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BEP 220 – Arguing in Meetings in English (2)

In today’s Business English Pod lesson, we continue our look at the language and techniques of arguing in meetings.

Imagine you’re in a meeting. You are expressing your opinion about something, when a colleague across the table interrupts you. He disagrees with what you’re saying, and he’s determined to make his point. What do you do? Do you sit back and smile? Or do you accept the challenge and defend what you’re saying?

This situation plays out every day in every office. Sometimes the discussion remains calm and the people remain diplomatic. But other times the conversation becomes more heated. At a certain point, it doesn’t seem like a conversation any more but an argument. People interrupt each other, they criticize and accuse, they defend themselves, and they become emotional.

Arguments are a normal part of working life. You can’t avoid them, so you’d better be prepared for them. In our last episode, we looked at several techniques for holding your own in an argument. Today we’ll look at several more key skills, including how to defend yourself against an accusation, how to correct someone, and how to dismiss trivial points. We’ll also learn about rephrasing another person’s words in an argument and bringing an argument back to a reasonable place.

We are going to rejoin Paula, Gavin, and Matt, who have been talking about a promotional event put on by their department store. The event wasn’t as successful as they had hoped for and Matt, Gavin and Paula’s boss, wants to figure out the reasons why the event failed. However, Paula and Gavin seem more intent on arguing about who is responsible rather than why the event was a failure.

Listening Questions

1. What does Paula think Gavin could have done to give input on the planning of the event?
2. What does Paula think is not worth discussing?
3. What does Matt want to figure out?

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BEP 219 – Arguing in Meetings in English (1)

Business English, Communication, English for Meetings / November 18, 2012

In this Business English Pod lesson, we’re going to look at language and skills for arguing in meetings in English.

Does everyone in your office always agree all the time? When someone makes a suggestion, does everyone just smile and nod in agreement? When you bring forward an idea, do people just accept it? Well, if you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you are in an extremely unusual workplace. People are people. And people butt heads. They disagree, they argue, and they fight. You can’t get around it. But you can learn to deal with it.

To hold your own, you need to learn how to argue effectively. If you’ve got an opinion, you need to defend it. And if you have a problem with something a colleague has done, you need to let them know. This can make for some difficult discussions and meetings, but this is just a part of life and business.

So how can you argue effectively? Well, you need several skills which we’ll look at today. We’ll learn how to interrupt someone, finish something we’re saying after someone else has interrupted us, and cast doubt on something someone has said. We’ll also learn some useful expressions for backing up an accusation and trying to keep the discussion focused. When an argument breaks out, these are the kinds of skills you need.

In this lesson, we will hear a meeting between three people in the retail business talking about a recent promotional event. Apparently, the event wasn’t a great success. Paula and Gavin disagree about why things didn’t work out, while their boss Matt tries to work out the truth and keep the discussion focused.

Listening Questions

1. What does Gavin think was the general reason for the event’s failure?
2. Why does Gavin mention “the papers and the radio spots”?
3. At the end of the dialog, what does Matt want to do?

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October 20, 2012

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English for Meetings

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BEP 212 – Presentation English: Presenting Visuals (1)

Business English, ESL Podcast, Presentation in English / July 15, 2012

In this Business English Pod lesson, we look at how to bring your visuals to life in a presentation in English.

We’ve all sat through some pretty boring presentations. And in those presentations, we’ve all seen complex charts and graphs that tell us either way too much or nothing at all. For the most part, visuals aren’t naturally interesting or informative. It’s what we do with them that is important.

You can’t just put a graph on a screen and then explain each point on the graph. And you can’t put up a table of figures and then read out each column and row. What you really need to do is tell the story of the data and to bring the visuals to life. What should people focus on? What is the important number on the screen? What does the graph actually tell us?

Bringing visuals to life is necessary if you want to give effective presentations. We’ll look at how to do this today. In this lesson, we’ll cover several important functions, including using analogy, defining terms, using rhetorical questions, and highlighting key numbers.

You will hear David, an engineer in a manufacturing company. He’s giving a presentation to members of the finance department. His purpose is to explain a new plan that he hopes to get financed.

Listening Questions

1. Why does David ask the listeners about traveling to work?
2. Which important term does David define for the listeners?
3. What is David’s idea for shipping?

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BEP 204 – English Job Interviews: Switching Careers (1)

Advanced, Business English, Job Interview in English, Management English / February 26, 2012

This is the first of a two-part Business English Pod lesson on English job interviews for when you’re changing jobs or making a career shift.

You’ve racked up a lot of work experience and you’re proud of your special accomplishments. And you know enough to have clear opinions about how things should be done. But it’s time for a bit of a change. Maybe you’re switching careers altogether, or maybe you’re just looking to change roles. Regardless, you’re going to have to explain your accomplishments and express your opinions carefully in order to a make a good impression.

In an interview, it’s not just about what you say, it’s about how you say it. You will be asked some difficult questions, and you may only have one shot at it. The stakes are high, and the competition may be great. You need to sell yourself and demonstrate why you are the right choice for the position.

In this lesson, we’ll hear Nina and Frank interviewing Patrick. Patrick is a seasoned accountant looking for a career shift. He’s applying for a job with one of the major accounting advisory firms. Patrick is going to highlight his unique experience, politely criticize his former employer, admit challenges, and talk about past conflict. These are all tough things to do well, but Patrick handles them wisely.

Listening Questions

1. Why is Patrick talking about changes to a company’s internal controls?
2. How does Patrick describe financial meetings with executives?
3. How does Patrick say he dealt with the executives?

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BEP 201 – Making the Most of Meetings in English (2)

Business English, English for Meetings / January 29, 2012

Welcome back to Business English Pod for the second part of making the most of your meetings.

What’s the difference between a good meeting and a bad meeting? An effective business english meeting and one in which people talk but nothing really gets done? In many cases, the difference is in the person running the meeting. Whether he or she is the regular chairperson or a facilitator brought in from the outside, that person needs to make sure the meeting meets its objectives.

So how can you do that? How can you make meetings work? That’s what we’re looking at in this series. And the skills and techniques we’re demonstrating are useful not just for meetings. They can also be applied to all types of group discussions.

Today, we’re going to learn how to encourage quiet people, push for clarity, avoid committing to a position, conduct satisfaction checks, and praise good work. We’ll rejoin Tony, Annette, and Jake as they discuss solutions to a problem in their company. The meeting is being run by Liz, who has been brought in from another department to make sure the meeting is effective.

Listening Questions

1. What does Jake think is one of the basic problems?
2. Why doesn’t Liz want to give her opinion?
3. What are they going to talk about next?

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BEP 200 – Making the Most of Meetings in English (1)

Business English, English for Meetings / January 22, 2012

This is the first of a two-part Business English Pod lesson on making the most of your business english meetings.

Today’s lesson is officially our 200th BEP episode and this week we’ll also be rolling past 30 Million downloads. So a hearty thanks to every one of you for helping us reach this amazing milestone. It’s been a fantastic journey and we’re looking forward to the next 200. If you’d like to share in the celebration, please think about rating or commenting on our podcast page in iTunes.

This week also sees the roll out of our Course Builder app for premium members. You can check out the video on the website to see just how easy it is to build a personalized course with Course Builder.

So, have you ever announced a meeting and seen people roll their eyes? “Oh no, not another meeting,” they seem to be saying. But every organization needs meetings. They are important when we need to discuss an issue, share information, plan, or make decisions. The problem is that not every meeting is an effective meeting. In fact, there are some good reasons why a lot of people consider meetings a waste of time.

So the question is: how can you run a meeting that people come out of feeling positive? How can we make the most of our meetings?

Running a good meeting requires both leadership and tact. You need to guide the group towards its goals and keep the meeting on track. Today we’ll talk about how you can do this. We’ll look at how to keep the discussion moving and how to focus on the issues, rather than on people or items that aren’t on the agenda.

In this lesson, we’ll listen in on a meeting at a company that is dealing with unhappy staff. Tony, Annette, and Jake are managers, and they’re trying to figure out exactly what the problem is. The meeting is being run by Liz, who has been brought in from another department to help out. You will hear Liz use several techniques to keep the meeting on track.

Listening Questions

1. What is the purpose of this meeting?
2. What does Jake say is an important issue?
3. Why does Annette think the employee surveys are not useful?
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BEP 195 – Small Talk before a Meeting in English (2)

Business English, English for Meetings, Intermediate English, Socializing / October 9, 2011

This is the second of our two-part Business English Pod lesson on English small talk, or casual conversation, in business meetings.

Imagine you’re sitting in a room with several co-workers. You’re waiting for a meeting to start. Does silence feel comfortable? Probably not. You should be talking. But about what?

Well, this is where the art of small talk comes in handy. And it’s not only something we do before a meeting. We use small talk in the airport lounge, on the train, or standing in line for a movie. We use it with colleagues, clients, and acquaintances. And it’s something that takes practice to do well and feel at ease with.

Previously we looked at some common conversation topics and techniques, including how to handle topics you don’t know much about. In this lesson we’ll look at a couple more very common topics: talking about the weather and talking about current events. We’ll also cover strategies for changing the topic and steering the conversation towards business.

In today’s dialog, we’ll rejoin Liz, Coby, and Shawn as they get ready for another meeting. As you might have guessed, their colleague Gordon has yet to arrive so they chat amongst themselves while they wait for him to show up.

Listening Questions

1. What does Shawn think about the summer weather?
2. Why does Coby seem upset or shocked?
3. How does Liz steer the conversation toward business?

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BEP 194 – Small Talk before a Meeting in English (1)

Business English, English for Meetings, Intermediate English, Socializing / October 2, 2011

Welcome back to Business English Pod for the first in our two-part series on English small talk before a meeting in English.

This is a situation you’ve probably experienced countless times: you arrive for a meeting 10 minutes early. There are several people already there. You say hello and then what do you talk about? What do you say? In this situation, you need to be able to make small talk. Small talk is informal conversation. We use the term “small talk” because it is not about exchanging information or making decisions or having serious discussion. It’s a way to avoid uncomfortable silences and build stronger relationships.

Small talk might seem to be about nothing important, but small talk itself is important. Being able to make small talk will allow you to make yourself part of a group. It will set the stage for more serious types of communication. In this lesson, we’ll look at a few different ways to initiate and respond to small talk.

We’ll join three colleagues, Coby, Liz, and Shawn, who have arrived for a meeting and are waiting for a fourth person to join. As they wait, the colleagues engage in the type of casual conversation you’ll often hear in an English-speaking office.

Listening Questions

1. Why is Gordon going to be late for the meeting?
2. What did Shawn do on the weekend?
3. What sport is Coby talking about?

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BEP 191 – Getting Your Ideas Across in Meetings (3)

Business English, Communication, English for Meetings / July 31, 2011

This is the third and final part of our Business English Pod series on getting your ideas across in meetings.

Meetings in English are a great opportunity to get your ideas across and influence other people. But doing that is no easy task. You need the right combination of tact, frankness, confidence, and humility. And you need some effective language techniques to manage that combination.

In today’s lesson, we’re going to look at several advanced techniques for expressing your ideas and commenting on other people’s opinions. These include leading into opinions, highlighting consequences, and redirecting a discussion. A lot of these techniques revolve around agreeing and disagreeing. We’ve looked at many of these in the first two parts, and today we’ll continue by learning about strongly agreeing and disagreeing with negative questions.

We’ve been listening to a dialog among four managers who have to find ways of reducing travel and transportation benefits by 15%. They are continuing their debate on how best to achieve this goal. Let’s listen as the chairperson Alison leads the discussion with Stewart, Pat, and Nate.

Listening Questions

1. What idea does Pat believe is easier to sell to employees?
2. What is Stewart’s concern about Pat’s idea?
3. What does Alison suggest doing?

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