Beyond the Ivory Tower

Assigned Reading

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By Kim Thompson BACKUP and Terren Ilana Wein BACKUP

If you're looking for a little light reading on business etiquette, here are the books that we would recommend:

• Power Etiquette: What You Don't Know Can Kill Your Career, by Dana May Casperson (AMA Publications, 1999). Here's an easy read -- and a must-read -- for anyone looking to get into business, and stay in it. Some illustrations and graphs make the rules even easier to understand. If you read only one book, make it this one.

• Miss Manners' Basic Training: Communication, by Judith Martin (Crown Publishers, 1997). Miss Manners covers personal and business communication here. The emphasis is on the correct, elegant, and best way to communicate your thoughts via e-mail, answering machines, speakerphone, fax machines, etc.

• Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands: How to Do Business in 60 Countries, by Terri Morrison (Adams Media, 1994). Morrison offers cultural overviews, protocol, business practices, and more about countries from the Americas to the Far East. Much of the information in this readable and even fun survey-style overview is generalized. Although it's a decade old, the book is still valuable as an introduction and reference. For up-to-date information on specific countries you will need to do more research.

• When the Little Things Count ... and They Always Count: 601 Essential Things That Everyone in Business Needs to Know by Barbara Pachter, with Susan Magee (Marlowe, 2001). Fits in your pocket or pocketbook, and packs a big punch for its size.

• Emily Post's The Etiquette Advantage in Business: Personal Skills for Professional Success, Second Edition, by Peggy and Peter Post (Collins, 2005). The mother of all etiquette primers, pick this up for its thoroughness and cheeky wit. If what you are worried about is not in here, you don't need to worry about it.

• How to Work a Room: The Ultimate Guide to Savvy Socializing in Person and Online, by Susan RoAne (Harper Collins, 2000). This offers excellent information on business socializing and networking in both the physical and virtual arenas.