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Business etiquette – #4

Posted on January 7th, 2018 by Art Vandelay

新年あけましておめでとうございます! Happy new year! みなさん! Wish you all the best in the new year! Let’s continue our topic of business etiquette, and hope you have a chance to take advantage of the information in 2018.

10. Complain about the work on drinking parties
In other countries, people usually do not talk about their jobs on drinking parties. In contrast, the line between public and private is vague. As discussed before, the drinking party in Japan is the most effective way to get know each other. Hence, complaining about the work is not only a way of communication but also the way of exchanging the “inside” information.

11. Use fixed phrases to start an email
There is no such thing as a standard phrase to start a business email. However, it is quite normal to do so in Japan. The following phrases are the most useful business email format and phrase.

Customer’s company name
Customer name

いつもお世話になっております。
(Your company’s name)の(your name)

For example:
株式会社〇〇 (かぶしきがいしゃ)
〇〇様 (さま)

いつもお世話になっております。
(いつもおせわになっております)
〇〇株式会社の〇〇(write your name here but make sure do not put さん/様 after your name)です。

Business etiquette – #3

Posted on January 1st, 2018 by Art Vandelay

I hope you all could have some opportunities to practice the etiquettes I have introduced before. This week, I will introduce more interesting things which will probably surprise you.

7. Call a waiter/waitress loudly in restaurants
When ordering a meal in Japan, it is common to give a yell of “すみません!” to waiters/waitresses, while it is very rude in western cultures. The waiters/waitresses will also give you a yell saying “いらっしゃいます! (Welcome!)” when you enter the restaurant. It says such yelling is to give people an impressive showing that the restaurant is prosperous.

8. If it is not 100%, do not say “Yes” or make a decision
In Japan, making a business decision, not only externally but also internally, will take a really long time. No kidding, very long. People tend to say “Please give me some time and think about it again” to avoid an immediately judge or choice because once a decision has been made, it is almost 100% impossible to take it back. So don’t make a decision if it’s not 100% to you.

9. Pouring grievance on drinking parties (飲み会のみかい)
In western cultures, it is not common to talk about jobs on 飲み会 (のみかい), not to mention giving negative comments about the job. However, pouring grievance is the eternal topic on 飲み会 in Japan. On the other hand, it is also the most effective way to get know each other because you usually cannot know someone’s real thoughts in the workplace.

Business etiquette – #2

Posted on December 16th, 2017 by Art Vandelay

Following last week, I’ll introduce more common etiquettes in business occasions.

4. Always let your supervisors or customers get in the elevators or taxis first
Japanese is considered to be the most polite people in the world, especially in the culture of priority. In Japan, priorities such as seating order and so on are all based on the title or job level. In contrast, it is more common that let females to get into a car or a door first in western culture. Hence, please be careful about this point.

5. Invite younger female employees for a dinner
Inviting a female for a dinner where only two of you are involved might be considered as a signal of dating in some countries. However, it is relatively common in Japan because such a “small drinking party (飲み会のみかい)” is a casual event in Japanese business occasions.

6. Pouring alcohol for customers
In some western countries, there is usually no need to pay attention to your supervisors or customers’ cup to see if their cups are empty because they’ll usually take care of it themselves. However, it is absolutely necessary to pour alcohol for your supervisors or customers because doing so is a very important etiquette in Japan and will increase your favorability.

Business etiquette – #1

Posted on December 9th, 2017 by Art Vandelay

We need to pay attention to the business etiquette in the workplace, in particular in Japan because there are a lot of unique etiquettes which is not common globally. It may become embarrassing if you don’t learn and practice properly. From this week, I will present a series of lessons to show you the most important Japanese business etiquette.

1. Change business cards at the beginning of the business meeting.

You must do so at the beginning of the business meeting. It is a very critical business practice to exchange business cards on the occasion of negotiation or meeting, while it is not so important in the rest of the world. Properly exchange business cards could bring a huge effect on your meeting sometime. In Japan, the etiquette of exchanging business cards involves the expression of respect, but in other countries, a business card merely serves as a substitute for taking notes and existing in order to remember each other. In other countries, it is generally better to shake hands with each other and report their name than to exchange business cards. It is also common to exchange business card at the close of negotiations or meetings in other countries.

2. Do not fold your arms.

Many people in meetings and negotiations would fold their arms unconsciously. However, it will be considered “to show hostile meaning” in the case of business. Hence, in meetings or negotiations, please be careful not to fold your arms.

3. Respond with a smile even though you don’t follow what is going on.

In Japan, it is better to smile on the business occasion even when you don’t understand others’ meaning because it looks friendly. and polite. But in other countries, people usually would give others a kind of I-do-not-understand face. So you might need to practice it if you are not familiar with this etiquette.

How to correctly bow?

Posted on December 1st, 2017 by Art Vandelay

Bowing is a way of greeting, a way to show respect to others. Although the bowing as the representative of the Japanese way of greeting is mainly seen in East Asia, the West is also using it.

礼三息(れいさんそく)
Bow includes “standing bow” and “seat bow”. According to the depth of the bow, it has 3 degrees of respect of “most salute”, “salute” and “normal greeting”. There is also a concept called “礼三息” which means aspirating while bowing from the waist forward, stopped breath, and again while breathing back to the original position. It gives people not only a very solemn impression but also stabilizes one’s mental state.

Showing friendly
Bowing is the body movement which gives one’s head forward. Such movement is to show people that one doesn’t have hostility. It says in the Nara Era (奈良時代, ならじだい), Japan imported such etiquette from China and introduced it to the public and then gradually made some adjustments eventually created the original Japanese style. The most serious way of greeting in Japan is to bow, but in recent years the handshake seems to have become more common due to the influence of the Western culture.