Etiquette Boss: The right stuff
Right Hand /Left Hand Protocol: The director of a charter School recently said to me that he observed the schoolchildren did not know how to receive a diploma or gift correctly. He observed a lot of fumbling when it came to shaking hands while receiving a certificate.
The observation caused me to consider this subject as appropriate for this week’s column. It is important that children (and adults) be taught about the symbolism of our right and left hands.
Teach children that the right hand is considered the “giving hand” and the left hand, the “receiving hand” in Western cultures. For example, we ‘give’ our right hand in greeting, meaning that we shake with our right.