Welcome to a new episode of English Vocabulary Booster.
My name is Lara and I'm a SALSA-certified English teacher.
Learning new vocabulary usually takes a long time, but we'll do it in a way that's easy, quick and efficient.
In every episode, we'll learn how to use five new English words or expressions, so that you too can start speaking like a native.
So let's get learning!
Welcome back, you guys.
Let's get straight into the story.
This week's topic is work, work, work, work, work.
Hello, Lisa.
Welcome to Cavendish Enterprises.
So today's your first day, correct?
Great.
So Mike here will be showing you the ropes.
Hey, gosh, I'm so glad I have someone to help me.
I gotta be honest with you.
I beefed up my resume quite a bit.
Also during the interview process.
I may have accidentally forgotten to say I got fired from a previous job for missing a few deadlines.
I honestly couldn't believe it when they told me I'd landed the job.
I hope it won't be too hard.
It's just, I'm a little worried about my boss, Mr. Sanders.
Do you know him?
I heard he's terrible.
He's like super mean and he doesn't care about his employees.
You know what I mean?
Anyway, sorry.
I haven't even properly introduced myself.
My name is Lisa Smith.
I'm the new project manager.
Nice to meet you, Lisa.
I'm Mike.
Mike Sanders.
Oh my gosh, you have the same last name as my... Oh, uh-oh.
And that is why you should always make sure you know who you're talking to before you start talking.
All right, expression number one, show someone the ropes.
Mike here will be showing you the ropes.
If you show someone the ropes...
Do you explain to them how things work or do you give them orders?
If you show someone the ropes, you explain how to do things, how things work.
This expression actually comes, or at least I've read, it comes from sailors.
You know when you're at sea, when you start working on the boat, you need an experienced sailor to show you the ropes, to show how everything works.
So now, think of the first few days at your current job or at a past job.
Who showed you the ropes?
Well, in my case, at my past job when I was working in Valencia, I think some of the teachers that I've been working there for longer were the ones that showed me the ropes.
But yeah, it was super helpful to have someone to show you the ropes on your first day at work.
Expression number two, beef up a resume.
I beefed up my resume quite a bit.
If you have beefed up your resume, does it include lots of information or little information?
If you have beefed up your resume, that means it now includes lots of information.
But why do you need to beef up your resume?
Well, I'll give you an example.
Let's just say that I'm a kid.
I'm a student whose only experience is selling ice cream.
That's my only job.
And I want to put it in my resume.
Well, I obviously want to impress the person that's reading my resume.
So if I only put I sold ice cream, that's not going to sound too good.
They're not going to be very impressed, I think.
But what if I say something like, I supported customers in making the right decision.
I handled cash transactions.
I worked closely with my employers, like all those things.
It's still true, but, you know, it's going to make your resume sound a lot better, a lot fuller.
So is beefing up your resume the same as lying on your resume?
No, like we said, you're not saying something that's not true.
You're just making something sound better and adding more information.
Expression number three, get fired.
I got fired for missing a few deadlines.
If you get fired in the future, Will you work where you are currently working?
Nope.
I'm afraid if you get fired, you will no longer work where you are working now.
Sounds like a tongue twister a little bit.
If you get fired, do you stop working voluntarily or not?
I'm afraid if you get fired, it was not your decision.
It was your boss's decision.
They're the ones who decided you were not going to work there anymore.
And now, what could be the reasons for getting fired?
Well, it's usually because you've done something wrong.
It's different from the expression to be laid off that we saw in the previous episodes, where Because in this case, that means that you didn't do well at work.
Maybe you were not doing your work well.
Or maybe you got caught spitting in someone's coffee.
I don't know what you could have done, but you did something bad.
Have you ever gotten fired and why?
Luckily...
I don't think I've ever gotten fired.
Yeah, I would remember.
I'm sure, like I've worked at jobs before where I should have gotten fired when I was working at a clothing store.
I was terrible at it, but it was only three months.
So I think they were just like, oh, let's just finish with these three months.
And then we don't want to see this girl anymore.
But no, I've never gotten fired.
Expression number four, miss a deadline.
I got fired for missing a few deadlines.
If you miss a deadline, do you finish your work in time or not?
If you miss a deadline, that means that you do not finish your work in time and that is a problem.
Have you ever missed a deadline?
No, I was close to missing a deadline a few weeks ago when I was writing an article for a website.
But luckily enough, I put in a ton of hours of work.
I didn't record any episodes for the podcast that week.
And so I could just try and work as much as I could on this article, so I wouldn't miss anything.
A deadline
Just because I hate it, I think it makes you look very responsible.
Expression number five, land a job.
I couldn't believe it when they told me I'd landed a job.
If you've landed a job, does that mean you've got a job or that you've lost a job?
If you have landed a job, that means that, yay, you got the job.
And when you say you've landed a job, does that usually refer to a job you wanted or did not want that much.
When you use the expression to land a job, it's usually because you feel somewhat excited, or at least lucky, to have gotten that job.
Can you think of a time when you landed a job that you thought you wouldn't?
Yes.
So it was a few years ago when I started working for the British Council and I went to the interview and I thought I didn't have a chance to get a job there.
And then at first they told me that they were not interested.
And then a few days later, they sent me an email saying that they had a position for me.
And I was so excited I landed that job, because I don't know if you know, but the British Council is a reputable institution.
It's one, it's considered one of the best ones.
So yeah, I was really excited I landed that job.
And that is it for today.
And remember, if you want to access the transcript, as well as lots of other resources, visit enboocom.
That is E-N-B-O-O-O dot com.
Have a great day.
