By: Maralee McKee, Manners Mentor
Your weekly curation of mannerly finds and other interesting things I’ve gathered from around the web for your perusal!
- You notice the person next to you has an interesting tattoo and think, “Should I comment on it? Ask a question about its meaning? Compliment the person?” What is the etiquette of asking about something as personal as a tattoo? Another rule of thumb you can use is simply to mentally run what you’re about to say through the “Hairstyle Meter.” If you wouldn’t make a similar remark about a person’s hairstyle, it’s best not to say it about the tattoo either.
- Some people look down their nose at small talk, especially now that our noses are so often about four inches from our smartphone screen, and people are, on average, talking less. The truth is that small talk might seem a bit superficial, yet it has a huge impact. It’s the first building block of any relationship and offers surprising benefits.
- There’s one three-letter word we should try to eliminate from our vocabulary, and, whenever possible, replace it with another particular three-letter word. In fact, one former U.S. President asked that his speechwriters and press secretaries do the same thing. I’ve practiced this for the past decade, and I teach it to my clients. It’s been a great success for me, and I’ve heard great things back from them!
- Does autumn and the thought of cooler weather, falling leaves, warm sweaters, and pumpkin anything make you just about swoon?! If so, don’t fight it. Enjoy it! Our love of autumn isn’t silly. It’s science!
- I thought I was going out on a limb when one week I switched out my French manicure for blue fingernail polish. (See below for the Instagram photo.) However, this nail artist takes going out on a limb literally! She creates manicures from living succulent plants that you have to see to believe. Each “nail garden” is a miniature masterpiece, although you probably wouldn’t want to do any real gardening with these nails. 🙂
Instagram Photo
Please join me on Instagram! @MannersMentor
The Four Most-Read Posts This Week
These four posts were read by approximately 20,000 people in the last seven days:
- Three Ways to Nicely Say No Without Feeling Guilty
- The Five Biggest Manners Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
- Which To-Go Orders You Tip and Which You Don’t
- How to Graciously Answer Nosy Questions
Blessings on your week ahead,