Business English Pod / Business Idioms / Page 7

BEP 285 – Idioms for Describing Personality and Character (1)

Business English, Business Idioms, Human Resources /

BEP 285 - Business English Idioms for Describing Personality 1

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on Business English idioms for describing people’s personality and character.

In English we have a saying that “it takes all sorts to make a world.” This means that the world is made up of many different people and different personalities. And every company or organization needs different personalities for different roles and different kinds of work. This diversity of personality in the workplace is a popular and interesting topic of conversation, as you surely know from listening to your colleagues.

Whether we’re discussing which job applicant to hire or gossiping after hours about coworkers, we all talk about personalities. And English has lots of great idioms for describing personality and character, which is what we’ll look at in this lesson.

You will hear a conversation between three colleagues: Lola, Shane, and Anne. They are trying to figure out who to send to South Korea to work in their company’s office there. As they discuss the different possibilities, they use a lot of different idioms for describing personality.

Listening Questions

1. Why won’t they send David overseas?
2. What do the speakers say about Paula?
3. How does Shane seem to feel about Douglas?

Premium Members: PDF Transcript | Quizzes | PhraseCast | Lesson Module

Download: Podcast MP3

BEP 278 – English Idioms for Negotiations (Part 2)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, Business Idioms, Negotiating /

BEP 278 English Idioms for Negotiations 2

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English idioms for discussing negotiations.

Making deals and coming to an agreement can be tricky business. We give, and we take. We win a little, and we lose a little. And both sides hope that they can get more than they need to give up. This is the tough competition known as negotiation, a competition that puts the drama in the world of business.

And like any kind of drama or competition, we love to talk about it. Who won and who lost? Who got what? How much did they pay? And just how did they get such a good deal? In English, we have lots of idioms to talk about negotiations. Today we’re going to take a closer look at some of these idioms and how to use them.

We’re going to rejoin a conversation between two colleagues, Jose and Neil. Neil has been talking about a tough negotiation he’s been going through with a company from Singapore.

Listening Quiz

1. How does Neil say he’s going to respond to the other company’s demands on payment terms?
2. According to Jose, why might the other side be negotiating with another firm besides Neil’s company?
3. What is Neil’s biggest fear?

Premium Members: Study Notes | Online Practice | PhraseCast | Lesson Module

Download: Podcast MP3

BEP 277 – English Idioms for Negotiations (Part 1)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, Business Idioms, Negotiating /

BEP 277 - English Idioms for discussing Negotiations 1

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on idioms related to negotiations.

Negotiation is at the heart of business. We negotiate salaries, partnerships, prices, terms, timelines, business deals, and pretty much everything, in fact! And to do this, we discuss, we persuade, and we make trade-offs all in the name of closing the deal.

Yes, almost everything in business is a kind of negotiation, a push and pull in which we try to get what we want. And it should come as no surprise that in English we have a lot of different idioms for talking about negotiations. Today we’ll look at some of these idioms and how to use them.

You will hear a conversation between two colleagues, Jose and Neil. They are talking about some negotiations they’ve been involved in recently. In particular, Neil has been experiencing some challenges in a negotiation with a company from Singapore.

Listening Questions

1. What surprising demand does Neil say the other company made early on?
2. After explaining his own experience with a Brazilian company, what does Jose suggest Neil try?
3. What does Neil think he might have to do instead of doing what Jose suggests?

Premium Members: Study Notes | Quizzes | PhraseCast | Lesson Module

Download: Podcast MP3

BEP 265 – English Idioms for Beginnings and Endings (2)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, Business Idioms /

In this Business English Pod lesson we continue our look at English idioms related to beginnings and endings.

A new year, a new job, a new office, a new project, a new team – all these new things mean exciting beginnings. And beginning something new usually means finishing something else. Every day at work, at home, and at the coffee shop we talk about these changes.

In English, we have lots of useful idioms for talking about the beginnings and endings that make up the changes in work and life. Today, we’ll look at some of these expressions and talk about how to use them.

In the dialog, we will rejoin Henry and Darren, two old colleagues who are sitting down for coffee and talking about life and work. In our last lesson, they focused on family. In today’s dialog, we’ll hear about their work and careers, and they’ll use lots of great idioms about beginnings and endings.

Listening Questions

1. What big career decision has Henry made?
2. Why did Darren leave his former job?
3. What did Darren decide to do after leaving his job?

Premium Members: PDF Transcript | Quizzes | PhraseCast | Lesson Module

Download: Podcast MP3