Daunting - "When something is daunting you really don't look forward to it, as it will probably cause you stress"
Word collocations: daunting task
Umpteen - "a lot"
Word collocations: umpteen things to do
Landline - "house telephone"
Word collocations: Landline services
Saga - "a long story"
Word Collocations: Family Saga
Dab hand at something: "to be good at something"
Word Collocation: Dab hand at cooking
Jot Something Down: "take a note of something"
Word Collocation: Jot down my number
To play something out: "is when something is being acted out"
Cut to the Chase: "get to the point"
Get on with something and Get down to business: "to do something"
To be put off: "to be dissuaded or feel like you don't want to do something"
Out of the blue: "When something happens suddenly"
Get your points across: "make your point clear"
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Monday, 16 September 2013
How to make a complaint in English
Living or visiting other countries is usually a fun, pleasant experience; however, there are times when we are faced with problems that require us to complain about poor services, or mistakes, a task that can quite often be stressful and daunting when you have to do it in a second language.
I live in a foreign country, Brazil, which for the most part is great until you need to deal with the telecommunication companies, possibly the most incompetent companies in the world. My recent dealings with them have resulted in many hours on the phone; umpteen case numbers or protocol numbers, which are never required a second time; various visits to stores; various visits to my house, by technicians and at present I am still without a landline service. This whole saga has been played out in Portuguese my second language and has, quite honestly, contributed to the stress of the situation and inspired me to write this blog entry on "How to deal with Complaining in English", so let's cut to the chase and get on with it.
The first and most stressful point you have to face when complaining on the phone is actually understanding the person at the other end of the line, I have found it helpful to tell them that I am not a native speaker and therefore I will need them to speak slowly. Sometimes this results in them talking to you like you have a learning or hearing disability, but hey if it helps make things clearer I am in favour. Highlighting the fact that English is not your first language will benefit the situation in two ways, first if you make a mistake the person will know why and second you put the pressure back on them to explain things clearly and simply to you.
Second, be ready to give all your personal information to them, such as full name, ID numbers, reference numbers, address etc. This is a golden opportunity to practice all those language skills you learned in English 101 when the teacher would constantly ask you questions like: What is your name? What is your surname? What is your date of birth? What is your address etc?...... at this point you can take advantage of practising your English without the expense of paying a school or a teacher. Also there will be plenty of opportunities to practice taking down numbers, as case numbers and reference numbers are usually assigned to each complaint. In my own experience I have become a dab hand at jotting down protocol numbers.
Once all the formalities have been dealt with it is time to get down to business and tell them what the problem is. Depending on how complex the situation is it maybe useful to have some notes of specific vocabulary for the situation, that way you don't stumble too much and lose track of your points. Don't be put off by interruptions, or out of the blue questions, keep calm and make sure you get the most important points across.
Finally, you will want your problem to be resolved as calmly and stress free as possible. Maintaining composure and not becoming too stressed out will be highly beneficial to your language learning, as getting stressed out can greatly jeopardise clarity and accuracy.
I live in a foreign country, Brazil, which for the most part is great until you need to deal with the telecommunication companies, possibly the most incompetent companies in the world. My recent dealings with them have resulted in many hours on the phone; umpteen case numbers or protocol numbers, which are never required a second time; various visits to stores; various visits to my house, by technicians and at present I am still without a landline service. This whole saga has been played out in Portuguese my second language and has, quite honestly, contributed to the stress of the situation and inspired me to write this blog entry on "How to deal with Complaining in English", so let's cut to the chase and get on with it.
The first and most stressful point you have to face when complaining on the phone is actually understanding the person at the other end of the line, I have found it helpful to tell them that I am not a native speaker and therefore I will need them to speak slowly. Sometimes this results in them talking to you like you have a learning or hearing disability, but hey if it helps make things clearer I am in favour. Highlighting the fact that English is not your first language will benefit the situation in two ways, first if you make a mistake the person will know why and second you put the pressure back on them to explain things clearly and simply to you.
Second, be ready to give all your personal information to them, such as full name, ID numbers, reference numbers, address etc. This is a golden opportunity to practice all those language skills you learned in English 101 when the teacher would constantly ask you questions like: What is your name? What is your surname? What is your date of birth? What is your address etc?...... at this point you can take advantage of practising your English without the expense of paying a school or a teacher. Also there will be plenty of opportunities to practice taking down numbers, as case numbers and reference numbers are usually assigned to each complaint. In my own experience I have become a dab hand at jotting down protocol numbers.
Once all the formalities have been dealt with it is time to get down to business and tell them what the problem is. Depending on how complex the situation is it maybe useful to have some notes of specific vocabulary for the situation, that way you don't stumble too much and lose track of your points. Don't be put off by interruptions, or out of the blue questions, keep calm and make sure you get the most important points across.
Finally, you will want your problem to be resolved as calmly and stress free as possible. Maintaining composure and not becoming too stressed out will be highly beneficial to your language learning, as getting stressed out can greatly jeopardise clarity and accuracy.
Friday, 13 September 2013
BLOG IS BACK
After a long period of absence the blog is back with a view to post at least once month interesting
How to guides
Best Practices and Tips
Vocabulary Reviews
Idioms, Phrasal Verbs and Slang
News Updates
Question forums
All this to assist with your language learning!!!
So let's get started with our first post of the month...........
How to guides
Best Practices and Tips
Vocabulary Reviews
Idioms, Phrasal Verbs and Slang
News Updates
Question forums
All this to assist with your language learning!!!
So let's get started with our first post of the month...........
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