Building Rapport With Others

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Building rapport is a great way to connect with others. Each person has a different way of doing it. Furthermore, doing so is important if you want to get on well with others socially or at work.

To add, a book written by Emily Alison identified four main communication styles: the friendly and cooperative monkey, the bossy lion, the passive mouse, and the conflicting t-rex. Not surprisingly, Alison thinks that the best at building rapport is the friendly and cooperative monkey. 

Let’s click the link below and know more about the different communication styles.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english/ep-210617

Discussion Questions:

1. Please describe each communication styles mentioned in the audio. Which style best fits/describes you?
2. What is building rapport? What are effective ways to establish a connection with others?
3. What is the importance of building rapport?
4. How would you describe the way you build rapport with other people?
5. When is building rapport difficult? Share some of your related experiences.