Tuesday, 4 January 2011

ESL Podcast 616 – Having a Business Mentor

http://www.eslpod.com/website/show_podcast.php?issue_id=9257135


-  to hash sth out: to discuss sth in great detail, to spend along time discussing
I simply go to her with my ideas and she helps me hash them out.
- out of the blue : unexpectedly , without planing
I contacted her out of the blue
- to click : to have good relationship in short time (a month)
We really clicked and now we meet once a month. 

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- to after : to want to have sth
A: Hi, you look great today. B: What do you after ?

Standard responses
Thank you, that's very kind!
Thank you, that's very kind of you (to say so).
nice
sweet
Showing surprise
You can show surprise at a compliment by explaining why it is unexpected. So, if someone compliments you on an item of clothing, you might say:

Oh, I've had this for ages.
Really? It was only cheap!

Sharing responsibility
If you receive a compliment for a piece of work which was a joint effort, it's important to make this clear.

Thanks! Ramesh worked on it too.
It wasn't all my work. Ramesh gave me a lot help.
That's very kind. I'll tell Ramesh - he helped me loads.

Returning the compliment
You can often respond to a compliment by returning the compliment - by giving a compliment back.

Oh, thanks very much! You look very nice too - I like your coat.

Humorous responses
In the UK, it is very common to respond to unexpected compliments by suggesting that the person paying you the compliment wants to ask a favour. This is a joke and probably won't cause offence to native English speakers.

What are you after?
What do you want?
Flattery will get you nowhere.*

* Flattery is the giving of praise and compliments that you don't really mean. This phrase means that it doesn't matter how many compliments you receive - you won't give any favours in return!






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Thanks,
Duy Lam

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