tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27146172087618280592023-09-13T07:01:02.838-07:00Improve Your Business English Learn the business English you need to succeed at work. Stay on top of the latest workplace vocabulary -- idioms, expressions, words and more! All the English you need ... but won't find in a textbook!Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-45458631013714321632020-07-10T15:28:00.009-07:002020-07-11T08:11:03.333-07:00Learn English Online: How to Make Suggestions in English<div class="magic-template lnd-temp-wrapper lnd-temp-2-351-wrapper eltemplate js-custom-color custom-color" contenteditable="false" data-color-cssprop="background-color" data-template-id="lndTpl351" id="el1547469457078_2" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: lato, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; position: relative;"><div class="lnd-temp lnd-temp-2-351" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 700px; width: 960px;"><div class="lnd-temp-2-351-text unformatted-paste" contenteditable="false" data-magic="text" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #58595b; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.6em; padding: 15px 0px;"><p class="spacebetweenidioms" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" data-defaultcss="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 25px; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">There are many ways to make suggestions in English. Here are three of the most common ones. Why don't you try them out in your next English conversation? <o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></span></p></div></div></div><div class="lnd-temp-wrapper lnd-temp-2-80-wrapper eltemplate js-custom-color custom-color js-footer-zone" contenteditable="false" data-color-cssprop="background-color" id="el1592332213807_0" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: lato, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; position: relative;"></div><div class="magic-template lnd-temp-wrapper lnd-temp-2-358-wrapper eltemplate js-custom-color custom-color" contenteditable="false" data-color-cssprop="background-color" data-template-id="lndTpl358" id="el1592347369329_12" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: lato, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><div class="lnd-temp lnd-temp-2-358" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 730px; width: 960px;"><img class="lnd-temp-2-358-img elimg-bg js-custom-image" contenteditable="false" data-magic="image" data-src="https://cdn.mycourse.app/c60/author/images/thick-pattern.png" data-unsaved="false" src="https://lwfiles.mycourse.app/english-public/3aad5fddd4700ff52247efde6e05de06.jpeg" style="background-clip: padding-box; background-position: 50% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; box-sizing: content-box; float: left; height: auto; margin: 30px 20px 10px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 315px; z-index: 10;" /><div class="lnd-temp-2-358-text unformatted-paste" contenteditable="false" data-magic="text" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #58595b; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.6em; min-height: 95px; padding: 15px; position: relative;"><p class="Dialogue" contenteditable="false" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><b contenteditable="false" data-defaultcss="" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0070c0; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">1) Why don’t we / you / I + base form of the verb*<o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></b></p><p class="spacebefyourreply" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><i contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• Why don’t we stop paying our office lease and just work from home?</span></i></p><p class="spacebefyourreply" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• Why don’t I drive you to the airport on Friday?<o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></span></p><p class="spacebefyourreply" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• Why don’t we find a new supplier for our packaging?</span></p><p class="Dialogue" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• Why don’t we have a Zoom chat on Thursday at 9?<o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></span></p><p class="spacebetweenidioms" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">* Note: The base form of the verb is the verb without any endings. Examples of verbs in the base form are: run, eat, play, go, find<o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></span></p></div></div></div><div class="magic-template lnd-temp-wrapper lnd-temp-2-351-wrapper eltemplate js-custom-color custom-color" contenteditable="false" data-color-cssprop="background-color" data-template-id="lndTpl351" id="el1592347054786_4" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: lato, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; position: relative;"><div class="lnd-temp lnd-temp-2-351" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 700px; width: 960px;"><div class="lnd-temp-2-351-text unformatted-paste" contenteditable="false" data-magic="text" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #58595b; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.6em; padding: 15px 0px;"><p class="Dialogue" contenteditable="false" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" data-defaultcss="" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4f81bd; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><b contenteditable="false" data-defaultcss="color: rgb(79, 129, 189);" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 22px; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">2) How about + -ing form of the verb</b><o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></span></p><p class="Dialogue" contenteditable="false" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="Dialogue" contenteditable="false" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• How about letting our employees work from home as often as they want?</span></span></p><p class="spacebefyourreply" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• How about requiring all of our customers to wear masks?</span></p><p class="spacebefyourreply" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• How about giving all of our employees a generous holiday bonus?</span></p></div></div></div><div class="magic-template lnd-temp-wrapper lnd-temp-2-358-wrapper eltemplate js-custom-color custom-color" contenteditable="false" data-color-cssprop="background-color" data-template-id="lndTpl358" id="el1592347142273_5" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: lato, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><div class="lnd-temp lnd-temp-2-358" contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 730px; width: 960px;"><img class="lnd-temp-2-358-img elimg-bg js-custom-image" contenteditable="false" data-magic="image" data-src="https://cdn.mycourse.app/c60/author/images/thick-pattern.png" data-unsaved="false" src="https://lwfiles.mycourse.app/english-public/dd401a5b1892ac932eea6fdf9ad12dbe.jpeg?client_id=5e5417fa0f269729f90204ee&width=311&height=311" style="background-clip: padding-box; background-position: 50% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; box-sizing: content-box; float: left; height: 309.006px; margin: 30px 20px 10px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 310px; z-index: 10;" /><div class="lnd-temp-2-358-text unformatted-paste" contenteditable="false" data-magic="text" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #58595b; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.6em; min-height: 95px; padding: 15px; position: relative;"><p class="Dialogue" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><b contenteditable="false" data-defaultcss="" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0070c0; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">3) Let’s + base form of the verb</b><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></span></p><p class="Dialogue" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><i contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• Let’s brainstorm ideas for new products.</span></i></p><p class="spacebefyourreply" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• Let’s work on the project tomorrow.<o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></span></p><p class="spacebefyourreply" contenteditable="false" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• Let’s wait and see what happens before hiring any new employees.<o:p style="box-sizing: border-box;"></o:p></span></p><p class="spaceafterdialogue" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">• Let’s not plan any international travel for the next year.</span><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br /></span></p><p class="spaceafterdialogue" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="spaceafterdialogue" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="spaceafterdialogue" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; text-transform: inherit;"><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;">If you find this content useful, be sure to check out our online English courses. Register at <a href="https://courses.languagesuccesspress.com" target="_blank"><b>English Academy</b></a> and get the first lesson of each course free! <br /><br /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PfYtLgA5LSc/XwnWPpUzMRI/AAAAAAAAAck/FRHmx1xmdxwE0H5QhTnw34clhEgMacxiQCLcBGAsYHQ/s900/courses-July.jpg" style="font-family: lato, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="900" height="333" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PfYtLgA5LSc/XwnWPpUzMRI/AAAAAAAAAck/FRHmx1xmdxwE0H5QhTnw34clhEgMacxiQCLcBGAsYHQ/w500-h333/courses-July.jpg" width="500" /></a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span contenteditable="false" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "segoe ui", sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: inherit; text-transform: inherit;"><br /></span><p></p></div></div></div>Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-20230469972970361402020-01-23T13:54:00.000-08:002020-01-24T07:18:27.101-08:00Sports Idioms: Football<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<div class="MsoNormal">
Idioms are very common in daily speech. They come from a
variety of sources. Some come from the military, some come from politics,
others come from literature. But the top source — the one ‘hitting it out of
the ballpark’ — is sports!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sports are popular in American culture. Many American kids
play sports, especially as an after-school activity. Many American adults play
sports — golf is popular, as is tennis, basketball and soccer. And of course,
there’s watching sports on TV, in particular ‘football’. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Every year, over 100
million viewers tune in to the Super Bowl. This is a football game between two
of the top performing teams of the year in the National Football League (NFL).
One team is the winner of the American Football Conference (AFC); the other
team is the winner of the National Football Conference (NFC). These two are
‘pitted against’ each other in the Super Bowl. The Super Bowl is the most watched American TV broadcast of
the year. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Non-Americans sometimes refer to this sport as “American
football” to distinguish it from what Americans call soccer: in our USA
football, it’s all about grabbing the ball with your hands and running with it.
In soccer, it’s all about kicking the ball and making sure you keep your hands
off of it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Given this love of sports, Americans talk about sports a
lot. That has led to <span style="font-family: inherit;">some </span>of this “sports talk” to carry over to our figurative
language in the form of idioms. Here are a few:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6MGxHeaxSjY/XisFIYVPQWI/AAAAAAAAAaM/xcrhcucCz2cBTwRHu-MVhFyJhisrYI_eQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/football-Idioms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="752" data-original-width="800" height="600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6MGxHeaxSjY/XisFIYVPQWI/AAAAAAAAAaM/xcrhcucCz2cBTwRHu-MVhFyJhisrYI_eQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/football-Idioms.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
Let's look at where these three football idioms came from:<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">1) </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">Monday morning quarterback</b></span></h3>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">The idiom comes from the fact that American football games are usually played on Sunday. On the next day </span>—<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> <b>Monday </b></span>— <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">it's ea</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">sy to criticize what the <b>quarterback</b> did wrong. The quarterback is the player is </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">the leader of the offense. Their performance can have a significant impact on the fortunes of his team.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Before each play, the quarterback tells his team which play</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> the team will run. </span></span><br />
<br />
So this term is always negative. You may see it phrased as:<br />
<ul>
<li>I don't mean to be a Monday morning quarterback ...</li>
<li>It's easy to be a Monday morning quarterback but ...</li>
</ul>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Ar80pd-Z6I/XisCtxxYLBI/AAAAAAAAAaA/TsRYxyjoQfYdxdIf0-BTNIcB4kSL6gOjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/pile%2Bon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="813" height="146" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Ar80pd-Z6I/XisCtxxYLBI/AAAAAAAAAaA/TsRYxyjoQfYdxdIf0-BTNIcB4kSL6gOjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/pile%2Bon.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After a tackle, players have "piled on."</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: inherit;">2) </span><b style="color: #783f04; font-family: inherit;">pile on</b></h3>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In football, this is when one or more players jump on top of a player after a tackle has been made. From the act of physically "piling on," comes the more figurative "piling on" of joining an argument or a verbal attack on a single person.<br /></span></span><br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: inherit;">3) <b>huddle up</b></span></h3>
<div>
When football players "huddle up," they gather close together to discuss a play. When managers in a company "huddle up," they meet to discuss a plan or strategy.</div>
<br />
<br /></div>
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Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-56655291892558444772015-05-28T12:38:00.002-07:002015-05-28T12:38:41.210-07:00Eight Business English Idioms to Discuss Success<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin-bottom: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px;">The following is from a<i> Wall Street Journal</i> entitled <i>How to Survive Being an Overnight Success</i>. Getting quick success as an entrepreneur sounds great, doesn't it? But this article points out that there are some challenges with trying to grow too quickly. The words and idioms we will focus on are in blue.</span></div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin-bottom: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sF8YfO6s5J4/VWduoEf5WOI/AAAAAAAAATs/BeOWzc5KUW0/s1600/sales.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sF8YfO6s5J4/VWduoEf5WOI/AAAAAAAAATs/BeOWzc5KUW0/s1600/sales.jpg" /></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px;">----------</span></div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin-bottom: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px;">It seems like a dream scenario for a startup: Sales </span><span style="font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px;"><span style="color: blue;"><b>surge</b></span></span><span style="font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px;"><span style="color: #333333;">, and business </span><b><span style="color: blue;">takes off</span></b><span style="color: #333333;">.</span></span></div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px; margin-bottom: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
But then what?</div>
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<span style="color: #333333;">Any number of things can turn a small business into a rapid success—from a TV appearance to great connections at a trade show to a viral online video—but sustaining that success forces an entrepreneur to make tough choices. For instance: Should the company immediately </span><span style="color: blue;"><b>ramp up </b></span><span style="color: #333333;">production and risk lowering product quality? Bring in more workers to help an overstressed staff, and risk destroying company culture? Try to </span><span style="color: blue;"><b>live off </b></span><span style="color: #333333;">the original innovation, or</span><span style="color: blue;"><b> plow lots of cash</b></span> <b><span style="color: blue;">into</span></b><span style="color: #333333;"> R&D to develop new ones that might not </span><span style="color: blue;"><b>pan out</b></span><span style="color: #333333;">?</span></div>
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How do I meet demand?</div>
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<span style="color: #333333;">It’s the immediate problem a company must deal with when it </span><span style="color: blue;"><b>hits the big time</b></span><span style="color: #333333;"> quickly. All of its systems are set up to handle a certain level of production and sales. And suddenly it is </span><b style="color: #333333;"><span style="color: blue;">swamped</span></b> <b><span style="color: blue;">with</span></b><span style="color: #333333;"> orders. </span></div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px; margin-bottom: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #333333;">----------</span></div>
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<b>Here's our vocabulary for this article extract:</b></div>
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<b style="color: blue;">(to) surge </b><span style="color: blue;">- </span>to increase quickly</div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-weight: bold;">(to) take off</span><span style="color: blue;"> -</span> to become popular; to turn successful</div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px; margin-bottom: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<b style="color: #333333;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) </span></b><b style="color: blue;">ramp up </b>- to increase</div>
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<b style="color: #333333;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) </span></b><b style="color: blue;">live off </b>- to make enough money from something</div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: 'Chronicle SSm', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 28px; margin-bottom: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<b style="color: #333333;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) </span></b><span style="color: blue;"><b>plow lots of cash</b> </span><b><span style="color: blue;">into</span></b><b style="color: black;"> </b>- to invest a lot of money in</div>
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<b style="color: #333333;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) </span></b><b style="color: blue;">pan out </b>- to be successful</div>
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<b style="color: #333333;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) </span></b><b style="color: blue;">hit the big time </b>- to become very successful or popular</div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>swamped (with)</b> </span>- to be overwhelmed with; to have more than one can manage</div>
Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-89006984868810792042014-08-05T13:43:00.002-07:002014-08-05T13:45:50.000-07:00Learn Business English with Some News on Facebook<div class="MsoNormal">
Today we're looking at an article about Facebook from the <i>New York Times</i>. As you may have heard, Facebook is making more and more money by selling ads on its site. In this article, we learn of a company finding success selling fish oil through Facebook. The words and idioms we'll focus on are highlighted in blue:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">
The idea was to come up with a big, sweeping campaign to
market MegaRed, a premium alternative to fish oil pills, to users of the social
network. Each ad had to be so <b><span style="color: blue;">compelling </span></b>that it would get people to stop
scrolling through their news feeds ...</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">
But from where Mr. Rodrigues sat, as the guy who would write
the checks for the proposed campaign, the Facebook people seemed to be <span style="color: blue;"><b>missing
an essential point</b></span>. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">
The advantage of advertising on the world’s largest social
network was that it could do something television ads could not: Using
sophisticated analytics, it could help him find people who were already buying
fish oil or other products that suggested they were concerned about the health
of their hearts, and perhaps persuade them to switch to his brand.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">
At the meeting,
the company’s ad strategists were saying they wanted him to spend money to show
ads to every American woman 45 and older on Facebook. Finally, with some <b><span style="color: blue;">exasperation</span></b>, Mr. Rodrigues — the
marketing director for vitamins, minerals and supplements at Reckitt Benckiser,
the company that owns MegaRed — <span style="color: blue;"><b>blurted out</b></span> what he’d been thinking. For that
kind of broad <span style="color: blue;"><b>blitz</b></span>, he said, “I can go to television at a quarter the price.”</blockquote>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">Now let's look at the highlighted words and phrases:</b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">compelling</span> - attracting interest; very interesting and appealing</div>
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<span style="color: blue;">missing [the] point </span> - not understanding the problem; focusing on the wrong thing</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">exasperation </span>- annoyance; intense irritation</div>
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<span style="color: blue;">to blurt out </span>- to say suddenly or without thinking; to say something sensitive that nobody is expecting you to say</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">blitz </span>- an advertising campaign (often a large one). Note: this is from the military, meaning a campaign in which bombs are dropped from airplanes</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">I hope you enjoyed this short Business English lesson! If you're looking for more Business English, please check out the new app Business English Negotiations for iPhone and iPad: </span><a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" dir="ltr" href="http://bit.ly/UNaSCQ" rel="nofollow" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; color: #999999; cursor: pointer; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="http://bit.ly/UNaSCQ">http://bit.ly/UNaSCQ</a></div>
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<b style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;"><br /></b></div>
Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-17925184112132277962013-05-13T19:21:00.001-07:002013-05-13T19:21:25.345-07:00A Business English Lesson Inspired by the CEO of IBMThe Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of IBM had to tell her employees that they needed to change. So what did she do? She recorded a video message and posted it on the company blog. Her message to her 434,000 employees: you need to move faster! Of course, the video was passed on to the news media (also called "the press"). Did CEO Virginia Rometty deliver the news to her employees the right way -- or was she yelling at them as if they were children? The jury is still out (that means, people are still discussing that question!). <i>Businessweek </i>— a weekly business news magazine — just published an article about this. Let's look at some pieces of this article and then discuss the expressions and words in bold:<br />
<br />
<div class="">
</div>
After the disappointing earnings
report on April 18, Rometty released a video to all 434,000 employees in
which she admitted that IBM hadn’t “transformed rapidly enough.” She
called out the sales staff for missing out on several big deals. “We
were too slow,” she said. “The result? It didn’t get done.” The press
<b><span style="color: blue;">got wind of</span> </b>her message, and Rometty’s now accused of the corporate
equivalent of yelling at her children in public. The <em>Wall Street Journal</em>, which broke the story, called the <span style="color: blue;"><b>outburst </b></span>a “rare companywide reprimand.” IBM declined to comment on the video ...<br />
<br />
Employees aren’t going to watch one video or read one memo and
completely change the way they work—the company has to change, too. In
the video, Rometty <span style="color: blue;"><b>laid out a plan</b></span> for IBM to respond to customers
within 24 hours: “Engage management, engage leadership, and let’s deal
with it.” She’s already “reassigned” the head of IBM’s computer hardware
department, the source of a large portion of the sales drop. “Ginni’s a
very direct, <span style="color: blue;"><b>no-BS</b></span> type of CEO, and she had one message that she
delivered to everyone,” [Professor Noel] Tichy says. “It would be much worse if it went
through the internal channels. No one wants to hear that the CEO thinks
they<span style="color: blue;"><b> dropped the ball</b></span> through<b><span style="color: blue;"> word of mouth</span></b>.”<br />
<br />
Now let's look at the expressions and word in bold:<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;"><b>(to) get wind of</b></span> - to find out about something, often a secret <br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: blue;">outburst </span></b>- a sudden expression of feeling (often full of emotion)<br />
<span style="color: blue;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="color: blue;"><b>(to) lay out a plan</b></span> - to present a plan<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;"><b>no-BS</b></span> - short for no bullshit (BS means bullshit; therefore, no-BS is just the opposite!)<br />
<span style="color: blue;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="color: blue;"><b>(to) drop the ball</b></span> - to make a mistake; to fail to perform one's responsibilities<br />
<span style="color: blue;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="color: blue;"><b>word of mouth </b></span>- gossip; news spread by people talking to each other (note: often used as a marketing term to describe an advertising or marketing message that is spread from one person to another -- which is a positive thing for the company because it means that people are talking about the company's product or service).Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-51681345849538191392013-04-02T11:06:00.002-07:002020-01-25T09:52:34.747-08:00Business English Greetings — and News of American GreetingsWhen I was growing up, I loved receiving greeting cards in the mail. My favorite greeting cards had Snoopy <br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
on them. I would save and review them for years. So when e-cards came along and people stopped sending cards in the mail, I was not very happy. I am sure the management of American Greetings, a large greeting card company, was not so h<span style="font-family: inherit;">app</span>y either!<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
In today's <i>Wall Street Journal</i>, we learn that American Greetings is saying goodbye to the stock market and taking itself private. The article is entitled "Wishing You a Fond Farewell <span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– From the Stock Market." </span>Let's read the beginning of the article and improve our business English. Words and expressions we'll explore are highlighted in blue and defined below:<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It is an industry that <span style="color: blue;"><b>thrived </b></span>in the days when the printed
word was king and </span><b style="color: blue;">correspondence </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">went through the mail. But like many other
businesses, it was </span><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;"><b>battered by</b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> the rise of lively, innovative and often free
competitors online, where stamps and handwriting aren't needed.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Welcome to the greeting-card industry, where the biggest
<span style="color: blue;"><b>publicly traded U.S. company</b></span> in the business has decided to bid adieu to the
stock market, announcing plans to <b><span style="color: blue;">go private</span></b>. The Weiss family—descendants of the Polish immigrant who
founded American Greetings Corp. shortly after his arrival in Cleveland in
1905—on Monday said it agreed to pay $18.20 in cash per share to remove the
company from the public markets.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The greetings-card business <span style="color: blue;"><b>has seen better
days</b></span>, and American Greetings today is worth almost 65% less than it was at its
peak in 1998. Like many media companies, it was <b><span style="color: blue;">hit hard by</span></b> the Internet, with
customers finding new ways to share old sentiments like birthday or holiday
greetings. Tech companies including Apple and Facebook launched their own
electronic greetings businesses, letting their customers send physical or
electronic gifts and greetings on a birthday or anniversary.</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div>
<b style="color: blue;">(to) thrive </b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to do very well; to succeed; to flourish (in this case, the greeting card industry was thriving ... back in the days when people actually sent their greetings by regular mail rather than via the Internet).</span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<b style="color: blue;">correspondence </b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– communication by letters (in other words, people writing to each other)</span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<b style="color: blue;">battered by </b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– hurt seriously by (Note: this can be used in the financial sense, as it is here. It can also be used in the physical sense as in: Our beach house in New Jersey was<b> battered by</b> Hurricane Sandy).</span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<b style="color: blue;">publicly traded company </b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– a company that trades on the stock exchange (versus a private company that is owned by one family or group of investors)</span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<b style="color: blue;">(to)</b> <b><span style="color: blue;">go private </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to remove a company from the stock exchange, so it is once again owned by private investors. This is the reverse process of "going public" in which a company lists itself on the stock exchange. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<b style="color: blue; font-size: 15px;">(to) have seen better days </b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to be in a period of decline or slow sales (yes, American Greetings definitely has seen better days -- 15 years ago, it was worth a lot more than it is today).</span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<b style="color: blue; font-size: 15px;">(to be) </b><b style="font-size: 15px;"><span style="color: blue;">hit hard by</span></b><span style="font-size: 15px;"> </span><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to suffer losses due to something (in this case, American Greetings was hit hard by the rise of e-cards, with consumers sending more greetings by Internet than by regular mail, or "snail mail.")</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br />For more business English idioms, check out the new app for iPad & iPhone, <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/business-english-power-idioms/id610274702?mt=8" target="_blank">Business English Power Idioms</a>. It's a cheap and fun way to work on your business English!</span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></div>
Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-4953279715061842722013-02-26T08:55:00.002-08:002013-02-26T11:12:18.229-08:00Let's Learn Some Business English with a Story about Jesus (the Brand)<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RE-LyjB9ISw/USzpb0ZeJhI/AAAAAAAAAOc/KJtHnp-6UQc/s1600/Jesus_Jeans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RE-LyjB9ISw/USzpb0ZeJhI/AAAAAAAAAOc/KJtHnp-6UQc/s1600/Jesus_Jeans.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>An advertisement for Jesus Jeans</b><br />(It looks like this model could have </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">gone</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> for </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">the next size up!).</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
No, this is not going to be a post about religion. It's going to be a post to help you improve your Business English (and your legal English). But we are going to be talking about Jesus today. That's because an Italian clothing company has trademarked the name "Jesus" and uses it on its Jesus Jeans. It's now fighting with other clothing companies trying to use the name Jesus too.<br />
<br />
In conversational English we sometimes say "Jesus!" to express anger or outrage (or the shortened "Jeez!"). Some of the people in the newspaper article we are going to look at today are definitely saying "Jesus!" They are very unhappy that one company is not sharing the "Jesus" name. Who would have though that dozens of clothing companies would choose "Jesus" as their brand name? And then start fighting about it? All of this is not in the spirit of Jesus himself, but it does make for interesting reading (and English study!).<br />
<br />
Let's take a look at the newspaper article, which is entitled "If You Take These Jeans' Name in Vain, Prepare to Meet Their Maker" and is from the <i>Wall Street Journal</i>. The expressions we will study are in blue.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Inspired by his time leading a singles ministry in Virginia
Beach, Va., Michael Julius Anton <span style="color: blue; font-weight: bold;">came up with </span>an idea for a clothing line that
he thought was <b><span style="color: blue;">catchy </span></b>and unique—"Jesus Surfed." He was <span style="color: blue;"><b>on good ground</b> </span>with "Surfed." But when he
went to <b><span style="color: blue;">register the trademark</span></b>, he found someone had <b style="color: blue;">beaten him to </b>Jesus.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
In a branding coup <b><span style="color: blue;">of biblical proportions</span></b>, an Italian jeans
maker persuaded the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 2007 to register the
word "Jesus" as a trademark, giving the company exclusive rights in
America to sell clothing bearing the name of Christianity's central figure.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Since then, the owner of the trademark, Jesus Jeans, has
<span style="color: blue;"><b>clamped down on</b> </span>Jesus-themed apparel, <b><span style="color: blue;">pitting its litigators against</span></b> more than
a dozen other startup clothing lines it claims appropriated "Jesus"
without the company's <b><span style="color: blue;">blessing</span></b>. The company doesn't have a trademark on images
of Jesus, just the word.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Before taking on Jesus Surfed, Jesus Jeans objected to
"Jesus First," "Sweet Jesus," and "Jesus
Couture," among others, which abandoned their trademark efforts. In some
cases, when <b><span style="color: blue;">met with resistance</span></b>, Jesus Jeans warned that it could <b><span style="color: blue;">sue for
damages</span></b>.</blockquote>
Now let's look at the definitions of vocabulary:<br />
<b><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) come up with </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to think of</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: blue;">catchy </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– memorable, appealing (Note: You will often heard the phrase "catchy tune," meaning a song or melody that stays in your head and is fun to sing, though eventually it might drive you crazy)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b style="color: blue;">on good ground</b><span style="color: blue;"> </span><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">–</span><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"> safe with (Note: this terms first appeared in the Bible, which is probably why the author of this newspaper article chose to use it in a story about Jesus: Here is a quote from Luke 8:15, King James Bible: </span>But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and
good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with
patience.)<br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) register a trademark </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to formally register a symbol (name, logo, etc) for a product with a governmental patent office (in the USA, with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, USPTO)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) beaten someone to </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to do something before somebody else has a chance (in this case, Jesus Jeans beat Jesus Surfed to register the "Jesus" trademark)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: blue;">of biblical proportions </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– great; having big consequences; large in scope (Note: This often refers to natural disasters -- Example: A wildfire of biblical proportions swept through California and destroyed hundreds of houses). Biblical is the adjective form of Bible, so here we have a play on words.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b style="color: blue;">(to) clamp down on </b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to get strict about</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) pit someone against</span></b> <span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to put someone up to fighting someone or something</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: blue;">blessing </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– two definitions (which is what makes this word choice another play on words here): 1) approval and 2) a favor or gift bestowed by God (Note: there are some other definitions of this word also)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) meet with resistance </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to face one's objections to something </span><br />
<span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) sue for damages </span></b><span style="background-color: #eefcff; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">– to take someone to court and try to get money (or other compensation) from them for harming one's business</span><br />
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Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-89314437894856831692013-02-12T07:37:00.002-08:002013-02-12T08:11:42.815-08:00I Love Business English: in Honor of Valentine's Day<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9809OkcRc3U/URpgIWdUZ3I/AAAAAAAAAOM/I7kfRczZbxA/s1600/office+romance.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: blue;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9809OkcRc3U/URpgIWdUZ3I/AAAAAAAAAOM/I7kfRczZbxA/s1600/office+romance.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue;">Pam and Jim from the Office. An example of a <br />successful office romance.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In honor of <span style="color: red;">Valentine's Day</span>, I've chosen an article on workplace romances to help you improve your Business English. Ahhh, the workplace romance. We all have stories of love at the office. I remember when an old boss of mine disappeared for several days in Europe immediately following an official business trip. Coincidentally, a young assistant at the office was also in Europe for those same three days!<br />
<br />
An old friend of mine fell in love during a summer internship. She ended up leaving her husband. The man she fell in love with left his wife. They now have children and are, as far as I know, happily married. So sometimes the office romance does end happily (even when it starts out as "an affair," because one or both of the love-birds is married).<br />
<br />
Now, let's get down to business and look at our article for today. It's called "When Cupid Visits the Office, Rules Can Cut Risks" and it is from the <i>Wall Street Journal</i>. We will look at an extract from the article first, with words and phrases to study highlighted in blue.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
Companies by now are well-acquainted with the hazards of
workplace romance. But, if recent incidents are any indicator, they still find
it tricky to <span style="color: blue;">put a lid on</span> office passions.</div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some companies have attempted to regulate the romantic
<span style="color: blue;">sparks that fly</span> between co-workers, mindful of the potential legal <span style="color: blue;">fallout</span>.</div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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Still, even the best-crafted rules can't guard against
workers who follow their instincts instead of consulting the employee handbook.</div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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Inappropriate relationships can <span style="color: blue;">topple </span>careers, and
allegations of unwanted attention or favoritism can cost companies millions of
dollars and land businesses in the headlines for all the wrong reasons…</div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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Lawyers say companies that do lay out <span style="color: blue;">ground rules</span> for
dating may be able to <span style="color: blue;">head some lawsuits off at the pass</span>—or at least <span style="color: blue;">curb
</span>corporate liability should matters end up in court.</div>
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</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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"It's not just about <span style="color: blue;">warding off</span> or <span style="color: blue;">fending off</span> a claim
of harassment. You also don't want to create the kind of environment or
perception that that's a way to <span style="color: blue;">get ahead</span>," said David S. Baffa, an
employment lawyer and head of the workplace-compliance practice at Chicago law
firm Seyfarth Shaw LLP.</div>
</blockquote>
<b>Now let's look at the highlighted words and phrases:</b><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">(to) put a lid on </span>– to stop; to stop something from increasing. This is often used to discuss spending. For example: Expenses are getting out of control. We need to put a lid on spending.<br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;">sparks fly / make sparks fly / when sparks fly </span>– this refers to the reaction between two people. Here, the reference is to "romantic" sparks -- in other words, two people attracted to each other. Taylor Swift has a popular love song called "Sparks Fly" (<span style="font-family: Webdings;">¯</span>Sing it: 'Cause I see sparks fly whenever you smile'<span style="font-family: Webdings;">¯</span>). Also, note that the sparks flying can refer to anger between two people. For example: Doug and Marie disagree on everything. If they're both at the meeting, sparks will fly.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">fallout </span>– consequences; bad results of a situation (in this case, the "legal fallout" refers to the lawsuits or legal troubles that may happen following an unsuccessful office romance)<br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;">(to) topple </span>– to cause to fall (in both the figurative and the literal sense: when you stack blocks on top of each other and the tower gets tall, you put one more on and the whole thing topples over).<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">ground rules </span>– basic rules; rules that everybody should be know and follow (Note: I've never worked at a company that laid out the ground rules for dating. All the employee manuals I've seen are pretty boring -- how many days in advance to ask for a vacation day, insurance policies -- nothing so interesting as How to Behave if You've Fallen in Love with a Co-worker).<br />
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<span style="color: blue;">head something off at the pass </span>– to stop something from happening (in this case, to stop a lawsuit from happening).<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">(to) curb </span>– to reduce (This verb is also often associated with spending.Example: Money is tight. We need to curb spending).<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">(to) ward off </span>– to stop something from happening; to hold something off (This phrasal verb is often associated with illness. Example: Many people at my office are sick right now. I'm doing my best to ward off illness).<br />
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<span style="color: blue;">(to) fend off </span>– to stop something from happening (Note that this is very similar in meaning to "ward off").<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">(to) get ahead </span>– to advance in one's career (Yes, one way to get ahead may be to become romantic partners with the right person in the organization -- but the lawyer in this article says the company should not create an atmosphere where people think that). <br />
<br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: Webdings;">Y </span>I hope you've enjoyed this Valentine's Day lesson. If so, check out <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/more-speak-english-like-an-american/" target="_blank">More Speak English Like an American</a>, which is full of more useful idioms and vocabulary for Business English. And office romance, too!<br />
<br />Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-38524663848173593612013-01-30T13:43:00.001-08:002013-01-30T13:45:39.352-08:00This Post Will Teach you Business English (and Maybe Make You More Money!)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uBJxcRNrRSA/UQmUN7ACHpI/AAAAAAAAAN8/GnpWb0jOl2M/s1600/bagofmoney.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uBJxcRNrRSA/UQmUN7ACHpI/AAAAAAAAAN8/GnpWb0jOl2M/s1600/bagofmoney.jpg" /></a></div>
Have you ever wondered how much a co-worker was earning? Would you like to be able to click a few buttons to find out? Some companies are now making it possible for employees to see what their co-workers are making. I can hear the office chats now ("Hey, Bill is making $200,000 a year? And he got a $25,000 bonus last year? Are you kidding?").<br />
<br />
A <i>Wall Street Journal </i>article discusses this in an article entitled "Psst...This is What Your Co-worker is Paid." Let's read part of the article and then discuss the English idioms, expressions, and words of interest. Vocabulary we'll discuss is in blue.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Office workers have grown accustomed to knowing the intimate
details of each other's lives—from a colleague's favorite cat video to a boss's
vacation fiasco.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Now a small but growing number of private-sector firms are
letting employees in on closely held company secrets: revealing details of
company financials, staff performance reviews, even individual pay—and in doing
so, <span style="color: blue;">walking a tightrope between</span> information and <span style="color: blue;">TMI</span>, or too much information.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The <span style="color: blue;">warts-and-al</span>l approach, most often found in startups,
builds trust among workers and makes employees more aware of how their
particular contribution affects the company as a whole, advocates say …</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Little privacy remains in most offices, and as work becomes
more collaborative, a move toward greater openness may be inevitable, even for
larger firms. Companies "don't really have a choice," says Ed Lawler,
director of the Center for Effective Organizations at the University of
Southern California ...</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
But open management can be expensive and time consuming: If
any worker's pay is <span style="color: blue;">out of line with</span> his or her peers, the firm should be ready
to even things up or explain why it's so, says Dr. Lawler. Management should
also show employees how to read the company's financial and performance data,
he adds.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
And because workers can see information normally <span style="color: blue;">kept</span> <span style="color: blue;">under
wraps</span>, they may <span style="color: blue;">weigh in on </span>decisions, which can slow things down, company
executives say.</blockquote>
<b>Now let's review the vocabulary in this article:</b><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">walking a tightrope between</span> - to deal carefully when in a sensitive situation, choosing between two things (often opposing things). "Tightrope" is a rope that acrobats cross in a circus, very carefully.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">TMI</span> - this is an acronym that stands for "too much information". It's used when someone is sharing too much personal information (also called "oversharing."). If your boss tells you the details of his date last night and later you are gossiping about him with a co-worker, you might say, "Greg was telling me all about his date with Lisa last night. She didn't leave his apartment until 3 a.m. TMI!"<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">warts-and-al</span>l - there are two definitions: 1) not trying to hide the bad things (this definition applies to this article; and 2) even with the problems or flaws ("I have some issues with my boss, but I love her, warts and all."). This is a very graphic expression because of the "warts" -- those are unattractive growths on one's body. If you love someone warts-and-all, you're able to ignore those unattractive growths.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">out of line with </span>- not consistent with; not at the same level as (Note: If your pay is "out of line" with your peers' pay, it's time to make an appointment with the boss!").<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">(to) keep under wraps</span> - to keep secret. Example: We're going to give Susan a 20% pay increase next month, but let's keep that under wraps for now.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">weigh in on</span> - give one's opinion about. Example: Bill is making $200,000 a year. I'd like to weigh in on the decision regarding his salary increase for next year."<br />
<br />
I hope you enjoyed this short Business English lesson. If you're looking for more Business English, please check out the book <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/speak-better-business-english-and-make-more-money/" target="_blank">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a>. You'll find over 400 useful Business English expressions in it. It's available for Kindle too!<br />
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Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-85302235831402753282013-01-16T12:24:00.001-08:002013-01-16T12:36:55.955-08:00Let's Learn Business English with some Naked Talk!<b>Welcome to today's Business English lesson.</b> We'll try to keep this English lesson "PG-rated" despite the theme of nudity! Today we're going to learn 12 new English expressions and useful words, and we're going to have a lot of fun while doing it.<br />
<br />
In the USA, there's an association for just about every cause or interest. So it was not that surprising to read about the "American Association for Nude Recreation" in the Wall Street Journal a couple of days ago. The association is for those who like to vacation with no clothes on -- or, in their lingo, to take a "nakation."<br />
<br />
The Wall Street Journal article talks about this association's search for new corporate sponsors. The association's leadership was excited by the many recent products with the word "naked" in them -- such as Naked Pizza (and if you want a beer with that pizza, how about a Naked Lap Lager?!).<br />
<br />
So let's sit down, take off your sweater (no need to get completely naked, unless it makes your English learning more effective!), and take a look at parts of this article. The terms we'll take a peek at highlighted in <span style="color: blue;">blue</span>.<br />
<br />
-----<br />
<b>Extract from "Nudists Seek Corporate Sponsor Looking for Greater Exposure" WSJ<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span>article*:</b><br />
<br />
The nation's largest nudist association is looking for
corporate sponsors, and leaders think this might be their <span style="color: blue;">moment in the sun</span>.
Now that the organic food movement has given the word naked a wholesome new
meaning—suggesting natural and free of preservatives—the word is <span style="color: blue;">popping up</span> in
all kinds of product names: Naked Pizza, Bear Naked granola, the Naked Grape
Chardonnay and more than one naked lager.<br />
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Since October, the group has sent about 100 query letters.
They have written to the makers of "naked" products and to companies
selling items their members use a lot, such as Hawaiian Tropic and BullFrog
sunscreens. And they have also targeted companies they think should be
interested because their advertising has gone au naturel in a fun or artful
way...<o:p></o:p></div>
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"We're hoping we'll <span style="color: blue;">give the association greater
exposure</span>," says the association's Executive Director Jim Smock, adding a
difficult to believe, "no pun intended."<o:p></o:p></div>
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The response has been <span style="color: blue;">skimpy</span>. So far, he has received three
letters of regret, and a case of E. & J. Gallo Winery's Naked Grape wine …</div>
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Nevertheless, the group <span style="color: blue;">faces a significant hurdle</span>. Though
the 82-year-old organization has <span style="color: blue;">made strides</span> in gaining social acceptance and
legal protections, many people still find nudism <span style="color: blue;">off-putting</span>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">Wooing </span>major brands could be a <span style="color: blue;">heavy lift</span>, given the risk of
backlash and the association's relatively small membership, branding experts
say.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Their advice: The association should first <span style="color: blue;">give itself a
face-lift</span>, a sleeker website, a <span style="color: blue;">revamped </span>logo and maybe a <span style="color: blue;">stripped-down</span> name.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Now let's look at some definitions:</b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">moment in the sun </span>- getting some attention, usually for a very short time (Note: this often refers to a person, usually not a well-known one, finally getting a little bit of attention).</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">(to) pop up</span> - to appear, often unexpectedly. In this case, the word "naked" is suddenly appearing -- or popping up -- in all kinds of brand names. Obviously, marketers have realized that "naked" is a powerful selling word, at least for now.</div>
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<span style="color: blue;">(to) give one greater exposure</span> - to get more attention in the media or among the public (Note: this is a pun because "exposure" has a second meaning -- the act of showing a body part, typically one that is not supposed to be shown in public!).</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">skimpy </span>- small in quantity. This also has another definition, which is where the pun is here: skimpy also means lacking in fullness (when said of clothes, it means there is not enough of the clothing to fully cover the body part in question -- so a skimpy skirt, for example, might be tight and very short).</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">(to) face a hurdle </span>- meet a challenge or something that blocks success</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">(to) make strides </span>- to make progress</div>
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<span style="color: blue;">off-putting </span>- something that causes feelings of unease, disgust, or annoyance (Note: from the phrasal verb "to put off" meaning to annoy, disgust, or repel someone)</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">to woo </span>- to try to get the favor of; to attract </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">heavy lift</span> - a difficult task</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">give oneself a face-lift</span> - to improve one's image or look</div>
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<span style="color: blue;">revamped </span>- made newer and better; improved</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">stripped-down </span><span style="color: blue;"> </span>- shorter; more simple; spare (Note: this is another pun, playing off the word "stripped" meaning naked)</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 17px;">If you would like to learn more business English idioms, check out the popular book & CD "<a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/speak-business-english-like-an-american" target="_blank">Speak Business English Like an American</a>" available from Language Success Press. It's also available in <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/speak-business-english-apps" target="_blank">app format</a> for iPad and iPhone under the names Speak Business English I and Speak Business English II.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span></span>
*"Nudists Seek Corporate Sponsor Looking for Greater Exposure" is<b> </b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 17px;">© 2013 by the WSJ and is reproduced here in part for educational purposes.</span></span></div>
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<br />Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-7085761981962734342012-11-27T12:07:00.001-08:002012-11-27T12:14:50.925-08:00Study Business English with this Mini-Case Study on Starbucks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zo_ehWqnvTc/ULUeeXqWCMI/AAAAAAAAANQ/lBtT7RT5X-w/s1600/Starbucks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zo_ehWqnvTc/ULUeeXqWCMI/AAAAAAAAANQ/lBtT7RT5X-w/s1600/Starbucks.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Starbucks is "rolling out" new stores<br />
in China.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Did somebody say "coffee?" I am a huge fan of all things caffeinated -- that would be coffee, followed by tea, and let's not forgot chocolate (the darker the better and I currently working on a 90% cocoa dark chocolate bar, very delicious!). So when I opened the<i> Wall Street Journal</i> today and saw an article about Starbucks expanding into China, I decided to grab a cup of coffee and turn the story into a short business English lesson for this Blog's 12 official followers (thank you, loyal readers!) and the hundreds of others who visit this blog to improve their business English.<br />
<br />
The article is entitled, "Starbucks Plays to Local Chinese Tastes." Here's the piece of the article we will expore, with the target vocabulary highlighted in blue:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
After nearly 14 years of working to persuade China to buy
into its foreign coffee culture, Starbucks Corp. is aiming to become more
Chinese as it plans a rapid expansion in the country. Belinda Wong, president of Starbucks China, said in an
interview that Starbucks aims to <b><span style="color: blue;">roll out</span></b> 800 new stores in the next three
years to add to its existing fleet of 700...</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The company aims to <b><span style="color: blue;">capture a larger market</span></b> by going more
local and applying its cultural insights, Ms. Wong said. For instance, whereas
kiosk-sized stores work well in the U.S., where office workers grab bacon-gouda
sandwiches to go in the morning on the way to work, Starbucks has learned that
Chinese consumers value space and couches on which to relax in the afternoons.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The coffee company is adding some stores that are nearly
3,800 square feet and can seat consumers who come with groups of friends and business
partners. Starbucks also has discovered that Chinese tastes for coffee <b><span style="color: blue;">go only
so far</span></b>. It plans to introduce new Chinese-inspired flavors, building on
existing favorites like red bean frappuccinos …<br />
<br />
Businesses that have failed to grasp the local culture,
importing alien models, have <span style="color: blue;"><b>fallen out of favor</b></span>. In September, Home Depot Inc.
closed all seven of its remaining big-box stores in China after years of
losses, having discovered that the <b><span style="color: blue;">do-it-yourself</span></b> home improvement model
doesn't work well in a do-it-for-me Chinese culture.</blockquote>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Now let's look at the vocabulary highlighted in blue:</div>
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<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) roll out</span></b> - to introduce (often a product or service, in this case a retail store). Wow, with this "roll out," Starbucks will more than double the number of stores it has in China. And you thought there were a lot of Starbucks in Manhattan!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) capture a larger market </span></b>- to get more customers (In this case, to get more people in China to switch to a visit from Starbucks coffee from whatever coffee house, tea house, or other place they are currently visiting).</div>
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<b><span style="color: blue;">(to) go only so far </span></b>- to have limitations (In this article, it means that the Chinese customers do not have an unlimited thirst for just plain coffee. If Starbucks is going to sell them more drinks, the company needs to figure out what their tastes are and create drinks based on them -- hence the red bean frappuccion (whereas in the USA, you can get a Caramel Brul<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; line-height: 16px;">ée </span>Latte<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; line-height: 16px;">, </span>which I am pretty sure is not on the menu at Starburcks in Shanghai!).</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="color: blue;">(to) fall out of favor </b>- to stop being popular; to become unpopular. (In this case, they are talking about the fact that the "global strategy" is no longer as popular and effective as it used to be. With a "global strategy," companies typically treat the world as one big market and have little or no variation in products or services across the various countries).</div>
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<b><span style="color: blue;">do-it-yourself </span></b>- as the word suggest "Do it Yourself!" as in, buy all the stuff you need for your home improvement project and do your own construction work -- as in, re-model your own kitchen, re-tile your own bathroom floor, or install your own new toilets. This is often abbreviated "DIY".</div>
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To summarize this article, Starbucks is going to roughly double the size of its business in China. And instead of replicating what works in the United States, the company has figured out how to customize its offerings to suit the tastes of the Chinese consumer. That means drinks that appeal to them and their native cuisine (red bean frappuccinos, Hainan chicken and rice wrap) and plenty of space to hang around on a couch while drinking them. The company is also taking steps to attract non-coffee drinkers. Here's a closing quote from the article, in which we hear from an English teacher in China:</div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The company is aiming to cater to noncoffee drinkers like
Cheng Xiaochen, a 27-year-old English teacher who hates coffee but occasionally
meets his students and business partners at Starbucks in the afternoon.
"It's a good place to meet people," said Mr. Cheng. "But the
coffee is so bitter it tastes like Chinese medicine." Mr. Cheng said he
sticks to mint hot chocolate and looks for other sweeter flavors.</blockquote>
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Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-6227925878099313242012-11-15T14:36:00.001-08:002012-11-15T18:25:55.557-08:00Let's Learn Some Business English - Black Friday Special!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ysA2NUXOEo8/UKVt-VUIyGI/AAAAAAAAAM0/iZhaD8QpJYE/s1600/blackfriday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ysA2NUXOEo8/UKVt-VUIyGI/AAAAAAAAAM0/iZhaD8QpJYE/s200/blackfriday.jpg" height="200" title="Black Friday " width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Friday is coming. Stores hope<br />
that you will "Shop 'til you drop!"<br />
In other words, shop so much you<br />
are so tired you're ready to drop (fall down<br />
from exhaustion -- but only AFTER<br />
you've paid for your purchases!).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Next Friday is the day after Thanksgiving. It's not just a day to digest all the turkey, stuffing, gravy, and cranberry sauce you just "pigged out on" the day before. It's also a day to go shopping (or "hit the mall" as Americans say!). In fact, it is the official start of the Christmas shopping season. The day is called "Black Friday." Why black? Some say it's because it's the day when retailers start to see a profit -- and seeing a profit is also called being "in the black" (versus "in the red" which means one is losing money).<br />
<br />
To attract shoppers to the stores, many stores advertise "Black Friday specials." These specials are often referred to as "door busters."They are items on good sale used to attract the attention of customers (and then once the customer is in the store for their $99 LED TV or $9 toaster, the hope is that they will for more things at the store to buy).<br />
<br />
<i>The Wall Street Journal</i> ran an article today about Black Friday. Let's examine a piece of this article, which is entitled "Stores Bring Black Friday to the Web." Idioms and expressions we'll discuss are highlighted.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue;">As retailers <b>gear up </b>for the traditional shop-fest known as Black Friday, they are focusing on the <b>mobs </b>that line up outside stores and—increasingly—on the masses that shop online from home. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;">Chain stores prefer <b>impulse-purchase</b>-prone store shoppers. Yet sales growth during the busy Thanksgiving weekend more often is coming from Internet shoppers like Melanie Cortese.
Going to Woodbridge Center Mall with her mom on Black Friday was a family tradition for Ms. Cortese, a 37-year-old New Jersey mother of two. But no longer: she plans to go to bed on Thanksgiving night with a laptop nearby and wake up on Back Friday to shop online instead...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;">…
Retailers can't<b> turn their back on</b> shoppers who like to go to the stores. For example, Brookstone sells technology items that need salespeople to demonstrate the products and let shoppers play with them, said Chief Executive Stephen Bebis. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;">And while customers<b> flock to</b> the super-discounts, which for the retailers are often <b>loss leaders</b>, a lot of full-price selling also occurs on the day, retailers say.
"It is one of our most profitable days," said, Jim Kunihiro, chief marketing officer for Sears Holdings Corp.
Like many retailers seeking to <b>get the jump on </b>their competitors, Sears is opening for the first time on Thanksgiving Day for a first round of <b>door busters</b> at 8 p.m., followed by another round of special discounts at 4 a.m. Friday.
</span><br />
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<br />
Wow, there is lots of interesting vocabulary for us to examine:<br />
<br />
<b>(to) gear up</b> - to prepare for; to get ready for<br />
<br />
<b>mobs </b>- crowds of people. Note: this is a noun; there is also the popular adjective form: mobbed, as in "The mall was mobbed. We couldn't wait to get out of there!"<br />
<br />
<b>impulse purchase </b>- also called an impulse buy. A purchase that was not planned beforehand, but that was made at the store right before the purchase. Note: one who makes these type of purchases is called an impulse buyer. These people are good for stores, who are good at attracting them with displays designed to tempt.<br />
<br />
<b>(to) turn one's back on </b>- to not pay attention to someone; to not offer service to someone. Of course, retailers can't turn their back on shoppers who like to go to stores. Even though shopping online increases every Black Friday, 60% of sales were still made in stores, according to the Wall Street Journal article.<br />
<br />
<b>(to) </b><b>flock to </b>- to come in great numbers (originates from "flock," a large gathering of animals. Shall we point out that many shoppers gathered together in enclosed spaces can sometimes start behaving like animals?!).<br />
<br />
<b>loss leaders </b>- goods sold at near or below cost. The retailer will not a profit on these items, but they are designed to attract customers to the store. Once in the store, the retailer hopes the customers will find additional stuff to buy.<br />
<br />
<b>(to) </b><b>get the jump on </b>- to start doing something before others (usually to get some kind of advantage)<br />
<br />
<b>door busters </b>- the type of low-cost items that customers practically bust (break) the door of the store to get their hands on! See more details above.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #4c1130;"><b>Have a Happy Thanksgiving! </b></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-46244180513430353142012-10-24T13:09:00.001-07:002012-10-24T17:10:28.956-07:00Office English: What to Call the AssistantWhat do you call the person in your office who provides support to the staff? In the old days, this was called the "secretary." But nowadays, most people call her (yes, usually her) an administrative assistant. Since that's a lot of syllables to get out -- even for a native speaker of English -- this is often shortened to "admin" or sometimes "assistant."<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
There was a great article in the <i>New York Times</i> recently about the role today of the admin. I'll include a link later to the article in case you want to read the whole thing. In the meantime, let's examine a few of the lines from this article in our quest to speak better Business English. The lines in blue are from the article.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b><u>Part 1</u>:</b><span style="color: blue;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
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</span></span></div>
<div>
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<span style="color: blue;">Assistants tend to be <b>on the front lines</b> when a company
adopts new technology, said Ray Weikal ... They can be the ones coordinating
remote teams, managing their company's Web site and learning cloud-based
applications.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></div>
<b style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;">on the front lines </b><span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;">- </span><b style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"> </b><span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;">the first ones to be affected; those people closest to the real action.<b> </b>If this sounds like someone fighting in a war, there's a reason. The term derives from the military, with those on the frontline being the first to be involved in the fighting. On the front lines </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<div>
<b><u>Part 2</u>:</b></div>
</div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<span style="color: blue;">At Adecco, the staffing firm, more clients are asking for
assistants with college degrees, said Joyce Russell, its president. “They want
that broad-based knowledge that you pick up in college,” she said, and she has
seen clients promote people who perform well in that role. But Ms. Russell
added that she didn’t think a college degree was necessary to perform the job.Ms. Duncan said: “I’ll take<b> street smarts</b> and common sense”
over a college degree in an assistant.</span></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><span style="color: #444444;">street smarts </span></b><span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><span style="color: #444444;">-</span> the practical knowledge needed to deal with difficult situations (versus "book smarts" which is the kind of knowledge you learn in books, the stuff not always immediately applicable in the "real world." For example, you may know all about Beowulf, the Old English epic poem, but that does not mean you will be able to operate the office copier). I think of "street smarts" as being very similar to "common sense," which is also mentioned in the same sentence.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<b><u>Part 3</u>:</b></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
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<span style="color: blue;">When it comes to job duties, where do assistants <b>draw the
line</b>? Will they be expected to serve coffee? Pick up dry-cleaning? Boundaries
are best established during the job interview, Ms. Duncan said. The
relationship works best if both parties see it as a business partnership, she
said, adding that there is a difference between providing a service and “being
a servant.”</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<b style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;">(to) draw the line </b><span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;">- to set a limit; to establish a boundary. This is a very useful idiom. In business, you often do need to draw the line ... and not just if you're an admin. Let's say you're boss keeps asking you to work weekends. You might say, "I've come into the office every weekend for the past four months. It's time to draw the line." </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;">Do you want to learn more Business English? Check out <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/speak-better-business-english-and-make-more-money/" target="_blank">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a>, published by Language Success Press.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;">And here is the promised link to the complete <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/jobs/administrative-assistants-on-the-workplaces-front-lines.html?_r=0" target="_blank">New York Times article</a>.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></div>
Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-47464132650832021752012-09-18T13:47:00.000-07:002012-09-18T13:52:48.069-07:00The Workplace "Whiner" - and Some Useful Business EnglishBack in June, this blog featured a post called, <b style="font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 12px; text-transform: uppercase;">A SHORT FIELD GUIDE TO AMERICAN WORKERS (PART ONE). </b>Read it below. This post examines another type of worker -- the workplace whiner. What's a whiner? It's someone who complains a lot. Perhaps you have one of these in your office? Hint: It's the person who is never quite satisfied. For example, let's say your company was throwing a holiday party in a very nice restaurant. The whiner would be the one to point out that the place is too noisy. Or let's say you work in an office where the refrigerator is slow to be cleaned out. The whiner is the one who goes around complaining about how dirty it is (typically without offering to clean it out himself or herself).<br />
<br />
The <i>Wall Street Journal</i> ran an article recently called "<a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444017504577645481036510356.html?mod=WSJ_article_RecentColumns_Work%26Family" target="_blank">What to Do With A Workplace Whiner</a>." Let's read some of that article and then discuss the expressions and terms used (these are in bold below). Add these expressions to your business English vocabulary. They are sure to come in handy!<br />
<br />
<br />
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It's one of the <b>diciest </b>challenges of <b>office politics</b>, one that invades the <b>cubicle farm</b> and executive suite alike: How to deal with workplace whiners. <span style="line-height: 21px;">While it's often best to walk away, that can be difficult in today's team-based workplace, where many people work closely in groups. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Trying to stay neutral by just listening and nodding can also </span><b style="line-height: 1.5em;">backfire</b><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">, says Dana Brownlee, founder of Professionalism Matters, a corporate-training firm in Atlanta. "Before you know it, there's another version of the story circulating, saying you were the one saying something negative about the VP. And they're talking about you over by the Coke machine."</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">And it can be tough to object without seeming </span><b style="line-height: 1.5em;">self-righteous</b><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">. "If you approach someone about their complaining, they may </span><b style="line-height: 1.5em;">take it in a completely wrong way</b><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">, and then you've </span><b style="line-height: 1.5em;">alienated </b><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">them," says Jon Gordon, an author, consultant and founder of a Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., training firm. It's better to try to </span><b style="line-height: 1.5em;">bond </b><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">with co-workers, while setting an example by not </span><b style="line-height: 1.5em;">griping </b><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">yourself, he says.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21px;">When Kris Whitehead joined a new employer several years ago, his colleagues' frequent work complaints "had a direct impact on my ability to sell," says the Nashua, N.H., salesman. With the economy </span><b style="line-height: 21px;">in a slump</b><span style="line-height: 21px;">, "I had the same secret fears" of failure being voiced by co-workers, he says. </span><b style="line-height: 21px;">Staying upbeat</b><span style="line-height: 21px;"> "was an extremely </span><b style="line-height: 21px;">arduous</b><span style="line-height: 21px;"> task."</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 21px;"><b>Here we go with our vocabulary study:</b></span></div>
<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: blue;">dicey</span></b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"> - risky; unpredictable. Example: Starting a business during a recession can be <b>dicey</b>.</span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: blue;">office politics</span></b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- the little games people in offices play to try to get ahead (get more money, get a promotion, get a better job, get more power, get better treatment, etc). </span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: blue;">cubicle farm</span> </b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- an office with cubicles (note: this term has a negative feel to it). This is often shortened to cube farm.</span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: blue;">backfire </span></b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- to bring about the opposite result of what was intended. Example: Our complaints about having the holiday party at our boss' house <b>backfired</b>. Instead of holding the party at a restaurant instead, the company just canceled the party.</span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: blue;">self-righteous</span></b><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"> </b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- always sure that one is right (and often being intolerant of others' points of view). This is definitely NOT something you want to be called!</span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) take something the wrong way</span> </b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- to understand or interpret something as insulting; to be offended by what someone says (often because you are not understanding it as the speaker intended). Example: Don't <b>take this <span style="color: #444444;">the wrong way</span></b>, but I think it's time you start looking for another job.</span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) alienate</span> </b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- to make others hostile towards you; to push others from you by things you say or do. Example: Joe has <b>alienated </b>his entire staff with his bossy behavior.</span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) gripe</span> </b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- to complain; to whine (note: this term has been around for centuries -- it comes from the Old English term:</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><i> gripan). </i>Example: Please stop <b>griping </b>about working long hours. Everybody else is also working hard these days. </span></span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="color: blue;">in a slump </span></b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- a slow period; a recession (Note: this has a second meaning -- when one is feeling down or depressed, you can say he's or she's in a slump).</span><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"> </b><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="color: blue;">(to) stay upbeat</span> - </b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">to remain positive. Example: Sales have been slow lately, but we're trying to <b>stay update</b>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">arduous</b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24px;">- difficult; hard to achieve</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><i>If you like this post, be sure to sign up as a follower of this blog and also as a <a href="https://twitter.com/languagesuccess" target="_blank">Twitter follower</a>. That way, you'll be the first to know when we've got new content on here! And you won't have to <b>gripe </b>that you're the last to find out!</i></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span>Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-79567285164859447682012-09-07T10:41:00.000-07:002012-09-07T10:43:18.749-07:00Back to School with some Business English<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Whew, I can't believe summer is over and we're now in the back-to-school season! To celebrate that, I chose an article today called "Getting into B-School On Your Boss's Dime" from the <i>Wall Street Journal</i>. We'll learn some new business English words and expressions -- and who knows? -- maybe this post will even inspire you to go back to school. MBA anyone? Why not, if someone else is paying ...</span><br />
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Here we go with the part of the article we will analyze. Target vocabulary is in <b>bold</b>:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Getting into B-School <b>On Your Boss's Dime</b></span>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Companies are advertising a rather peculiar <b>perk </b>to <b>lure </b>top undergraduate talent: <b>Showing them the door</b>—to graduate school, that is.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">As a means of attracting <b>stellar </b>young hires, an increasing number of firms in finance, consulting and technology are shepherding employees through the graduate-school admissions</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"> process by organizing and paying for test-preparation courses, inviting admissions consultants to help with applications, arranging mock interviews with senior <b>staffers </b>and even bringing school representatives to information sessions at the office...</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">It may seem counterintuitive to encourage employees to <b>head for the exits</b>, but firms say that assisting with the graduate-school application</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"> process leads to long-term loyalty and, <b>with strings attached</b> to tuition money, improves the chances that employees will return after graduation...</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Such programs have been in place for a while, but have grown more popular in recent years as the recruiting process <b>heats up</b>.</span>
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<span style="line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Here we go with explanations of the vocabulary in <b>bold</b>:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>on one's dime</b> - paid for by someone else (usually by one's employer). Example: We all went out for sushi today, on the company's dime.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>perk</b> - a benefit given to employees (such as bonus money, a gym membership, free tuition for school, etc).</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>(to) lure</b> - to attract (note: this is one of the verbs featured in our ESL app "Business English Power Verbs" available on iTunes for iPad and iPhone - <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/business-english-power-verbs/id430533897?mt=8" target="_blank">check it out here</a>.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>(to) show someone the door</b> - to fire an employee or to encourage an employee to leave the company (in this article, this expression is used with a twist - not firing an employee but rather encouraging them to go in the door of graduate school (so here we have a play on words)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>stellar </b>- excellent; the best</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>staffers</b> - people who work at a company (note: a cooler way of saying "employees")</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>(to) head for the exits</b> - to leave (often employees will "head for the exits" if there is a problem with the company). Note that the verb "to head" on its own means to leave for a destination, as in: "It's 5 o'clock? I'd better head home now."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>with string attached</b> - with conditions (note: you will more often here the expression "with no strings attached" meaning an offer or deal with no hidden conditions)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>(to) heat up</b> - to become more intense or active</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Want to learn more Business English? Check out the book & CD <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/speak-better-business-english-and-make-more-money/" target="_blank">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a>.</span></span><br />
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Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-17877524581168287222012-06-07T11:00:00.001-07:002012-06-07T12:05:53.383-07:00American Business English - Learn How to Name Your Colleagues!<h2>
<b>A Short Field Guide to American Workers (Part One)</b></h2>
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Your American colleagues and co-workers ... you gotta love 'em.* Or not. If not, you can have lots of fun figuring out how to categorize them. Here are a few types of office workers that are universal (at least in the USA -- maybe other countries have their own typical office worker types): </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The "Naysayer" - image courtesy of the Wall Street Journal</span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: blue;">The naysayer</span></b> - the person who thinks nothing is ever possible ... ever. The one who is quick with the reasons why something will not work -- without have any creative suggestions for how to solve a problem. Favorite sentence starters for the naysayer:<br />
- "That won't work because ..."<br />
- "We tried that a few years ago and ..."<br />
- "There's just one thing ..."<br />
- "No, that'll never fly." (note: "fly" = work)<br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;">The nitpicker</span></b> - the person who finds fault or problems with everything. The reason they find problems with everything is that they look hard for them! No problem is too small to identify and complain about! This word is featured in the book <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_better_business.htm" target="_blank">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a>. Its origin comes from picking nits out of hair or fur (nits are the little eggs of parasitic insects).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C4IpxKt9qeA/T9DmQ6jdRSI/AAAAAAAAAMM/PzMaC9i5Mcw/s1600/rambler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C4IpxKt9qeA/T9DmQ6jdRSI/AAAAAAAAAMM/PzMaC9i5Mcw/s320/rambler.jpg" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The "Rambler" - image courtesy off the Wall Street Journal </span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: blue;">The rambler</span> </b>- this is the person in the office who does not know when to stop talking. Blah, blah, blah, as we say in American English, to express that someone is talking for too long. We can also say, "He goes on and on." This person seems to get most active when you're either trying to head out for your lunch break, or trying to leave your office by 5 p.m. Most of the information provided by the Rambler is: (a) stuff you either already know (perhaps because he's told you before, then forgot) or (b) you don't really care about. Ramblers I've known are not sensitive to small cues or body language. So they keep talking, even as you get up from your office chair and head for the door.<br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;">The control freak</span></b> - this person spends every moment trying to control everybody else. How do they get their own work done? They don't. They think of it as their job to control what you and everybody else is doing. Think you're going to make a quick trip to the bathroom without anybody noticing? Think again!<br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;">The micro-manager</span> - </b>a relative of the nitpicker (see above). No tiny detail is too small for this person to worry about. She'll spend hours re-ordering the lists in your PowerPoint. He or she manages every single detail. The people working for her/him will often start to feel dumb, powerless, and resentful. But most micro-managers won't pick up on those feelings.<br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;">The bad apple</span> - </b>this is the person in the office who never should have been offered a job. Sometimes he or she is also called the "rotten apple." They create trouble everywhere. They talk behind people's backs and stir up trouble. They are the basis for the proverb: "One bad apple can spoil the whole bunch." In other words, this person can turn other people in the office -- good people -- into bad ones (by spoiling their morale, creating a bad atmosphere, etc). I don't know how such a wholesome fruit as the apple got to be part of this negative expression!<br />
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* you gotta love 'em - this American English expression means just the opposite of what you might think: you will NOT love them because they are annoying. So it is used mainly in an ironic way.<br />
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P.S. We've just learned of a company in the state of Utah, USA that sells coffee mugs based on annoying personality types! You know the old saying: "Only in America!" They've got a fine list of annoying personality types along with some funny pictures. <a href="http://www.corporatekingdom.com/characters.htm" target="_blank">Check it out here if you want a good laugh.</a><br />
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</div>Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-22336042073447504872012-05-31T11:03:00.003-07:002012-06-01T08:55:30.949-07:00Want to learn American slang?<div style="background-color: #eeeeee;">
The Wall Street Journal ran a great article on learning American slang in yesterday's newspaper. <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303610504577418660113838998.html" target="_blank">You can read it online here</a>.</div>
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<span style="background-color: #fff2cc;">The article interviewed American idioms and slang expert, Amy Gillett, author of the </span><a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/" style="background-color: #fff2cc;" target="_blank">Speak English Like an American</a><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-color: #fff2cc;"> series. Here is Amy's full list of the trickiest slang for non-native speakers to learn and her </span><span style="background-color: #eeeeee;"><span style="background-color: #fff2cc;">commentary on what makes this slang tricky? Have tricky slang of your own to suggest? Post it as a comment!</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>The top five most dangerous/hard-to-use/confusing slang words for English language learners:</b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">What’s up? / Whassup? / Sup? –</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> When this gets stripped down to its shortest form (‘Sup?) it can be hard to understand. It’s also hard for non-native speakers to know how to answer. They need to learn the acceptable replies (not much, nothing much) instead of replying “fine,” “good,” or “okay.”</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff2cc;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Shut up! </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">– this term can be tricky to use and to understand because it’s meaning depends on intonation. If you say it as a standard command without a smile, it is clearly rude. If you say it with a smile and rising intonation, it could mean “I don’t believe you” or “Really? Tell me more.” Or if you stress the “shut” and stretch it out, it could mean, “No way!” or “That’s hard to believe!” Confusing? <i>You betcha!</i></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff2cc;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">hook up </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">– this term can mean anything from making out to having sex. Non-native speakers are always heartened to learn that native speakers don’t really know what it means either. Non-native speakers need to be careful not to include it in any kind of romantic overture. Invitations to native speakers along the lines of “Hey, Ashley, want to hook up?” are to be avoided.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff2cc;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">the “f” word</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> – this word is tempting for many non-native speakers to sprinkle into their sentences for emphasis, just like many native speakers do. But non-native speakers sometimes overuse it out of enthusiasm or use the wrong article in front of it, as in: “What a f____!” instead of “What the f____!” Non-native speakers are also more likely to put it in writing, not fully appreciating its shock value.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff2cc;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">lego</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> – this term, popular on college campuses, is confusing for non-native speakers hearing it for the first time. No, we’re not talking about plastic interlocking toys. It’s slang for “let’s go” and was popularized by rappers.</span></div>Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-58086838696404972942012-05-09T13:45:00.000-07:002012-05-09T13:48:54.009-07:00The Favorite "Hot" American WordI just found out about an organization called the "American Dialect Society" that selects an English Word of the Year <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gUIFKS0R9JU/T6rVD0_83wI/AAAAAAAAAL4/Y-kna-WLPs0/s1600/occupy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="133" width="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gUIFKS0R9JU/T6rVD0_83wI/AAAAAAAAAL4/Y-kna-WLPs0/s200/occupy.jpg" /></a></div>
every year. According to its website: "The words or phrases do not have to be brand new, but they have to be newly prominent or notable in the past year." Those selecting the word of the year include linguists, grammarians, professors, writers and editors.<P>
The most recent Word of the Year (WOTY) is "<b>Occupy</b>." According to Ben Zimmer, chair of the New Words Committee of the American Dialect Society, “It’s a very old word, but over the course of just a few months it took on another life and moved in new and unexpected directions, thanks to a national and global movement.” Yes, that would be the Occupy Wall Street movement, which went from occupying Wall Street to occupying cities and town around the entire USA and onto the rest of the world. In this case, the fourth definition of occupy given by Dictionary.com is the most fitting: <i>to take possession and control of (a place), as by military invasion</i>. Maybe with the Occupy movement, this meaning of the word will move up a notch or two!<P>
Lots of other great words were under consideration for the Word of the Year. Here are three of my favorites (and I encourage you to try these out):<P>
1) <b>humblebrag </b>- expression of false humility, often by celebrities on Twitter (Note: "Humble" means when somebody is modest and "brag" is when you say great things about yourself -- put them together and you have false modesty). Here's a great humblebrag example I found on Urbandictionary.com:
"I can't believe I sounded like such a idiot on TV last night"<P>
2) <b>FOMO</b> - acronym for “Fear of Missing Out,” - as in, you might miss out on a great party if you decide to skip it. A very nice expression for the mobile phone age because it's short and easy to type and expresses just that feeling you have sometimes when you don't really feel like doing something, but you worry that you will miss something good if you don't do it.<P>
3) <b>artisan, artisanal</b> - term used to describe gourmet food and other products. The folks at American Dialect Society call it a "faux-fancy" term, which I like. It's the kind of adjective you can stick in front of a loaf of bread at a Farmer's Market and then double the price. Or try it out in front of "pizza" as Domino's Pizza is doing for their new fancy "Artisan Pizza" which sells at a premium to its standard pizza. I have also run into "artisanal cheese" recently. It was really expensive, apparently because somebody lovingly made it by hand, in small batches. I think I saw small specks of mold on it too, but maybe that was supposed to add to its charm and "artisanal" quality!<P>
"Occupy" was the Word of the Year in 2011. Of course, there is going to be another WOTY in 2012. We can only guess now at what English word or expression might rise to the top of the pile and <b>occupy </b>next year's place of honor!Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-74611730538581190822012-04-06T09:13:00.005-07:002012-04-06T09:24:15.078-07:00Let's Learn Some More Business Idioms!Today's <i>Wall Street Journal</i> has an article about Microsoft trying to catch<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Nb48xWh2Vr0/T38VOlaL1gI/AAAAAAAAALU/1mmYli3JVHI/s1600/app%2Bmarket%2Bshare.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="196" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Nb48xWh2Vr0/T38VOlaL1gI/AAAAAAAAALU/1mmYli3JVHI/s200/app%2Bmarket%2Bshare.jpg" /></a></div>up with Apple and Google in the apps market. Let's use this article to learn some new American English business vocabulary ... because that's what this website is all about: helping you learn more business English expressions and idioms so that you can communicate more effectively. By the way, if you like this blog, please become a follower -- and share it with a friend. So here we go with the Wall Street Journal article extract, expressions we will focus on are in <b>BOLD</b>: <br />
<br />
Microsoft <b>Banks on</b> Mobile Apps <br />
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Microsoft Corp., struggling to dent the dominance of Apple Inc. and Google Inc. in the smartphone market, is <b>stepping up efforts</b> to court app makers like Hemi Weingarten.<br />
<br />
Last fall, Microsoft aggressively recruited Mr. Weingarten to convince him to build his nutrition app Fooducate for its Windows Phone. Microsoft proposed putting a Fooducate engineer in Tel Aviv through a weeklong <b>boot camp</b>, and offered a new Windows-based Nokia phone for software testing.<br />
<br />
Yet despite the enticements, Fooducate skipped the boot camp and chose not to develop a Windows Phone app.<br />
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"We decided to <b>focus our energies on</b> the bigger platforms" of Apple's iPhone and Google's Android, said Mr. Weingarten, the 41-year-old chief executive of Fooducate. He said he plans to develop for Windows Phone eventually.<br />
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His experience highlights how Microsoft is actively trying to <b>woo</b> developers to the Windows Phone—as well as the <b>hurdles the software maker faces </b>in <b>getting app makers on board</b>.<br />
<br />
----<br />
Now let's discuss the vocabulary from the article:<br />
<br />
<b>(to) bank on</b> - to count on; to rely on (as a way to make money). You may hear people say, "You can bank on it!" As in this example: "Boss, do you think I'll get a promotion this year?" -- "You can bank on it!"<br />
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<b>(to) step up efforts</b> - to increase efforts; to try harder at something (Yes, you can be sure that Microsoft is stepping up its efforts in the app market - Apple is making a killing in this market! Make a killing means make lots and lots of money).<br />
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<b>boot camp</b> - an intensive training program. This expression comes from the military, where it means a training camp for military recruits. (Let's hope the participants in Microsoft's boot camp had more fun than people in a military boot camp -- at least they were probably served better food!).<br />
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<b>(to) focus our energies on</b> - to focus on; to devote resources to (In this case, savvy Mr. Weingarten of Fooducate has decided to "focus his energies on" developing apps for the iTunes and Android marketplaces -- and no wonder, they are huge. To tell you the truth, I didn't even know Microsoft had an apps marketplace until I read this Wall Street Journal article!).<br />
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<b>woo</b> - to try to win the favor of; to seek the support of. This verb has a second meaning: to gain the love of (usually a woman), for the purpose of marriage<br />
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<b>to face hurdles</b> - to deal with obstacles or problems (hurdles are problems you have to solve before you can do something). This handy little idiom also made the headlines of Wired Magazine recently: <a href="http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/04/augmented-reality-experts-say-google-glasses-face-serious-hurdles/"><i>Google Glasses Face Serious Hurdles, Augmented-Reality Experts Say</i></a>.<br />
<br />
<b>(to) get someone on board</b> - to get someone to join or agree to something; to go along with something. (On board also means when you're on some form of transportation - like on board a bus, on board a train, on board a plane -- so to help you remember this, picture yourself on a plane with a group of business people, having a great talk, all of you in agreement with each other!).<br />
<br />
Want to learn more useful business English? Check out our books and audio CDs, the <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vRopAnJh1zI/T38WDUzcSvI/AAAAAAAAALs/nWXgHhBj6ik/s1600/BetterBusinessEnglish_Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="120" width="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vRopAnJh1zI/T38WDUzcSvI/AAAAAAAAALs/nWXgHhBj6ik/s200/BetterBusinessEnglish_Cover.jpg" /></a></div><br />
bestselling <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_business_english.htm">Speak Business English Like an American</a> and <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_better_business.htm">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a>.Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-66824052129051755122012-03-05T09:01:00.002-08:002012-03-05T09:08:21.130-08:00LinkedIn Founder Will Teach us Some Business English: Talk Like a Successful American Entrepreneur!Reid Hoffman is the co-founder of the company LinkedIn. As the Wall Street Journal discusses in a recent article and interview with him, he's also an investor and/or advisor to many other big tech companies. Now he's searching for the next "breakout idea". What's a breakout idea? One that is a very new idea that will form the basis of a very successful new product, service, or even entire company. Let's look at some of the Wall Street Journal's interview with Reid Hoffman, and we'll see his use of business idioms in action! Expressions we'll discuss are <b>in bold</b>. Today, we'll be exploring three great business expressions. At the end of this post, watch the video of Mr. Hoffman discussing his plans. <br />
<br />
<i>WSJ:</i> Why is LinkedIn continuing to experience strong growth in a global recession? How long can the company keep it up?<br />
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<i>Mr. Hoffman:</i> In either an up or down economy, business proceeds. That is one of the reasons LinkedIn, in up and down economic circumstances, has continued to have good progress. I've been very pleased with Jeff as a CEO, the executive team has been <b>firing on all cylinders</b>. So far I don't see any negative indicators.<br />
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<b>(to) fire on all cylinders</b> - to operate as effectively as possible; to be running very well. <br />
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<i>WSJ:</i> Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said he wants to reach 1 billion users. Do you have a similar goal for LinkedIn?<br />
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<i>Mr. Hoffman:</i> Ultimately the goal is to be the professional network of the world. It isn't just <b>white-collar</b>. It could be an executive assistant or a small-business owner. It is about improving what you are doing. Maybe that is roughly a quarter of the population of the world, and there are 7 billion people in the world<br />
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<b>white-collar</b> - office workers (those whose jobs do not typically involve manual labor or the wearing of uniforms - those jobs are called "blue collar"). If you work in a cubicle or nice office and the main way you get your hands dirty is the mustard you get on your hands while you eat your lunch, you are most likely a "white-collar worker" - this is for sure LinkedIn's current main audience, though we know from this interview that Reid Hoffman would like to expand beyond that<br />
<br />
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<i>WSJ:</i> You've just written a book, "The Start-up of You." What's the <b>take-away</b>?<br />
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<i>Mr. Hoffman:</i> Every individual needs to think about themselves as the entrepreneur of their own life. Do you invest in yourself? How do you establish good plans and strategy? How do you take intelligent risk? How do you adapt to the future? You don't do that, you are at serious risk. <br />
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<b>take-away</b> - the point; the thing you are supposed to get from reading something, watching something, or hearing a lecture. This is a very popular term in MBA programs around the world. Business school students read business cases. Then they discuss the "take-aways." Sometimes after a business school lecture, business professors will discuss the take-aways from the lecture as review. This helps for students who were sleeping during the entire lecture -- if they wake up and pay attention at the end of class, they can still get their take-aways.<br />
<br />
For more great business expressions, check out <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_better_business.htm">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a> and <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_business_english.htm">Speak Business English Like an American</a>. Also, visit the iPhone and iPad apps <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/speak-business-english-i-for/id459687165?ls=1&mt=8">Speak Business English I</a> and <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/speak-business-english-ii/id465035154?mt=8">Speak Business English II</a> on iTunes.<br />
<br />
Watch the video of Reid Hoffman discussing LinkedIn and improve your English. Listen for when he says "the need to stay on top of an industry." "Stay on top" is another business idioms - it means be aware of the newest things going on or keep your knowledge fresh. What other interesting things do you hear him say?:<br />
<br />
<object id="wsj_fp" width="272" height="153"><param name="movie" value="http://s.wsj.net/media/swf/VideoMicroPlayer.swf"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><param name="flashvars" value="videoGUID={AB5ADE1E-53A0-4A05-886B-7D3A044F7F12}&playerid=1000&plyMediaEnabled=1&configURL=http://wsj.vo.llnwd.net/o28/players/&autoStart=false" base="http://s.wsj.net/media/swf/"name="anonymous_element_1"></param><embed src="http://s.wsj.net/media/swf/VideoMicroPlayer.swf" bgcolor="#FFFFFF"flashVars="videoGUID={AB5ADE1E-53A0-4A05-886B-7D3A044F7F12}&playerid=1000&plyMediaEnabled=1&configURL=http://wsj.vo.llnwd.net/o28/players/&autoStart=false" base="http://s.wsj.net/media/swf/" name="anonymous_element_1" width="272" height="153" seamlesstabbing="false" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" swLiveConnect="true" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object>Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-34589499647902790502012-02-28T13:42:00.002-08:002012-02-28T13:49:10.055-08:00Think Outside the Box Is Not Just a Tired Business IdiomHave you heard the expression <i>think outside the box</i>? It's a popular American<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PUhBkq6OpZM/T01JsbgQV2I/AAAAAAAAAKs/b9N9Iaj5gOw/s1600/think%2Boutside%2Bthe%2Bbox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="154" width="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PUhBkq6OpZM/T01JsbgQV2I/AAAAAAAAAKs/b9N9Iaj5gOw/s200/think%2Boutside%2Bthe%2Bbox.jpg" /></a></div><br />
English business idiom and it means that you should think creatively about something. It also happens to be one of the business idioms I teach in my book "Speak Business English Like an American" (and I note that is now overused so you might not want to use it yourself -- but you will certainly hear it being used). <br />
<br />
According to new research covered in a New York Times article "When Truisms are True", it really DOES help your creativity when you think outside the box. Business school professors performed an experiment on 102 students at New York University. They gave them a creative task - the students were told to think of a word that was associated with three other words (example: given the words <i>measure</i>, <i>worm</i>, and <i>video</i>, the students would give the answer <i>tape</i>). Some students were put in a 125-cubic-foot box made of plastic and cardboard to do the task. Others did the task while seated just outside the box. Guess which group performed significantly better? Those sitting OUTSIDE the box. They thought of 20% more creative solutions than the box folks. So <b>thinking outside the box</b> is not just a metaphor -- it can also be taken literally.<br />
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What implications does that have for those who work in cubicles? Get out of your box from time to time and do some thinking outside the box!<br />
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Two more business idioms proven to have powers by this research team: on the one hand/on the other hand. Are you familiar with this structure? Use it like this: <b>One the one hand</b>, I'd like to take the job in Russia. <b>On the other hand</b>, I'm very comfortable living and working here in the United States." When students were asked to come up with fresh ideas, the students who were told to generate ideas while using both hands (and switching between them) did better. They came up with MORE ideas than those students who only listed there ideas using one hand. Too bad the expressions aren't "On the one finger / on the other finger" - we'd have 8 more appendages to work with in generating creative ideas!<br />
<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/opinion/sunday/when-truisms-are-true.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=jeffrey%20sanchez-burks&st=cse"><br />
Check out the full New York Times article by clicking here</a>.Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-45718729245451365902012-02-15T12:28:00.000-08:002012-02-15T12:28:07.577-08:00Chinese Fakes Give Us A Chance to Learn Real EnglishCopies of Western brands are all over China. Of course, Western companies are upset to be competing with these fake products, also called "knockoffs" and sometimes referred to as "counterfeit." According to a new article in the Wall Street Journal ("Chinese Shoppers Lose Taste for Fakes" by Laurie Burkitt), Chinese consumers are starting to pass up these knockoffs and choose the real thing instead! Even if it means paying a lot more money. Let's read part of this newspaper article and then study some of the expressions in it. Words and expressions we'll study are highlighted in bold below:<br />
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Even as foreign companies and the White House pressure China to <b>crack down on</b> fake products, consumers like Liu Wenzhong are showing the nation's growing taste for the real thing.<br />
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At a North Face sports-apparel store in one of Beijing's most popular shopping districts, Mr. Liu recently bought a pair of snow boots and a fleece hoodie. At around 700 yuan, or roughly $110, each, they are nearly five times the price of counterfeit versions sold down the street.<br />
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"The difference of buying real and fake products is how you feel after," says Mr. Liu, a 36-year-old who runs his own fiber-optic-technology sales business and has a steady income of around 15,000 yuan a month. "I can wear a label I've paid for and feel proud."<br />
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While <b>knockoff</b> versions of real products still are widely available around China, Mr. Liu's comments indicate a change in shopper attitudes in a country where black-market purchases once were preferred by shoppers...<br />
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The shift has fueled the expansion plans of foreign companies in China. Such retailers as Nike Inc., Columbia Sportswear Co., cosmetics maker Shiseido Co. and North Face parent VF Corp. are opening stores in <b>farther-flung</b> Chinese cities. Many retailers are offering special in-store events and other <b>enticements</b> to get shoppers in their stores. And some have adopted measures, such as special packaging, to <b>differentiate</b> their products from fakes.<br />
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"Consumers in China are even more discerning than their counterparts in the Western world," says Aidan O'Meara, president of VF's Asia-Pacific division. "They <b>don't want to be caught dead with</b> a fake product."<br />
---<br />
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Okay, now it's time to study some of the words and expressions from this article:<br />
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<b>crack down on</b> - to start enforcing rules more; to restrain. (Yes, we all know that these fake products filling the streets and stores in China are not legal, but in the past, there haven't been huge efforts to crack down on the fakes).<br />
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<b>knockoff</b> - a copy; a fake. Sometimes knockoffs are so good, you can't tell them apart from the real thing. <br />
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<b>farther-flung</b> - even farther than "far flung" - which means far from the center; in a remote or distant area. Far flung cities would be those not near one of the big capitals. "Farther" is the comparative form of the word "far". Far - farther- farthest.<br />
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<b>enticements</b> - things that attract people. In this case, store owners are offering enticements to get people to come into their store -- to lure them in and get them to start shopping. <br />
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<b>(to) differentiate</b> - oh, this is such a critical marketing term! This means to make your product or service different from those of your competitors. <br />
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<b>don't want to be caught dead with</b> - don't try to understand this idiom word for word! It has nothing to do with being alive or dead. It means something someone absolutely does NOT want. In this case, Chinese consumers do not want to be seen with a fake product (or at least one that others recognize as a fake). <br />
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Want to learn more Business English? Check out <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_better_business.htm">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a>, a new book and CD to help you improve your Business English. There's an entire lesson in that chapter dedicated to knockoffs!Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-50297075384528598022012-02-03T12:11:00.000-08:002012-02-03T12:11:50.613-08:00Please Do Not Take A Seat! Stand up and Learn Some English!The Wall Street Journal just published a great article called "No More Angling for the Best Seat; More Meetings Are Stand-Up Jobs." This article describes the growing practice of stand-up meetings. Apparently, when people aren't sitting down all nice and comfortable, meetings are a lot more efficient. In fact, the meetings are one third less long, with no less quality in decision making. Let's learn some English from a piece of this article (words and business English expressions we'll explore are in bold):<br />
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Atomic Object, a Grand Rapids, Michigan software-development firm, holds company meetings <b>first thing in the morning</b>. Employees follow strict rules: Attendance is mandatory, nonwork <b>chitchat</b> is kept to a minimum and, <b>above all</b>, everyone has to stand up. <br />
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Atomic Object even <b>frowns upon</b> tables during meetings. "They make it too easy to lean or rest laptops," explains Michael Marsiglia, vice president. At the end of the meetings, which rarely last more than five minutes, employees typically do a quick stretch and then "<b>go on with their day</b>," he says....<br />
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The current wave of stand-up meeting is being <b>fueled by</b> the growing use of "Agile," an approach to software development, crystallized in a manifesto published by 17 software professionals in 2001. The method calls for compressing development projects into short pieces. It also involves daily stand-up meetings where participants are supposed to quickly update their peers with three things: What they have done since yesterday's meeting; what they are doing today; and any obstacles that <b>stand in the way</b> of getting work done.<br />
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Time to explore the business expressions in this piece of the article:<br />
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<b>first thing in the morning</b> - early in the morning, probably right after the employee has turned on his or her computer and grabbed a cup of coffee<br />
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<b>chitchat</b> - talk; gossip (social conversations not related to work - clearly this type of talk would not fit into a very short meeting!)<br />
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<b>above all</b> - most importantly<br />
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<b>(to) frown upon</b> - to discourage; to view something negatively<br />
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<b>go on with one's day</b> - continue with one's daily activities or work<br />
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<b>fueled by</b> - powered by; motivated by<br />
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<b>(to) stand in the way</b> - to block (here they are talking about obstacles standing in the way -- in other words, things that happen that slow down the progress of a project)<br />
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Okay, that's our Business English for today. Can you believe I typed all of this SITTING DOWN? I guess I'd better stand up now. Maybe I can go find a stand-up meeting to attend!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PPiYSTe7P4I/Tyw_aMclM_I/AAAAAAAAAKg/vMlNhAonh3A/s1600/stand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="151" width="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PPiYSTe7P4I/Tyw_aMclM_I/AAAAAAAAAKg/vMlNhAonh3A/s200/stand.jpg" /></a></div>Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-7357946638286022162011-10-31T08:57:00.000-07:002011-10-31T08:57:07.901-07:00Companies Aren't Getting Employees They Need - but We'll Get the English We Need!The unemployment rate in the USA is 9%. That means lots of people are out there looking for work. Meanwhile, companies are complaining that they cannot find enough skilled worker. A recent Wall Street Journal article discussed this situation -- and it was full of great business English terms for us to study!<br />
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We will study part of the article, entitled "Why Companies Aren't Getting The Employees They Need" and written by Peter Cappelli. Idioms and expressions we will examine are in bold:<br />
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Even with unemployment hovering around 9%, companies are <b>grousing </b>that they can't find skilled workers, and filling a job can take months of hunting. Employers are quick to <b>lay blame</b>. Schools aren't giving kids the right kind of training. The government isn't letting in enough high-skill immigrants. The list <b>goes on and on</b>. But I believe that the real culprits are the employers themselves. With an abundance of workers to choose from, employers are demanding more of job candidates than ever before. They want prospective workers to be able to fill a role right away, without any training or <b>ramp-up time</b>. In other words, to get a job, you have to have that job already. It's a <b>Catch-22 situation</b> for workers ...<br />
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To get America's job engine revving again, companies need to stop <b>pinning so much of the blame</b> on our nation's education system. They need to drop the idea of finding perfect candidates and look for people who could do the job with a bit of training and practice. There are plenty of ways to <b>get workers up to speed</b> without investing too much time and money, such as putting new employees on extended probationary periods and relying more on internal hires, who <b>know the ropes</b> better than outsiders would.<br />
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Now let's improve our English by studying some of the terms and expressions used above:<br />
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<b>(to) grouse</b> - to complain (a colorful way to say to complain, implying that there is not much basis to the complaint and the person doing the grousing would be better off closing his trap - or mouth - and doing something to improve the situation!).<br />
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<b>(to) lay blame</b> - to put the blame on somebody or something else. In English, we don't "give" blame, rather we "lay" it.<br />
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<b>(to)go on and on</b> - to continue (like this phrase because the repetition of "on" reflects the situation). We often use this phrase when talking about somebody who doesn't know when to shut his trap - or mouth. Example: "He went on and on at the meeting about what a great job he did. I thought he'd never be quiet."<br />
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<b>ramp-up time</b> - time needed to learn how to do a new job well. <br />
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<b>Catch-22 situation</b> - a frustrating situation in which one cannot do anything because the thing one needs to take action is the very thing one does not have (in this article, the person who needs a job must already have a job to get a job). Interestingly, the expression Catch 22 comes from a book with that title by the author Joseph Heller.<br />
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<b>to pin blame on </b> - to say it's somebody' fault. Okay, so we don't just "lay" blame as above, we also pin it on somebody else. Why so many ways to assign blame in English? Well, I guess we do a lot of blaming in our culture!<br />
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<b>get someone up to speed</b> - to train somebody so they know how to do their job well.<br />
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<b>to know the ropes</b> - to know how to get things done in a job; to know how things at a company run. This idiom comes from the world of sailing. To be a good sailor, you need to know how to work the ropes. You will also hear the related expressions: "to learn the ropes" meaning to get to know how to do a new job.<br />
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Want to keep improving your Business English? Check out <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_business_english.htm">Speak Business English Like an American</a> and <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_better_business.htm">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a>.Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2714617208761828059.post-46094209734323126712011-09-12T07:32:00.000-07:002011-09-12T07:32:45.316-07:00Some Business English through Tech TalkToday we're going to focus on some business English terms used in a recent <i>New York Times</i> article "Sell Big or Die Fast" by Jenna Wortham. <br />
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The English we'll focus on is highlighted in bold:<br />
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Seven weeks after it was put on sale, Hewlett-Packard <b>killed</b> its TouchPad <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pKm02J3J9MI/Tm4X5xqfhxI/AAAAAAAAAJs/lWqlNvz9S3I/s1600/tablet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="172" width="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pKm02J3J9MI/Tm4X5xqfhxI/AAAAAAAAAJs/lWqlNvz9S3I/s200/tablet.jpg" /></a></div><br />
tablet, the company’s competitor to Apple’s iPad. Hewlett-Packard killed the TouchPad after 48 days, cut the price and created a buying frenzy. Last year, Microsoft <b>pulled the plug on</b> its Kin mobile phones only 48 days after they went on sale.<br />
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In recent years, technology companies have been <b>cutting their losses</b> with increasing speed. Google proudly released Wave, its platform of collaborative work tools, to the general public in May 2010. It canceled Wave 77 days later...<br />
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These days, big technology companies — particularly those in the hypercompetitive smartphone and tablet industries — are starting to resemble Hollywood film studios. Every release needs to be a <b>blockbuster</b>, and the only measure of success is the opening-weekend gross. There is little to no room for the <b>sleeper indie hit</b> that builds good <b>word of mouth</b> to become a solid performer over time. <br />
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<b>Now let's discuss the vocabulary in the article:</b><br />
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<b>(to) kill a product</b> - to stop making a product (usually because it is a failure - or flop - in the market).<br />
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<b>(to) pull the plug on</b> - to stop something; to end something. (Think of pulling the plug of a lamp out of the wall - it goes out)<br />
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<b>(to) cut one's losses</b> - to stop doing something because it is likely it will not succeed; to stop doing something before one loses any MORE money. <br />
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<b>blockbuster</b> - a big winner; a huge success<br />
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<b>sleeper hit</b> - a product, service, movie or other thing that is not popular immediately, but becomes popular over time (often unexpectedly). Note: the "indie" in the article is short for "independent" - typically applied to movies made by a small studio or an individual.<br />
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<b>word of mouth</b> - when people talk about a product or service and it then becomes known. An important term in marketing these days, especially with Facebook, Twitter and other social media.<br />
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Questions? Comments? Include them in your Comments to this blog post! And if you want to learn more business English expressions, check out the books <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_better_business.htm">Speak Better Business English and Make More Money</a> and <a href="http://www.languagesuccesspress.com/our_prducts/speak_business_english.htm">Speak Business English Like an American</a>. Also the iPhone apps <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/app/speak-business-english-i/id459684683?mt=8">Speak Business English I</a> and <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/business-english-power-verbs/id430533897?mt=8">Business English Power Verbs</a>.Speak English Like an Americanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11438748025672916209noreply@blogger.com0