Introduction Most of us find it difficult to say ‘no’ when someone asks us for a favour, don’t we? It’s difficult to say ‘no’ when you know someone needs your help. It becomes even more difficult to say ‘no’ in the workplace, because you don’t want to offend anyone. However, it’s possible to refuse to do something in a polite and nice way that does…

Entertaining is considered an important aspect of business communication. Not all professional interactions take place in an office environment, and knowing how to entertain business associates in informal environments, such as in bars and restaurants, is an important part of the communication process. While communication with clients in social set…

A common task in business is to compare things such as costs, service, reliability, performance, etc. It's only through making comparisons that we can make decisions about which is the cheapest, the most reliable, and the best buy. The characteristics of a product or service are described by adjectives, such as 'cheap,' 'heavy,' 'wide', 'reliable,'…

“Results depend on relationships. That’s what Don Petersen says. He is the ex-CEO of America’s Ford Motor Company. You will find that being able to make small talk—especially before a business meeting—will help build good relationships. And, good business relationships will help you get the results you want. Think of small talk as an engraved busin…

A good graph, diagram or chart can bring your presentation to life. Remember that "a picture can paint a thousand words". Putting graphical information into words can be easy as long as you keep your sentence structure simple. In your reading, you will come across a great variety of words and expressions to describe trends. However, when you speak …

INTRODUCTION In this podcast lesson, we’ll be looking at a number of useful techniques to help to you develop a conversation. When you are taking part in a conversation the most important thing is to react to what the other person is saying. If you don’t react, the conversation is likely to end very quickly. Reacting helps to show that you are list…

In the modern business world, teleconferencing is an essential means through which business associates in different places communicate with each other. Teleconferencing may be done through audio or both audio and video channels, and is a cost-effective way of conducting business meetings with colleagues and associates who are in different parts of …

In this podcast lesson we're going to focus on questioning techniques once again. Questioning is the most important way of exchanging information in business situations. Since there are many situations where questions are used in gaining information, there are, of course, many different ways of asking questions. The most important thing to consider…

Introduction What is a compliment? If you say something nice about someone, that’s a compliment. You can “pay someone a compliment” by telling them how nice their new hairstyle or dress is, for example. How often do you pay a compliment to your work colleagues? We all like to receive positive comments about how we look, but how you do it is importa…

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words, and this is certainly true of business presentations in which a graph, table or image can present a clear picture of what you want to say. Many people find it easier to understand information when it is presented visually, and visual aids are essential to most business presentations. To create an…

Introduction In business, we often have to ask someone to do something for us. There are many different ways of making requests in English; some requests are direct and others are indirect. In general though, the more indirect your request, the more polite it will sound. And unsurprisingly, indirect requests generally include more words than direct…

At some point in your presentation you will be expected to answer questions from your audience. They might have some important questions that need to be answered before they buy into your message. Handling their questions with authority can make the difference for you between a successful presentation and a waste of time. This is the opportunity fo…

Introduction Talking on the telephone is a skill that you can develop by paying attention to the different things that you have to remember. Many times, you need to take down details like names, addresses and telephone numbers. You should always repeat these details back to the caller and confirm with the caller that you have noted them correctly. …

In meetings and teleconferences a common task is to update participants on the progress of a project or your area of responsibility. In this podcast lesson we focus on the verb tenses and language used when reporting on progress.Oleh christian.reyes66@gmail.com (xipat)

Introduction Remember when passing on messages to clients, details are very important. It does no good to relay a message if you’ve forgotten the time of the appointment or can’t remember the name of the person calling. Everyone makes mistakes and sooner or later most people forget a detail, but the most important thing is communicating this inform…

The introduction to a presentation is a very important - perhaps the most important part of the presentation. This is the first impression that your audience have of you. You should concentrate on getting your introduction right. You should use the introduction to: welcome your audience introduce your subject outline the structure of your presentat…

Concluding a deal is the final part of a business negotiation, and often takes place after several talks and discussions have been held to negotiate every aspect of the deal. Participating in the conclusion of the deal usually means that you have been present at earlier discussions, or are familiar with the possibilities that have already been disc…

Introduction Many of you will be working for international companies where you come into daily contact with foreigners, some of whom will be native English speakers. Whether you’re working face to face with a foreign colleague in your office, or just bump into a foreigner you know in your company canteen, a corridor, a lift or when you are arriving…

In meetings, especially formal meetings, it's important to keep the discussion relevant, and to the point. So we're looking at some words and phrases that a Chairperson might use to stop irrelevant discussion and interruptions. We're also looking at ways of stating an opinion, and agreeing or disagreeing.…

In this lesson, we’re going to be looking at the language to use when talking about your job. We’re not going to focus on vocabulary, though. Here, we’re going to focus on how to ask and answer questions about your daily work routine. You’ll learn that the present simple tense is the most important tense when talking about your work, your duties an…