Proper use of chopsticks (Photo by Sidra Morris)

Are you going out to eat at an Asian restaurant and your chopsticks skills are a bit lacking? Or are you headed out on a business trip to China and you want to make sure that you don't offend the locals with your bad chopsticks etiquette? Well don't worry! With a little practice and by following a few simple rules, you'll be semi-pro in no time.

Just like the west has proper etiquette for use of utensils at the dinner table, the Chinese also have proper do's and don'ts when you use their eating utensils of choice: chopsticks.

This is the proper way to rest your chopsticks when not using them (Photo by Maako)

There are a few basic rules:

1. Try to not drop the chopsticks on the floor. This is both unsanitary for you and also a bad omen for the Chinese.

2. When you aren't using your chopsticks, don't stick them in your food standing up, as this resembles incense burning during ancestral worship.

3. You may use your own chopsticks to serve yourself from the community dishes if none are provided, but just pick what you want from sight and get it. Avoid fishing around.

4. If you talk with your hands, be conscious to set down your chopsticks first. Waving them around or pointing them at people is rude.

5. Don't drum them on your bowl-this is what beggars do.

Holding the chopsticks is awkward at first, but with practice you can show off your skills and may even avoid getting offered what I call "pity spoons" from your Chinese hosts.

If you would like to receive the Living Abroad Examiner's articles delivered straight to your email, please click "subscribe" at the top of the page.

Even though you may feel like my son when you first try your hand at chopsticks, don't give up (Photo by Sidra Morris