Mind Your Manners

by Tamara Leatham Bailey

January brings a brand-new year, century, millennium, and an opportunity to make brand-new changes in your life. Maybe you’ve resolved to feel more confident in social situations this year. Perhaps you’d like to get along better with your friends and family. Or maybe this is the year you’re determined to get that job you’ve always wanted. There’s one thing you can do to help you accomplish any of these goals: polish your manners. Here are some things to try:

Follow the lead of others if you’re unsure of the rules. (Don’t know which fork to use? Watch what others do.)
Before a big party or date, have a “trial run” at home. Get pointers from your mom and dad or older siblings.
If you’ll be spending time in a foreign country, read books and talk to returned missionaries about etiquette and customs there.
Come to dinner the first time you are called.
Greet others with a smile.
When you take telephone messages, write them down and make sure the intended person gets them.
Clear your own dishes from the table at home.
Be polite on the telephone, no matter who is calling. Never make “prank” phone calls.
Do things (carrying in the groceries, cleaning your room, helping with the dishes) without being asked.
Use the words please, thank you, and excuse me often.
Share things, like a treat, your time, or the remote control.
When you are walking with others, walk as a group. Don’t leave one person behind.
Put-downs are not funny, even if they are intended as a joke.
When you say thanks, smile.
When you’re with people who have not met, introduce them.
Honest compliments aren’t only polite; they’re fun to give and receive.
Wear modest clothing and be clean and well groomed.

Photography by John Luke