The Art of Business English

Hi everyone and welcome back to the Art of Business English. This week we have the first episode in a 3-part series on prepositions. Just the other day one of my students was complaining that they didn’t really understand prepositions in English, even though she has an advanced English level. So, I thought I would put together this three-part series to help everyone better understand how prepositions work and some of the fixed forms that they have.

The first thing to note is that this episode does not look at things like prepositions for movement, place or time. We are going to focus on more advanced structures which have a fixed form. The best thing about learning dependent prepositions or structures with a fixed form is that they are just that, fixed meaning, once you know them then you know them forever as they don’t change.

Today’s episode is divided into three parts. Firstly, we are going to look at what dependent prepositions are, then we are going to look at a common list of dependent prepositions with their translation and finally I will give you some example sentences to put them into context.

Before we start, you may be asking, how will this help my business English. Well, it’s simple really, many of these dependent prepositions after verbs are used on a daily basis in many areas of business. You will see from the example sentences how that are used in a business context.

Hi everyone, welcome back to the Art of Business English. In today’s episode we are going to be looking at vocabulary for describing profitability when in meetings. We will be covering some general vocabulary and then some more specific idioms.

I have divided the episode into three parts. By the end of the episode we will have reviewed the following:

1. Idioms for describing profitability in meetings
2. Some example sentences using these idioms
3. Study tips for implementing these idioms

Hello and welcome back to The Art of Business English. Today’s episode is the second part in a two-part series which looks at specific forms after verbs. In the first episode we looked at infinitive and gerund forms after certain verbs. In today’s episode we are going to be looking at objects and infinitive with or without “to” after specific verbs.

Mastering these verbs will make you sound much more fluent when using your English on a daily basis.

So, today we have the episode divided into two parts. First, we will look at verbs which are followed by an object and infinitive. In the later part, we will look at verbs that are followed by an object and a bare infinitive. For those of you who don’t know what a bare infinitive is, it is a verb in its infinitive form without “to” in front of it. It’s important to note that this is not the same as the imperative, even though the form looks the same.

Therefore, in today’s episode you will learn the following:

1. Verbs which are typically followed by an object and infinitive
2. Verbs which are typically followed by an object and a bare infinitive
3. Some common expressions used in everyday business English that follow these structures

Hi and welcome back to The Art of Business English. In today’s episode we are going to focus on a grammatical issue, which many, many non-native speakers struggle with, gerund or infinitive after verbs. Most verbs, when conjugated are then followed by another verb in infinitive form, however there are some exceptions. Some verbs require the following verb to be in the gerund or -ING form. What I also find interesting is that many of these verbs are used in business and help us form commonly used business expressions.

So, how does this affect my English? Firstly, if you don’t use a gerund form after a verb which requires a gerund form it makes you sound less fluent. What is important to note is that in most cases using the incorrect form will not affect the meaning of the sentence, so a native person will understand you. However, it does sound a bit strange and native speakers will notice this mistake.

By the end of today’s episode, you will be able to understand the following:

1. Which verbs are typically followed by gerund and/or infinitive
2. When we can use both gerund or infinitive
3. The difference in meaning between gerund and infinitive when using the same verb
4. Prepositions and expressions followed by gerund
5. Some common expressions used in everyday business English that follow these structures

Hello and welcome back to the Art of Business English. In today’s episode I wanted to look at some idioms for presenting. Presenting in English can be a little nerve-wracking, as such, I wanted to help you feel more confident when presenting by providing some useful expressions that will put a smile on your face as you impress those around you with your amazing business English skills.

In today’s episode we will be covering the following points.

1. What is an idiom?
2. Idioms for use when presenting with some examples
3. How to practice using these idioms

In total we will be covering 18 idioms for presenting, as well as some techniques for studying them.

Be sure to put your new language into practice as this is the best way to start memorising and internalising the language.

Hey there, welcome back to the Art of Business English. It’s great to have you with us again. This week we have prepared a super helpful episode on how to check and ask for clarification. What I am going to teach you today are really useful skills for many business situations. The objective is to make you feel more confident and to improve your communication skills.

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you are not clear what someone has said to you? Have you had problems as a result of poor communication? If so, then you will love the tips I have for you today.

By the end of this episode you will be able to do the following:

1. Check that you understood what someone has said to you
2. Ask for clarification in a polite and constructive way
3. Clarify what you are trying to say

I am sure you have found yourself in a situation where you need to negotiate or host a guest at your company. Maybe you didn’t know the correct expressions or phrases to sound diplomatic and polite.

Well, in today’s podcast episode and on the Art of Business English website we have a very interesting post about how to sound less direct and more diplomatic. We look at some essential vocabulary and expressions, as well as some technical tips to help you understand the mechanics behind sounding more diplomatic and less direct.

So without further ado, I present the to you, “How to sound less direct and more diplomatic”.

Hey everyone, thanks for joining me again. I hope you’re all well and having a great start to the year.

Now, I often get asked what is the difference between do and make, two verbs that are commonly confused.

Just last week one of my friends asked me to explain the difference to him and I thought the best way to help would be to prepare an episode on the difference between the two. So, here you have it, welcome to today’s podcast on the difference between Do & Make.

By the end of this episode you will understand the following:

1. The difference between Make & Do
2. Make & Do as collocations
3. Make & Do in business expressions

Remember as always, if you like this episode then share it with your friends. We are also hear to help you so if you do have any questions the do not hesitate to contact us as we will be more than happy to give you some advice or prepare an episode on a topic that you may be struggling with.

Hi, and welcome back to the Art of Business English. In today’s episode we are going to take a quick look at some collocations to use when making plans or taking decisions. Both, very important aspects of business. Remember, collocations are very common in English, they help you sound more native and you need to understand them in context, especially when a speaker uses them. Therefore, the advantages to knowing them are that, even if you do not use them yourself, at least you will understand when one is spoken to you.

At the end of this episode you will be able to use a number of collocations for the following situations:

1. Making decisions & offering solutions
2. Making plans
3. Rejecting plans

Welcome back to the Art of Business English. Well, it is that time of year again when we start a new year full of promise and new year’s resolutions. As a result, today I want to share with you some tips on how to really improve your business English and stay motivated.

As with many things, people often start out with very idealistic expectations and are highly motivated, however, within a short period of time they have found themselves demotivated and start with the excuse making stage. Once the excuses start being created it is easy to give up and stop trying to achieve the thing you have set out to do.

So, how can we overcome this? Well, I am going to take a little different approach than most English trainer. At the end of today’s episode, you will be able to do the following: 

1. Set the right vision for your language learning
2. Understand goal setting and how to reach objectives
3. Develop a study plan
4. Appreciate the power of reading
5. Understand and use translation methodology