Career Counselors Traci Ukita and Clara Ross-Jones hosted Career Cafe on Monday, Feb. 27 where they aimed to provide students with helpful knowledge about professionalism and proper etiquette in the workplace.

Coffee, tea and cookies were supplied to students in efforts to create a relaxed and chilled environment, so they would feel welcomed to sharing personal experiences at their respective employers.

The event helped students to deal with examples such as, a bad apple in a group, how to behave at company luncheons, as well as how to properly present yourself overall.

Ukita, who started off the presentation, defined proper etiquette in the workplace as, “sort of an unwritten code of conduct that speaks to appropriate behavior in the workplace,” she said. “Having good manners and behaving nicely are essentially what it is.”

After Ukita’s introduction, Ross-Jones outlined on a paper board the differences between what is categorized as professional behavior and what is categorized as unprofessional behavior in the workplace, where she encouraged students to share personal experiences they have encountered.

A “graciousness activity,” as Ukita puts it, followed where a rock was passed around from individual to individual, and the holder of the rock had to make it seem like they had the recipient in mind when “purchasing” the gift, and the recipient had to graciously thank them for the “thoughtful” gift.

This provided a fabricated scenario in an effort to generate generosity examples the students could take with them and implement into their job.

A “Do’s and Don’ts” flyer was handed out to students at the end of the workshop, it emphasized everything that had been spoken at the event, tying everything neatly together.

Fellow Career Counselor, Randy Lee, who was also in attendance, sees a lot of positive aspects about the Career Cafe events to the students who attend.

“Students are graduating and a lot of employers are noticing they don’t have the soft skills, which are being polite and friendly and all of those kinds of things that should be important for everyone to have,” Lee states.

He also believes that sometimes it’s not the pedigree nor the credentials of an applicant that separates them from the rest of the candidates during an interview, but how a person presents themselves and behave when talking to a recruiter.

If you’re ever curious or in the need of help in regards to anything that deals with the workplace, and are a sucker for coffee and cookies, make sure to stop by the Career Services in the Multipurpose Building.

This event is held on a monthly basis with a different topic in Career Services in the Multipurpose Building in Room 201.