"Give. That is one of the world's greatest messages." - John Loring

To Ukrainians, gift giving is a way of communicating respect, friendship, and appreciation. Plan to save plenty of room in your luggage for gifts for the people you'll meet there. When meeting with a Ukrainian colleague for the first time, always be prepared for the gift giving ritual that has been deeply rooted in the Ukrainian culture for centuries.

The purpose of gift-giving is to please the recipient. Your reasons for doing so may vary but, whatever the reason, the focus must remain on the recipient if you want to elevate your gift-giving to an art.

Routine, careless or improper gift-giving can do your cause or relationship more harm than good. Gifts are never a substitute for a caring attitude, good professional business practices, goodwill or manners. Nor should a gift ever be given as a bribe or when it could be misconstrued as one.

The ideal gift is a product from the USA or specifically from your home state, imaginatively packaged with a twist to make it interesting, perhaps by adding the latest gadget that can be used in conjunction with the products. For instance, a nice gift might be a cassette tape from a "hot" American artist and a tape player with earphones.

Before you leave, find out from your facilitator approximately how many gifts you'll need for women and for men. Of course, you'll want to make sure you have a gender-appropriate gift for your facilitator. You can also plan to take some small non-gender-specific all-occasion gifts.

Tickets to events or exhibitions are also appreciated gifts as long as the recipient is interested in that sport or cultural activity. A balletomane may not be particularly thrilled with tickets to the basketball game.

Some suggestions for gifts are: pens, small calculators, clocks, watches, desk sets or baskets of fruit. Diaries and desk calendars can also be good gifts, but they must be spectacular and of the highest quality to be appreciated because officials in Ukraine usually receive a number of them. A gift that is useful or practical will always be valued as long as it is appropriate to the intended receiver.

- Carolyn