Bad manners hold you back in life

There are a lot of people who think that manners and etiquette are about forcing people to behave in unnatural ways, or that it's a way of making some people feeling stupid (when they commit a faux pas). But in truth, manners create a framework that allows us to communicate with fewer misunderstandings, and with clear expectations for what will happen. Good manners are simply knowing how to behave in a way that doesn't make the people around you uncomfortable. It's NOT about knowing how to use weird appetizer forks, or about telling other people how to behave. It's just about being at ease in a social situation, and not unwittingly embarrassing yourself. It's a pain to have to teach children good manners. Remembering those "please" and "thank yous," chewing with your mouth closed, speaking in polite volumes, not interrupting, etc., are not easy skills to acquire. But if you equip your children with these, they will be able to go out in the world and interact without embarrassing you - and as adults, they won't be held back. I work in HR and it is amazing the number of people who lack social skills who are out there looking for jobs. They are rude in their interviews or on the phone, or they say things that call into question their intelligence or judgment. No employer wants to have to train people on the things that they should have learned as a five- or six-year-old, so they get a "thanks, but no thanks" letter and are never given another shot at working for that company. And they aren't going to be able to succeed with their own business if their clients find them awkward and off-putting, either. A lack of basic manners is a major handicap in professional life.