【新唐人2012年11月21日訊】 (美国之音電)
- 禮節美語226-Body Language (4)
公司主管Andy又請專門研究肢體語言的Monica給公司銷售員 Sara和James培訓。Monica說：
Monica: Okay, so we talked about composure. Let’s go in the other direction now and talk about humor.
J: Ah, that’s something that’s always puzzled me. Is it a good idea to make jokes?
M: Research shows that people are more likely to accept an idea if it’s wrapped in humor. But the point isn’t about finding a really funny joke. Laughter is actually about bonding.
S: Yes….I’ve noticed that many times people at a meeting are all laughing about something that really isn’t all that funny.
Monica接下來談到了幽默在生意場上的作用。他說，有調查發現，用幽默的方式把一件事情說出來，更容易被對方接受。但關鍵不是要講一個特別好笑的笑話，而是笑聲能加強人與人之間的紐帶。
M: That’s right! They are not really joking….they are attempting to bond.
A: So go ahead and throw in a funny comment or a clever remark…but there’s got to be some minefields we should avoid as well, right?
M: Yeah….don’t make dirty, sexist or racist jokes or comments. And of course don’t humiliate anyone.
J: I have a question. I’m never quite sure where to sit during a business meeting.
M: The ancient Chinese art of “Feng Shui" teaches that you should never sit with the door behind you – and actually there’s a scientific reason for that.
雖然及時講個笑話，或是發表一點幽默的評論能有助於調節氣氛，加強紐帶，但講笑話也有一些需要忌諱的地方，或者說是 minefield 雷區。Don’t make dirty, sexist or racist jokes or comments. Monica說，不要講黃色笑話、性別歧視的笑話和種族歧視的笑話，而且不要 humiliate 羞辱別人。James問了一個很簡單的問題，那就是，開會的時候應該坐在哪兒。Monica 說，按照中國風水裡的講究，後背不要對著門，這是有科學道理的，為甚麼呢？
M: When a person’s back is placed towards an open space he becomes stressed; his blood pressure increases and his heart beats faster.
S: That makes sense! People subconsciously worry about getting attacked if they don’t know what’s lurking behind them.
J: Interesting. I’ll be sure to sit facing the door from now on!
A: Monica, thank you for another great class! I think we all learned a lot today.
M: My pleasure! See you next time!
Monica 解釋說，如果後背對著開放的空間，那這個人就容易有壓力，血壓升高，心跳加速，因為他們不知道身後可能會隱藏著甚麼危險，They don’t know what’s lurking behind them. 所以會下意識地感到不安全，因此在選擇座位時，最好是臉衝著門。怎麼樣，大家是不是也學到了一些以前不知道的事情呢？
