We were featured in The Strait Times

The children were so thrilled and  happy to see the Strait Times photo journalist in our Macaroni and Please workshop on 19June to 20June 2012. Pictures were taken during the workshop and the article was  featured on  The Straits Times on 23 June 2012. 

View more pictures in our facebook. 

Closing Sales with Proper Business Etiquette

Proper etiquette and social graces are not only important in personal dealings but also necessary for leaving a good impression on people in a business setting. Most people aren’t even aware as to how they should conduct themselves when faced with such a situation. This is why business etiquette training workshops are arranged to help individuals interact with others in a work environment.

In today’s world, sales are closed over business meals and other unconventional places, for which you need to be prepared at all times. Do not be misled by the informal setting, it is still a business meet-up and you’ve got to present yourself in the best possible way for closing the deal. Hence, in this scenario not only your professional competence is tested but it is equally important for the personality and character to shine through. In this regard, a business etiquette training workshop delivers important advice on personal grooming so that you can go ahead in your professional life. It includes guidelines on how to incorporate confidence, self-assurance and poise in your personality, which is extremely essential to gaining trust of the person/party you’re dealing with. Remember, you’re constantly being evaluated by the other party, so in order to pass with flying colors, business etiquette training is quite necessary.

If you’re selling a product for instance, then something as little as improper dressing can project a negative image.  Similarly, the inability to strike a conversation with clients will not help your cause either. These may appear as slight matters, even more so when no business school stresses upon it. Instead, all of these tiny details are taken care of in a business etiquette training workshop because it is now widely accepted that the right decorum and protocol will help to a great extent in closing sales.

A typical business etiquette training workshop will aim to enhance your overall personality by teaching important aspects of clothing, communication, confidence-building and professionalism. These workshops not only aim to improve behavioral aspects but also the overall outlook of a person. Personal hygiene, hair and skin care, poise and posture may seem irrelevant but in actual world, they’re the foremost factors responsible for leaving a good or bad impression. Some people may not realize but even the attire needs to be according to the corporate requirements. Similarly, the hair style needs to be such that is presents a professional image. It’s all about giving your clients the respect that they deserve, ultimately leading to building your successful career.

Remember, you may have memorized every text book rule for making a successful deal, however when it comes to practical life, you cannot hope to go far without adequate business etiquette training. Therefore, if you are unable to maintain a profitable and productive business relationship, then consider taking help from a professional and enroll yourself in a business etiquette training workshop instantly! It’s not that you lack the talent to close sales but only require a little grooming to move ahead.

Thank You Note from Crystal

Today, I was pleasantly surprised to have received a thank you note from my client, Crystal Tan. As an image and etiquette consultant, I have coached many, but I really feel most appreciated, when I read a “thank you” note from one of my clients. It really makes me happy to know that my client is doing well, and my advice has helped them achieve their goal.

Crystal Tan came for my one-on-one consultation on business Etiquette on 21April . I remembered that day, when Crystal arrived. She didn’t look very confident and looked rather sad. When I conduct a one-on-one consultation, I like to know more about my client then see how I can help them, because each person is in a different situation with different expectations. After chatting with her for an hour or so, I realised that there are many factors that contributed to her behaviour. One very important factor was that Crystal seemed very emotional while sharing her problems and weaknesses to me.

As an etiquette consultant, I do not only help my clients on business etiquette related topics; I also help to build my client's confidence. Sometimes, my clients have called me a counsellor or a friend, because I actually listened to them and they took comfort in that. I feel that my job has been done, when one of my clients leave my office feeling better and more confident about themselves.

The Importance of Etiquette in Children

One of the most daunting yet important tasks of raising children in today’s society is instilling good social values and etiquette in them. Good manners and behavior play a paramount role in a child’s life.  In fact, the well being of a society ultimately depends on the values and etiquette of our children. 

Parents need to realize that the ultimate responsibility and need to nurture and groom their children into becoming well-mannered individual begin at a very young age. The very first role model of a child is a parent figure at home. To encourage good etiquette and habits, parents need to lead by example and always display good etiquette at all times. Teaching the kids some basic rules about good behavior such as table manners, politeness and kindness are a lifetime investment that will definitely pay off as your children grow older. 

Starting your children on the path to good values early in life can not only help them get along with others better, but also help them develop respect for different cultures and races. It is important that children learn how to interact with different people in their social circle and react appropriately to people from different parts of the world. Proper etiquette habits also help them to move with confidence in society and carry the right values in their personal and professional lives. 

A great etiquette workshop will encourage good habits in dining etiquette, social and communication skills, as well as build confidence and self-esteem among children. Groom your children to be good leaders and respectful individuals in our society to help them excel in our challenging environment.

About Image Flair Children’s Academy

Image Flair Children’s Academy of Modern Etiquette is dedicated to nurturing our youth into established, respectful, and well-groomed individuals of our society. Eunice Tan, founder and consultant of Image Flair, is an internationally recognized image and etiquette consultant that has made a difference in the lives of hundreds of children, as well as their parents. 

Contact Eunice for a personal and confidential consultation on how Image Flair can help your children.

Here Comes The Bride

Looking and feeling great are just the tip of the iceberg when
it comes to wedding preparation.

Weddings are joyous occasions that celebrate a union between loving couples, and a time to share all these wonderful moments with family and friends. Despite the joy and excitement, weddings are a stressful time. From dress selection to dinner, everything demands the utmost attention to detail. 

Without turning your wedding into a hair-pulling frenzy, you can transform this special even into the best party and celebration of your life by incorporating some simple tips and tricks. As an image consultant, it is perplexing as to why couples can spend hundreds of dollars on wedding arrangements and gifts, but fail to give any consideration to what matters the most, the bride and groom. 

Perhaps, it is the lack of awareness and priority given to the most important couple of the wedding, or maybe the stress from preparations and living up to expectations have overshadowed the importance of looking and behaving your best at your wedding. Remember, that when all eyes are on you, proper image and etiquette for weddings is important in holding up a good image and presenting yourself as best as you can. This will not only add to your happiness on your special day but also leave a lasting impression on guests.

Colour analysis for brides is one of the services offered under the Wedding & Special Occasions workshop. It provides professional advice on choosing colors that are best suited to your skin tone. We don’t need an expert to tell us that color coordination is important but we do need help from someone who has sufficient experience and skill to select the right colors for your evening gown, your lip and eye makeup selection, and even the bouquet you’ll be holding the entire evening!

Apart from providing color analysis for brides, the Wedding & Special Occasions workshop proves to be quite helpful in determining the precise style for men and women that not only complements their body but also enhances their personality. While you can afford to look less than perfect on a normal day, your wedding isn’t one of those occasions you want to pass! 

Similarly, jewellery and makeup are two essential aspects of looking great for your big day. It’s your wedding and quite rightly you’re the center of attention, being scrutinized by everyone present at the event. You cannot simply go with your instinct as to what looks better. Questions like, what would go better with your dress, diamonds or pearls or what shade of eye-shadow would bring out the eyes, are all important ones that need to be addressed. 

Apart from appearance, dressing, and looking great, there are other important areas to take note of for your wedding. Acting appropriately in front of guests is important to ensuring that you do not embarrass yourself or give your guests an awkward experience. Appropriate wedding behavior is important to keeping up with that great image you just created for yourself.

Prior to the wedding, invitations, introductions, seating, acknowledging your guests are all part of bride and groom etiquette. Here are a few wedding arrangement tips that you should keep in mind:

• Send out invitations well before time (no Facebook invitations should not be condoned)
• Provide all possible convenience to your guest especially accommodation and food
• Avoid bad timing

Lastly, of course, have a great time and enjoy the beginning to a wonderful journey together as man and wife!

Create Better First Impressions

Creating first impressions is key to attaining success in your professional and personal life. However, many are puzzled by how or what is takes to create a long-lasting, great first impression. In this article, we provide a few useful tips that can be incorporated in our daily lives to enhance your personality and set you up for the next occasion you will need to impress.

First of all, physical appearance needs to be given the highest priority. Proper clothes and a pleasant outlook will help create a positive impression even before you utter a single word. Like it or not, how you look is increasingly important to how other people perceive you. All you are required to do is adorn some clean clothes and appear well-groomed. Of course, depending on the formality setting, you would need to dress appropriately and wear only clothes that fit you. 

In this regard, you can take help from professional personal consultation services that provide expert wardrobe analysis, colour and style analysis, and even personal grooming. Most often, it is considered that such services are a waste of time and money. However, such workshops provide resourceful tips regarding image and etiquette, and help enhance and revitalize a person’s appearance for a better image and outlook. All these play vital roles in creating the first impression that you want to have whether it is during an interview, a first date, or even a high school reunion!

Creating that first impression is just the beginning. Often, what follows during a personal introduction tends to tarnish that great first impression you have created, either because you could not hold a good conversation or the voice did not match the image. Another way how image and etiquette training can help you create long-lasting, better first impressions is by instilling the ability to make good introductions and hold conversations. 

The right introduction requires articulating important personal information like your name and what you do in the right voice, tone, and volume. While this seems simple to many of us, you would be surprised at how many people find self-introductions a challenge. Continuing a conversation after seems like an even more daunting task. The aim is to engage the other person, and this is only possible through effective talking and listening skills. In this regard, you need to try and keep a balance between opening up too much and in other cases, not giving an adequate response. Begin conversation by making the other person feel comfortable and then go with the flow. In most cases, we tend to give less importance to ‘listening’. It is in fact, a very important aspect of making a well-balanced conversation. 

Confidence building is also indispensable to creating better first impressions. Some people are inherently self-assured, while others need a little help. On a personal level, you can work by getting rid of self-consciousness. Sometimes, people tend to focus too much on themselves, where they tend to worry about what the other person thinks about them. This leads to low self-esteem, which outwardly represents itself in form of fidgeting, second-guessing and shyness.  

However, low self confidence is not a problem that you have to live with permanently. There are many workshops conducted by trained image consultants, which aim to inculcate poise and self-belief in people. Speak with a professional today and get a lasting first impression that will set you apart from all the rest.

Bullying at school - why parents should be aware of children manners and social graces

Many parents have been expressing their concern at the lack of children manners and social graces. It is baffling to see a sharp increase in the number of bullying incidents at school. Such non civil behavior in children can be attributed to the lack of awareness and proper guidance. In view of this disturbing situation, I would like to share about a holiday workshop conduced at Image Flair to help promote children manners and social graces. I would particularly mention the Cool Kind Kid program that aims to help children get along with others and impart anti bullying education. 

I see many parents worried that they have no clue as to how they can play a role in instilling children manners and social graces. My advice would be that the best thing you can do for your child is to get him/her professional help at Image Flair. 

Some of the basic causes of why your child becomes a victim of bullying at school are:

•  Lack of confidence
•  Low self-esteem
•  Inability to interact and socialize with others

At the same time you could be one of those parents receiving reports of your child’s misdemeanor and that he/she might be bullying others at school. This occurs from a lack of respect for others as well as poor children manners and social graces. Participants who have attended some of the workshops in this regard are pleased to find out that the foremost principle taught to children is RESPECT. The values instilled in school going children at these workshops help build their character with a strong stress laid on children manners and social graces.

 

 Parents should be aware of the detrimental effects that bullying can leave on children. Any form of bullying can leave a child with long term personality disorder. Some of the effects include depression, anxiety, anger, insecurity and lack of trust.  The three main forms of bullying that children generally face at school are:

• Physical – This includes shoving, hitting and physically targeting a victim.
• Verbal – Victims are usually teased, threatened and mocked in this type of bullying.
•  Emotional – A constant fear is developed in the victim’s mind.
  

The anti-bullying programs are an effective way of eradicating bullying from school and promoting children manners and social graces. The workshops aim to teach students cooperation and dispute resolution techniques that will help them fit in school and avoid bullying.