実践ビジネス英語 Wednesday, March 18
1) McMillan tells the H&B staff he is drowsy after staying up to read an article titled "What Keeps CEOs Up at Night." He says the article examined how difficult it is to be a CEO amid the current tough economy and that corporate leaders have to strike a balance between short and long term concerns. McMillan also cites being a company spokesperson and a political strategist as part of a CEO's responsibility.
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Executive Challenges (1)
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2) full of vim and vigor
Full of energy, enthusiasm. It's a little old-fashioned, I think, but we still see it. Like Collins, I'd use it in a joking way, such as, "He is 'full of vim and vigor' after his long vacation." Or "She is always 'full of vim and vigor' after some acupuncture."
3) look to be
Has the appearance or the likelihood of being something. Things like, "This is 'looking to be' our best year yet." Or "John 'looks to be' about 35."
4) If only. = そうだったらいいのですが。ほとんど不可能な願望を表すときに使う
5) feel dozy
This is British English. Americans would probably say, "I'm pretty drowsy today." We do say "doze" and "doze off," which mean sleep lightly or fall into a light sleep. For example, "I 'dozed off' during the meeting. When's our deadline for this project?"
6) keep someone up at night
Worry someone, play on their mind so they don't sleep well. We also say "not keep someone up at night" meaning it doesn't particularly worry them. Imagine someone loses a client, they might say, "It's disappointing, but it's 'not keeping me up at night.' These things happen."
7) That'll be the day.
That'll never happen. You could say things like, "Mary offered to help someone with their work? 'That'll be the day.'"
8) no picnic
Hard, difficult, not easy, carefree like a nice picnic somewhere would be. For example, "Working on this project is 'no picnic.' The client is so demanding." And I can say from personal experience, "House dust allergies are 'no picnic.'"
9) remit
Here "remit" is a noun, and it means a person's area of responsibility and authority, such as "Part of the new boss's 'remit' will be rejuvenating our computer sales." Or "She was reprimanded for interfering with marketing policy. That's not part of her 'remit.'" "Remit" can also be a verb meaning send a payment. I'd say it's used in written English more than spoken in this case. Things like, "Please 'remit' $1,000 by June 1st." Or "Failure to 'remit' monthly payments will result in penalties."
10) insomnia
Prolonged inability to sleep. I have "insomnia" if I can't sleep for a week, say, or a month, not just one time. A person with this problem is an "insomniac." Likewise, indigestion is the inability to digest food properly and the stomach pain comes with it.
11) unflappable
Persistently calm, doesn't easily get excited or upset. Think of a bird that doesn't start beating its wings in agitation. We also say "not easily ruffled," which uses the image of disturbing a bird's feathers. Things like, "John's 'not easily ruffled.' So I asked him to talk to that angry client."
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実践ビジネス英語 Thursday, March 19
1) Pearson says securing top-quality staff is the hardest part of his job. According to McMillan’s article, talented staff are crucial to a manager's effectiveness. And Pearson says a good CEO helps people grow and do their best. Collins cites important factors on the company side. And Lyons says CEOs must evaluate staffers' performance and conduct succession planning. Umemura adds that modern CEOs must function effectively in an international context.
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Executive Challenges (2)
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2) people, people and people
It's common in English to repeat something three times like this. We mean this is by far the most important factor or concern. One of the most famous uses is, "There are three elements to success in real estate. Location, location and location," meaning location is absolutely crucial to the value of real estate properties.
3) only as good as
A is only as good as B, meaning B will determine how good, how successful A is. You can use many other words besides "good" in this construction. One famous expression is, "A chain is only as 'strong' as its weakest link," meaning one weak, bad staffer can lower the effectiveness of a whole team.
4) spot on
Exactly right. For example, "Her predictions for this year's stock trends were 'spot on.'" I've also seen "spot on" used to mean someone performs extremely well. They do a task exactly like they are supposed to. You could say, "Clare was 'spot on' in the meeting. The client loved her presentation."
5) be tasked with
Be given a task, assigned some job to do, as in, "We've 'been tasked with' devising a new promotional campaign." Or "John has 'been tasked with' finding a venue for the reception."
6) be all about
This is the dominant factor in some situation. It's the most important influence on people's actions or the most important influence on the outcome of a situation. For example, "Learning a foreign language 'is all about' practice." Or "She 'is all about' getting ahead. Career advancement is the most important thing in her life."
7) tall order = 難しい注文、手に負えそうもない仕事
8) not end there
There's more to some situation to some job. This can be good or bad. Things like, "Management is cutting our budget 20% and it 'doesn't end there.' Three staffers are moving to other departments." Or "We are getting new computers next month, and the improvement 'don't end there.' We'll also get new office furniture."
9) stringent
Strict, severe. For example, "The company has 'stringent' rules against giving presents to clients." Or "I'm on a 'stringent' budget this month."
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実践ビジネス英語 Friday, March 20
1) McMillan says one of the biggest complaints among busy CEOs is having too much email to deal with. Pearson says technology is a key challenge facing business leaders who have to anticipate what will happen in this field and treat technology as a key source of revenue for their companies. Umemura and McMillan agree that an atmosphere of transparency is crucial for modern businesses.
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Executive Challenges (3)
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2) have one's work cut out for one
Have a difficult job to do. Things like, "'We've got our work cut out for us' to finish by next week." "Not cut out for" is often used to mean not suited to something by nature. For example, "She is 'not cut out for' negotiating. She is so impatient." Or "He is 'not cut out' to be a doctor. He can’t stand blood."
3) beef
A complaint. We also say "have a beef with someone or something," meaning we disapprove of something, we have a complaint about it. You could say, "I 'have a beef with' her two-hour lunches. She is making more work for everybody else." And I personally have a beef with sexism in children's toys.
4) game-changer
Something that completely alters a situation. It changes what people in that situation have to deal with, how they have to act. Smartphones were a "game-changer" in the mobile phone industry or smartphones were a "game-changing" development in the mobile phone industry. We also say "a whole new ball game." A completely different situation requiring different actions, attitudes, etc. "Mobile phones created 'a whole new ball game' in interpersonal communications."
5) crystal ball
You've probably seen fortune tellers in movies peering into these big crystal globes that show the future. So you'll hear things like, "Stock brokers don't have 'crystal balls.' They can't guarantee a stock will go up."
6) be in short supply
There aren't many available. There aren't many around. Things like, "Openings at kindergartens 'are in short supply' these days." Or "Good managers willing to stay for many years 'are in short supply' lately."
7) stay abreast of
Stay informed, up-to-date on some subject. "Keep abreast of" also works, as in, "She reads three newspapers a day to 'keep abreast of' current events." Or "John, I'd like you to 'keep abreast of' the progress in the negotiations."
8) know better than to
Know through experience, wisdom, etc. that it's not good to do something, that we shouldn't do this. For example, "He 'knows better than to' contradict our boss during a meeting. He knows it's unwise, it's not good to contradict the boss." Or "I can't believe he contradicted our boss like that. He should 'know better.'"
9) there's no longer such a thing as
This doesn't exist anymore. We also say, "there's no such thing as." "'There's no such thing as' a trouble-free life," for example. Or "'There's no such thing as' a guaranteed profit."
【原稿チェック： Sei Shiura, Hiromi, Kodo Ogata】
【ディクテーション： Sanae】
