Customs, Culture, Etiquette & Manners in India
Culture
Culture is the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, encompassing language, religion, cuisine, social
habits, music and arts.
Customs
Customs is a traditional practice or usual way of doing something followed by a social group of people
Manners
Manner is a person's outward bearing or way of behaving towards others
Etiquette
Etiquette is the customary code of polite behavior in society or among members of a particular profession or group. Etiquette change depending on the culture and the standing of the individual in the society. For example, a middle class person will have a different set of etiquette, compared to a upper class person. However, both of them can have the same set of manners.
Principles underpinning all Etiquette
- Golden - Treat others as you would like to be treated
- Platinum - Treat others as they would like to be treated
Types of etiquette
- Business
- Meeting
- Telephone
- Social
- Travel
- Eating
Business Etiquette
Business etiquette is about
building relationships with other people.Etiquette is not about rules
& regulations but is about providing basic social comfort and creating an
environment where others feel comfortable and secure, this is possible through
better communication.
Why Business Etiquette?
- Differentiates you from others in a competitive job market
- Enables you to be confident in a variety of settings with a
variety of people
- Honors commitment to excellence and quality
- Modifies distracting behaviors and develops admired conduct
- Exhibit Professionalism and develop a polished image
Difference between Social and Business Etiquette
Social Etiquette
- Marked by Courtesy
- Gender Plays a Role
Business Etiquette
- Marked by Hierarchy & Power
- Gender has no Role
Certain important business Etiquette are :
- E-mail Etiquette
- Business card Etiquette
- Cubicle Etiquette
- Office Etiquette
- Meeting Etiquette
- Networking
- Dress Etiquette
- Telephone Etiquette
- Travel Etiquette
- Dining Etiquette
E-mail Etiquette
In today’s rapidly changing workplace, overlooking the value
of the written word is easy to do. Writing skills are as important in
electronic form as in paper communication. It is important to take an extra
moment to review and organize your thoughts before keying them onto the screen
and pressing the “send” button. Here are some email tips and a review of email
diplomacy:
- Include a clear, direct subject line
- Use a professional email address
- Think twice before hitting `reply all’.
- Include a signature block
- Use professional salutations
- Use exclamation points sparingly
- Be cautious with humor
- Know that people from different cultures speak
and write differently
- Reply to your emails – even if the email wasn’t intended
for you
- Proofread every message
- Add the email address last
- Double check that you’ve selected the correct
recipient
- Keep your fonts classic
- Keep tabs on your tone
- Nothing is confidential - so write accordingly
Business Card Etiquette
Be ready for that exchange. Keep your business cards on hand
and in pristine condition.
The business card – an often underestimated workhorse of
networking – can be a powerful tool in forging new and memorable relationships.
However, many people have never stopped to think about the rules regarding the
small but mighty card. Remember these tips before you hand over your contact
information in the business world.
- Make an Impact – A great card is sturdy, informative and
makes it easy for the recipient to interact with and remember you.
- Expect the unexpected – Nothing makes a statement more than
handing someone the wrinkled and smudged card, one that conveys lack of
preparation.
- Be respectful – If possible, begin an interview or
professional exchange by politely handing your card to the others in the
meeting.
Cubicle Etiquette
Cubicle
etiquette is another important facet of workplace etiquette. As the
workplace continues to get more and more competitive, the smallest thing can
prevent you from future opportunities.
- If
something is private, keep it that way - If you are having a private conversation do not
talk about it in your cubicle.
- Be
considerate of other people's sniffers - Be careful of the smells you bring to the
office
- Decorate
with taste - You need to
use good judgment when decorating your cubicle.
- Be
aware of your voice - Talking loudly all the time is one easy way to annoy others.
- Respect
other's privacy - It is not good cubicle manners to chime in on other's
conversations or to peek over at them.
- Use
the Golden Rule - Act in your cubicle the way you would have others act. It
shows good professional etiquette when you treat your space and the space of
others around you with respect.
Office Etiquette
- Those who follow good office etiquette are promoted and
given choice assignment
- Those who are seen as crass or unkempt are passed over or have their
employment terminated
- Be self-aware-use common sense
- Mind your own business
- Never go over your supervisor’s head
- Obey your company’s business dress code
- Treat every employee with the same respect
- Do not post things of an offensive nature
- Show a healthy respect for colleagues experience and
expertise
- Exhibit a positive attitude and know what your role will be
on the team – How can I best assist?
- Leave your personal live at the front door
- Inquire about the proper way to respond to co-workers,
supervisors, clients (Business letter head, phone call etc.)
- Greetings
- Punctuality
- Space
- Time
- Play the Host
- Posture
- Hovering
- Communication
- Credit & Compliments
- Speak well of your co-workers
Meeting Etiquette
Codes of Conduct while attending Meetings
- Avoid swear words and vulgar references
- Poor communicating skill is not professional
- Avoid personal questions during first meeting
- It is important for an individual to behave appropriately in public to earn respect and appreciation. One must learn to maintain the decorum of the work place.
- Whoever gets to the door first should open it and hold for others who are following
- Turn off your cell phone ringer, accept voicemail and text messaging only
Networking
- Don’t travel with your friends
- Make direct eye contact, smile and speak
- Contribute positively to the conversation with your thoughts
and open ended questions
- Don’t monopolize someone’s time
- If appropriate, collect business cards
- Politely excuse yourself and move on to another individual
- Social Etiquette - the customary code of polite behavior in society or among members of a particular profession or group.
Grooming - Dress Etiquette
Grooming means dressing well, to be presentable to others. You may want to give a little more attention to how you dress at work because what you wear may be substantially influencing your career path. You never have a second chance to make a first impression.
- The Professional looks
- Dress for the part
- Simple but Classy
- Grooming – Grooming is fundamental
General Grooming
- Neatly trimmed hair
- Light perfume or cologne
- Clean & trimmed finger nails, clean skin and teeth
- Limited Jewelry
- Polished shoes
- Stockings without runs
- Wear only formal belts with a sleek buckle. Match your belt to your shoes.
- Concealed tattoos; no visible body jewelry
- Preferably wear leather strapped watches, if you wear a metal strapped watch, make sure that it fits the wrist well.
Tips
Presentation does count. It is important to appear fit, healthy, clean, happy, energetic, confident and well dressed.
A casual office environment doesn't mean that you have to dress carelessly.
Dress as you want to be seen; a person who takes their job seriously, is professional and upward - bound.
Business Casual Wardrobe
Benefits of Dressing Professionally
- The Transformation effect
- Dressing professionally improves self discipline
- Appreciation and respect
- The power of visuals
- Influence and authority
- Positive assumptions
- Makes you confident and most important
- It's easier to get to the top if you look like you belong there
- First Impression
- For Men – Dark/Slacks/khaki pants, White, Off White, Blue polo shirt or other collared
dress shirt, well maintained dress and casual shoes
- For Women – Women may wear Sarees, Salwar Kameez, Formal Shirt/Trousers or tunic with a pair of formal trousers and casual shoe
Grooming - Men
Shirts
Colors - White, Off White, Blue Shirts are preferred, though you may wear dark colored too. Do not wear thick stripes and checks.
Trousers
Trousers should preferably be dark though you may wear beige with a dark colored shirt.
Shoes
Wear a good pair of leather shoes - black and brown/tan shoes.
Shoes must be polished everyday
Do not wear shoe without laissez as they are considered semi-formal.
And also do not wear shoes with worn out heels.
Socks
Choose a colour that co-ordinates with your trousers usually black, dark grey, dark brown or dark blue.
Make sure they are long enough to cover your skin when you sit down.
Tie
Your tie should co-ordinate with your attire, choose a traditional silk tie, no loud colors or patterns the knot should be a perfect triangle.
Grooming - Women
Make-up for professional women should always be applied in moderation.
A woman who doesn't take time to put on the minimal amount looks tired before her work has begun.
Women may wear Sarees, Salwar Kameez, Formal Shirt/Trousers or tunic with a pair of formal trousers.
- Preferably choose small prints or self colors.
- Avoid plunging necklines, sleeveless and tight fitting clothes
Rings - Keep them simple and sober but not chunky.
Chains - You may wear thin chains with small lockets
Bracelets/Bangles - You may wear either a bracelet or a bangle. Avoid wearing both together.
Earring - Wear small Rings
Bags - Apart from you working bag if you are carrying an additional bag, preferably carry a Black Brown one.
Shoes or Sandals - Shoes with 1.5 inch heels are standard. You may wear a pair with smaller heels or a flat pair.
Stick with a Black or Brown pair.
Make sure that your shoes are polished and heels are intact.
Telephone Etiquette
Telephone Etiquette means being respectful to the person you are talking with, showing consideration for the other person's limitations, allowing that person time to speak, communicating clearly and much, much more. Your voice must create a pleasant visual impression over the telephone.
- Identify yourself when making a call
- Address the caller by his name in a courteous manner
- Keep conversation brief
- Never be impatient
- Listen carefully
- Do not interrupt
- Do not eat or chew something while speaking on phone
- If you wish to put the caller on hold, request his permission
to do so
- Close your conversation with an appropriate salutation
- Let the caller hang up first
- In case of missed calls, return the call within a reasonable
period of time
- If someone calls you by mistake, inform the caller politely
that he reached a wrong number
Travel Etiquette
Travel Etiquette raises countless questions. How messy should you leave a hotel room? How much should you trp a cab driver? Who owns the airplane armrest? What are appropriate expectations for kids on a plane? Do you say hello to strangers on the streets of a bustling metropolis? Though there are some basic rules of civility that are globally recognized - listening to what other people say, being aware of what other people do, and interacting with other people with respect - many of the answers to these questions depend on cultural context.When travelers encounter a very different culture, expectations - on both sides of the culture divide - change. Here are six simple, often ignored rules for making all your future in-transit travel-be it by plane, train, bus or automobile - more agreeable.
- Mind personal space
- Clear the air
- Travel is not the time to engage in any sort of personal grooming
- Keep it simple
- Rise above
- Be the change you want to see in the world
Dining Etiquette
No society can survive or flourish unless its members accept rules governing food sharing and consumption. Mealtime manners, which govern the way food is eaten in the company of others, provide for giving and receiving small, vital, and constantly reiterated signs that these rules are in working order. Furthermore, the specific fashion in which a culture manages eating helps to express, identify, and dramatize that society's ideals and aesthetic style.
Civilized and considerate people the world over demand that meals shall be eaten with respect, not only for the food and the effort and good fortune it represents but also for the people in whose company it is eaten. Human beings normally eat in the company of others. The word "company" is derived from Latin, meaning "bread with," and therefore "those who share food." The act of sharing a meal becomes a symbol of every kind of relationship and of the acceptance of cultural values that may seem to have little to do with consuming nutrients. Since eating normally happens more than once a day, human beings turn meals into opportunities to learn and to practice "culture." Politeness at meals provides daily exercise in making socially desirable norms "second nature."
- Be on time
- Wait to sit until host/hostess indicated the seating
arrangement
- Stand on the right side of your chair and enter from your
left
- Put your napkin in your lap
- Decide on your menu selections quickly
- Never order the most expensive item
- Wait for all people to be served before beginning
- Know which silverware to use with which food
- Wait until everyone has been served before you begin to eat
- Salt/Pepper pass together
- Generally pass food to the right
Athithi Devo Bhava – meaning `Guests are forms of God’
The mantras are from the Taittiriya Upanishad, Shikshavalli
1.11.2 that says : Matrudevo bhava, Pitrudevo bhava, Acharyadevo bhava,
Athithidevo bhava. It literally means “be one for whom the Mother is God, be
one for whom the Father is God, be one for whom the Teacher is God, be one for
whom the Guest is God.
One of the most defining characteristics of Indian culture
is hospitality. Hospitality becomes an act of worship. People in India have the
highest regard for guests and value hospitality.
Some tips you should keep in mind to make your visit a
pleasant one for your and for your host when visiting a home.
- Dress conservatively, especially if you are a woman.
Revealing clothes and exposing skin are frowned upon and will make everyone in
the house uncomfortable.
- It is not necessary to take a gift when visiting a home,
though it is always appreciated.
- In most homes, footwear is taken off outside the main door
and the house is entered barefoot.
- Do not attempt to hug or kiss anyone on the cheek unless it
Is initiated by the other person.
- Always ask for permission before taking photographs of the
family, especially of women.
- Wash your hands before and after a meal.
- Ask for whatever you want instead of reaching out directly
or pointing at dishes.
- Don’t make too much noise, don’t talk with food in your
mouth.
- Wait until everyone else is sitting down before starting to
eat.
- Help clear the dishes, unless it is not acceptable in that
particular custom.
- Don’t talk on your cell phone during the meal and if you,
must get up in between, ask to be excused.
Indian etiquette is an unusual mixture of British and Asian influences. Therefore in some ways our customs will seem familiar to westerners and in other ways in which Indian etiquette differs from western etiquette are as follows:
This section will be particularly helpful if you are
relocating to India and intend to work.
Dining etiquette can be very different in India. It is
consider proper to eat with your hands, and in a lot of restaurants or when you
are eating with locals, cutlery may not be provided, though in most places
spoons can be provided if asked for. If you do try to eat using your fingers,
make sure you only use your right hand and not your left, even if you are left
handed, as the left hand is considered to be ‘unclean’. Also as common sense
would suggest, your fingers will be messy from eating with them, and as such do
not try to serve yourself so as to avoid dirtying the serving spoon, but wait
to be served by a waiter or your host. Sharing of food is good in Indian
manners. However, never share cutlery or drink from someone else’s glass or
take food from someone’s personal plate, as this is considered very offensive. Coming
into contact with another’s spit is called `Jootha’. All the food that is
placed on your thali becomes jootha. There is no precise English equivalent of
‘jootha’, contaminated comes closest in meaning.
Instead of saying `Thank you’ at the end of a meal, but
praising the food and showing your appreciation as you eat will be well
received.
It is common to remove your shoes as a sign or respect
before entering a temple and indeed before entering into someone’s home.
Due to the influence of hierarchical Indian social
structure, the oldest or most senior person present should be greeted first,
followed by the next most senior and so on.
As a result of British colonial influence, handshakes are
the standard greeting in a business environment.
Indian culture places a great deal of importance on personal
relationships, and many business relationships will be built upon a personal
foundation. Therefore being introduced by a mutual acquaintance will stand you
in good stead.
Normal business dress for both men and women is western in
derivation.
When talking to Indian people, make sure to be aware of your
body language, as much significance will be attached to it. Avoid `aggressive’
postures such as folded arms or hands on hips.
Title are important in India, and as such people should be
addressed formally, i.e. title (Mr. Dr. etc.) and surname. Only use someone’s
given name if they have expressly given you permission to do so. For a stranger
who is not so old, it is better to suffix the name with `ji’, as a mark of
respect.
When managing Indian employees – The Indian approach to
business roles is generally formal and hierarchical. Therefore a boss is
expected to be a boss, and to act as such. Junior staff will expect to be given
clear and comprehensive instructions rather than coming up with their own ways
of working.
Avoid touchy, taboo subjects such as India’s poverty, or the
caste system as Indians are rightly very proud of their country’s long and rich
history and culture.
India is a place where unnecessary formality can create
feeling of insult. It is fine to thank someone who has provided a service to
you, such as a shop keeper or waiter, lavishing thanks on friends or family
should be avoided. Doing things for those whom they are close to as implicit
the relationship. If you thank them, they may see it as a violation of intimacy
and the creation of distance that should not exist. Rather than saying thanks,
it is best to show your appreciation in other ways, “like I really enjoyed the
food and spending time with you”.
In Hindi, there are three levels of formality – Intimate,
familiar and polite.
Don’t outright decline an invitation or request, that can be
considered disrespectful. Instead of saying `no’ or `I casnt’ directly, give
evasive answers such as `I will try’, or `maybe’ or it might be possible or
I’ll see what I can do’.
Don’t expect people to respect your personal space. Overcrowding
and scarcity of resources leads to a lot of pushing and shoving in India.
Don’t expect people to be punctual. IST means Indian
Standard Time. Sometimes it denotes Indian Stretchable Time in India. The
concept of time is flexible. 10 minutes can mean half an hour, half an hour can
mean an hour.
Don’t show affection in public. It is okay to `piss’ in
public but not kiss in public in India.
Don’t overlook your body language- Traditionally, women
don’t touch men in India when meeting and greeting them. Giving a `Namaste’
with both palms together is often a better alternative.
Don’t judge the whole country - India is a very diverse
country and a land of extreme contrasts. Each state is unique and has its own
culture and cultural norms. With your
limited experience, you should be careful not to draw blanket conclusions about
the whole country.
First observation in first impression
- Social heritage
- Educational Level
- Trust Worthiness
- Level of Sophistication
- Economic Heritage
