phone english blogC1 – Advanced
Would you feel comfortable eating at an old toilet? Some business owners in London got really creative with their space.
Watch the video below and see the transformation of this old Victorian toilet.
Discussion Questions:
1. What can you say about the transformation of the old public toilet?
2. Would you consider dining in this cafe?
3. Describe some of the peculiar cafes or restaurants that you have visited or seen in the past.
C1 – Advanced
Jack Cator was your normal teenage school boy; defying and challenging the rules. But what he got out of that persistent attitude was quite extraordinary.
Read the article below to know more about Jack and his business and its humble beginnings.
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-32702501
Discussion Questions:
1. In your own words, explain how Jack was able to come up with his business.
2. What do you know about VPNs? Is this something you use?
3. Have you experienced doing business remotely with people you’ve never met before? Describe that experience.
B1 – Intermediate
In this age of globalization, an Italian city is doing everything to keep their food tradition.
Some groups do not approve of this even if Italy’s Agriculture Minister supports the foreign food ban.
http://www.english-online.at/culture/italy-foreign-food-ban/italian-city-bans-foreign-food.htm
Discussion Questions:
B2 – Upper Intermediate
In sales or in business it can be easy or challenging to close a deal. It is also important for a person in sales to be reminded that he represents not only himself but also the company.
Read the article below for tips on how to better communicate with customers.
https://www.entrepreneur.com/growing-a-business/never-say-these-7-things-in-sales/244982
Discussion Questions:
1. As a consumer, which ones do you look out for when doing business with someone?
2. Have you experienced bad customer service? How did you handle it?
3. What are some of the companies that you trust because of how they treat you as client?
C1 – Advanced
The prophecy of the Mayan Calendar became such a hype when it predicted the end of the world in 2012. Thus, a Siberian company cashed in on the panic and came up with a survival kit.
Read this article from 2012 and express your thoughts about it.
Discuss:
1. How did you react when you heard about the Mayan Prophecy of the world ending on the 21st of December 2012?
2. Should people preoccupy themselves with predicting when the world will end?
3. If you knew the exact date the world would end, would it change the way you live? If so, in what ways? If not, why?
4. If you had to prepare your own Doomsday kit, what would be in it?
C1 – Advanced
While most big companies focus on possible ways their top secret information may be breached and how they could prevent it from happening, they are overlooking one threat to information security.
http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20140910-loose-lips-and-corporate-secrets
Discussion Questions: