You're listening to Business English Pod, the Business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Hello and welcome back to Business English Pod.
In this lesson the final part of our series in handling a crisis, we'll see how to start moving forward after the first phase of a crisis has passed.
A crisis is a stressful situation.
People are under pressure and meetings or conversations can be tense, but if everyone maintains the same goal and a good leader gives direction to a group, a crisis can be overcome.
And overcoming a crisis means talking about how to move forward.
In our last episode, we heard a conference call as the team of Frank Mike Sandy, Monica and Simone re-evaluated the situation and tried to gain some perspective.
They talked about how the crisis has been handled, and things became a little tense, especially between Simone and Mike.
In this episode we'll continue with that conference call.
Mike and Simone continue to disagree, while Sandy and Monica try to support Mike and Frank tries to take control of the situation.
Let's listen as they figure out how to move forward at this stage of the crisis.
As you listen, try to answer the following questions.
1.
What does Sandy say about the company's history?
2.
According to Monica, what are the local people worried about?
With all due respect, Monica, I'm not so optimistic.
While Mike did a great job of handling the early part of the crisis, especially considering he's new from a legal perspective, we're certainly not out of the woods yet.
So let me get this straight, Simone.
You think we have a lot to be concerned about here and you think I could have done better on some things.
Is that what you're getting at?
Not quite.
I'm just saying it's a bit too soon to be patting ourselves on the back.
But Simone, our history as a company should work for us here.
Before this, our record was spotless.
This was a freak accident.
Yeah, that's all.
Okay, okay, okay.
Let's get a hold of ourselves here.
We're all on the same team.
I want you guys to shut up for a second so we can hear Monica speak.
Monica?
Thanks, Frank.
Okay, I understand we've got some outstanding legal issues.
We've never denied that, have we, Simone?
No, that's not what I'm saying.
But on the local side of things, what I'm hearing back is real concern that our operations might be affected.
People are thinking about job security, and they're hoping we can provide that.
They're worried about losing wages.
So in the midst of this crisis, I'm seeing local support for the work we've done.
That's really good to hear.
Monica, you've raised a really important point.
And I think we all need to keep these things in mind while we deal with this.
So, it sounds like we're ready to talk about what comes next.
Yes, we are.
And this is the right group of people to carry us through a crisis.
Simone, I'm really going to need your expertise in the coming weeks.
Sandy and Mike, you guys have had the hardest job.
Great work so far.
Keep it up.
And Monica, we'll talk more later today.
We're all in this together, so let's clean up this mess and move forward.
Let's take a closer look at the conversation.
All due respect, Monica, I'm not so optimistic.
While Mike did a great job of handling the early part of the crisis, especially considering he's new from a legal perspective, we're certainly not out of the woods yet.
So let me get this straight, Simone.
You think we have a lot to be concerned about here and you think I could have done better on some things.
Is that what you're getting at?
We saw in our last episode how Simone is using veiled criticism to show she thinks Mike didn't do a great job.
That expression, not out of the woods yet means that there are still problems to deal with.
Mike feels he needs to defend himself, but he wants to make sure he understands what Simone is suggesting or saying indirectly.
He says let me get this straight, which we use when we want to know if we understand something correctly.
And he takes what he thinks Simone is saying and puts it in different words.
Mike states it very directly as, you think I could have done better on some things.
This is what we call rephrasing or saying something with different words.
And Mike is doing it for confirmation.
That is, he wants to make sure he knows what Simone is getting at, as he says.
What are some other ways we can rephrase a statement to confirm meaning?
So what you're trying to say is, If I understand you right, you mean Okay, you're telling me that?
I think what you mean is... Let's hear how Simone responds and what Sandy thinks.
Not quite.
I'm just saying it's a bit too soon to be patting ourselves on the back.
But Simone, our history as a company should work for us here.
Before this, our record was spotless.
This was a freak accident.
Simone doesn't really speak any more directly as the others might like her to do.
What she says is that it's too soon to be congratulating themselves or, as she says, patting ourselves on the back.
Sandy disagrees.
He thinks that the company's reputation and clean or spotless record will be an advantage.
To Sandy.
This is just a freak accident or very unusual incident.
Sandy seems a bit agitated.
Simone, who has not had to deal with the crisis at ground level, is critical of what people have been doing.
This has upset a couple of people at this point, so it's time for the leader to step in.
Okay okay okay, let's get a hold of ourselves here.
We're all on the same team.
I want you guys to shut up for a second so we can hear monica speak.
Monica, In the last episode, Frank didn't get too involved, but now the situation requires some leadership.
Frank interrupts the disagreement and suggests that everyone get a hold of themselves or calm down.
He emphasises that they're all on the same team and he uses some very direct or blunt language when he says shut up for a second.
That's not a polite way of telling people to be quiet, but Frank feels it's necessary because things are becoming heated and he wants to hear Monica's perspective.
Let's practice some other ways to take control of a situation.
Everybody calm down.
I have something to say everyone needs to hear.
Listen up, folks.
We're not getting anywhere by arguing.
Time out.
We need to take a step back from this for a minute.
Slow down, everyone.
Now, Tony, please finish your idea and then, Susan, you can respond.
Now let's listen to how Monica deals with Simone.
Thanks, Frank.
Okay, I understand we've got some outstanding legal issues.
We've never denied that, have we, Simone?
No, that's not what I'm saying.
But on the local side of things, what I'm hearing back is real concern that our operations might be affected.
People are thinking about job security, and they're hoping we can provide that.
They're worried about losing wages.
So in the midst of this crisis, I'm seeing local support for the work we've done.
Monica is willing to admit that Simone is correct in saying that there are outstanding legal issues.
In other words, there are issues that haven't been dealt with.
Sometimes it's good in an argument to concede a point to your opponent.
But then Monica gives good reason to believe that the situation is positive.
She talks about how the local people are worried about their job security and don't want to lose wages.
In the middle of a crisis, she can see the support local people have for the company.
We can call this spinning a bad situation positively.
Spinning means showing a different side to a situation.
To move forward in a crisis, it's important to spin things positively.
Listen to how this is done in the following examples.
There is a bright side to all of this.
Okay, the economy is bad, but this will force us to reduce expenses and increase efficiency.
This seems terrible, but we actually have an opportunity here.
In the middle of all these problems, I think we've become a better team.
Now, what does Frank think of that?
That's really good to hear.
Monica, you've raised a really important point, and I think we all need to keep these things in mind while we deal with this.
Frank likes the fact that Monica's looking on the bright side of the crisis and he wants everyone to consider what she said, because the situation was becoming rather confrontational.
For this reason, he wants to acknowledge Monica's contribution.
He wants to show everyone that it is a valuable perspective.
How else can we acknowledge someone's contribution?
That's a fantastic point, and I'm glad you brought it up.
I think we should all thank Stephen for his input.
You're right, Joanne.
I couldn't have said it better myself.
Your comments are spot on.
Thank you very much.
Now for the end of the conversation.
So, it sounds like we're ready to talk about what comes next.
Yes, we are.
And this is the right group of people to carry us through a crisis.
Simone, I'm really going to need your expertise in the coming weeks.
Sandy and Mike, you guys have had the hardest job.
Great work so far.
Keep it up.
And Monica, we'll talk more later today.
We're all in this together, so let's clean up this mess and move forward.
The disagreement seems to have been put aside and Sandy sounds eager for the group to talk about what comes next.
Frank asserts that it is, in fact, time to move forward.
To do so, he tries hard to bring everyone together.
He emphasises that it is the right group of people to get through the crisis, and then Frank acknowledges each person's work individually, which is a great way to create positive feeling.
He tells everyone to keep it up or continue doing such good work.
Expressions such as we're all in this together and let's serve to bring people together or unify the group.
Unifying a group is an important part of moving forward in a crisis.
Hear how it's done in these examples.
Alright people, we've all got the same goal.
Now we need to see it through.
Let's get out there and show them what we're made of.
Every person here plays an absolutely essential role in this.
This is a team effort, so let's pull together and knock them dead.
Now let's practice some of the language we learned for spinning a bad situation positively.
First, you'll hear a statement.
Then you'll hear a prompt.
Use the words in the prompt to put a positive spin on the original statement.
For example, if you hear, The situation.
Not all bad.
Company is strong.
You can say, The situation isn't all bad.
Our company is strong.
We'll play an example answer after each practice.
Ready?
Let's give it a go.
There, bright side, this, payroll, down.
Example answer.
Well, there is a bright side to this.
Payroll is down.
Our website has been receiving fewer and fewer hits every week.
Website, bad, but, difficult, improved.
Example Answer The website is bad, but it's not that difficult to improve it.
Real estate prices have dropped significantly.
Prompt Seems bad, but have opportunity.
That seems bad, but we actually have an opportunity.
We've had a lot of problems with this project.
Middle All this Become Stronger team Example answer.
But in the middle of all this, we're becoming a stronger team.
Now let's practice useful vocabulary and idioms.
You'll hear a series of sentences with a word replaced with a beep.
Repeat the whole sentence saying the missing word.
For example, if you hear... Sales have been good, but can we... hit up?
You can say, Sales have been good, but can we keep it up?
We'll play the correct answer after each question.
Let's begin.
In a bad economy, people worry about their job.
Answer In a bad economy, people worry about their job security.
So let me get this.
You think my idea is bad?
Answer.
So let me get this straight.
You think my idea is bad?
Carl did a really job on that difficult case.
Answer.
Carl did a really outstanding job on that difficult case.
A company's reputation can be ruined by just one accident.
Answer.
A company's reputation can be ruined by just one freak accident.
We've reached the end of this lesson, the final part in our series on handling a crisis.
Today we've learned about moving forward in a crisis.
That involves taking control of a situation, acknowledging people's contributions and unifying a group.
We've also learned how to rephrase a statement for confirmation and how to spin a bad situation positively.
Whether the crisis is big or small, the language we've covered in this series will help you handle crisis situations with confidence.
For more practice, Premium members can access the online quizzes and study notes for this and other episodes in the new Learning Centre.
Not a member yet?
Then head over to wwwbusinessenglishpodcom and sign up for a free trial to preview some of the extra resources available to members.
Thanks for listening and see you next time.
