Poise and posture: sitting

Elegant poise gives an instant ladylike impression and demonstrates balance, composure, and self-possession. – Sarah Tomczak

A good sitting posture is keeping your back straight with your legs cross at the ankles. At the office, make sure that you don’t slouch over your computer or paper works, keeping your feet firmly on the ground, shoulders back, and neck straight.

The elegant way to sit on a chair to give you a graceful poise:

Always approach a chair from the side, reaching with one hand to the armrest of the chair. Then bend your knees while keeping your back straight and gently lower yourself to the edge of the chair.
Keep your knees together, shifted to the right or left, and slowly slide back into the chair.
Sit a little forward in a chair to enhance your posture and lean slightly forward when you have a conversation with someone.
Rising from a chair, uncross your legs or ankles and firmly place them on the ground using your arms to lift yourself from the edge of the chair.

Keep your hands in your lap: with palms facing down or the bottom hand with palm up and the top hand with palm down.

How to sit while wearing a skirt/dress:

The royal family pose: cross your feet at the ankles and keep them slightly behind your knees.
Feet on the ground and keep your knees together.
Cross legs: if the knees are rotated to the left, cross left leg over the right and vice versa.
Double-leg cross: cross your legs at the knees and tuck the front foot behind the back ankle. It will take a while to master this position and practicing over an over is the key.

How to sit while wearing pants:

Cross your legs at the ankles.
Both feet on the ground with a small gap between them.

Dont’s:

shoe dangling off the foot: do not remove or enter your foot back and forth in shoes
leg stretch: do not cross and uncross your legs
wrap your legs around the chair’s legs.
placing the feet on the table
sit on the ground