Learn how to express your opinion in a business meeting
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Becky: Expressing Your Opinion in English. Becky here. |
| John: Hi, I'm John. |
| Becky: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to express your opinion in a business meeting. The conversation takes place in a meeting room. |
| John: It's between Linda and Thomas Gray. |
| Becky: The speakers are co-workers, therefore, they will speak formal English. Okay, let's listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Linda: Our sales figures are down this month. Does anyone have any ideas for how we can increase them? |
| Thomas Gray: It seems to me that we lost sales because our competitor had a sale. |
| Linda: You may be right. |
| Thomas Gray: In my opinion, we should have a sale this month, and I think our sales will increase again. |
| Linda: Good idea. Let's try that this month. |
| Becky: Listen to the conversation one more time, more slowly. |
| Linda: Our sales figures are down this month. Does anyone have any ideas for how we can increase them? |
| Thomas Gray: It seems to me that we lost sales because our competitor had a sale. |
| Linda: You may be right. |
| Thomas Gray: In my opinion, we should have a sale this month, and I think our sales will increase again. |
| Linda: Good idea. Let's try that this month. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Becky: In that conversation, we heard Thomas give his opinion in a meeting. |
| John: Yeah, Linda was pretty accepting of his thoughts. |
| Becky: Is it common to give opinions in an American company? |
| John: Yes, employees are often asked for their opinions. |
| Becky: How should we give our opinions? |
| John: Be polite and respectful of others, even if their opinion is different to yours. |
| Becky: When are opinions usually given? |
| John: They’re especially encouraged in meetings. If you’re asked your opinion, give it! |
| Becky: What if you’re not asked your opinion? |
| John: That can differ from company to company and from situation to situation. |
| Becky: So sometimes it’s welcomed... |
| John: ..and sometimes it isn’t! |
| Becky: Okay, now onto the vocab. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Becky: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is... |
| John: sales [natural native speed] |
| Becky: in the plural form, the activity or business of selling products |
| John: sales [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: sales [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next, we have... |
| John: figures [natural native speed] |
| Becky: numbers, especially relating to amounts |
| John: figures [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: figures [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next up is... |
| John: down [natural native speed] |
| Becky: decrease, low |
| John: down [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: down [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next, there’s... |
| John: month [natural native speed] |
| Becky: each of the twelve named periods into which a year is divided |
| John: month [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: month [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next, we have... |
| John: to increase [natural native speed] |
| Becky: to go up in number or value |
| John: to increase [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: to increase [natural native speed] |
| Becky: Next, there’s... |
| John: competitor [natural native speed] |
| Becky: opposition, rival |
| John: competitor [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: competitor [natural native speed] |
| Becky: And lastly... |
| John: sale [natural native speed] |
| Becky: temporary reduction in price |
| John: sale [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| John: sale [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| Becky: Let's have a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first word is... |
| John: sales figures |
| Becky: ...meaning "the amount sold." |
| John: The first word is “sales,” this means “items sold.” |
| Becky: The second word is “figures,” and this means “numbers.” |
| John: So together, they mean “the number of things sold.” |
| Becky: You’ll hear this frequently in business. |
| John: That’s right. |
| Becky: Can you give us an example using this phrase? |
| John: Sure. For example, you can say “The sales figures look promising for this month.” |
| Becky: ..which is like saying "The amount sold looks good for this month." |
| Becky: Okay, what's the next word? |
| John: competitor |
| Becky: ...meaning "an organization that is in competition with others." |
| John: This is a noun that can be used to talk about a rival person, company, or organization. |
| Becky: It’s related to the verb “to compete” and the noun “competition.” |
| John: You’ll often hear this in business. |
| Becky: It can also be used in other circumstances, such as when talking about sports events. |
| John: Or any kind of contest. |
| Becky: Can you give us an example using this word? |
| John: Sure. For example, you can say “Our new co-worker used to work for our main competitor.” |
| Becky: Okay, now onto the lesson focus. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Becky: In this lesson, you'll learn about how to express your opinion in a business meeting. Giving an opinion can be very important in business, and it will help improve your English skills. |
| John: We can give both positive and negative opinions. |
| Becky: What is the easiest way to give our opinions? |
| John: By using the phrase “I think…” |
| Becky: It shows that what we’re saying is our opinion, and not a fact. Can you give us some sentence examples, please? |
| John: Sure. “I think that’s a good idea.” “I think the new product will be a success.” |
| Becky: You can also make this sentence negative. |
| John: Yes, just add “don’t.” “I don’t think…” |
| Becky: Again, some examples please! |
| John: “I don’t think that’s a good idea.” “I don’t think the new product will be a success.” |
| Becky: There are also patterns we can use other than “I think…” |
| John: Yes, we can also use “It seems to me…” and “In my opinion…” |
| Becky: “It seems to me…” can be used to introduce an opinion that we know others might not agree with. |
| John: “In my opinion…” is a good, strong phrase to introduce your opinion. |
| Becky: Time for some examples! |
| John: “It seems to me that he’s always late.” “In my opinion, that’s a bad idea.” |
| Becky: If someone else gives their opinion first and you think it’s good, then you can agree with it. Here are some phrases you can use to agree. |
| John: “Yes, I agree.” “Yes, I think so too.” |
| Becky: “That’s a good idea.” “I think that Mr. Campbell is correct.” |
| John: Sometimes though, other people have opinions that you don’t agree with. |
| Becky: I think that happens all of the time! Disagreeing with someone can be difficult, but remember to stay polite. |
| John: It’s good to acknowledge their opinion first with a phrase like “You have a point, but…” |
| Becky: The “but” shows that we’re going to disagree with them, even if it sounds like we agree. |
| John: An example of that is “What you’re saying is right, but…” |
| Becky: As soon as the other person hears that “but,” they know you’re going to disagree. |
Outro |
| Becky: Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening, everyone, and we’ll see you next time! Bye! |
| John: See you! |
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