Business Etiquette and Manners Essay Example for Free

Business Etiquette and Manners Essay Each time one makes contact with ones employees, employers or customers one leaves a certain impression of oneself and the company, service or product one represents and first impressions always do make an impact on achieving business objectives. Therefore it is very important for one to leave the right perception on people by learning how to properly conduct oneself in a business environment. Business etiquette is how one does what one does in the business world. This is true on factory assembly lines, corporate boardrooms, commercial kitchens and grocery stores. When working in an office all day, it is very important to showcase good manners and proper office etiquette. Listed below are some pointers regarding proper behavior: * Treat everyone with respect: If you want to encourage the office behavior of respect, you must start by giving it to others at all times. From the receptionist at the front desk to the CEO of the company and prospective clients, modeling respectful attitudes toward all people is the first step in fostering work professionalism. Respect must also be given to individuals who come into contact with you that are not part of the company, including delivery persons, office equipment repair persons, property managers and especially customers. Be kind and courteous to everyone. * Addressing individuals by their honorific or title: Due to informality in the workplace today, a lot of business is lost, and goodwill destroyed, because of total disregard for properly addressing clients. The proper way to address clients is to greet them using their honorific or title followed by their last name; women should be referred to as ‘Ms. ’ Regardless of their marital status. Refer to individuals frequently by their names: Take the time and make the effort to pay attention to the name of the person you are being introduced to. A persons name means everything to them. To build rapport with a client, mention their name several times during the conversation, it helps in making a connection with the client and reaching out to them on a personal level. * Introduce people with confidence: Most people hate making introductions, because they do not know how to properly make them. Introducing people with confidence is a great way to impress your customers. In business, introductions are determined by precedence. The person who holds the position of highest authority in an organization takes precedence over others who work there. For example, you introduce your companys president to a colleague. * Be on time: Punctuality is one of the key criterion’s of judging your potency as a worker. Ensure that you reach your office and corporate events you might be invited to punctually. If at all practicable try reaching ten minutes early. This may give you an opportunity to relax and unwind before you commence with your work. If you are a guest, understand that the organizer has been selective with the invitation list. Many invitations will include a brief agenda that highlights when guests may arrive for the event, typically providing a window of 15 to 30 minutes for registration and welcome reception times. * Wear proper office attire: Watch your garments. While this holds true for any one, it holds even more importance for ladies. Your office is meant to be a place for work and not some fancy dress competition. At work, you should be dressed in a straightforward yet smart fashion. Formal suits and dresses should be worn in neutral colors so that they reflect your professionalism. Make contact: There are few physical contacts that are appropriate in business; the most important and acceptable is your handshake. Your handshake is a non-verbal clue that indicates to the other person whether or not you are a take charge person. For example, a firm and strong handshake suggests that you are decisive, in control. Greet everyone with a firm, sincere handshake, a friendly smile and direct eye contact. However, when approaching a group of individuals, it’s important to note that you should always shake the hand of the highest ranking officer first. Maintain a healthy office environment: Keep the space professional and neat with appropriate personal touches! People will see the space and consider it a reflection of you. Whether it is a cubicle or office, respect others space. Dont just walk in; knock or make your presence gently known. Dont assume acknowledgement of your presence is an invitation to sit down; wait until you are invited to do so. Dont interrupt people on the phone, and dont try to communicate with them verbally or with sign language. You could damage an important phone call. Limit personal calls, especially if you work in a space that lacks a door. Learn when and where it is appropriate to use your cell phone in your office. Food consumption should generally be regulated. Smells and noise from food can be distracting to others trying to work. * While dealing with customers: Name-tumblers when we introduce ourselves or other people has become a major problem; especially on the telephone. We need to slow down and pronounce our names slowly, clearly and distinctly. At first it may feel as if you are exaggerating your name, but you are really helping the other person and improving overall communication. When dealing with angry customers, it is important to restrain your anger, remain calm, listen to them and assure them that you will solve their problems. Especially over the telephone while handling complains, speak softly. That will soothe the speaker and show him or her that you’re interested in handling the complaint in a calm, rational way. Learning the rules of business etiquette is not very hard and it is not costly as many companies offer formal training on business etiquette, including communications, attire, networking, international business etiquette and new hire etiquette training. People truly desire to do business with those that make them comfortable and know how to best handle themselves in a variety of situations. Learning to incorporate good business etiquette into the workplace will pay dividends both in employee morale and on your company’s bottom line. Customer loyalty also improves when good business etiquette is in full force as it is reflected in the atmosphere of your office or shop.

Pluralist Elitist and Marxist Theories of the State

Pluralist Elitist and Marxist Theories of the State The three disparate theories of the state, namely the Elitist, the Pluralist and the Marxist theories are briefly discussed in the essay. They are also compared and contrasted in detail, highlighting each of their strengths and weaknesses. Introduction There are three positions through which a state can be examined. The Pluralist concept of the state mentions that the state is neutral relatively, and a number of power centers exist in a state. According to the Marxist theory, the state serves as an instrument for the rich and the bourgeois classes, who attempt constantly to suppress the working classes or the proletariat for its own personal interests. On the other hand, the belief of the Elitist theory is that the state contains two different aspects, violence and territoriality. Thus, modern states of the 20th and 21st centuries often resort to violence within its borders. The modern state is like a committee which manages the common issues of the bourgeoisie. (Marx Engels, 1985) Marxism The proponent of the Marxist theory, Karl Marx, was of the opinion that most of the political power of the society is controlled by the bourgeois class. The modern state is also extremely reliant on credits and taxes. Most of the credits and taxes are also borne by the bourgeois class. Whats more, the media such as newspapers or television is also controlled by the bourgeois. This makes it easier for the bourgeois to enter politics and succeed in politics. The bourgeois state serves as a mutual insurance pact which protects the interests of the bourgeois class at the expense of the exploited class (McLellan, 1971) Marx was also the opinion that the bourgeois was basically using the modern state for enhancing the lifestyle and prospects of the capitalist class of the society. One of the famous quotes from the Communist manifesto, Marx Engels (1985. p.82) states The executive of the modern State is but a committee for managing the common affairs of the whole bourgeoisie. Marx also believed that communism was the best solution for such a capitalist society. The conflict among the classes keeps increasing as the capitalism in the state develops, since the interests of the bourgeois are furthered by the state in capitalism. Furthermore, capitalism also facilitates the bourgeoisie to give concessions to the proletariat, in scenarios where there is a social instability. The welfare state of the Scandinavian regions is something similar to the Marxist view of the state. Concessions such as unemployment benefits, free education, free health check and pension schemes are given by the bourgeois to the proletariat in certain Scandinavian states. Pluralism The Pluralist view of the state is completely different from the Marxist view. The Pluralist does not believe that the state is essentially conflicting in nature, as the Marxist and the Elitist schools of thought believe. Rather, the Pluralist view of the state is that it is neutral in nature; it is also believed that the state is susceptible to a number of influences from various groups in the society. The modern state therefore is not only dominated by one class, that is the capitalist or the bourgeoisie class, which dominates the political power, as believed by the Marxist theory; the modern state is rather a type of framework from wherein a variety of interests of the society can be reconciled. The concept of the state according to the Pluralist view is also that there can be various sources of political power. Therefore, not a single group can have monopoly of political power, according to the Pluralists. Although the capitalist class can have a very strong foothold in the society, they cannot however have complete dominance over the working class, as proposed by the Marxists. The proletariats can extend their power through labor unions or trade unions. Since the capitalist class cannot do without the labor class, the working class also exerts a strong influence on the capitalist class, according to the Pluralists. The modern state is not actually an instrument by which one class can dominate over the other class. Its rather a framework which helps in the reconciliation of diverse society interests (Schwarzmantel, 1994; Schwarzmantel, 1987; Dunleavy OLeary, 1987). The pluralist model can easily explain employee organizations and trade unions. Since organizations and trade unions have the power over the government, the politicians, trade unions, businesses and the proletariat have a share in the state power. The power is dispersed among the government, the organizations and the labor unions as well, proving once again that the neutrality of the state according to the Pluralist view is also valid. Elitist The Elitist theory was put forward by Max Weber. In his view, the state is used as an instrument through which some groups of a state control the other groups. Hence, the Elitist view of the state is quite similar to the Marxist view of the state. However, the central difference between the theory of Weber and the Marxist view is that the Elitist believes in the idea of legitimacy. For example, people follow the rules of the government because they believe that the government or the state is legitimate. However, Marxists believe that the state itself should be abolished since it is not legitimate. The Elitist concept of the state also lays emphasis on bureaucracy. Bureaucracy is one of the most effective methods of organizing the modern state. Weber also believes that the bureaucrats form a group of elites. This group of bureaucrats is extremely political in nature, and has the specialist knowledge which the politicians do not possess. The state symbolizes the relation of men who dominate men. This domination is supported through legitimate violence. If the state has to exist, the ones who are dominated must obey the authority of the dominant group (Gerth Mills, 1967). Another contrasting point between the Elitists and the Marxists and Pluralists is that the Pluralists and Marxists believe the state to have specific function. For the Marxists, the working classes are suppressed while for the pluralists; different groups of society are reconciled. However for the Elitists, the state cannot be defined in straightforward terms since the state performs several tasks and has two defining features, territoriality and violence. If certain groups have the right to use force over its territory, its because the state has granted the rights. Politics is all about the power struggle, according to Weber. Power is defined by Weber as a tool to make someone perform a task which he otherwise wouldnt have performed (Lassman, 2000; de Jasay, 1985). Conclusion The Pluralist, Marxists and Elitist concept of the state essentially contains a different kind of political conception. Marx believed that politics is actually a class conflict, and further adds that political relations can be transformed into economic ones. The Elitist theory of Weber also has a similar thought process. Marxists propose that politics is about the fight for power, however Weber disagrees with the viewpoint of Marx, since he doesnt agree that the Marxist view of reducing politics to a class struggle and economic factors. Weber is an elitist since Weber emphasizes the significance of a strong political leadership (Held, 1989; Dunleavy OLeary, 1987). However, the concepts of Weber and the Marxist are quite elitist in nature, which sharply contrasts with the Pluralist view of the state. The Pluralists believe that the state is not exclusively controlled by the bourgeois or the bureaucrats; rather its the dynamics of various social groups which ultimately impacts the fabric of the state. Then again, the Pluralist viewpoint has certain similarities with the elitist viewpoints since both of them believe that several sources of political power impact the state, unlike the Marxist view which believes that economic factors determine the political dynamics of the state. All in all, all the viewpoints of the Pluralist, the Marxist and the Elitist, helped define and understand the true nature of the state more deeply. Although each of them has their own unique way of interpreting the workings of the state, all of them give a true picture of some of the dimensions of the state.

Observation of a Day Labor Site :: Immigration Labor Essays Papers

Observation of a Day Labor Site The focus of this case study was to observe the new Phoenix day labor site also named â€Å"Macehualli†. This name came from the Aztec language. This site opened on Saturday February first 2003. We visited this site on April 29th 2003 at approximately 8:15 a.m. until around 9:45 a.m. Our goal was to talk with the key people involved in the day labor project. We inquired about this programs working status. Is this program benefiting the people who come here looking for work? We choose this site because of the interest in immigration by the U.S. and how do these immigrants find work in the United States. Our goal is to find out how this pilot program is working, how it is run and has it been successful so far. This study relates to the theme of 0ur migration and culture class because it is all about how people from Mexico migrate to the U.S. and how difficult it can be finding work in the states. The area that this day labor site is in was not what we expected. It is in the North Central area of Phoenix. When driving East on Bell road and turning South on 25th street you pass an area with chain linked fence. We were expecting a building with parking, offices with a lobby area for the workers to sit, indoor restrooms and air conditioning. To our surprise there were no buildings only picnic benches with green tarps above them. Portable outhouses were provided but no misting systems to keep the workers cool during the unbearable summer heat. There was no formal office, just a notebook and containers with lottery tickets in them for the workers to register in. A circular driveway served as a pick up area. Yet these men organized themselves with a system that was working and would find way to entertain themselves by playing the guitar and visiting among themselves. They provided coffee, water and snacks by way of donations that each worker would put into a container on a volunteer basis. Day labor hours are Monday thru Saturday from 5:00 a.m. until around 2:00 p.m. The busier months are April until around October with December and January being the slowest months. On average there are around 175 people looking for work here at the Day Labor Center.

The World Trade Organization Essay -- essays research papers

World Trade Organization (WTO)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations. The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business. The World Trade Organization came into being in 1995. One of the youngest of the international organizations, the WTO is the successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) established in the wake of the Second World War. The World Trade Organization exists to ensure that trade between nations flows as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible. It provides and regulates the legal issues which governs world trade now .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The legal documents of the WTO explore this idea and the individual obligations of member countries. Consumers and producers know that they can enjoy safe supplies and greater choice of the finished products, components, raw materials and services that they use. Producers and exporters know that foreign markets will remain open to them. The result is also a more prosperous, peaceful and accountable economic world. Trade friction is set into the WTO's settlement process where the focus is on interpreting agreements and commitments, and how to make sure that countries' trade policies work together. Then, the chance of problems spilling over into political or military situations is lessened. By lowering trade barriers, the ...

Television and Media - Family Life With, and Without TV :: Comparison Compare Contrast Essays

Family Life With, and Without TV Just about everyone in the United States owns and watches television. Consequently, we've become accustomed to a fairly predictable and monotonous home life. Every working day, we come home, pick up the mail, switch on the TV. Every night, we cook dinner, clean up the kitchen, watch some TV. Every weekend, we do the shopping, finish the chores, and settle in to watch a movie. And why not? It's relaxing to hunker down on the sofa at the end of a tiring day and it doesn't take any energy to flip through the channels with the remote control in one hand and a bowl of buttered popcorn in the other. In my family, we grew up with the TV on. Every weekend, we watched Gunsmoke and Bonanza together as a family. Every year, we made special treats for the Wizard of Oz. I wouldn't have developed my love for cooking if I hadn't watched Graham Kerr as the Galloping Gourmet every day after school. I was hooked on Drawing With John Nagy and years later graduated from Kendall College of Art and Design. Television isn't all bad. It placates us and creates a comfortable background while we take care of business at home and when we're tired it lulls us to sleep. TV is a companion for the elderly and a convenient babysitter for the young. It makes burglars think we're home when we're not. It entertains us cheaply with live action sports, incomparable performing arts and singular events of the world all in living color. It educates us about everything from the cells in our body to the galaxies in the universe. Besides, what would life be like without TV? Could we stand the silence? How would we relax? What would we do with so much time on our hands? Let's take a look at how the average American family might react in a sudden shift to life without TV. Mr. and Mrs. Jones decide to unplug the TV and put it in the garage starting Monday night. They want the family to spend more quality time together. No one takes Mom and Dad seriously and the family jokes about it all weekend. There's a little tension in the air Monday night.

500 Word Essay Essay

What a thing of beauty is the well-written 500-word essay. In some ways, it is the perfect length to express a certain level of knowledge about a particular subject. It is long enough to allow the writer to show familiarity, and possibly expertise, regarding her chosen topic. But it is not a length that requires copious amounts of research. When sufficiently motivated, one can manage to research, write, and revise such an essay in an hour or two, given enough practice. Given the fact that students will write dozens, if not hundreds, of essays in their high school and college careers, it can be advantageous to become familiar with the mechanics, tools, and resources associated with essay writing. The mechanics of a paper include such elements as accurate spelling, correct grammar, and proper formatting. The conscientious writer does not simply rely on spell check to make sure his paper does not contain misspellings. A thorough proofreading will catch mistakes that spell check misses. For instance, spell check might not know the difference between homophones such as â€Å"there,† â€Å"their,† and â€Å"they’re. † A careful review by the writer (or a friend) should catch these errors. Using correct grammar in all its forms – the parts of speech, subject-verb agreement, and punctuation – can ensure that brilliant writing is not overshadowed by careless or sloppy mechanics (Writing Mechanics). The â€Å"look† of the paper is important as well. High school teachers and college professors alike appreciate readable papers with a consistent appearance. This means using the Times New Roman font, size 12, and double-spacing the body of the essay. The title should also be a size 12 font, center justified, with the first word, the last word, and other important words all capitalized. The default margin settings of one inch at the top, bottom, left, and right, give the paper a professional look. While having a crisp, clean look is valuable, the substance of the paper is of the greatest importance. Supplementing one’s own personal knowledge with well-researched material is the key to a terrific essay. A 500-word essay is not going to require as much research as a six- or ten-page paper. The individual assignment and the topic will determine where to seek out information. But once the research is done, the bibliography (or Works Cited list) can be assembled quite easily using EasyBib (EasyBib). What used to be quite a laborious task – putting sources in the correct MLA format, then alphabetizing them all – is now a fairly automatic process using this handy website. Some students are intimidated when given a writing assignment. Hopefully, the hints given in this essay will make it easier for students to get started on their own essays. Becoming fairly automatic about formatting a paper prevents too much time from being wasted â€Å"reinventing the wheel. † Using viable, trustworthy websites and resources for research will help writers supplement their own knowledge. Knowing how to organize these resources into a coherent bibliography will cap off the paper quite nicely. Using these â€Å"tricks of the trade† should help students concentrate on the composition of their papers, and not obsess on the minutiae.

Emily Bronte’s “Wuthering Heights” Essay

The story of Heathcliff, the sadistic protagonist of Emily Bronte’s â€Å"Wuthering Heights† is so upset that Edgar Linton does not want his lovely daughter, Cathy, to hear it. Heathcliff and Cathy, two prominent characters in the novel, interact in the second half of the novel. Heathcliff’s passages reveal that the tortured character comes about from a childhood without the care of parents (33) while Cathy’s goodness (164) reflects her being raised by a loving father. The different supervision each character experienced while growing up is reflected by their behavior, showing that nurture is a greater factor over one’s personality than nature. Beginning her description of Heathcliff with the lowly word â€Å"degradation†, Nelly, the narrator, tells Lockwood how Heathcliff and Catherine (the mother of Cathy) grow more reckless daily without parental guidance. Nelly recalls these events right before Catherine is injured and stays at Thrushcross Grange for five weeks. Nelly also said that Heathcliff and Catherine â€Å"promised†¦ to grow up rude as savages.† The punishments the two received from Joseph and the Curate, Nelly notes, haven’t helped her increase the â€Å"small power† she holds over the two, due to the lack of parental guidance. It is also important to note some of the foreshadowing that occurs here: Heathcliff’s return alone in the rain foreshadows his demise. His lack of respect for the church also symbolizes his lack of will and later on immense greediness. Bronte’s genius shines throughout this passage, mixing savagery, love, symbolism, and foreshadowing all in o ne page. Nelly’s description of Cathy is spoken on a very positive note, including many of the same devices seen in Heathcliff’s passage. She says that Cathy has not seen or even heard of any bad deeds except for her â€Å"slight acts of disobedience†, and that Cathy is â€Å"amazed at the blackness of spirit† of Heathcliff. Nelly describes Cathy as a sheltered, gentle, book-loving young daughter of Edgar. In addition, Cathy is said to be extremely well mannered within this section. Edgar tries to protect his daughter from having to know about an evil soul such as Heathcliff, attempting to prevent the malicious outside force from corrupting her personality. The passage even contains Cathy crying over the miseries of someone she has only met twice so far. She also has a pretty convincing argument as to why she should meet Linton  again, foreshadowing her disobedience of her father by going to meet Linton, her only companion outside of Thrushcross Grange. This disobedience will be the main factor in her future encounters with Heathcliff. Cathy’s extreme kindness and Heathcliff’s great roughness contrast very well. Heathcliff’s description shows him as a wild, undisciplined being. Cathy, on the other hand, is portrayed as a very nice, helpful daughter and a devoted friend to Linton. Heathcliff’s lack of education (Catherine being his only educator) also differs from Cathy’s â€Å"lessons for a couple of hours† that she has. Heathcliff’s vow to â€Å"grow up as rude [as a savage]† is far from Cathy’s melancholy over not being able to meet Linton again. There is not much that is similar between the two characters, due to both of them being on opposite ends of the spectrum. This lack of similarities is what makes these two characters interesting to follow throughout the novel. The language in these passages is quite interesting. Nelly uses much harsher language in the passage with Heathcliff than the passage with Cathy, representing the behavior of the two characters. The paces of the narratives also differs, with Heathcliff’s being a more intense rate than Cathy’s, also due to their contrasting actions. Another interesting thing to note is the use of the word naughty. Both passages employ this word, showing a mild form of being disobedient, which cannot be explained by any other means other than just saying that the both have the same author and narrator: Emily Bronte and Nelly Dean, respectively. Also, as seen throughout the book, an unusal amount of referrals to doors are present, most likely to show frames within the framed narrative. Studying these two passages against each other brings one to a deeper meaning than reading each one separately. Nelly’s descriptions of Heathcliff and Cathy shows that nurture predominates over nature. Cathy, the mix between the peaceful Edgar Linton and the wild Catherine Earnshaw, shows only her positive traits, due to the fact that she was brought up by Edgar alone. Heathcliff, an orphan brought home by Mr. Earnshaw, has had his good qualities disappear through a process which Nelly calls â€Å"degradation;† because he was raised up with Hindley, who constantly thought of Heathcliff as an â€Å"other.† These two characters are so  dramatically different, even though they were both blessed with good looks and intelligence. One might argue, however, that because Bronte does not give the origins of Heathcliff, he might be born of a family with a tendency to be selfish and greedy. This idea can be countered, though, because Heathcliff was said to have â€Å"bore his degradation pretty well at first†, a quality that not many natural tyrants can boast of. Also, the fact that Cathy is the daughter of Catherine and yet shows few of the violent characteristics of her mother tells us that genes play no, or very little, role in how she behaves.