Rules for Better Work-Life Balance

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Most of the time, employees sacrifice their personal time thinking they’d eventually be able to progress up the corporate ladder and somehow secure their job not realizing the dangers of not having a good work-life balance.

Watch the video to know how we can better protect our personal time while still being committed at work.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What are the 3 rules mentioned in the video? Do you do them?
  2. How do you think flexible working helps in achieving a healthy work-life balance?
  3. Why do you think some people become workaholics?
  4. Who do you think is responsible for overwork – the company or the employee? Explain your stand.
  5. How do you ensure that you have a good work-life balance?

McDonald’s Is a Real Estate Company

B2 – Upper Intermediate

We have all heard of McDonald’s, one of the most, if not the most famous and most successful fast-food chain in the entire world.

However, even with McDonald’s being the biggest food company, is there a possibility that it could be much more successful in a different part of the business world?

Watch this video to find out about McDonald’s more successful business.

Discussion Questions:

  1. If ever you got into real estate, would you consider starting a McDonald’s franchise even if McDonald’s gets more money than you?
  2. Did you know about McDonald’s benefit from real estate before this video? If not, what is your reaction when you found out?
  3. Do you think McDonald’s is better off only being a real estate company? Explain your points.

Attitude Defines Your Life

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Our situation right now is because of the choices we’ve made along the way. There are a lot of factors that are affecting our choices. Attitude is one of the major ones. It has a great impact on making choices from the time we wake up until the time we call it a day.

In this video, you’ll watch a story about a person who remains having a great positive attitude even after a major accident happened in his life.

Discussion Questions:

  1. How will you describe Jerry’s attitude?
  2. What does “If I were any better, I would be twins!” mean?
  3. Do you consider yourself as natural motivator to the people around you? Share a moment when you motivate someone.
  4. What is the best choice you’ve made in your life so far? How did you come up with the decision ultimately?
  5. Do you consider yourself a pessimist or an optimist? State your reasons.

Ancient Story about Friendship

B2 – Upper Intermediate

One of the most important relationships that we have is friendship. Our friends are one of the reasons for our happiness. They are the ones whom we can connect and share our feelings and thoughts with.

In this video, you will watch an ancient Indian story about friendship and its worth.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is the summary of the story?
  2. Define friendship.
  3. Do you have best friends? Can you describe each of them?
  4. Do you agree that it’s possible to be friends with your enemies? Explain.
  5. What might be the factors to making friendships last?

How to Weigh Job Benefits

B2 – Upper Intermediate

When you finally got a job offer, after weeks or even months of job searching, you might want to think twice before accepting it. Not every job offer is the right one for you, so you’ll need to evaluate it carefully before accepting it. The hardest part when deciding whether to accept a job offer is weighing the benefits.

Watch the video below on how to weigh job offers.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What influences your choice of company to work for?
  2. In your opinion, what is the most important benefit offered by your company?
  3. What made you decide to accept your company’s job offer?
  4. If you can make a suggestion to your company, what benefit/s would you like your company to offer to its employees?

Perfectionism Makes Us Ill

C1 – Advanced

People with perfectionism hold themselves to impossibly high standards. They think what they do is never good enough. But it is a serious problem that has been linked to many mental health issues, including depression and eating disorders.

Let’s watch the video below to know more about this personality trait and its dangers.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Would you describe yourself as a perfectionist? Why or why not?
  2. What do you think is the root cause of perfectionism?
  3. Can you think of any benefits to being a perfectionist?
  4. Do you find it surprising that perfectionism can lead to mental health issues? Why or why not?
  5. Never aim for perfect. That will guarantee failure almost every time. – Caroline Ghosn. What do you make of this statement?
  6. What advice would you give to someone who has a hard time dealing with failure?

Is MSG Bad for You?

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a controversial food-additive mostly used in Asian countries. It enhances the flavor of food. Some people claim that it could cause headaches, chest pains, or even brain damage. On the other hand, sources such as Food and Drug Administration (FDA) claim that it is safe for consumption.

Let’s watch the video below to know more about MSG and find out if it’s actually bad for us.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your opinion about the use of Monosodium glutamate (MSG) How do you usually season your food?
  2. Do you like eating Asian food? If yes, what’s your favorite?
  3. How conscious are you of the food that you eat and the ingredients you use for cooking?
  4. Do you think food nowadays is becoming more or less safe to eat? Explain your opinion.
  5. Should the government do more to regulate food safety?

Venice to Charge Tourists for Entry

B2 – Upper Intermediate

The city of Venice is going to impose an entrance fee for tourists in order to prevent a massive influx of visitors arriving in the city for various reasons. This decision have been met with different reactions from locals and tourists.

Watch the video and know more about this measure.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your opinion on this measure set by the Venice local government?
  2. What reasons do they have for imposing this measure?
  3. How can this affect businesses?
  4. Do you agree with the price they set simply for entering the city? Would this discourage tourists from going to Venice? Why or why not?
  5. Are there similar touristic sites in your country that have been degraded because of over-tourism? Talk about it/them.

Keeping Secrets from Your Partner

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Did you know that an average person keeps roughly 13 secrets? Let’s be honest. Everyone keeps secrets. But sometimes, the burden of having secrets can affect us in ways we might have never considered.

One of the significant concerns in many relationships involves secrets. But when does keeping a secret from your partner go from harmless to hurtful?

Let’s watch the video below to know how secrets affect a relationship.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you like knowing about and finding out secrets of your partner? Why or why not?
  2. Are you good at keeping secrets? Why or why not?
  3. How do secrets affect relationships? Is it healthy to keep secrets in a relationship?
  4. What’s the difference between privacy and secrets in a relationship?
  5. What kinds of secrets are dangerous?

Seizures

B2 – Upper Intermediate

The first detailed account of a neurological disorder related to epilepsy was dated back in the Babylonian era. In the olden days, with the absence of scientific authority, there were different beliefs and treatments used to treat this medical condition.

Let’s watch the video and find out more about the history and scientific evolution of seizure treatments.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is Miqtu? What are its symptoms?
  2. What belief did Babylonians have about it and what treatments did they and ancient Greeks recommend?
  3. What causes seizures? Do all seizure treatments/medication available at present effective for all patients experiencing them?
  4. What do modern scientists recommend when you encounter someone experiencing seizures?