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Business Luncheon Manners Always Matter – Ten Tips From Your Strategic Thinking Business Coach

Every business day of the year, there are business lunches taking place. And every business day there are bad business luncheon manners being displayed and observed. Inexperienced staff members to experienced business executives commit these business manner blunders because too many people forget their manners at the business luncheon table. And these business lunch manner faux pas result in a negative image of the person committing them and the company they represent.

All business manners are essential to building relationships in today’s business world. People, who present themselves very favorably, will maximize their business potential. I am very passionate about business manners and believe very strongly in the results that follow the use of good business manners in every type of business setting you encounter. The potential for negative impacts is considerable in any business meeting and business luncheons are no exception. Improve your business luncheon meeting etiquette and you will witness positive results in such forms as attentiveness, comfort, clear communications, and trust.

Your Strategic Thinking Business Coach would like to offer the following ten (10) tips to ensure good business manners at your business luncheon meetings.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #1: Use strategic thinking in planning your business luncheon meeting location. Think very carefully about choosing the right restaurant because your choice says a lot about you and about how you feel toward your guest(s). If you select a restaurant that is too casual or inexpensive the guest(s) may not feel valued. On the other hand, if you select one that is too extravagant and expensive they may perceive you as wasteful and wonder how prudent you will be with their money if you win their business. The strategic thinking approach is to suggest that your guest(s) select the place. Their choice will tell you a lot about them, too.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #2: Know your guest’s business. Do your “homework” and learn everything you can about their business and current trends in their industry. The most strategic tool to do the homework is to do a Google search. The more you know about the guest’s company the more impressed they will be with you.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #3: Whenever possible, meet at the other party’s office and accompany him or her to the restaurant. Suggesting that you will meet them at the selected restaurant may save a little time and may be okay only if the other party is someone you have met before and will easily recognize. This will help avoid any potential awkward or embarrassing moments such as each of you waiting for the other to arrive when each of you has already been seated.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #4: Never assume your business guest is looking for a social encounter. Although people in a business setting can sometimes appear extremely friendly or open that doesn’t mean they have the slightest interest in meeting up with you after hours.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #5: Always be prepared to engage in some well-informed small talk. Avoid awkward silences by having a few casual, non-business topics in mind. Ask your guest(s) interesting questions and let them know that you would like to know what they think. People enjoy giving their thoughts on things that interest them.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #6: Don’t “bad mouth” the competition. A business meal gives you the chance to talk about the benefits and value you bring to your clients and customers. Saying negative things about your competition always is in bad taste. Commit to building solid business relationships by outperforming the competition, not by putting them down.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #7: Never, ever talk with your mouth full! Unfortunately there are far too many otherwise successful executives who never learned that they should not talk with food in their mouths. Instead of talking with your mouth full, take small bites, so that you can quickly swallow if somebody asks you a question.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #8: Drinking alcohol will impact your judgment; so unless your business guest(s) takes the lead, don’t suggest ordering any alcoholic beverages. If you are in a situation where the guest(s) take the initiative and orders alcohol, you can avoid an awkward situation by ordering something light like a wine spritzer. And then simply do not finish drinking it.

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #9: Always be kind to the wait staff. “Anyone who is nice to you but nasty to their server is not a nice person. Be polite to restaurant staff, no matter what happens. This can be tough but it will provide an opportunity to form a favorable impression upon your guest(s).

Business Luncheon Manners Tip #10: Never ever ask your guests to help you figure out the tip. It is hard to imagine anything tackier at a business luncheon meeting than showing someone how much you just spent on them. Anyone who can read a menu will already have a pretty good idea anyway. If you can’t read the check without your glasses, then have them with you at all times.

Significance of Back Lighting in Cosmetics Product Photography

A lot of people try to shoot their products themselves. While it is a good thing to do, they actually do not have the skill set needed to get a good picture. Amateur photographers too due to lack of experience can leave a lack in a good picture. Decade of experience is a great teacher than just some photography tutorials. That is exactly where a professional photography service company like EtherArts Product Photography comes in to picture. This is what is necessary along with a professional photography gear and some knowledge of Lights and Reflections. In this article, we will share some light on the reflective Cosmetics product photography – Liquid Cosmetics in particular and what are the most important factors that you need to pay attention to for a successful photograph.Lighting the product takes most of the photographers attention. Every photographer would make efforts to light the product up appropriately. Some go beyond this to light it up so much that the product gets overexposed and is washed out in the pictures. Such images are poor photography. A smart and experienced photographer will pay attention to lighting up the product along with something called backlighting. Backlighting essentially means lighting the back portion of the product Or the background of the product. To do this it is necessary to pay attention to the below mentioned aspects of the product.Product Nature- Most important is the nature of the product to be photographed. Solid products differ a lot than the liquid containing cosmetic products. Hence we need to be careful while choosing the correct set up.Background- A lot of times, Ecommerce photography requires white background. Amazon requires a seamless white background for all their listings. This is a mandatory requirement. In order to get this white background, a lot of photographers tend to use extreme bright lights or use a high camera Aperture number. This results in the product getting ‘white-washed’ and practically disappears in to the light. The contrasts are low and the edges of the products look foggy. For Aroma Oil cosmetics photography, all we need is just the necessary amount of light in the background to get just the correct amount of seamless white. So be careful while trying to get the white background. A photo-editing software will be helpful in clearing what is left of the greyish-whitish background.BackLighting- Amateur photographers focus less on lighting. They believe that the daylight (sunlight) is the best environment to shoot products in. But they are mistaken. Studio Daylights are different. Use Daylight (white light) bulbs for the lighting. A dark room is a must for product photography. This allows the photographer to control lights as needed, mostly depending on the type of product is shot. For Aroma Oil Cosmetics Photography in particular, try using a low strength daylight bulb as a backlight. This gently illuminates the liquid inside the glass containers giving it the most enhanced look. The yellow or colored oil starts showing a nice color to it, instead of just a black or transparent liquid. This brings out the colors of the oils giving them the much needed wow factor to the photograph.

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Fitness Tips – Try Walking With Poles

There is regular exercise and then there is exercise by taking a walk. Fitness walking is not simply forcing yourself to exercise but is a type of walking whereby the person uses poles that are very similar in nature to ski poles. This type of exercise is sometimes referred to as Nordic training. Competitive Nordic skiers who practiced by training on dry land first did this type of exercise. It has been used for decades now.

Nordic training is a very basic form of walking that can be done by practically anyone in any type of climate. The upper body in particular becomes well conditioned in much the same way that it does when an individual is involved in Nordic skiing.

This kind of exercise can provide a full body workout and burns more calories than training minus the poles. For example, fitness training involves more energy consumption than regular walking. It is in the area of 46 percent. Upper body muscle endurance can be increased by 38 percent using the poles in a matter of 12 weeks.

The fact that more muscles are engaged in Nordic training is why more calories can be burned. The chest, shoulders, abdominal muscles, biceps, triceps and all other core muscles are put to the test when the exercise is done.

Fitness exercise has some advantages over walking without poles. These include:

· An increase in endurance and strength in the upper body as well as all core muscles
· A tremendous increase in heart rate
· An easier time when climbing hills
· More calories are burned at a faster pace
· Balance and stability are improved thanks to the use of the poles
· There is density preserving stress that takes place to the bones
· Ankle joints, knees and hips do not suffer as much weight on them

It is important than you buy poles that are appropriate for your height and body frame. Poles that are not the correct length can give rise to pain and discomfort in the knees, back and hips. Incorrect sized poles can also reduce the effectiveness of using poles in the first place.

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