FINISHING SCHOOL FOR SOCIALITES

Definition: A finishing school is a school for women that focuses on teaching social graces and cultural rites as a preparation for entry into society. Wikipedia

Besides a college education, many of today’s Socialites are also sent to “Finishing Schools” to polish their manners. These social skills, not taught in colleges or universities, are in increasing demand in the new global business and social environment.

Old-fashioned finishing schools used to focus mostly on household management skills; entertaining skills…the skills required to be a wife and mother, but as times have changed and feminism has come to the forefront, the focus has switched more to career and international etiquette skills.

Interest in Finishing Schools is reviving as the need for specialized etiquette skills increases. Today’s Socialites are being taught critical skills, enabling them to take their place in the family business and move confidently through the new global community.  Learning basic cultural differences, how to address royalty, how to communicate in both the written and spoken word, gracious cell phone manners, entertainment etiquette as well as how to run business meetings in multiple cultures is important to today’s socialite.

Following are some of the course offerings:

  • How to set an agenda & lead business meetings
  • Personal money management
  • Image & Brand management,
  • Gala dress codes, ie: the difference between black-tie/white-tie dress
  • Wardrobe management
  • Care of jewels, furs & heirloom silver
  • Fine dining and wine selection skills
  • Appropriate gift giving
  • Cell-phone etiquette

These are just a few of the skills that the modern heiress will need in order to swim through the social waters of the upper class!

Have you met Anna Bey of the “School of Affluence” ? She runs an online Finishing School to teach elegance and how to network with the wealthy. She has graciously released numerous u-tube videos to share her ideas, but for the serious Socialite, attending her on-line Finishing School would be a wise investment in oneself.  See her u-tube videos at @annabeyschoolofaffluence.com.  Use this link to go straight to her videos: this week’s video!

woman wearing hat

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Learn to notice the beauty that surrounds you!

As budding Socialites, we dream of living our lives surrounded by beauty and luxury!  What we don’t realize is that there is already so much beauty around us, but we haven’t yet learned how to see it, how to recognize it or how to enjoy it.   As this habit of “noticing” becomes easier and more automatic, we will gradually move from a limited world of black & white into a lush world of color.

The next time you are driving around, take a moment to notice the spring flowers coming into bloom.   Start noticing appealing textures and the variety of colors surrounding you. Touch gorgeous fabrics and notice the light texture of silk, the warmth & softness of velvet, the smoothness of satin.  Pause to enjoy a beautiful view.  Stop and smell the roses.   Enjoy the luxury that surrounds you. 

When you taste something wonderful, savor it and notice the flavor. What spices do you detect?  Experience it fully.  Appreciate a beautifully decorated cake or French pastry.  Make those moments of pleasure last as long as you can.  Draw them out…be Greedy!

Listen to the birds singing, to waves crashing on the beach.  Explore different types of music;  Chamber, Jazz, Country.  There is a whole world at your fingertips, waiting to be explored. Enlarge your horizons.  Start noticing your preferences in everything!  You are unique and what you like matters.  Practice indulging your five sense(s); sight, smell, taste, touch & sound.  Learn to notice & enjoy the luxury that surrounds you.   

Find a fragrance that smells wonderful to you, one that you love!  Do you like the citrus smell of orange blossoms? The fresh clean scent of the ocean or do you prefer a floral fragrance? Analyze what appeals to you.  Many expensive hotels have learned to tap into their visitors “scent memory.” The traveler will be reminded of their wonderful vacation every time they smell the fragrance.  You too can live in “5-star luxury” by choosing a personalized “signature fragrance” for your own home!  Whenever your visitors smell the scent, they will be reminded of you.

This portion of the “Socialite Lifestyle” does not even require additional money, it just requires that we open our eyes and realize how much beauty and luxury we already have in our lives, before we rush on…