Should Being “Polite” and “Nice” be Part of Efficient, Professional Customer Service?
The Lebanese, especially the men, are not a people conducive to smiling. Many seem to be keen on maintaining a sense of personal gravitas through almost a poker face, staring down others in serious expressions that may easily frighten the clueless. Any smile that come out of such situation probably borders more on the sneer to the point of ridicule, rather than anything that can remotely be taken as courtesy or congeniality. If anything, smiling between strangers should be avoided in certain cases, for fear that it is taken as a personal offence in disguise.