Be a Chair Person

Everyone wants the best seat.  In a business lunch or a meeting, however, it is proper to wait for the host (the person who has invited you) to designate where he or she would like you to sit.  The same is true for an interview – wait for the interviewer to tell you which seat to take.

If you are the host, offer your guest the best seat – usually the one facing out into the dining room, the one with the best window view or one that is out of the main line of traffic.

From  the Culture and Manners Institute at http://www.cultureandmanners.com

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10SNE1? (Answer below . . .)

Ever find yourself driving behind a car with a personalized license plate, studying it for a long time, trying to decode what it says?  This is how people read your emails when you are too informal.  Write things out, but be clear and concise.  Avoid texting jargon, upper case letters (THE EMAIL EQUIVALENT OF SHOUTING) and slang.  Emoticons or keyed-in smiley faces are not professional 😦  Take a moment before you hit “send” to re-read your email for typos, misspellings, punctuation and grammatical errors.  A few seconds can save you from a bad impression that lasts a lifetime.

Email is fast and easy, but not appropriate for everything.  An email thank you cannot take the place of a hand-written, fold-over note or a typed thank you letter on stationary to clients, interviewers or the hostess of the dinner party you just attended.  The hand-written or typed stationary thank you always makes a more lasting impression.

(Subject Line License Plate: “Tennis, anyone?”)

From  the Culture and Manners Institute at http://www.cultureandmanners.com

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Salt and Pepper

When someone says, “Please pass  the salt and pepper,” it is not proper to intercept the salt and pepper in mid-pass to season your own food.  That’s pass interference – a ten yard penalty.  Salt and pepper are passed together, one in each hand.  Even if someone asks for just the salt or just the pepper, keep them together.  Do NOT grab them in one hand by the caps (a sweaty palm on top of the salt and pepper shakers is unseemly and unappetizing).  Do not try to balance them in one hand by the bottoms.  Set the salt and pepper on the table by the next person – do not deliver them directly into the person’s hands.

Always taste your food before using the salt and pepper – especially during an interview.  Salting before tasting makes you seem to the interviewer like someone who is hasty, who leaps before they look.

From  the Culture and Manners Institute at http://www.cultureandmanners.com

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An INCREDIBLE Resource!

I can’t be the only one that somehow gets glued to those late-night infomercials – you know, the ones with the products that do just about everything – It Slices!  It Dices! 

Well, here at the Career Development Center we now have our own “It Does Everything” product!  Check out the UPDATED version of your CollegeCentral Profile (www.CollegeCentral.com/bakeru)!!  The good folks at CollegeCentral have added several new features that have more information than you could ever dream of!  Check out all your new profile has to offer:

A Job Agent has been added that updates every morning to alert you of positions posted that match your degree, major, job type, and preferred location.

A Job Search Kit containing helpful articles on resume writing, interviews, and cover letters.

A Career Video Library with over 135 videos on resumes and cover letters, dressing for success, interviewing, career profiles, and celebrity job profiles (hear well-known celebs like Tom Hanks and Tiki Barber discuss issues they faced when starting their careers).

www.CollegeCentral.com/bakerU.  If you need any assistance or have any questions, feel free to contact me!

Kelly Burns
BU Career Development Coordinator

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Concerning Greetings/Salutations

Avoid “To Whom It May Concern,” as a salutation in a letter.  (It may not concern anyone on the receiving end.)  Try to discover the name and title of the person you wish to address – a phone call is the surest way, as information on the Internet may be outdated.  If you are unable to discover a name, use the title, section or division.  (Examples: To the Director of Marketing: or To the Consumer Affairs Department:)

From  the Culture and Manners Institute at http://www.cultureandmanners.com

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