scarletsaidthat | Scarlet Communications

05
Dec 16
0

You Can Survive The Company Holiday Party!

Tags : Beer Business Cocktails Corporate holiday HolidayParty Party Spirits Wine

It’s Company Holiday Party Time! You are either excited about it or loathing the idea of having to spend yet another couple of hours with people who you have to already spend the majority of your life with. (Hopefully your situation is the former and not the latter) Either way, I support you and I want to get you through it unharmed, unbothered and with your dignity, respect and professionalism in tact. I offer 6 easy tips that will help you to survive your company holiday party:

Show Up – I am certain that there are a million other things that you could or maybe even want to be doing other than attending a party with the people who you spend 40+ hours of your life with every week, BUT, hear me out first. It’s not the daily recurring Monday morning team meeting that helps to building relationships. It is actually the random one-off similarities and conversations that you share about personal things, challenges and situations. While I’m not inferring that you should spill your deepest darkest secrets with your co-workers, I do recommend that you engage in casual, social conversations when the opportunity is appropriate. What better environment to do it in than the Company Holiday Party.
Drink, (If You Want To) But Know Your Limit – I get it; an open bar filled with all the wine, champagne and liquor that you could ever yearn for is quite tempting, but know your limits. If you need to eliminate the constant nagging co-worker who wants you to keep drinking your life away well after you have reached your limits, try the club soda with a lime fix. It looks like a cocktail, but it most certainly is not.
Dress To Kill, But Don’t Murder Your Career – If there is a dress code, stick to it. Don’t be the one person who wore a suit to your company’s Christmas Sweater themed party. Also, mind your sexy. I highly encourage dressing all the way up when its appropriate to do so, but be mindful of your outfit lengths, low cuts and fit.
It’s A Party, Not A Meeting – If Lisa did or did not send the report to you or if you plan to attend next week’s finance meeting are not really important tonight. Take this opportunity to get to know people personally and enjoy the festivities of the evening. Work is not going anywhere and will be there for you to discuss further on the next business day.
Taking A Date? Introduce Them! – If you are inviting someone as a date to your Company Holiday Party (or any party for that matter), introduce them! It is your responsibility to engage them in conversations.
Turn Up… IN MODERATION – I know that the word party is clearly in the title of this event and while I encourage you to party, I also want you to acknowledge and accept the fact that this is still in many ways connected to work. Do party, do dance and do have fun, but always remember that you must have some limits. Set those limits before you step in the door and stick to them.

Are you facing another upcoming holiday party challenge and you are trying to determine how to handle it? Just send the question our way. Send a note using the form below or feel free to post your question on any of our various social media accounts by clicking them below!

Until Next Time,

Happy Partying!

Scarlet

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11
Jul 16
0

Why Exactly Did You Introduce Us?

Tags : BusinessCommunication BusinessEtiquette Networking

Are you a connector? Are there people who you know that you want to ensure are connected with other great people that you know? Of course you do – who does not want to connect people and make magic happen?

But see, the problem happens when you have not truly ensured that the connection of these people even makes sense!

Take the image above for example. Sometimes we just fire off messages without truly think about what we are doing. What you have above is a classic blind unqualified introduction. Consider a few things to avoid:

Permission: Has Scarlet even be asked if their email address can be given out? While this appears to be an innocent introduction, perhaps John is one of those people where once he gets your email address, there is no stopping him from emailing you EVERY DAY! Just ask for permission to make this connection in advance.
Unneeded Services: Does Scarlet really need business consulting services? There is no shortage of people attempting to sell other people stuff every single day! If you are really seeking to do some good for your connections, make sure that you qualify what you are getting them in to in advance.
A Petty But Relevant Note: Scarlet is spelled with one T. If you do make an introductions between connections, make sure that their information is spelled correctly and is accurate. As the connector, it is your role to be accurate, appropriate and respectful of the parties identity, desires and preferences.

Scarlet Says…a human’s most essential commodity is time. We can not buy, steal, earn, hustle or get it back once it is lost. While your burning desire or even life’s work could be connecting people, it is essential that you take into account their needs, their preferences and what is most appropriate. Avoid blindly connecting people without their consent. We could all do without all of the extra emails, distractions and spam messages that come our way every day, taking away the very thing that we could all use more of – time.

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

04
Jul 16
0

I Thought You Said This Was A Party…

Tags : businessmarketing entrepreneurlife Etiquette Networking networkingmarketing scarletcommunications

Let me first start by saying, there is nothing wrong with being a network marketer. I don’t want the massive network marketing community to reign down upon us. Ok, – all clear here? Now, let us proceed!

Network marketing or MLM (multi level marketing) certainly has its perks. I’m not here to argue that, but how you go about engaging, communicating with and persuading people to support, join or rally for your cause is exactly what we are here to discuss!

Many of us probably have at least a few friends who are actively involved in network marketing, and many of the top companies are household names that you have probably heard of and maybe even used before. Companies like, Avon, Mary Kay, Tupperware, Primerica, Partylite and The Pampered Chef have become well-known organizations that serve an important role in the lives of their marketers, consumers and the overall economy.

The resounding challenge that many people (including me) have faced is the initial engagement of many networking marketers and the often pushy and insensitive manner in which the opportunities are presented. Of course this does not speak for all network marketers, but this topic has been requested to be covered by us on several occasions, so without further delay, let us explore a few recommendations when attempting to engage someone in a networking marketing opportunity:

Be Up Front – There have been instances where network marketing opportunities have been disguised as an invitation to a party, a bbq or a private dinner. Now, imagine being invited to a nice, exclusive dinner party and you get there with your dinner party appropriate cute outfit and you sit down, and someone is passing out pocket folders and cueing up a PowerPoint presentation. There are only two words for this scenario – Not Cool!
Be Respectful About the Follow Up – So, perhaps you get pitched an awesome opportunity that you are truly considering, but you get asked about 20 times in a 24- hour period if you have made a decision. I don’t know about you, but there are quite a few decisions, obligations and commitments that I am required to fulfill within a 24-hour period, and most of them are things that I have been thinking about, working on or setting up for quite some time. Let us keep in mind that while the opportunity may indeed be a good one, give the person an opportunity to truly think through what you are laying down.
Avoid Being A Dream Crusher – Take a moment and think about your ultimate dream job. Whatever it is – you have like been thinking about and/or pursuing it for a long time, maybe even since you were a child. So, for a new opportunity to come in and completely annihilate something that I have been pursuing or daydreaming about for forever is highly unlikely. Is it possible, yes… but very highly unlikely. The bottom line here is, avoid making people feel like if they do not take your opportunity RIGHT NOW, their lives will be ruined and crushed. Statements like, “you’d be crazy to not jump on this” or “if I were you, I’d prioritize this over everything else”, or even, “how much money would you make doing that, when you can do this for a lot less time and effort”. The truth is, money is not everyone’s main motivation, so that third quote could completely turn someone off.

Scarlet Says…focus on the relationship. No one wants to feel taken advantage of or sold without their basic humanity under consideration. While we highly encourage you to aggressively pursue whatever it is in life that makes you happy, brings you joy or makes you fill the most fulfilled, BUT not at the expense or the blatant disregard of everyone else. If you are pursuing your definition of success, you will likely need people. Be mindful how you treat, engage and expect people to support or follow you, because to get to your dreams, you just might need them more than they need you.

Thank you to Aisha Taylor, World Ventures director and car bonus recipient for the MLM tips and recommendations.

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

23
May 16
0

Does Your Date Deserve An Introduction?

Tags : Awards Dating Ford Freedom Ford Motor Company Networking

Just about a week ago, my friend Justin Kimpson extended an invitation to attend the Ford Freedom Award event at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Detroit. I was already scheduled to be in town teaching dining etiquette for Deloitte, so the timing could not have been better. Now, we have been friends for quite some time, so there was nothing awkward, weird or out-of-place about going as his “fake date” for the evening; I was actually very much look forward to it.

Since we’re both native Detroiters, went to high school together and still work together in different capacities, we have a ton of mutual friends and colleagues, but since I travel quite a bit and formally live in Washington, DC now, Justin knows way more people than I do. There were several instances where Justin formally introduced me to people who I did not know, which was great. Now, I have no problem with working a crowd, introducing myself and joining in on conversations, but I must say, it is nice to be naturally pulled in and introduced.

I did, however, notice something very interesting that was occurring – lots of people were not introducing their dates, or were doing so as an afterthought. Now, it is understood that perhaps the lack of introductions were intentional for whatever reason, but if you are inviting someone as a date to an event (either in a romantic capacity or as a friend), it is your responsibility to engage them, at least during introductions. It is also wise to give some thought to the type of event that you are going to, and the type of person that your date is. In advance of extending an invitation, ask yourself:

Do I even have a +1 to extend?
What are my obligations at this event and will I have the time to entertain a guest?
What type of event is this and would my date be comfortable?
Have I given my date the heads up about what to expect, including attire expectations and any of my obligations that may leave them standing alone for a while?

Scarlet Says…events can surely be fun, and bringing a guest can take the fun up a notch, but without giving some thought to who you’re bringing, if they will enjoy and be comfortable there, and if you are comfortable enough to introduce them to others, you could be setting yourself up for a bad situation and a lousy night out. So, extend your +1 to events with care!

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

18
May 16
0

Hey! Dinner Party Over Here!

Tags : chef Dinner dinnerparty Etiquette hellofresh Party Scarlet Scarlet Communications

This is the look of an excited dinner party hostess! In t-minus 3 days, I’ll host a wonderful dinner party for 10 and kick off a partnership with Hello Fresh! I’m not sharing just to share…I’d like you to consider coming to a dinner party in the future. Interested in attending a fun, engaging, swanky dinner party filled with great food (of course), delicious beverages and good company? Let me know by joining the guest list. We’ll let you know when a dinner party is headed to your area, so we can add you to a guest list in the future! SIGN UP HERE!

As a treat to our Scarlet supporters and readers, and because I am an avid user of Hello Fresh, you have an opportunity RIGHT NOW to try out your first Hello Fresh box at a deeply discounted rate. Hello Fresh provides weekly deliveries of farm fresh ingredients and delicious recipes to your doorstep. Visit their website and use the promotional code, Scarlet35, towards your first box.

Happy Eating and feel free to share with a friend or two!

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

16
May 16
0

I’ll Support You… If I Can Get A Discount

Tags : Business Corporate discount Entrepreneur Etiquette office Pay It Forward sales Scarlet Scarlet Communications small business

Who pays the full price for anything anymore?

Let’s face it…we are all trying to find a way to stay within our budgets, exceed goals and advance to what’s next, all with a particular (usually limited) amount of resources, right? So, trying to cut corners and take advantage of discounts, deals or promotions is pretty wise. But, when does this taking advantage approach turn into down right negligence?

It turns into this when you start trying to get over, get on or get the hook up at the expense of your friends and family and their goals. For example, think about your friends who are small business owners. Do they provide a product or service or manage a place that you frequent? Is your first question every single time you stop by their establishment, “can I get a discount on this” or “come on, I know you can do something”?

You absolutely should try to stretch your dollar and make it go as far as it can, but I’m suggesting that you genuinely and whole heartedly support people – especially friends and family – without always peaking through the lens of “what’s in this for me“?

Supporting someone does not always have to come in the form of a monetary exchange. There are surely other ways to show your appreciation and support of someone, including:

Sending someone an article that has content that they would interested in
Passing along a discount that you can’t use but perhaps they could
Calling (actually picking up the phone and dialing numbers – not texting) someone just to say hello
At work, let a colleagues’ superior know they do an outstanding job
Encourage someone to try something you know they want to try, but haven’t yet because they’re scared, and offer to try it with them

Scarlet Says…no one wants to feel like their relationship with someone is solely based on their ability to provide a “hook up”. Take the time – when you are not in need – to show the people around you that you are grateful for them, so when you actually do need something, making the ask will be appropriate and not awkward.

As a treat to our Scarlet supporters and readers, I’d like to pay it forward to you. You now have an opportunity to try out your first Hello Fresh box at a deeply discounted rate. Hello Fresh provides weekly deliveries of farm fresh ingredients and delicious recipes to your doorstep and is a dinner party partner to Scarlet. Visit their website and use the promotional code, Scarlet35, towards your first box. Consider this our way of paying it forward! Happy Eating!

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

13
May 16
0

How To Entertain Like a Boss! National Etiquette Week – Day 5

Tags : Business Clients Entertainment Etiquette Guests Host Scarlet

The E-Word – entertain, can really rattle some people. If you are used to being the guest versus being the host(ess), even considering entertaining family and friends may shake you up a bit. Contrarily, if you are the master host who regularly has family and friends over, today’s post will merely be a refresher, with perhaps a few new nuggets that you can use at your next event.

So, how is it done? How do you position and prepare yourself to host your own event? While being a seasoned, experienced and efficient event host takes a while to master, you can certainly pull off a dynamic event by following some key elements:

Mind Your Guest List

Your guest list just as important as the event itself. Unless you are in to planning and solely attending your own events, you’ll need some guests to make the event complete. Now, here’s the thing, which we mentioned in Wednesday’s blog post – Yes, YOU can host a dinner party too, all of your friends or acquaintances may not be complimentary of each other. So, this means that you’ll need to give some honest and careful thought to your guest list. Complimentary personalities does not mean that everyone must be a parent, attended an Ivy League School or work in government. This just means that you will have to ask yourself some simple, yet effective questions in determining who is best to attend THIS particular event.

Questions like:

What is the maximum number of people my venue can hold?
Is there a theme for this event? Is my guest list representative of people that I would enjoy being around and would they embrace this theme?
Does my guest list consist of people who will only talk about themselves or are they open to collective discussions?
Is my guest list filled with people who have picky personalities that would pick this event apart piece by piece and make my night a challenge?

Now, you certainly don’t want to alienate your potential guests solely because they are picky or have certain expectations, but you do have to ensure that your event goes the way that you planned it. In a perfect world, you’d be able to invite any and everyone, but if you really want to have a successful, enjoyable and peaceful evening, do give some thought to who’s on the list!

You Are The Event Host. Embrace It!

The bottom line is that you are the ringer leader, the front runner, the pioneer, the champion and the torch bearer for the event. People will likely accept an invitation to an event in large part because YOU invited them. While there may be good food planned, perhaps an expectation of great music and maybe event a hosted bar, many people would forego all of those things if the host left little to be desired personally. This is why you have to own this thing. This is your name, your vision, your personal brand out here, so invest some thinking and some planning into this!

Before your first guest knocks at your front door, rings your doorbell or sends that text that says, “I’m here”, you should already be in “host mode”. Host Mode (or as I referred to it in my wedding planning days, GO MODE) is when the imaginary director in your head says, ACTION. It is when you turn on your gracious ability to ensure guests are comfortable, snacks are being snacked on, libations are being poured and people are generally having a good time. Mentally switching to host mode ensures that you will be fully ready to engage with your guests instead of finishing up last minute things in preparation for their arrival.

As you think through your event and what’s going to happen, you’ll also have to make some decisions on what you’re not going to do that may conflict with your regularly scheduled life. For example, perhaps you are a huge fan of Game of Thrones (as many people are), but subjecting your guests to watch it just because the season finale is on and it happens to fall on the same day as your dinner party isn’t the best move. Now, if everyone that you invited is a huge Game of Thrones fan, perhaps its not that big of a deal, but if it will detract from the focus of the event or bore half of the crowd, perhaps its best to just save it for you to watch another day.

What’s On The Menu?

Whether you decide to go the cheese and crackers route or spring for sushi and an array of the finest cured meats, it is in your best interest to give some intentional thought to your menu selection. The menu selection starts with one fundamentally important component for all events, the five words that most of us dread hearing or considering – HOW MUCH IS YOUR BUDGET? Being honest, up front and accountable to your budget will make your event experience a positively memorable one. There’s nothing worse than wrapping up what you thought was a fantastic event, only to realize that you spent 200% of what you thought you were going to spend.

As you move towards actually selecting your food items, make sure that the items themselves are complimentary toward any activities that you have planned. Have you ever had a delicious meal and ended up feeling immobile for the remainder of the day? Do you want to have a philosophical conversation after the food is served? Are you planning to have open dancing? If your food selection has consisted of an array of comfort food like, mashed potatoes, short ribs, greens and cornbread, chances are your guests are going to be completely wiped out and very much uninterested in rigorous activities. When choosing your menu, be sure to keep your overall goals in mind.

Additionally, allergies are no longer a uniquely rare thing that just a few people have. About 1:5 people have some level of an allergic reaction to food. This means that if you took a quick poll of your immediate friend circle, at least one of those people will have a food allergy. Chances are, at least one of the people that you plan to invite to your event has a food allergy, so you may want to have multiple options to choose from, or if your guest list is small enough, take a poll to see what you’ll include and what’s left off the menu.

When guests arrive, you shouldn’t be still preparing food, cleaning up or getting yourself ready. There are ways that you can cook the meal yourself and still be in hostess mode when your guests arrive. If you go this route, you’ll just need to watch the time and ensure that you keep a to-do list to ensure that you’ll be ready to rock and roll when the first guest arrives. If you decide to go the route of cooking all of the food yourself as opposed to hiring a caterer, you may want to consider meal or grocery delivery that could assist with the added hassle of a trip to the grocery store.

As a treat to our Scarlet supporters and readers, and because I am an avid user of Hello Fresh, you now have an opportunity to try out your first Hello Fresh box at a deeply discounted rate. Hello Fresh provides weekly deliveries of farm fresh ingredients and delicious recipes to your doorstep. Visit their website and use the promotional code, Scarlet35, towards your first box.

Ok…now back to the list…

How Wet Is Your Bar?

Right up there with your food selection choice lies another event component that requires some intentional thought – the bar and beverage choices. Generally speaking, your beverage choices are:

Wet Bar: consists of complimentary alcohol beverages during the event. (also referred to as an Open Bar)

Dry Bar: is completely void of alcohol or in some cases, alcoholic drinks that you can purchase.

Moist Bar: may consist of complimentary beer and wine and in some cases alcohol is available for purchase. Your decision to serve (or not serve) alcohol at your event is completely yours, but if you decide to, consult your budget first. Alcohol and food are usually the most expensive elements of any event. While an open bar is certainly attractive and will be very welcomed by your guest, if you are looking to reduce costs, consider a moist bar.

Also consider that, there are many people who do not consume alcohol or consume it, but are at a particular point in their life where they can’t consume right now, like pregnant women or people who are on specific medications. Of course you can have carbonated beverages, juice tea and coffee on- hand, but you could also take it one step further and have non alcoholic cocktails.

Scarlet Says…at some point in your life you just might get an urge to switch roles from guest to event host, and when you do Scarlet wants you to make sure that you are cool, calm, collective and pleased with the event outcome. Give yourself sufficient planning time, use these tips to your advantage and most importantly take time for you to actually enjoy the event yourself. Happy Planning!

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

12
May 16
0

Are You Accustomed to Customs? – National Etiquette Week – Day 4

Tags : Etiquette Friends luggage nature ocean Passport TRAVEL traveletiquette

How many times have you been distracted today? Did you just get distracted when the notification for this post appeared? 🙂

So, since I have you for a moment, consider this question. Have you allowed yourself a few moments to daydream about what you would rather be doing instead of what you feel like you have to do right now?

What would you think about? Getting off work tomorrow? Warmer weather? TAKING A VACATION? If a vacation is what you’ve been dreaming about, let me stop you right there and prepare you for your next trip.

Traveling can be the most exciting, yet draining activity ever. Do you ever feel like you need a vacation when you get back from vacation? Why is that? Why do you feel so drained after coming back from what was supposed to be relaxation, serenity and peace?

If you really want to take a real vacation and return back to the day-to-day hustle and bustle of life with a recharged life battery, consider some of these vacation life skill approaches that work like a charm for us:

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1 – Slow Down: The older you become, doesn’t it seem like time just flies by super fast. Well, the truth is that time is not going any faster than it was when you were 5, 15 or 25. We are just much more distracted and continuously rushing from one place to the next. During a recent trip to the Dominican Republic, I decided to sit and gaze out of the plane window instead of anxiously awaiting for the fasten seat belt sign to turn off, so I could fire up my laptop. Just those 3-4 minutes that I intentionally sat and looked out the window, I captured this wonderful video of the plane climbing above the clouds. There is beauty, peace and tranquility all around us. If you’re looking to take advantage of it, especially as you prepare to take a vacation, just slow down long enough to take it all in.

2 – Pack Smart: Look, I get it; no one wants to get to their vacation destination and realize that the didn’t pack their must have body wash, medication or phone chargers. There are 3 very simple ways to be a smart, efficient and prepared packer:

Don’t wait until the last-minute: I probably lost most people on this one. Waiting until the last-minute is the fastest way to start your trip off on the wrong foot. How can you focus on peace and tranquility when you are busy worrying if you packed enough underwear to make it through the trip? Just slowly pack over a week or even a few days to ensure that you have what you need.
Limit your space: The more space you have, the more likely that you will max that space out. In the pictured above, I severely limited my space on two different trips. The backpack was a weekend trip to New Orleans and even included my laptop, a dress to attend a wedding, shoes and other essentials. The bottom right photo is a new product that I’ve been testing out – Smart Cargo cord keeper. I usually have cords all over the place, since the number of electronic devices that I travel with has increased, so I decided to find a “cord keeper” to keep them organized and in one place while I’m in transit. So far, so good with this new product, but I’ll provide you with a formal review over on Jacqueline’s Product Review page soon.
Commit: The easiest way to limit yourself and to not over pack is to commit. People are often amazed when I tell them how efficiently I can pack. Packing efficiently requires you to select clothing that you know will work on the trip. It requires thought, planning and some weather checking, but the outcome is not having to pay for checked luggage, not losing your luggage and being nimble, quick and easily moving from the plane to your vacation.

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3 – Try New Stuff: Your favorite restaurant, activity and hobbies are important, but trying something new, especially while you are on vacation is a fantastic idea. On a recent trip, instead of the normal rushy activities that I’m used to engaging in, I decided to sit on a bench on the resort that I was staying at, and look at the pond. To my surprise, there were two beautiful flamingos who lived in that pond, that kept my attention for close to 30 minutes. When you slow down, embrace flexibility and open yourself up to new things, beautiful things just have a way of happening.

4 – Read the Fine Print: Behind missing luggage, there are few things that ruin a trip besides realizing that you did not read your travel information correctly. Read your confirmation details thoroughly, ask questions and double-check your itinerary. Some of the most commonly misread travel document include:

Boarding Zone – Are you really in zone F trying to board with Zone A; just wait your turn.
Transportation Pick Up – Don’t get left stranded at a foreign airport because you assumed that transportation was included with your travel package.
Excursions – Vacation excursions are cool, but they get expensive very quickly. Make sure that you know what’s included and what’s not.
Baggage Rules – The days of 1 free carry on and 1 personal items are slowly become extinct. On many airlines, it costs to even carry on. Don’t get to the airport and burn through $100 in baggage check fees because you didn’t read the fine print.

5 – Ask Before You Assume: Have you ever gotten to your plane seat and someone was sitting there? When they see you approach, then they say, “do you mind if I change seats with you”? That order of operations is not correct. They made the assumption that you would be quite alright with the move before they even really asked. Before you assume that someone will be OK with you taking their seats, just ask first.

Girlfriends who travel well together, Los Angeles, CA

6- Set Some Expectations With Friends/Family: As part of National Etiquette Week, yesterdays blog post touched on the importance of thinking through your guest list for a dinner party. It equally, or some would say is more important to think through who you are inviting on a trip with you. While at a first thought, inviting all of your friends on a trips seems like a dynamic idea, but the reality is that everyone does not travel well together. Stop and consider these common problems that people have with traveling with friends they’ve never traveled with before:

Being late for everything
Would rather watch TV in the room, instead of checking out the city or the resort
Wants to only go to mainstream restaurants that they frequent back home
Is cheap and doesn’t want to pay for anything
Stays on the phone with family and friends back home all day

Just because you can’t travel with someone doesn’t mean they can’t be your friend. It means that you’re simply not travel compatible, and that’s OK.

Scarlet Says…traveling can be a fantastic way to relax, recharge and experience new things. Considering the time, financial investment and energy that it takes to travel, its in our best interest to ensure that our plans, companions and activities are carefully considered. Happy Traveling this summer!

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

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11
May 16
0

Yes, YOU Can Host A Dinner Party Too! – National Etiquette Week – Day 3

Tags : Catering chef culinary Dining etiquette Dinner Etiquette event fancy Food Friends hostess hosting

What visual comes to mind when you hear the words dinner party? Do you think fancy schmansy? Do you visualize infused cocktails and dishes that require directions to eat? Do you envision dressing up in your finest attire?

If you answered yes OR no, you’re wrong AND you’re right!

Scarlet Says, a dinner party is a social occasion at which guests eat dinner together. There is a lot of flexibility in that definition. The bottom line is that a dinner party can be fancy or casual, at a restaurant or at your home, filled with the finest meats and vegetables prepared by a private chef or prepared by you in your own home.

If you are invited to, or plan to have a dinner party, relax – it’s really going to be just fine.

When we decided to host a couple’s dinner party last year, there were some very specific goals that we wanted to achieve. These items can apply to other kinds of dinner party’s, so let me give you the scoop:

Food: Decide what you’ll serve and the entire serving/display plan behind it. Food is of course a very important component of a dinner party. One of the highest focal points of the party will in fact be dinner, so it’s in your best interest to get this part right. For the couple’s dinner party, we decided to hire a chef. Chef Samaya prepared a delicious 3-course meal and relieved the stress and hassle of preparing the meal myself. It’s important for you to be present at your event. When guests arrive, you shouldn’t be still preparing food, cleaning up or getting yourself ready. There are ways that you can cook the meal yourself and still be in hostess mode when your guests arrive. If you go this route, you’ll just need to watch the time and ensure that you keep a to-do list to ensure that you’ll be ready to rock and roll when the first guest arrives. If you want to go the route of cooking all of the food yourself you may want to consider meal or grocery delivery that could assist with the added hassle of a trip to the grocery store. As a treat to our Scarlet supporters and readers, and because I am an avid user of Hello Fresh, you now have access to try out your first Hello Fresh box at a deeply discounted rate. Hello Fresh provides weekly deliveries of farm fresh ingredients and delicious recipes to your doorstep. Visit their website and use the promotional code, Scarlet35, towards your first box.

Beverages: Right up there with your food selection choices lies another event component that requires some intentional thought – the bar and beverage choices. Alcohol and food are usually the most expensive elements of any event, so mind these items carefully as it relates to your budget. While a completely open bar is certainly attractive, and will be very welcomed by many of your guests, if you are looking to reduce costs, consider a moist bar, where perhaps there is just beer, wine and non alcoholic beverages. We decided to have wine, a selection of liquor and non alcoholic beverages. For dinner, we served a selection of white and red wines and for desserts on the roof, we served more wine and a selection of dark liquor. Remember that there are many people who choose to not partake in the consumption of alcohol. As a hostess, its important for you to ensure that there are beverage options for everyone.

The Guest List: The guest list was and always will be a difficult thing for us, especially as it relates to dinner party’s. It was decided to have this dinner party at our home. Our dining room table sits 10 people comfortably, so really the choice was made for us regarding the maximum amount of people. Now, we have well more than 10 friends who are in a relationships, so there still was some narrowing down that had to happen and knowing that we would have future dinner party’s in the near future helped with decision-making as well. We would have invited everyone if we could, but that size dining room table doesn’t exist yet. When deciding your guest list, think about personalities. Now, here’s the thing (that you may not want to hear, know or be aware of). All of your friends or acquaintances may not be complimentary of each other.

So, this means that you’ll need to give some honest and careful thought to your guest list. You may be thinking, “but they’re all my friends and I’m the connecting link, so why wouldn’t things all go smoothly”. Look, bottom line is, there a ton of different personalities just within your immediate friend group alone. The way that some people approach, respond or react to things may not be something that you want to have to deal with at dinner. Now, odds are your event will very likely (and hopefully) be a smooth, harmonious and pleasant event, but giving a few moments of thought to who’s personalities mesh together (and whose does not) could be the difference between a success or a disaster.

The Environment: One of the most enjoyable elements of the event was having desserts on the roof. The formal party of a dinner party, which usually involves sitting down in front of nice dishes, a well set table and being served is all well and good, but if there is an opportunity to break up the formalities, change environments and continue with the fun – do it.

Get Your Guests Involved: If there is a wine aficionado in the group who insists on opening and pouring the wine, let them. If your best girlfriend wants to come early to help you put the final touches on things, let her. I personally take my hosting duties seriously and do 95% of the work myself – but it’s because I enjoy it. But, if you’re going to be run down and tired, and not fully able to enjoy your event because you’ve tried to do everything yourself, consider commissioning assistance or at a minimum, accept the offer when someone wants to help.

Scarlet Says… dinner party’s come in all different shapes and sizes. The next time that you remotely consider having one or maybe just inviting people over, allow your mind to wander a bit into creative and non-traditional possibilities. The most important thing is to plan. Make to-do lists and give yourself enough time to comfortably plan for the event so that when dinner is served, you can sit back and enjoy the occasion just as much as your guests.

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

10
May 16
0

Why Are You Golfing In Heels? National Etiquette Week – Day 2

Tags : athlete detroitlions Etiquette golf green NFL sport

2014 1st Round Draft Pick, Eric Ebron, Detroit Lions at a Scarlet Communications Golf Etiquette Class

The weather is slowly starting to become favorable for the millions of golfers across the country. So, let’s talk golf…

At a first glance, the picture above appears to represent the ultimate violation of golf etiquette – wearing high heels on the green. Luckily, there’s a story behind the picture that will clear it all up – hopefully.

This picture was taken about a year ago, during the 2015 Detroit Lions Rookie Etiquette Training. Before each training segment, Scarlet gives an overview of the expectations and how etiquette ties in to the activity that the players were about to engage in. So, with that, please don’t put us on the naughty list. We really were just doing our job. 🙂

While we just narrowly escaped a bad etiquette citation, there are a number of other golf etiquette guidelines to make note of if you’re going to take advantage of an opportunity to golf this spring and summer:

Kyle Van Noy – 2014 2nd Round Draft Pick, Detroit Lions and Golf Instructor Lindsay Mason III at a Scarlet Communications Golf Etiquette Class

Give Your Cell Phone A Break: We all love our technology – Scarlet included, and of course if there’s an emergency, step out-of-the-way and take the call, but excessive phone usage while golfing isn’t cool. Also, be sure to silence or place your phone on vibrate.
Drive Your Golf Cart Responsibly: This is golf, not the Indy 500. Take your time while driving and avoid running anyone down. (even if they’re the opposing group)
MOOOOVEEEE – Get Out The Way: Avoid walking in someone’s line of play on the putting green. Learn where to stand and when to keep quiet.
Look The Part: Your appearance and speaks volumes about you before you even say a word. Take time to select and wear clothing that is comfortable and appropriate for the game.
Be A Good Sport: At the end of the round, shake hands with other players, congratulate the winners, don’t taught the losers too much, and thank them for their company. Keep in mind that the best part of the game is the time you get to spend with your friends whether old ones or new friends you just made during the game.

Scarlet Says…golf is the pastime for over 60 million people all over the world. Just like many of our other favorite sports like football, basketball and hockey, there is a prescribed and necessary set of rules and appropriate attire. Adhering to these few rules will ensure that you and everyone else enjoys this great weather and the golf that comes along with it.

Want more information on Golf Etiquette, check out, this list from PGA.

Until Next Time,

Scarlet

Author Archives: scarletsaidthat

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Why Are You Golfing In Heels? National Etiquette Week – Day 2

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