Hi, I'm Georgiana, your English teacher.
Thanks for joining me for a new episode of the Speak English Now podcast.
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Thanks.
Okay, let's start.
Today I will talk about one of the wealthiest people in the world.
His name is Warren Buffett.
Born in 1930 in Nebraska, Buffett is a fascinating character because of his inspiring story.
As a child, Buffett showed interest in stocks.
He was writing stock prices on the board in his father's office.
His father was a stockbroker and a future congressman.
And while nowadays most children play video games, Warren bought his first stock at the age of 11 and filed his first taxes at age 13.
Because like many children of the Great Depression, Buffett grew up to respect the value of money.
He became so frugal that when he moved to New York to attend business school he lived at the YMCA to save money.
YMCA is short for the Young Men's Christian Association.
I also used the word frugal, which refers to someone careful when using money or food.
For example, You could say a frugal lifestyle or a frugal meal of bread and soup.
However, you can replace the word frugal with the words economical or sparing.
Let's continue.
Buffett started working at the age of 13 as a paperboy, delivering newspapers in the morning and afternoon.
After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree, he enrolled in Columbia School of Business, where he graduated with a Master of Science in Economics.
Only five years after his graduation, Warren started Buffett Partnership Limited.
In 1964 he took over Berkshire Hathaway, which was a profitable business with millions of dollars in revenue.
To take over means taking control of something, especially by buying a company.
At the age of 60 he became a billionaire and in 2006 Buffett promised to give away over 99 of his fortune.
Yes, I told you before that he was a fascinating character.
Only in 2018, he donated 34 billion, much of it to the foundation of friends Bill and Melinda Gates.
What an amazing businessman!
He's certainly an inspiration.
There are not many people willing to donate 99% of their fortune.
Great!
Now you can practice your speaking with a mini-story.
A mini-story is very simple.
I give you information using phrases, and then I ask you questions.
I recommend that you listen several times until it's easy to answer.
Let's start.
Warren Buffett hired Jack to count all his money.
Was Jack hired or tired?
Hired.
Jack was hired.
He wasn't tired.
Did Warren Buffett hire anyone?
Yes, Warren Buffett hired Jack.
Jack was assigned only one job.
He had to count all of Warren Buffett's money.
Did Jack have more than one job?
No, no.
Jack didn't have more than one job.
He was assigned only one job.
Was he counting all of Buffett's coins?
Yes, he was counting all of Buffett's coins and bills.
Whose money was Jack counting?
Warren Buffett's.
He was counting Warren Buffett's money.
There were so many dollar bills that Jack had counted for 20 years and still not finished.
Were there just a few bills?
No, no.
There weren't just a few bills.
There were many bills.
Has Jack counted the money for 21 years?
No, he hasn't counted the money for 21 years.
He only counted for 20 years.
When he was about to finish, a gorgeous woman entered the room and said hi to Jack.
Who entered the room?
Warren Buffett?
No, no.
Warren Buffett didn't enter the room.
Where did a gorgeous woman enter?
In Jack's room, a gorgeous woman entered the room where Jack was counting the money.
Did she say bye-bye to Jack?
No, no.
She didn't say bye-bye to Jack.
She said hi to Jack.
Jack said hi to her and stared at her.
Did Jack say anything to her?
Yes, Jack said hi to her.
What did Jack say?
Did he say, get out of here?
No, Jack didn't say, get out of here.
He said, hi.
Who stared at her?
Jack.
He stared at her when she entered the room.
When Jack counted again, he realized he lost count.
Did Jack count again?
Yes, he counted again.
What did Jack realize?
He realized that he lost count.
Did he lose count?
Yes, he lost count.
He lost track of the money he had counted.
So Jack had to start counting again.
One, two, three.
What did Jack do?
Jack started counting again.
Did he quit his job?
No, no.
He didn't quit his job.
He started counting again.
Who started counting again?
Jack, our poor friend, started to count all the money once again.
Well, this is the end of this short exercise.
As you can see, answering many simple questions can improve your speaking, just like in a real life conversation.
Today, you've only seen a small example of how the question and answer technique works.
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