“Juanita is an excellent trainer. Her programs are fun and interactive. Our staff always come away from Juanita’s programs motivated, much more knowledgeable, and ready to set new goals. I highly recommend her.”
~Mazie McMahon
Marketing Director, Bonadio Group
Mazie McMahon
May 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Christie Chapman
May 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment
“Juanita adds tremendous value to our leadership programs. Our employees show a lot of enthusiasm and motivation during her sessions. Juanita is passionate about her work and consistently provides high quality service. I would highly recommend her sessions on business etiquette and relationship building skills.”
~Christie Chapman
Manager, Organization and Leadership Development, Barnes Group Inc.
Theresa Slater
May 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment
“Juanita has presented a workshop to a large group of our Interpreters on the topic of professional etiquette. We also utilized her services to provide private coaching to one of our receptionists regarding telephone etiquette. In both situations Juanita proved to be a wonderful resource for my business. She is truly a unique outside consultant that any business could take advantage of. Juanita has proven you cannot put a price on the impression your employees make. I highly recommend her services to others.”
~Theresa Slater
President, Empire Interpreting Service
Beth Valenta
May 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment
“I was fortunate to work with Juanita Ecker for over a year on a Business Image and Etiquette workshop for Cox Communications. Juanita was very flexible in redesigning the workshop to meet Cox’s specific needs and was professional in her delivery of the on-site programs. She has a wealth of internal experience and background to pull from. Based on her content and instruction, many of our employees are now better positioned to present a good business image.”
~Beth Valenta
Manager Talent Management, Cox Communications
Andrea Lanese
May 18, 2011 By 1 Comment
“Juanita has the ability to engage with the audience by connecting with them. She spends a lot of time upfront customizing the training; she takes “generic” content and makes it resonate with the participants so they can make it their own.”
~Andrea Lanese
Director Organizational Development, Barnes Group Inc.
Dr. Brooke Ludwig
May 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment
“Juanita is not a stuffy etiquette consultant that is going to focus on all the things people are doing wrong; her easy manner empowers participants to make changes in their behavior. She makes people feel comfortable with an uncomfortable topic. People leave the session thinking, I can do this”
~Dr. Brooke Ludwig
Training & Development Consultant for a defense contractor
Setting Boundaries When You Work From Home
May 4, 2011 By Leave a Comment
By Juanita Ecker
Many people dream of working from home. It’s convenient, your time is more or less your own, and you can work in a space that’s more creative and intimate than a tiny cubicle. But in reality, it can be difficult to focus on your work and get into business mode when you are surrounded by family members, not to mention a million other distractions like a TV, the family pet, and neighbors who want to pop in for a chat.
If you’re going to ever get any work done and help your business grow, it’s vital that you set boundaries for your home office. The following tips will get you on the right track.
Make some room. It’s crucial that you have a dedicated work space where you handle all of your business matters. Your bedroom, kitchen, and living room should be reserved for your personal life. If, however, your home is too small for an office, at the very least have a dedicated desk in an area where you are unlikely to be distracted. Right by the TV is probably not a great idea! Setting up a phone line that is only used for business is also ideal.
Have a back-up. A home office isn’t necessarily the best place to hold a client meeting—it feels too informal. If you can’t go to the client’s place of business, look into renting an office suite for the day (some hotels and large office buildings offer this). Or, suggest a lunch meeting at a nice restaurant that is conveniently located to both of you. You should also find a nearby café or library where you can escape should the neighbors be doing noisy renovations, or if someone is mowing the lawn. [Read more...]
Are Bow Ties Appropriate for Business?
April 27, 2011 By 5 Comments
By Juanita Ecker
I was just reading the April issue of Lake Murray Magazine and saw this headline on the cover: “Tie one on for the Cup–an ode to the bow tie, an essential accessory for the Carolina Cup gentleman.”
“Men who wish to project a different, daring or distinguished style choose to tie up their fashionable loose ends in a handsome bow tie,” the article read, explaining that men can elevate their look from “done to dapper” by wearing a bow tie.
It seems that in the South, a bow tie paired with a suit is quite fashionable for formal social occasions. But as I read the article, I wondered about how the bow tie is received in the business arena? Is it outdated? Inappropriate? Or merely a striking personal style statement?
I get asked this question all the time in my dress seminars. “Can I wear a bow tie at the office and still be viewed as credible,” men ask. Being from the Northeast, I used to say, “Absolutely not!” However, now that I am living in the South, my view has changed.
Now, I have two major considerations with regards to this look. The first is, where does the client live? The bow tie is much more accepted in the South. When I am out to dinner at nice restaurants in Columbia, South Carolina, I see lots of businessmen wearing bow ties. Up north, and, indeed, most of the country, a bow tie is a rarity and therefore more likely to be seen as unconventional. [Read more...]
Be Nice When Someone Admits a Mistake
April 20, 2011 By 5 Comments
By Juanita Ecker
My girlfriend shared with me an incident that happened to her recently. She was running some errands and stopped at Bed, Bath and Beyond in Albany, NY. It was a cold, blustery day and the wind was strong. When my friend opened her car door to go into the store, the wind whipped the door and slammed it into the car next to her. The car happened to be a Mercedes.
My friend also drives a very nice car; it is certainly not a junker! She wondered if she should leave a note with her information, or if she should go back into the store to track down the owner of the Mercedes. She decided to do the latter and asked customer service to make an announcement asking for the owner of that make of car and that license plate number to come to the front of the store.
My friend patiently waited while they paged this person. When a woman arrived at the front of the store, my friend explained what happened and that it was an accident. The woman went crazy. “F—! YOU hit my Mercedes? F—! I can’t believe it,” she hollered. She then snidely asked, “Do you have insurance???”
My friend was furious with this woman’s behavior. My friend replied, “Look, I could have just driven away and you would have discovered the dent yourself!” She had tried to do the right thing by admitting her mistake, but the woman’s reaction almost made her regret doing so. [Read more...]
Translator Etiquette: A Lesson From the Green Jacket Ceremony at the Masters
April 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment
By Juanita Ecker
My husband and I were glued to the television set on Sunday, the last day of the Masters Golf Tournament in Augusta, GA. What an exciting game that was!
When it was time for the “presenting of the green jacket” ceremony, three players were present: the student amateur, Mr. Hideki Matsuyama; last year’s winner, Phil Mickelson; and this year’s winner, Charl Schwartzel. Because Mr. Matsuyama is from Japan, there was an interpreter present to translate what was being said. Jim Nantz, a sportscaster known primarily for his work with CBS Sports, was also present for the ceremony. When Nantz was interacting with Mr. Matsuyama, he made a small etiquette error. When you deal with an interpreter, you speak to the person, not the interpreter. Jim Nantz said to the interpreter, “Tell Mr. Matsuyama we were happy to have him be part of this year’s Masters Golf Tournament.” Instead, he should have looked Mr. Matsuyama in the eye, addressed him by name, and said what he wanted to say. Then, the interpreter would have translated his words as well as the response from Mr. Matsuyama.
When you are dealing with a translator, it’s easy to want to look at the person who speaks English and treat the other person as just a bystander. But the translator, for all his or her hard work, is not the one you need to impress. Therefore it’s important that our words as well as our body language are focused on the individual you are speaking with. [Read more...]
