An article by Christopher Elliott titled, “Good behavior is your most valuable travel asset,” appeared in a recent issue of USA Today. The gist of the article was that polite travelers who demonstrate kind behavior to travel employees are treated better while those who demonstrate rude behavior are treated worse and, in some cases, much worse. The article listed three things you can do while traveling to avoid being tagged as rude: 1) Be extra nice to travel employees. Travel employees appreciate nice travelers and will go the extra mile to help them. 2) Remember to smile. This is a sign that you care and the employees will care back. 3) Show respect. Rude travelers demand respect and it backfires on them. These are very easy things to do, they make you and those around you feel better, and travel employees will go out of their way to take care of you. If you would like to read Mr. Elliott’s entire article, here’s the link.
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Hi Ross,
This is good advice. I like the context that you provide the advice in as well from the standpoint of traveling. It’s important to be especially sensitive to other cultures and to learn more about them before traveling. Despite a traveler being nice, it is easy to offend without the intent of doing so. For example, it is important to eat with the correct hand in Saudi Arabia. In China, one must be careful to sit at the right place at a table (it ‘s about hierarchy) and to stay later then the boss. It goes beyond just showing respect rather knowing ‘how’ to show respect. It’s important to study up on other cultures before traveling. Thanks for another great daily reminder with quotes.
Tom