Friday, October 19, 2012

What To Expect If You Enroll In Etiquette Classes

By Tyrone Buckler


Understanding a new culture can be overwhelming. This is especially true in the United States, where etiquette expectations can vary from city to city. For example, Los Angeles has a unique culture and local social norms. If you are a newcomer to the Los Angeles area, there are several different ways to attempt to pick up the social graces here. You can attempt to learn from various media sources, including TV and cinema. Watching the locals in public spaces is another way you could teach yourself the culture. If you have local friends, you can use them as a sounding board on what is accepted or not accepted as normal etiquette. However, many people find enrolling in etiquette classes in Los Angeles that are specially geared towards teaching immigrants to be the best way to assimilate.

Using the media as a way to understand a notice the several nuances of a culture may work. Often, television programs show a wide variety of stories, with different types of characters. Distinguishing which characters act properly and which do not takes quite a bit of time and discretion. While it is possible to understand etiquette in the US by watching television or movies, it would take a great deal of time to do so.

Another way you could possibly learn etiquette is by people observing. There are many public places in Los Angeles, and with millions of people interacting every day, you can observe their culture that way. People watching in parks, malls, or on public transportation may work, but it could be very confusing.

If you are friendly with locals, asking them for help is an option. Sometimes locals can give great insight to what is acceptable in their city and not acceptable. However, sometimes people within the culture are not aware on the specific rules of etiquette. They grew up there, it is all they know. Asking friends for help is possible, but it may not be the most complete way to learn the social graces in the US

This is why it can be very helpful to enroll in a class that is specifically designed to teach US culture. It may be possible to take courses taught in your native language. The class teachers are expected to be well versed in all aspects of social graces etiquette, and are always available to answer your many questions.

Etiquette classes can cover a wide variety of topics: meeting people, body language expectations and norms, how to behave properly in a corporate setting, gift giving, dining, dressing normally in the US, and the differences in treatment of women in the US as compared to other places.

While it can be exciting to live in a new country, sometimes not fully understanding the normal and expected etiquette can lead to embarrassing behavior. Without meaning to, if you do not have the proper idea of the local culture, you could severely offend someone. That is why you should look into enrolling in local etiquette classes when you move to the US.




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