Manners Monday - National Etiquette Week 2012

This week marks the annual weeklong dedication to etiquette in all areas of American life and it couldn’t have arrived a moment sooner.  In an age where people are rushing, pushing and shoving to get ahead and everyone is expected to keep a breakneck pace to accomplish the umpteen thousand tasks set for each day, it is rare that an individual will stop, take a breath and puts themselves second in favor of their fellow woman or man.  Compound this with the invention of new technologies that further distance us and a nation that fancies electronic communication over face-to-face conversation and we are headed down an eroding and oblivious path to our own self-destruction.

Not a day goes by when someone somewhere is not angered, frustrated, upset, ticked-off, saddened, silenced, or annoyed by someone else’s insensitive, inconsiderate, uncaring, indifferent or inappropriate remarks.  People are pissing each other off right and left and placing blame without taking responsibility for their own actions and wrongdoings.  

It’s not likely we’ll be emulating our role models in politics, entertainment or sports anytime soon as they are often some of the worst offenders. You can't turn your head without hearing about a crooked politician who fell from grace, a loud-mouth entertainer who tweeted something blasphemous or a sports figure who resorted to physical violence when words didn't seem to cut it.

So where are we to turn and how are we going to take the necessary steps to make a change?  How can we stop being annoyed and defensive with others and apply more civility and politesse into our everyday lives?  How can we learn to restrain ourselves when standing in the face of the most frustrating of circumstances?  

I think it all begins with raising our consciousness level and collectively deciding to slow down so that we may begin incorporating these small considerations into our daily interactions.  With a big dose of commitment and a little bit of practice, we should be able to make a small adjustment for the better.

To test the waters and gauge where we are thus far, we have come up with a survey of questions to see what triggers us, how we respond to others and which areas need more paying attention to in the future.  Please visit our National Etiquette Week survey here http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07e5wdgylhh1wkkper/start and let’s begin the conversation.  

Have a burning survey question you would like to add, feel free to send it in along with a multiple choice of answers, we'd love to hear what's on your mind!