Pratica di Shadowing: Business English - Lesson 1 - Business English Course | Business English Conversation - Impara a parlare inglese con i video

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You're listening to Business English Pod, the Business English Podcast for professionals on the move.
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In this Business English Pod episode, we'll be looking at ways to give and ask for opinions.
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We'll be looking both at more formal or careful language as well as at more informal or direct language.
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Giving and asking for opinions is a very important part of meetings and discussions of all types.
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First, let's listen to a more formal situation.
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We'll be listening to part of a meeting at Digisoft, a multinational software company.
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Sheila, a vice president, is talking to Walt, George, and Bruce, three software engineers, about the deadline for the new software release.
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Release here means launch, that is, bring the product onto the market.
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So, let's move on to the topic of release date.
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Gentlemen, when do you think we'll be able to launch this product?
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Walt?
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Well, I tend to feel that we should probably be able to start testing the product in April.
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That means that if all goes well, we can have a first release in May or June.
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I see.
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Thank you, Walt.
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What's your reaction to that, Bruce?
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May or June?
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Well, from my point of view, that sounds about right.
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Excuse me, may I come in here?
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I wonder if I could say something.
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Go ahead, George.
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What would you like to add?
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Well, it seems to me that May is much, much too early.
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Actually, we are still having some pretty major problems with bugs in the update engine, and I just don't see how we will be able to fix those bugs.
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Okay, now let's listen to George, Bruce, and Walt walk into the break room right after the meeting.
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Sheila, their boss, is not here.
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This is a more informal situation.
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Hey guys, did you see the Chelsea-Lewithful game last night?
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What did you think, Walt?
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Quite a game, huh?
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Chelsea looked pretty good.
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You always have to rub it in, don't you, Bruce?
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You know I'm a Liverpool fan.
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How about you, George?
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Actually, that was one of the greatest games I've ever seen.
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But the way you guys keep telling the boss we can finish the product by May, none of us are going to have time to watch any more football games.
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We're all going to be working overtime every night, burning the midnight oil.
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So now you've heard both formal and informal conversations.
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First, let's look at the formal conversation.
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How does Sheila ask for her employees' opinions?
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Sheila is in charge.
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She is the boss and the chairperson of the meeting.
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One way for her to ask for an employee's opinion is simply to say his name with a rising intonation or tone.
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Gentlemen, when do you think we will be able to launch this product?
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Sheila also uses some other ways to ask for her employees' opinions.
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All these ways are relatively formal.
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They signal that this is a formal meeting.
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She says, I see.
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Thank you, Walt.
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What's your reaction to that, Bruce? And?
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Go ahead, George.
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What would you like to add?
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Together with these speakers, try some other formal phrases for asking for an opinion.
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How do you feel about that, Cecilia?
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Could you please share your thoughts on that, Sam?
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What's your view on this, Richard?
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Tony, what's your feelings on this?
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Now, let's look at the language Walt, Bruce and George use to express their opinions in a formal situation.
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Walt says...
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Well, I tend to feel that we should be able to start testing the product in April.
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This language, I tend to feel that, shows a careful, formal tone.
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Walt uses this tone because he is talking to his boss, and perhaps because he's not sure whether or not the others will agree with him.
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Let's keep listening.
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I see.
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Thank you, Walt.
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What's your reaction to that, Bruce?
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May or June.
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Well, from my point of view, that sounds about right.
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Bruce, likewise, uses more formal, careful language.
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Well, from my point of view, this makes him sound more polite, since he's talking to his boss.
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In addition, it gives him time to think.
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Giving yourself time to think is another reason to use these phrases.
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How about George?
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How did he offer his opinion?
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Excuse me, may I come in here?
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I wonder if I could say something.
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Go ahead, George.
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What would you like to add?
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Well, it seems to me that may is much, much too early.
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Think about the ways that George uses to express his opinion.
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I wonder if I could say something and, well, it seems to me that these ways of expression are quite careful.
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George has a good reason to be careful, doesn't he?
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He disagrees with his colleagues.
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Now let's practice some further formal or careful phrases for expressing your opinion.
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I have the impression that he didn't really want to come.
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Don't you think that that's a little early?
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I tend to feel it's a bit too early to start.
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Next, let's turn to the more informal discussion between Walt, Bruce, and George.
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Remember, they're in the break room right after the meeting.
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Bruce asked George and Walt, Hey guys, did you see the Chelsea-Louisville game last night?
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What did you think, Walt?
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Quite a game, huh?
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Chelsea looked pretty good.
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This is an informal, relaxed discussion among colleagues.
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You can tell it's informal because Bruce uses the informal word, guys, to address George and Walt.
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Also, he says, what do you think?
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This is an informal way to ask for an opinion.
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Walt says, You always have to rub it in, don't you, Bruce?
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You know I'm a Liverpool fan.
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To rub something in is an idiom.
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It means to remind someone on purpose of something that is uncomfortable or painful.
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Here it's done as a joke.
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It sounds like Walt is a Liverpool fan and he's unhappy because Chelsea won the game.
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Let's keep listening.
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How about you George?
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Actually that was one of the greatest games I've ever seen.
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How about you is another direct way to ask for an opinion.
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Next, notice how George starts his sentence with actually.
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Actually is a direct or informal way to state an opinion.
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It shows us that George has something new or surprising to say.
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With George, practice more direct ways to state an opinion.
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The point is we're doing very well in this market.
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The way I see it, we're heading for trouble.
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Obviously, there's only one choice.
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Basically, I think we have two options.
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Finally, let's listen to the end of the dialogue again.
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How about you, George?
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Actually, that was one of the greatest games I've ever seen.
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But the way you guys keep telling the boss we can finish the product by May, none of us are going to have time to watch any more football games.
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George means that if Bruce and Walt keep telling the boss that they can meet the May deadline, everyone is going to have to work very hard.
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In fact, they're going to have to work so hard that they won't have any time to watch football games.

Contesto e Sfondo

In questo episodio di Business English Pod, ci immergiamo nel mondo del Business English, esaminando le modalità di dare e chiedere opinioni in contesti formali e informali. La conversazione si svolge durante una riunione in cui Sheila, vicepresidente di una multinazionale nel settore del software, discute con ingegneri riguardo alle scadenze per il lancio di un nuovo prodotto. Questo tipo di interazione è cruciale non solo per le discussioni aziendali, ma anche per instaurare relazioni positive tra colleghi e superiori. Comprendere le differenze tra linguaggio formale e informale aiuta a migliorare la pronuncia inglese e a comunicare in modo più efficace.

Top 5 Frasi per la Comunicazione Quotidiana

  • "Gentlemen, when do you think we’ll be able to launch this product?" - Un modo formale per richiedere un'opinione.
  • "From my point of view, that sounds about right." - Esprimere un'opinione personale in modo educato.
  • "Excuse me, may I come in here?" - Una frase utile per intervenire in una conversazione.
  • "Hey guys, did you see the game last night? What did you think?" - Un approccio informale e diretto per chiedere un'opinione.
  • "Actually, that was one of the greatest games ever." - Un modo diretto per esprimere un'opinione sorprendente.

Guida Passo-Passo al Shadowing

Per affrontare le difficoltà di questo video e migliorare le tue abilità nel Business English, ti consigliamo di seguire questi passaggi pratici. L' shadowing in inglese è una tecnica molto efficace per migliorare la pronuncia e la fluidità. Ecco come procedere:

  1. Ascolta attentamente la conversazione e prendi nota delle frasi che ti sembrano più utili.
  2. Riascolta una porzione breve del dialogo e tenta di ripetere ciò che senti, imitando l'intonazione e la pronuncia dei relatori. Questo è il tuo momento di shadowspeak.
  3. Concentrati sulle frasi formali e informali, notando le differenze e quando utilizzare ciascuno stile nel tuo contesto lavorativo.
  4. Gioca a ruoli con un partner o anche davanti a uno specchio, ripetendo le frasi chiave ad alta voce. Questo ti aiuterà a sentirti più sicuro e a migliorare la tua espressione orale.
  5. Infine, pratica regolarmente: il shadowing site è una grande risorsa per trovare materiale aggiuntivo e continuare a migliorare la tua competenza linguistica.

Seguendo questi passaggi, non solo migliorerai le tue capacità comunicative, ma ti sentirai anche più pronto ad affrontare situazioni di lavoro reali, a vantaggio della tua carriera.

Cos'è la tecnica dello Shadowing?

Shadowing è una tecnica di apprendimento delle lingue supportata da studi scientifici, originariamente sviluppata per la formazione dei traduttori professionisti e resa popolare dal poliglotta Dr. Alexander Arguelles. Il metodo è semplice ma potente: ascolti un audio in inglese di madrelingua e lo ripeti immediatamente ad alta voce — come un'ombra che segue il parlante con un ritardo di solo 1–2 secondi. A differenza dell'ascolto passivo o degli esercizi di grammatica, lo shadowing costringe il tuo cervello e i muscoli della bocca a elaborare e riprodurre simultaneamente i modelli di discorso reale. La ricerca dimostra che migliora significativamente la precisione della pronuncia, l'intonazione, il ritmo, il discorso connesso, la comprensione dell'ascolto e la fluidità del parlato — rendendolo uno dei metodi più efficaci per la preparazione alla prova di speaking dell'IELTS e per la comunicazione reale in inglese.