Free Download Intercall is one of the world’s largest international conference call company. And Intercall’s own research showed that more than 60 percent of respondents admitted to doing something else while on a conference call. This „doing something else“ is one of the key contributors to ineffective teleconferences. I think it is safe to […]
Wouldn’t it be easier just to walk, than to walk and carry a car made of boulders? 1. Confusing training with presenting As a trainer I’ve often worked with participants who had to train people in something specific. In preparation they wanted to check their powerpoint slides with me. We reviewed the English on the […]
Not convinced? Here are some figures* which support the movement: In the US, nearly 170 million people played computer and videogames in 2008, spending a record $11.7 billion. Because of good game design, more than 11 million subscribers spend an average of 23 hours per week immersed in World of Warcraft. In the four […]
Time is money Time wasted equates to money lost. Think about what plain English could mean for your business. In a typical office, the average employee receives about 100 messages a day. How much time is spent writing the original document? How many people end up reading the document? How much time is spent reading, […]
The problem is that many of my participants don’t use social media in their personal lives, there is only limited training available and there isn’t always time to learn about the tools and their use. Did I mention that everything also needs to be in English? Together we came up a possible checklist to help […]
Invitations Since you will be in town Tuesday night, I was hoping you would join me for dinner. I would be delighted if you joined me for lunch on Wednesday. Would you like to have lunch on Friday? What are your plans Tuesday evening? How about dinner? What do you say to grabbing dinner […]
Write out numbers smaller than ten I’m taking three days of holiday next week. The report I’m reading is 311 pages long. Hyphenate the numbers twenty-one to ninety-nine We hired fifty-three people in the last fiscal year. Use the numeral if discussing measurement, time or proportion Our next meeting starts in 15 minutes. His plane […]
„By failing to prepare you are preparing to fail.“ – Benjamin Franklin Do you prepare for small talk? Not only natural small talkers are good at small talk. How much time do you spend preparing for a presentation? Let’s assume you don’t make those up as you go, why should it be different with small […]
“I need to do my job in English more and more” said one of my participants in a purchasing department. She was a lead buyer at a manufacturing company who had seen her company go through a rapid internationalization process when they merged. Global purchasing means that many purchasers now need to work comfortably and […]
1. Prepare Take a moment to go over some English basics. Make sure you can introduce yourself simply and explain your position in the company. Also think about how you will ask a question, interrupt a speaker or ask for clarification if you need to. Which key words can you check before going into the […]
Because the player in the outfield had their backs to home plate they had to train their ear to know what part of the field the ball was travelling to, based on the sound created when the baseball made contact with the bat. If you’ve ever seen a baseball game (or cricket) you know […]
Research shows that when we work in virtual teams managers tend to praise far less. In an earlier life, I worked as an analyst for an international corporation in Boston. A large part of my job was generating weekly reports and sending them off to various people. I never received a response, so I never […]
As a kid, my parents told me I watched too much TV. They would not be pleased to know that hasn’t changed very much, but at least nowadays I try to watch things that might actually inspire me. That’s where TED [www.ted.com] comes in. TED talks can be a great source of inspiration. They can […]
What’s changed then? I want to keep my employees in the company. And performance appraisal interviews are important in making sure this happens. So, I use my “5 Keeps” approach: „If you’re reading this, apologies to those individuals who had to live with how I used to prepare for performance appraisals. I’m probably part […]
Let’s look at some simple things you can do to focus your team: Talk the Talk You know how important it is to know what’s happening in your organization. Now, stress to your project team how valuable it is too. In project meetings, make sure your message is understood. Check in with your team, especially […]
Great small talkers know that the key to creating meaningful and significant conversation is a matter of asking the right questions. Asking the right questions can help build and develop stronger relationships. Your goal when small talking should be to try to learn about and connect with the other person, not just to pass the […]
When you are looking for a business English training solution, how much value do you put on a trainer who understands your business needs? Are you confident that your training is being delivered by a committed, experienced professional? If you want your training to have a real impact, you need somebody who has the skills […]
What makes leading a meeting in English so hard? Relax – it’s all about the meeting, not you! When I’ve had to run meetings in Spanish or German, it took me a while to realize that it doesn’t help to worry about these questions. I quickly learned that the participants were actually interested in […]
Free eBook Download Along with our latest eBook „Keys to effective meetings“, here’s a list of resources you can use to make your meetings more effective. Facilitation Made Easy: Practical Tips to Improve Meetings and Workshops Esther Cameron Facilitation Made Easy is a comprehensive study of the complete process of planning, carrying out and […]
Business English on the go Maybe you’re as serious as all of my clients about improving your business English – but like them, you have other priorities too! What it comes down to is that learning English takes a back seat when important deadlines loom. Half the time, you’re travelling and the other half, you’re […]
