実践ビジネス英語 Wednesday, March 25
1) Lyons says today's CEOs have to deal with well-informed consumers who demand quality and reflect] their social and environmental convictions in their purchases. Pearson mentions quality control as a crucial issue. And Collins says the biggest worry is not knowing what to worry about. Lyons mentions the issue of rising sea levels and Collins cites America's falling water supply as a concern for the future.
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Executive Challenges (4)
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2) up to the mark
Lyons could also say "up to par" meaning at the accepted or usual standard. For example, "This report just 'isn't up to par.' It's disorganized and there is no clear point.
3) vote with one's wallet
Make purchases based on a political or moral position. We also say "vote with one's feet," meaning express dissatisfaction by leaving or not using something anymore. Imagine a sexist advertising campaign. You might say, "Consumers 'are voting with their feet on this.' Sales have fallen 20%".
4) mantra
A slogan or motto, something that expresses a principle, a guideline for our behavior. You could say, "My 'mantra' is always tell the truth." Or "His 'mantra' is never give up."
5) unknown unknown
Things that you don't know that you don't know.
6)just thinking about something
Just the thought of something inspires a feeling. "Just looking at something" is another common construction. I might see a yoga instructor and say, "My back hurts 'just looking at him' do that pose." Or "My back hurts 'just thinking about' that pose."
7) have enough on one's plate
The things on our plate are what we have to do, to deal with. For example, "Lunch next Thursday would be fine. I don't 'have a lot on my plate' right now." We also say "have a full plate," as in, "'I've got a full plate' with the sales conference. Could we meet next month?"
8) rabbit hole
This comes from "Alice in Wonderland," and it means a bizarre or difficult situation. Like Lyons, we often say "down the rabbit hole" meaning get into a bizarre situation or difficult situation. Things like, "We are 'down the rabbit hole' with this client. They want their CEO to sing in the TV commercials."
9) factor in
Include something in a calculation. Things like, "We have to 'factor in' transfer time when going by train." Or "We have to 'factor in' unexpected delays when deciding how long this project will take."
10) plot a future course Decide the direction, the actions to be taken. "Map" would also work here or "map out.” Things like, "We need to 'map out' our marketing strategy for next year.” Or "I've 'mapped out' a savings plan for the next five years.”
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実践ビジネス英語 Thursday, March 26
1) Collins and Umemura describe the shrinking of the Great Lakes and the Colorado River, which are main sources of America's water supply.
Pearson says people's retirement strategies used to comprise a pension,
social security and personal savings. But pensions are disappearing and
social security will probably be slashed. Umemura wonders why anyone
would want to be a CEO, but Pearson says there are no problems -- only
solutions.
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Executive Challenges (5)
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2)account for
Form this amount of something, make up this amount. "Freelance translating 'accounts for' half her income," for example. Or "Laptops 'account for' 30% of our sales."
3) no less than
Collins uses this to stress that this is quite a large figure. You could also say something like, "He's been to 'no fewer than' 50 countries." Or "She's making 'no less than' five million dollars a year."
4) sad to say
Unfortunately, "I'm sad to say" is okay too, as in, uh, "She turned down our
job offer. 'I'm sad to say.'"
5) rain and snow runoff
Here "runoff" means water from rain or snow that flows over the ground into streams. It can also mean an election or some other contest that's held because the earlier contest didn't result in a winner. Things like, "If no one gets more than 30% of the vote, there will be a 'runoff' between the two-top finishers."
6)time was when
Things were this way in the past but they're not anymore. You can also say just "time was," like, "'Time was' I could eat all I wanted not gained) weight." Or "'Time was' we had a lot more staff."
7) three-pronged retirement strategy
A retirement plan with three main elements, three main components. I looked on the Internet for "pronged," and I found mostly two-pronged and three-pronged in examples. And more than that does feel unnatural somehow. So you can say things like, "We'll pursue a 'two-pronged' advertising campaign, TV commercials and social media postings."
8) next to nothing
Almost nothing, very little. "I know 'next to nothing' about music," for example. Or "I've heard 'next to nothing' about the new boss."
9) sketch a road map for the future
Originally "sketch" means draw a picture or draw up a plan with few details that's still rough. So the adjective "sketchy" means to lack detail or important points. Things like "Our data is 'sketchy' on that market. We don't know a lot about it."
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実践ビジネス英会話 Friday, March 27
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Executive Challenges (6)
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1[S]: In our current vignette, the H&B staffers talk about sources of stress from modern CEOs. Things like striking a balance between short-term results and long-term direction and presenting the image of a good corporate citizen.
2[H]: Yes. This is a subject that seems right up your alley, Mr. Sugita. What keeps you up at night to borrow from the title of the article Pat McMillan was reading?
3[S]: Like Paul Pearson, I would list three things, people, people and people. And what about you, Heather? What causes you stress in your work?
4[H]: I'm embarrassed to answer that question right after you given the slight difference in our respective ranks. But I, too, have to agree with Paul Pearson. Getting and keeping good staff is certainly hard, so is getting by with the bad ones when you have to.
I used to work with a man, for example, who proudly announced that he was the best writer he knew. When that statement got around the office, the immediate and universal response was, "Doesn't he know a lot of writers, does he?" This man had an incredibly inflated view of his own abilities and nothing could burst that bubble.
Those are the hardest staff to deal with, definitely, the ones who won't take direction. They listen but then just keep doing things their own way, which just creates more work for others and irritates them into the bargain.
5[S]: I see. Any other causes of stress?
6[H]: Well, there's the ever widening generation gap, but that's usually a source of humor rather than stress. I had to laugh once when a twenty-something in my office didn't know what an LP was.
You know those old big records we used to play. We put a little needle down and it started to the music. Pardon me while I hitch up my buggy for a trip to market, I thought.
7[S]: Well, the vignette also touches on how things have changed regarding retirement. Paul Pearson says many Americans have next to nothing in the bank, and millions of people won't ever be able to retire.
8[H]: Yes. I was shocked when I looked up the actual figure. According to the National Institute on Retirement Security, the average retirement account balance for all working-age households is only $3,000. That is indeed "next to nothing."
My husband and I follow the pay-yourself-first principle. Every month, a set amount of money is put aside for the retirement. What we spend each month is worked out after that money is withdrawn and gone.
I'm pretty sure I'll get nothing or next to nothing from social security having lived and worked in Japan ever since graduation. Fingers crossed on public pension payments here, but no one knows what the future will bring. So we are saving as much as we can on our own.
【原稿チェック： Sei Shimura, Kodo Ogata, Cecile, Hiromi】
【ディクテーション： Sanae】
