Ann Marie Sabath Comes to Fairfield U. to Teach Proper Etiquette

Today’s society must live by the fact that they will never have a second chance to craft their first impression in the business world, everyone you meet is a potential client.

Ann Marie Sabath, President of At Ease Inc., which is a corporate etiquette training firm she founded in 1987, spoke to Fairfield University students Wednesday evening on October 14th. She discussed how perfecting one’s body language, knowing how to properly mingle with strangers, exemplifying proficient table manners, and giving a precise business introduction, are the key ingredients to mastering the feared first impression.

According to Sabath, “You are given two ears and a mouth for a reason, listen more than you speak...pause and count to two so that you avoid interruptions.”
Money is usually an area of discussion that may cause awkwardness and confrontation. What is one to do if asked how much they make? Sabath believes that the best way to dodge this question is to simply say, “The Company I represent is very fair to me.” This response helps you to remain tactful and diplomatic, without having to give away your most confidential information.

Many students entering the business world must know that even the feared rejection letter can be made into a chance for another golden opportunity. Sabath stated that, “If you receive a rejection letter in the mail, be sure to follow up with a thank you card, as long as it is not a chummy hallmark card.”

Sabath said that the letter should go something like, “I was pleased to learn you made a hiring decision, and it goes without saying I was disappointed, I am a phone call away if anything changes.” Companies are most impressed when they see potential clients following through.

Over 90,000 professionals in the business, industry, government and educational sectors have been taught by Sabath, whether it was a Lunch 'N Learn program or an on-site workshop. She has written seven other books on professional etiquette and augmenting client relationships.

Sabath’s clients consist of Marriott International, Citigroup, Procter & Gamble and American Express, along with many others. Sabath has been profiled everywhere from Forbes to the Wall Street Journal.

Myrsini Papoutsis, the Assistant Dean of Graduate Programs at Fairfield University, helped make this special event possible. “I thought that it was a phenomenal presentation, Sabath really knows her stuff, and she is very well researched on the International cultures.”
Papoutsis believes that, “wherever you go you must research the culture beforehand, know whether to kiss, hug, or shake hands when greeting someone.”

Frank Romano, a senior at Fairfield University, believes that “many college students have tremendous knowledge, but they do not know how to market themselves. Tonight’s event helped guide students with the concrete skills that are necessary inside and outside the workplace.”

Reflective Essay 3:
The primary goal that I had in mind for my third deadline story was to successfully use the hourglass method. This time, I found it very simple to come up with a common theme to Ann Marie Sabath’s presentation. Before I started my deadline story I decided to sit back and slowly review my notes so that I did not miss a golden opportunity to make Sabath’s advice shine. There was a lot of debate with myself with what quotes to use, and which ones to cut out. All of her advice could have been used since she is a highly regarded professional, but I forced myself to choose just a few quotes that would be most interesting to my readers.

Again, I agree that the exercises we completed in class made me keep in mind that I must not have my sentences contain more than 35 words. The exercises in class were quite valuable when completing my deadline story. At times I wanted to disregard what I had been taught concerning the 5 W’s and H. I found this deadline story to be the easiest, because it was simply the story that I found most interesting!

I am still wrestling with how to make smooth transitions that help make my story flow. This is the first time I made sure to review a few sections in the text book, instead of immediately typing of my notes. I am glad that I have made the habit of making sure that I look for the who, what, where, how, and why, before finishing my story.

As far as the event in general, I learned more than I ever thought I could learn in three hours. I was worried at first because I had to arrive a bit late, but there were so many facts and tips that she gave, that it made it impossible to not come up with an interesting theme for my story. I think that the event could have gotten far more publicity because I learned life lessons that I would had never even thought about, before arriving at the event.

One of the best pieces of advice that I learned tonight were the six most commonly made business introduction faux pas. They included, wearing your name tag on the left rather than the right side, remaining seated rather than standing when someone approaches you, not repeating the name of the person you’ve just met and using it at least once during the conversation, for men: shaking a woman’s “fingers” rather than her hand, for women: giving a “dead fish” handshake rather than one that is confident, and lastly, when one does not shake hands with business associates you meet outside a business setting. If everyone knew of these faux pas I think that people would hold a higher regard for each other.