11/7 (Wed.) - 11/9 (Fri.)

実践ビジネス英語　　　Wednesday, November 7

1) Umemura tells Garcia that a sophomore at an Ohio college has
contacted him about a possible summer internship at H&B. He praises
the student's work as a brand ambassador for the company. And Garcia
confirms that H&B will accept sophomores as interns if they are qualified.
Garcia also tells Umemura that H&B pays its internes to bolster their
self-esteem and sense of being a professional.

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Meaningful Internships (1)

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2) receive an email from: Umemura also could have said, "I've just heard
from" one of the student ambassadors. That would be a broader term,
and include the possibility that Martha had called Umemura on the phone
or contacted him through social media.

3) work as an intern: Other variations on this include "do an internship"
or just "intern" as a verb, as in "Martha wants to know about the
possibility of 'doing an internship' here," or "Martha wants to know
about the possibility of 'interning' here."

4) know what one is doing: This means having the knowledge necessary
to perform a certain task, have the ability to fulfill that task. Choosing
the right investments can be tricky. So people hire financial advisors
because we hope they know "what they are doing." They are well-informed
about the different options, you know, they know how to minimize tax
burdens, etc. In contrast, I wouldn't try to fix a serious problem with my
computer by myself because I wouldn't know "what I was doing" and I would
make things worse.

5) be up to snuff: This is a phrase of unknown origin. According to my
idiom dictionary, it it not clear why "up to snuff" means at an acceptable
level of quality, at an acceptable standard. Someone studying a foreign language might say, "I can read pretty well, but my listening is not 'up to snuff' yet."

6) reinforce: Garcia is using "reinforce" to mean strengthen by adding
some kind of support. The recent jobs data "reinforce" the view that the
economy is slowly recovering, for example. There is also the noun
"reinforcement," which often refers to rewarding some action so that a
person will do it again. For example, "Giving someone a bonus for
exceeding their sales quota would be positive 'reinforcement.'"

7) butt in: This expression uses the image of an animal shoving its
horns into something. It means intrude, interfere or interrupt. We all
get annoyed when someone "butts into" our private life, don't we?

8) add one's two cents' worth: We often use "two cents' worth" to
mean someone's opinion on some subject, their thoughts. And you
can leave off the "worth," just say "one's two cents.'" Imagine, you
join an online discussion about raising corporate taxes. You could
write, "To 'add my two cents'' on this issue, I think raising taxes is
a bad idea because it will discourage companies from investing and
hiring more people."

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実践ビジネス英語　　　Thursday, November 8

1) Lyons tells Umemura and Garcia about a working dinner he recently
attended, at which members of a business organization asked him and
other executives about how to turn college students into excellent
interns. He adds that internships give students a huge advantage in
finding jobs after graduation and says nearly 40% of this year's entry
level positions will be taken by former interns.

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Meaningful Internships (2)

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2) hot topic: Oh, this is a topic that's being discussed with great energy
in by many people, that many people are strongly interested in. Whether
to focus on stimulus measures or austerity policies has been a "hot topic"
in Europe, for example.

3) 似たような意味に hot button というのがある

4) pick someone's brain about: The image here is going through someone's brain to get ideas or information from them. A friend of mine is a veteran political reporter. It's very interesting to talk to him to "pick his brain" on issues like national security.

5) There's also the expression "rack one's brain," which means try hard to remember something or think of something as in, "I've 'racked my brain' but I can't think of a good example sentence for 'rack one's brain.'"

6) outstanding: Lyons uses this to mean excellent, superior. You'll hear about "outstanding" students, "outstanding" food. If you read an excellent report, you could tell the person who wrote it, "'Outstanding' work! Really 'outstanding.'"

7) "Outstanding" can also mean unpaid or unsettled as in "outstanding" bills or "outstanding" debts.

8) give someone a head start: A "head start" is an early start that gives someone an advantage in some way. Originally, the expression is from horse racing. If I say, "I want to get a 'head start' on this report." Then I want to start early so I'm sure to make the deadline, have plenty of time to gather information, you know, that sort of thing.

9) in the hope: Well, this means we do something hoping it will result
in some outcome, lead to some outcome. For example, "She is taking
on extra work 'in the hope' of impressing her boss," or "He's studying
French 'in the hope' of being transferred to Europe."

10) entry-level position: Lyons is using "entry level" to mean the lowest
level job in a company or field done by people when they first enter that
organization or field. It can be hard to get by on an "entry-level" salary,
for example.

11) "Entry-level" can also refer to a product that has relatively simpler
features and costs less than other models or types. You could say, "XYZ
Technology has just released a new 'entry-level' tablet computer, uh,
priced at just 200 dollars."

12) prospective:This means possible, potential. If you have a meeting
with a "prospective" client, then you have a meeting with someone
who may become a client.

13) any number of: Garcia is using this expression to mean many. As
in, "Oh, there are 'any number of' places we can have lunch. This
area's full of great restaurants."

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実践ビジネス英語　　　Friday, November 9

1) Garcia recommends that interns try to stand out through such efforts
as staying later than others. And Lyons urges finding a role model in the
office. Umemura asks how company should select their most effectively
utilized interns. And Garcia says H&B chooses them as carefully as it
does regular staff aiming to hire students with appropriate skills. Lyons
adds that the H&B tries to link interns with other employees once they
join the company.

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Meaningful Internships (3)

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2) work later than everyone else: In extreme cases, Garcia might
recommend that interns "burn the midnight oil." In other words, stay
up very late working or studying. This expression refers to the oil that
people used to burn in lamps a long time ago. For example, "My son
has his entrance exams next month. So he is 'burning the midnight oil,'"
or "I'll have to 'burn the midnight oil' to finish this report in time."

3) office role model: A "role model" is someone whose behavior is
imitated by others, who serves as an example on how to behave. We
also describe people and things as a model of something. In other words,
an excellent example of it, who should be emulated in that regard. A
person could be a "model of " kindness. A company could be a "model of"
efficiency.

4) get the most out of: This means to acquire, achieve the maximum
benefit or output from something. I saw an article recently with the
headline "How to Get the Most Out of Your Fund-raiser" And it was
advice about how to conduct a fund-raiser so it would collect the most
money possible.

5) There's also the expression "make the most of," which means use
something to best advantage, get the most benefit out of it. "I use a lot
of shelves to 'make the most of' the limited space in my apartment," for
example.

6) compatible with: Garcia is using "compatible" to mean matches, fits.
It can also mean able to exist harmoniously with something else.
Imagine Mr. A, you know, who is very serious, and Mr. B, who is always
telling jokes. They might not get along because their personalities are
not "compatible." Their personalities are incompatible.

7) We also use "compatible" regarding computers and other technologies
to mean they can be used together. For example, "This old software isn't
'compatible' with the new operating system."

8) stuff an envelope: Here "stuff" is a verb meaning fill, pack with
something. It can also be a noun as in the idiom "know one's stuff."
And this refers to someone being very knowledgeable in a certain field,
certain area. You might tell someone, "Oh, go to this shop if you want a
camera, the owner really knows his 'stuff' and can tell you just which
model is best for you."

9) fend for oneself: This means to take care of oneself, you know, get
by on one's own. There's also the expression "fend off," which means to
repel something or ward it off. The company "fended off" a takeover bid,
for example. Or the team "fended off" a ninth inning rally by its opponents.

10) hook someone up with: This means to create a tie, an association
between certain parties. I needed help recently filing my tax returns. So I
asked a friend, and she "hooked me up with" a good accountant.