In today's episode, I'm talking about the similarities between Sinhala grammar's 'ද' and the Chinese question particle '吗' in Chinese. Tune in to discover how these languages handle questions! 

Sinhala corner 

ද 和吗语气词一样吗？

EVERYONE'S DOING THEM!
If you search the internet you will discover that workshops are a teaching opportunity that isn't focused on marketing, whereas webinars are built to teach and sell at the same time. It's a lot more about training and learning than it is about selling, but there will always be a pitch at the end of a webinar.

Then there are seminars...
An in-person seminar is more or less dependent on attendees' ability to physically attend the event, so there haven't been many of them during the Covid-19 pandemic, which has been problematic for some businesses but it has gone some way towards reducing carbon footprints.

Wikipedia has defined these 2 event types individually:

A seminar is ‘a meeting held for the exchange of useful information by members of a common business community.’

A webinar is 'an interactive seminar conducted via the World Wide Web. Usually a live presentation, lecture, or workshop that happens in real-time, as users participate through chatting, video-chatting, file-sharing, or asking questions with a microphone.’

Time for a masterclass!
Workshops progress from theory to practice, with a focus on grasping key tools or skills. Masterclasses are specialized classes in which students attain their learning objectives via in-depth practice and thorough guidance.

Listen as we discuss the hype surrounding online learning today!

BizPod - The Business English Podcast

BizPod Episode 11 - Webinars & Workshops

There are many reasons why you should speak about money in the workplace such as salary negotiations, sales and purchasing, accounting, budgeting and resources... the list goes on.

However, whatever the reason there are always some drawbacks to discussing money:

You are talking about your money. The person you are engaging with will be focused on their money. You might need to check the basic assumptions to check that you and your opponent are talking about the same thing as often this is not the case. You need to express different perspectives and points of view on values, inputs and outputs, and ownership, etc., which can be difficult, and sometimes delicate, to do.

SHIFT THE FOCUS FROM PRICE TO VALUE

Talk in a way that places focus on the benefits you can offer your counterpart and not what claims you want to make for yourself personally. What savings can you give, what profits can you enhance? This is also particularly relevant when you are in an interview, as you can show what an economical advantage it would be for you to be hired rather than the next person, as businesses are always interested in those that can help boost business!

BizPod Episode 10 - Money, Money, Money!

BREAKING NEWS! - WHY IT'S IMPORTANT!

The news is something that anyone who is studying Business English should really pay attention to. 

Watch it, read it, or listen to it. It doesn't matter how you digest the news, and, in truth, you would do best to mix all three methods to improve all your skills, but what it is really great for are 2 key things - improving your vocabulary for talking about things that are current and relevant, and providing you will a great resource for things to talk about that really affect us all, from ways of doing business today right down to everyone's day to day lives.

MAKE IT REGULAR!

There are many different ways to 'consume' the news:

Newspapers (daily) / magazines (monthly) journals (possibly every quarter or even annually)

Most are also available online these days. Plus... You can watch Sky News for FREE on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Auq9mYxFEE

BizPod Episode 9 - What's in the news?

USE FEEDBACK TO BOOST CONFIDENCE & ABILITY IN THE WORKPLACE!

Giving and receiving feedback is an everyday skill that has become even more important in today’s business world when more and more people are working from home or in remote locations.

The idea that an annual performance review is the only time when feedback is needed is as outdated as Microsoft Windows 95.

So why do both employees and managers the world over dread the annual ritual of a performance review?

The answer is easy. Companies have institutionalised the giving and receiving of feedback and created a strong negative emotional response to the whole idea of having one's performance analysed. No wonder we all anticipate this moment with fear and doom.

However, when done in the right way, with the right intentions, feedback can lead to even greater success and performance. So, let BizPod share with you some tips on how and when to give feedback effectively and how to receive it constructively.

BizPod Episode 8 - Give me... Feedback!

TO BE, OR NOT TO BE POLITE. THAT IS THE ETIQUETTE QUESTION

ETIQUETTE IS A SET OF COMMONLY KNOWN RULES OF PERSONAL BEHAVIOUR WITHIN A GROUP OF PEOPLE OR A SOCIETY AS A WHOLE.

At work, etiquette is a code that governs the expectations of how people should and should not behave at work, although there isn’t a universal agreement on what exactly is acceptable or not. It is the responsibility of the company and managers to develop a code and to set expectations in the workplace.

Most of us also have a set of unwritten rules that govern our family lives that are known to all members of the group, so the concept of etiquette is not new to us. We are familiar with how our behaviour affects and influences others, and so it is important to behave correctly, or face the consequences.

At work and in business, there are a set of rules or conventions that differ from one country to another, however, politeness and showing courtesy to others is universal. In some cultures, courtesy and showing respect is paramount to your success in business, at work and in job interviews.

Other cultures value directness, which may be taken as a rude gesture by someone from a different background.

BizPod Episode 7 - The Etiquette of Business

THE POWER OF STORYTELLING

Great communicators take their audiences on a journey through storytelling, and Aristotle’s famous ‘Tell, Tell, Tell’ triptych is one of the most offered pieces of advice given to anyone hoping to become a good storyteller.

However, you don’t want to just follow the crowd, you want to stand-out and be remembered by your colleagues, your boss and your clients. So, I want to share with you an updated take on the 3-tells for the modern business era.

Firstly, share your conclusions with your audience. Start with the conclusion that you want the audience to remember. This lets them know what you are going to be communicating to them and provides a destination.

Secondly, show how and why you have reached your conclusion. This is the heart of your story and where you will spend most of your time. Because they already know the destination, this part of your presentation is more productive as your audience is already trying to convince themselves that your conclusions are correct.

Finally, tell them what you want them to do with your conclusion.

Listen to the podcast for even moe communication tips.

BizPod Episode 6 - Effective Communication

If you are job hunting, a must nowadays is a profile on the world’s most popular professional networking site LinkedIn.

LinkedIn is not like any other social media, it is not a place to share photos of your latest holiday, your pets or your frolics with your friends about town. LinkedIn is about demonstrating your professionalism to your work colleagues, your boss and even your potential new employers.

Keep your LinkedIn profile up to date with all of your achievements from your work experience, update your certificates and education when you take a new training course, create connections and most importantly get endorsed.

Since you are reading this, I presume you re a student of the English language and that learning and improving your English language skills is probably important to you in your career and promotional prospects.

So, ask your teacher to give you an endorsement on LinkedIn to add to your profile

BizPod Episode 5 - Are You LinkedIn?

Apart from the obvious language differences between your own language and English, there are also likely to be differences in the way job interviews are handled. Some companies have a very formal job interview process run by dedicated HR professionals, who strive to find the best educated and experienced people, while others have more informal recruitment processes and are more interested in your personal qualities and attributes, rather than technical skills and knowledge.

In most cases, however, you are more likely to experience a mix of both formal and informal approaches to job interviews.