lydia and I have come up with to help you create positive personal impact – an important life and career success competency.

The career success coach point here is simple common sense.  If you want to get a raise or promotion, you need to become an outstanding performer.  To become an outstanding performer, you need to do five things.  1) Get and stay competent in your field.  Become a lifelong learner.  2) Understand the numbers.  Develop a good working knowledge of budgets and P&L statements.  3) Create positive personal impact.  Become an in demand person in your company. 4) Become a dynamic communicator – in conversation, writing and presenting.  5) Build and maintain strong, mutually beneficial relationships with the important people in your life.  Lydia Ramsey and I are releasing a new book this month.  It’s called Success Tweets for Creating Positive Personal Impact.  In this book we’ll show you 15 ways to creating positive personal impact.  1) Basic Ideas, 2) Personal Branding, 3) Dressing for Success, 4) Business Meal Etiquette, 5) Building Strong Relationships, 6) Networking Etiquette, 7) Business Cards, Email Etiquette, 9) Telephone Courtesy, 10) Social Media Success, 11) Meeting Manners, 12) Business Introductions, 13) Business Handshakes, 14) Customer Courtesy, 15) International Business Etiquette.  Master all 15 of these common sense skills and you’ll be on your way to  creating the life and career success you want and deserve.

That’s my career advice on how to get a raise or a promotion.  What do you think?  Please take a minute to share your thoughts with us in a comment.  As always, thanks for reading my daily musings on life and career success.  I value you and I appreciate you.

Bud

PS: If you haven’t already done so, you can download a free copy of my latest career success book Success Tweets Explained.  It’s a whopping 390 + pages of career advice explaining each of the common sense tweets in Success Tweets in detail.  Go to http://budurl.com/STExp to claim your free copy.  You’ll also start receiving my daily life and career success quotes.