Booknote: The Essentials of Business Etiquette

Barbara Pachter, The Essentials of Business Etiquette: How to Greet, Eat, and Tweet Your Way to Success. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013. ISBN: 9780071811262.

Genre: Nonfiction
Subgenre: Business ethics, business networking and behavior, etiquette

I will start by saying that even though this book is targeted at business people, or seems to focus on business culture, that this is a book that anyone can use. I definitely think it is overall a very good book to give to a new college graduate as a present. For those coming out of library school and going into the job market, it would be a good book as well to have. The strength of Pachter's book is that it covers a lot of ground, but it is also accessible and easy to read.

Ms. Pachter has put together a guide answering both common etiquette questions as well as tackling some not some commonly known situations. She looks at behaviors when out in the job market, how to carry yourself, how to take care of your image and appearance (online and offline), and how to network with others. She covers the basics from how to give a handshake to who pays the bill during a business lunch. She presents a bit over 100 questions and answers in an easy to read format. In addition, there are additional insights throughout the book that expand on some of the lessons. There is advice on how act and appear professional as well as how to do good presentations (a skill that candidates for academic librarian jobs often need). The parts about your online presence are very valuable. In this day and age, how you carry yourself online is extremely important. That is a lesson that cannot be hammered enough into people given the many news headlines of people doing both faux pas and major screw ups in social media. Read this book to learn, or remind yourself, of what to do and not to do.

As I mentioned, this is a very easy book to read. You can do as I did and read it cover to cover, or you can browse and look for the parts that interest you or issues that you wish to learn more. Do not into your first job interview unarmed. Get this book and learn how to perform well in that first job interview. Even if you do not get that job offer, the advice here will help you make a good impression. which is always important. But if you do get the job offer, you can get tips and advice for doing well in the job, building rapport (even if you are a big introvert like I am), getting along with others, and carrying yourself as a professional.

The book would make a good selection for libraries, academic and public, with business collections. This is the kind of book that you want to keep on the career advice shelf. I am ordering it for our library. This is one I definitely recommend.

If you ask me, I can give this 5 out of 5 stars.

Disclosure note: This review copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley as an electronic advanced reader's copy (ARC) in exchange for an honest review. There, we have appeased The Man once more. The book, as of this writing, is scheduled for release on August 2, 2013.