No Matter what kind of person you are… a feisty red person, a calm blue lady or a happy yellow mellow fellow J manners are still a major part of everyone’s personality. Do you have good manners? Do you know what good manners are? A lot of people tend to think that it’s only the uber polite, prim and proper royal aristocrat folk who need to have and keep good manners. But for everyone else in society today – nearly anything goes… and you know what – society is quite forgiving when it comes to manners. I know a lot of the “manners” my parents would have been brought up with would have totally gone by the way side in this day and age… (my dad used to stand up every time a lady would leave the dinner table… I don’t know many men that do that today) and so being borderline mannerly is acceptable. But what makes that ok? Would it not be nice to be polite at all times, to be mannerly, chivalrous and courteous?

I bet you’re thinking now that you already do have good manners…. In my opinion most people think that they do… “Think” being the optimum word here!! Life gets busy – we rush here and there…. And sometimes being polite and mannerly, whilst stressed and thinking of 100 things you have to do that day tend to be forgotten! We’ve all done it…. Even I’ve done it on occasion when running around like a headless chicken trying to get a million things done…. Whether its forgetting to say thank you or showing your gratitude or appreciate for something someone has done for you, or maybe it was letting a door swing closed in someone’s face while running from one appointment to the next… or eating (unmannerly) like you were brought up in a farm barn, because that extra minute it would take to be mannerly, polite or grateful, was just to much time to spare. NOT GOOD ENOUGH!!! It soooooooooooo important, no matter how busy you are, how stressed you feel… to be mannerly to other people. Because rudeness is never forgotten!!

Here are some of the one’s I think are the most important….

1. Saying a meaningful thank you when someone has done something nice for you.
2. Sending a thank you card when appropriate (after receiving a gift or being a guest at someone house for dinner or a mini break).
3. Holding the door for the person behind you.
4. Keeping a promise
5. Complementing people, and really meaning it
6. Minding your own business and not butting in when you shouldn’t.
7. Respecting the people you love (which includes, no shouting, no belittling and no swearing)
8. Saying sorry when you should.
9. Swearing in general.
10. Answering people when they talk to you.
11. Smiling
12. Being charming
13. Saying “Hello” and “Good Morning” to people
14. Keeping good table manners (which include, no talking with your mouth full, eating with your mouth closed, not drinking when your mouth is stuffed with food, not dipping your bread into your soup, no double dipping, not flinging food with your fork, not shoveling as much food as you can into your mouth and defiantly no slurping)
15. Standing up when people leave the dinner table.
16. Be courteous and behaving in a refined manner in public.
17. Never walking into company whilst eating food
18. And always return a phone call…

So these are just some of the things that I personally feel are important and mannerly… I’d love to hear your thoughts on what you think is important… or your ideas on what’s mannerly or anything I have forgotten to mention here? Email me on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it … I love hearing from you all!!

Love,

Katie Jane xx