Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast, number 312, Different Work Styles.
This is English as a Second Language Podcast, episode 312.
I'm your host, Dr Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development to improve your English even more.
The learning guide contains all the vocabulary definitions, sample sentences, additional definitions of words we use on the podcast, cultural notes and a complete transcript of everything we say on this episode.
We also have some other new exciting parts of the website, so take a look at that if you haven't visited recently.
Our topic today is different work styles.
We'll go over some vocabulary you can use to describe people's work habits and the sorts of things that they do at work, in terms of the way or the style or manner in which they work.
Let's get started.
I didn't know that I would be working so closely with another employee of the company.
I was used to a lot of autonomy in my last job, and I have always been self-directed.
I didn't need close supervision, and the boss never had to worry about me slacking off.
To tell the truth, I was a little apprehensive about working in a team after having had so much independence.
To my surprise though, I liked the collaborative environment, and I think I actually do better work because of it.
Of the two of us, Delilah is the creative one.
While I'm a little adverse to risk...
Delilah is always challenging the status quo.
She often has good ideas and, because I'm pretty resourceful, we often find a way to put those ideas to work.
Delilah has great follow-through too, and I never need to worry that things will fall through the cracks.
I think the key to our success in working together is that neither one of us tries to exercise authority over the other.
We respect each other's abilities and we know when to take charge and when to back off.
If you had told me a year ago that I would be working in a team environment and enjoying it, I would have told you that you were crazy.
But I guess the old saying isn't true.
You can teach an old dog new tricks.
Our story begins, Before I started my new job...
To be working closely means that the two of you are doing many things together.
Autonomy A-U-T-O-N-O-M-Y is the same as independence the ability or opportunity to work alone, without other people.
I like my autonomy, for example.
I work alone or I do many things at my work alone.
In the story, I say I was used to a lot of autonomy.
I was accustomed to a lot of autonomy in my last job.
And I have always been self-directed.
Someone who is self-directed is someone who can make their own decisions about what they want to do or don't want to do.
They can make their own decisions without control or advice from other people.
I say that I didn't need close supervision.
Close here means tight, very involved with another person.
For example, you could say, do you have a close relationship with your grandparents?
Do you know them very well?
Do you talk a lot?
Supervision is the same as monitoring, looking after or looking at someone else's work to make sure they are doing it correctly.
So close supervision is when you have the boss who is always checking up on his or her employees.
I say that I didn't need close supervision and that the boss never had to worry about me slacking off.
To slack S-L-A-C-K off two words is a phrasal verb.
That means not to do what you are supposed to do.
You may be playing games.
You may be spending your time on the Internet.
You may be listening to ESL podcast at work instead of working.
That's to slack off.
Someone who likes to slack off, not to work when they are supposed to, is called a slacker.
The word slack has a couple of different meanings.
Take a look at our learning guide today for some additional explanations.
The story continues To tell you the truth.
To be honest with you, I was a little apprehensive about working in a team after having had so much independence.
To be apprehensive means to be nervous or worried about something that will happen in the future.
I'm apprehensive about my trip to Alaska.
I'm not sure what will happen.
Probably I will get very cold.
That's what happens if you go to Alaska, especially in the wintertime.
Well, I was a little apprehensive about working in a team since before I had a lot of independence.
I was working on my own.
I had autonomy.
To my surprise, though, I liked the collaborative environment there.
Collaborative means cooperative.
When two or three or a small group of people work together on a project, they're working together on something.
Of the two of us, or between the two of us, Delilah is the creative one.
When we say someone is creative, we mean they're imaginative.
They have new and interesting ideas.
They don't think like everyone else does.
I am not really a creative person.
Lucy Say is the creative one here at ESL Podcast.
While here is the same as although.
Although I'm a little adverse, A-D-V-E-R-S-E, to risk.
That expression means uncomfortable doing something because it's new, because you might fail.
Someone who is adverse to risk, is afraid to try new things, is afraid to take a chance at something new.
Although I'm a little adverse to risk...
Delilah is always challenging the status quo.
The status quo is the situation right now as things are currently or presently.
To challenge the status quo is to do things differently from the way they are being done now or differently to question why we are doing things this way.
Delilah often has good ideas and because I'm pretty resourceful, we often find a way to put those ideas to work.
Someone who is resourceful is someone who uses many different things to solve a problem or to get their work done.
Delilah has great follow-through, too.
Follow-through is the ability and willingness to do what you said you were going to do.
I said I was going to record 4,000 podcasts this month.
If I have good follow through, I will record 4,000 podcasts.
I'll probably die trying to do it.
But to have follow through is to fulfill your promises, to do something until it is finished.
I never have to worry with Delilah that things will fall through the cracks.
The expression to fall through the cracks C-R-A-C-K-S means to be forgotten because you are concentrating or working on something else.
I'm working on project A and I forget about project B. Things fall through the cracks.
They don't get done.
The word crack has a couple of different meanings.
Take a look at our learning guide for additional explanations.
I end the story by saying I think the key or the important cause of our success in working together is is that neither one of us tries to exercise authority over the other.
To exercise authority over someone means to tell someone what he or she should do or shouldn't do.
It's to be the boss of someone else.
Delilah and I respect each other's abilities and we know when to take charge and when to back off.
To take charge means to be in control of something, to lead something, to be responsible for something.
To back off means is another phrasal verb or two-word verb.
It means to be less controlling, to not be as involved in something.
That's to back off.
Sometimes people will use that expression if you have someone who is bothering you or who keeps asking you questions about something that you don't want to talk about.
You may say to them, back off.
It would be something you would say only to your friend or family, or your enemy perhaps, if you have any enemies.
I say at the end if you had told me a year ago that I would be working in a team environment and enjoying it.
There's a traditional expression You can't teach an old dog new tricks.
Many people teach their dogs to sit when they say sit, or to roll over, or to go and get a ball that you throw for them.
To teach an old dog new tricks would mean to teach someone who is already very used to doing something in one way to do it another way.
So the expression is, you can't teach an old dog, like me, new tricks.
In the story, I say that this isn't true, that you can teach an old dog new tricks.
Actually, you can't, but it's the story that says that, so I'll say it.
Now let's listen to the story, this time at a native rate of speech.
Before I started my new job, I didn't know that I would be working so closely with another employee of the company.
I was used to a lot of autonomy in my last job, and I've always been self-directed.
I didn't need close supervision, and the boss never had to worry about me slacking off.
To tell the truth, I was a little apprehensive about working in a team after having had so much independence.
To my surprise though, I like the collaborative environment, and I think I actually do better work because of it.
Of the two of us, Delilah is the creative one.
While I'm a little adverse to risk, Delilah is always challenging the status quo.
She often has good ideas and, because I'm pretty resourceful, we often find a way to put those ideas to work.
Delilah has great follow through too, and I never need to worry that things will fall through the cracks.
I think the key to our success in working together is that neither one of us tries to exercise authority over the other.
We respect each other's abilities, and we know when to take charge and when to back off.
If you had told me a year ago that I would be working in a team environment and enjoying it, I would have told you that you were crazy.
But I guess the old saying isn't true.
You can teach an old dog new tricks.
The script for this episode was written by Dr. Lucy Say.
From Los Angeles, California.
I'm Jeff McQuillan, your old dog, hoping you'll come back for some new tricks next time on ESL Podcast.
English as a Second Language podcast is written and produced by Dr Lucy Say, hosted by Dr Jeff McQuillan.
This podcast is copyright 2007.
