Posts

Featured Post

4 things that are really matter

“It is not living that matters, but living rightly.” ~ Socrates When we live lives disconnected from those things that truly matter, sidetracked by the unimportant, lost in the frivolous, distracted by the superficial, our lives start to ring hollow, empty and vacant. When, on the other hand, we live our lives dedicated to those things that matter most, a greater sense of happiness rubs up against us, walks beside us, calls on us, and even moves in and redecorates our bathrooms. The choice is obvious. But deciding what matters and what doesn’t is sometimes, and for some people, less obvious. This is especially true in a Hollywood-centric, pop-culture saturated media-driven ethic. In such a culture, the substanceless can appear heavy with content, the silly can look profound and the meaningless can seem pregnant with meaning. So what then truly matters? Here’s a few items on my list. See if they match up with yours. 4 Things that Matter 1. Values Matter Our values id...
1 comment
Read more

Business English

Image
Post a Comment
Read more

29 phrasal verbs you should know

Image
  20 Phrasal Verbs  Common phrasal verbs you should know: 1.  give up   (darse por vencido/dejar de)  – put it on the top shelf (I’ve given up bread) 2.  grow up   (crecer)  – plants grow, people grow up – Where did you grow up? 3.  go on   (partir, salir)  – I’m going on holiday, on a (business) trip / Where are you going to? I’m going on a trip to Birmingham next month to go on a date – also ‘seguir’/’continuar – go on, what were you saying? – go on a diet 4.  go away   (irse fuera)  I’m going away for the weekend / Go away! (get lost!) ¡váyase! , ¡lárguese! 5.  go out  –  (salir)  – I’m going out for lunch/for a beer – Are you going out this weekend? 6.  look forward to   (tener muchas ganas de, esperar con ansia)  What are you looking forward to? 7.  look after   (cuidar de)  take care of Have you ever looked after anyone’s flat?and (house/flat/cat/dog sitting...
Post a Comment
Read more

What is the Secret to Language Immersion?

Image
What is the Secret to Language Immersion? If you are trying to learn a language like English , you have probably heard about immersion language learning, or ILL. This is because immersion learning is the most effective way to acquire a language. And I say ‘acquire’ because that is exactly what the brain does—it slowly begins to recognize and assimilate a language naturally, without studying, memorizing, or painful classroom grammar exercises that are associated with ‘learning’ a language. Does that sound too good to be true? Well it’s not, and in fact it’s the same way you learned to speak your native language: effortlessly. In fact, traditional classroom exercises and studying grammar books can be counterproductive to learning languages. That’s because our brain naturally remembers things when there is a real-world context and an emotional memory associated with it. This happens constantly in our everyday lives when we interact with friends and family, or take part in memorable or ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Human Resources Definition and most commonly used Terms

Image
Human Resources Definition and most commonly used Terms English Human Resources Vocabulary HR and recruitment processes Salary related vocabulary Taking time off work (holidays and sickness) Phrasal verbs related to work Working hours Describe different roles Contract types and related phrases What happens in the Human Resources (HR) department in a workplace, and does it have anything to do with me? The answer is ‘EVERYTHING related to the employees’ and YES! The Human Resources team are very important to the employer and employees of a company because they process and control everything from interviews, employment contracts, new staff packages, salary negotiation, payment queries or issues, problems with colleagues, promotion, maternity/paternity packages, to staff dismissal, pension funds, retirement packages and contract termination! With that in mind, I hope you can see how they play a very important role in making sure that the boss and staf...
Post a Comment
Read more

Formal and Informal Email Phrases – from Greetings to Closing Phrases!

Image
In this article, you’ll find examples of language that are commonly used in different types of emails, and hopefully, you’ll find the most appropriate one for your message. The examples are labelled ’ formal ’ and ’ informal ’- please note that most informal expressions are perfectly suitable to use in ’semi-formal’ situations, such as between business associates who have worked together for some time and have established a good relationship. GREETINGS Formal Dear Sir/ Madam, Dear Sir or Madam, To whom it may concern: (especially AmE) Dear Mr/ Ms Jones, Dear Dr Smit h, (note: First names are NOT used. Using Miss or Mrs to address a woman  is not appropriate, as you don’t know whether she’s married or not) Informal Hi Dennis, Hello Claire, Dear Mum, (note: salutations are followed by a (,) comma , exception: ’To whom it may concern:’) REASON FOR WRITING / REPLYING Formal I am writing to make a reservation/ to apply for the position of...
Post a Comment
Read more

The 10 Most Spoken Languages in the World

Image
Almost half of the world’s population claim one of only ten languages as their mother tongue. So who’s in the top ten? You might be surprised. Determining which languages are spoken most in the world is a more difficult task than you might imagine. We can say with some confidence that Mandarin, English, Spanish and Arabic will make an appearance, and roughly in what order. But there are some surprises too. Would you have guessed that Bengali is in the top ten? One small caveat: assigning hard data, in the form of “X million native speakers,” to any of these languages is practically impossible. What constitutes a language, a dialect, or a subdialect, is highly contested. And even when linguists do agree on a category, how similar is the English spoken in the Scottish Highlands to the English spoken in Baltimore’s city center? Yet at least two speakers from these regions would be able to communicate, in some...
Post a Comment
Read more