You may have lots of great ideas. But those ideas aren’t worth much if you can’t convince other people that they’re great. And that takes more than just excitement and energy. To convince others, you need to present a cohesive argument.
So what is a cohesive argument? 好, it’s a series of logical reasons to support an idea. A cohesive argument helps you convince others of your position by providing a set of supporting points presented in a logical manner. If you do not provide a cohesive argument, then you’ll have trouble getting other people to support you.
A good argument might start by showing research and giving some context for the issue. Then you can talk about precedents for your idea, which means other times that it has been done successfully. It’s also good to think about what people might be concerned about, and address that before they even have a chance to bring it up. 最後, you can tell people why your idea is necessary. With a cohesive argument like this, you’re sure to have more support for your idea.
在今天的對話中, we’ll hear Jack, who’s presenting a proposal to move his company’s production to Costa Rica. 在上一課中, we heard Jack and several others discussing the idea. Jack’s argument was a bit disorganized and drew criticism from the others. He didn’t manage to convince them that moving production overseas was a good idea. In this meeting, the team has to make a decision on the issue. So Jack really needs to present a good argument.
聽力問題
1. What has Jack done in preparation for the meeting? 2. Why does Jack mention the company Intel? 3. Jack talks about one thing that other people might be concerned, or worried about. 它是什麼?
Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on how toargue for a position.
A position could be an opinion, an idea, or a plan. And whether you’re in a meeting, a one-on-one discussion, or a presentation, you’ll often find yourself arguing for your position, or against other people’s positions.
So how can you argue for or against a position effectively? 當然, you can just state what you think. But there are some more effective techniques you can use to support your position. 例如, you can use language to make an idea stronger. Instead of just saying “this plan is disorganized,” you can say “this plan is totally disorganized.” That has a greater impact.
You can also work the other way around, 和使用 softening and minimizing 語言. 例如, instead of saying “we are happy with the new building but there are some problems,” you might say “overall we’re pretty happy with the new building, but there might be a few problems.” And if you want to criticize someone’s ideas, you need to introduce that carefully and balance the criticism with praise. All these techniques will help you present your position.
在今天的對話中, we’ll hear Jack, who’s trying to argue for the idea of moving his company’s production overseas, to Costa Rica. 然而, 安吉, 和, and Jim are not convinced that Jack’s plan is a good idea. As they argue for their positions, we’ll cover some useful techniques on both sides of the discussion.
聽力問題
1. How does Angie introduce her first criticism of Jack’s ideas? 2. What does Jack say about the risks involved in his plan? 3. What positive thing does Angie say about Jack later in the dialog?
