Shadowing Practice: Meetings: Office English episode 2 - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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Meetings.
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Meetings.
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They're a big part of our time at work.
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Some people love them and some people hate them.
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Sometimes meetings can feel a bit pointless and you're just trying to fill the time.
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So ideally there's an agenda so you know what's going to be talked about and discussed.
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I do sometimes get nervous speaking up in meetings
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because I have a bit of a fear of speaking in front of people.
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In this episode of Office English from BBC Learning English,
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we're looking at how to speak up in meetings and get your ideas heard.
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Welcome to Office English, our guide to the language of the world of work.
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In this podcast, we discuss words and phrases you can use to help improve your business English in the office.
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I'm Phil.
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And I'm Pippa.
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Today we're talking about meetings.
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We've already heard that meetings can be very stressful,
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even for native English speakers.
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But what do you think, Phil?
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Do you speak up a lot in meetings?
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It depends on the meeting.
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Okay.
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Sometimes you have a meeting with people you work closely with,
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a small meeting, and I find it quite easy to try and contribute and ask people and things like that.
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sometimes you're in a bigger meeting with people you don't know
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so well or maybe you're meeting people you don't work with a client
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or a different department that's a lot harder mmm yeah I agree
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and then when you get stressed like that you maybe don't want to speak
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or you're nervous to contribute or you feel
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that you're tripping over your words you're getting what you're about to say wrong
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and so that can be really stressful it's something I think most people are nervous about.
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So today we're going to talk you through the basics of meetings and phrases you can use to get your voice heard.
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So we've been invited to a meeting,
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there's lots of people in the meeting who we don't know,
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and at the start of the meeting everyone is asked to introduce themselves.
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How can we do this professionally Phil.
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Okay, how about saying, for those who don't know me,
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I'm Phil and I do podcasts about business English.
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Yeah, that's nice because it's sort of an expectation that people might not know you.
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Another one you could maybe try is, I'm responsible for.
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So instead of saying what your role is,
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what your job title is,
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just explain what you do.
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So for those who don't know me,
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I'm Pippa and I'm responsible for the podcasts at BBC Learning English.
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And I think that's really good because I don't know how it is in other languages,
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but in English, your job title often doesn't really say what you actually do.
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Yeah, so it's not very useful to tell people that.
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Anything else we can say here, Phil?
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Perhaps if you've got a particular expertise in something,
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you could say, I have a background in,
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and then you're talking about an area that you know a lot of,
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or that you've worked in before,
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or you've studied a lot,
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and that could be useful perhaps saying,
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look, this is how I can be useful in this meeting.
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Ask me about these things.
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Yeah, because if you don't know people,
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they might be questioning why you're there and
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so it's good to kind of say early what your expertise is and what you have to bring to the meeting.
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What about if you don't get a chance to introduce yourself at the start of the meeting Phil?
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Well yeah it can be useful sometimes
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if you you can just bring one of those phrases in the first time
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when someone asks you to speak
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and you say oh for those who don't know me I'm
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and then you talk about your background or what you're responsible for,
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just so people know who you are and how you can help the meeting.
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Yeah, and if you've kind of got that rehearsed,
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it's a good way to kind of start talking.
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You've got over the initial nervousness and then you can actually say what you want to say.
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Right, so we've introduced ourselves and the meeting has started.
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What about if somebody else makes an interesting point and we want to respond confidently in the meeting.
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Yeah, so we've got a few phrases here.
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We could say something like,
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that's a really important point.
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It makes me think about and then say our point.
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What do you think about that, Phil?
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Well, it helps you engage with what someone's saying.
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You might be linking things that are useful.
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Yeah, I think it can be useful,
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particularly if what what they've said is really relevant to what you're trying to sort out in the meeting.
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Yeah and it's conversational.
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Another option we can have
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if we want to kind of disagree with somebody is to say I like
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that idea but my thinking is a bit different.
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I guess as you said it's a polite way of disagreeing.
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Do you think they really like that idea when they say it?
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I don't know.
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It depends I think on what we're talking about and
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but it's just a politer way to say it's not really very helpful
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if in a meeting especially if you don't know people
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and to say oh I think that idea is rubbish
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and I prefer my idea and so it's all about kind of being friendly
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and polite with people in meetings another way you could try
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and enter the conversation is to just ask a question
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so you can say what about
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or how about we try this that's just a good way to to kind of enter into a discussion and a conversation.
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Yeah, it's like you're putting something on the table for everyone to talk about.
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But sort of saying what about or how about rather than a very direct question is just a bit more polite.
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And now a really difficult scenario.
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What if there are lots of important people in the meeting who are all dominating the conversation?
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The meeting is moving really quickly and you're nervous about speaking,
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but you have some ideas too.
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What do you do, Phil?
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Well, I think I maybe do this too much,
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but you kind of sit and wait for the right moment.
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So you wait for there to be a little bit of a pause and then you can say something.
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Yeah, but what about if you don't get the pause and you need to interrupt?
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What would you say then, Phil?
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We usually start by apologising.
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So you can say something like,
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I'm sorry, can I just ask?
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And that just is an interesting word there because you're kind of saying,
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I'm not sure about doing it.
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You're almost apologising for asking there.
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I'm sorry, can I just ask?
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I'm sorry, but I think we need to talk about this topic.
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And again, the I think,
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it's a bit hesitant, but sometimes that can be useful because you're showing,
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it's a way of showing respect and being polite.
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Yeah, so apologising and then kind of saying,
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I'm sorry, but I think we should talk about this,
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is a really useful way in.
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Another thing we can do is sort of ask permission to enter the discussion.
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So say something like, could I add a thought?
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Or could I say something?
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You're kind of showing that you realise that other people in the room are important.
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And so sort of asking permission to join in as well.
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Yes, I think that's a really good idea.
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Of course, we're talking here from a context,
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we're here in the UK.
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And in Britain, we tend to have politeness as a really important thing.
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So we say, I'm sorry a lot,
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or can I just do this?
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But this does differ in different places.
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Some other cultures are a lot more direct,
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and maybe you don't need to apologize quite so much for saying things
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so it's perhaps listen to how people speak in the place where you're working
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because these cultures change aren't they they're different in different places
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so we've learned some useful phrases to help us speak up in meetings
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but let's hear again from our BBC colleagues
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because there's one thing we haven't talked about and that's how to make sure our meetings are useful.
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Sometimes meetings can feel a bit pointless
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and you're just trying to fill the time so ideally there's an agenda
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so you know what's going to be talked about and discussed.
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Beth talked about having an agenda so what do we mean by an agenda Phil?
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An agenda is a,
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it's a list of things that you're going to talk about in the meeting
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and it's very common definitely in Britain it's very common
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that you might have a slot at the end
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that might say AOB any other business but the idea is
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that during the other slots you only talk about the things
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that are on the agenda and it's ideally you share it before the meeting
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so everyone knows what you're gonna be talking about,
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why you're talking about those things,
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and it gives you a chance to think about what you might want to say.
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Yes, it's really helpful because then you can prepare in advance.
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And if you're in charge of the meeting,
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making sure you have an agenda is really helpful
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because it helps you stay in control of the conversation and you make sure that the meeting isn't a waste of time.
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So you can say things like,
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oh, I think we're getting a bit off topic,
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or please can we stick to the agenda and make sure we talk about the important things.
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Yeah, that gives you nice efficient meetings that finish on time, hopefully.
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Well, that's the idea anyway.
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And that's it for this episode of Office English.
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Remember, you can find courses and activities to help you with your English at bbclearningenglish.com.
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Next time, we'll be talking about how to remind people to do something,
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or chase them up for a response.
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And of course, we'll discuss some essential phrases to help you unlock your career potential.
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See you then.
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Bye!
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Bye!
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About This Lesson
In this lesson, we will focus on enhancing your ability to communicate effectively during meetings, a vital aspect of workplace English. You will learn essential phrases to help you introduce yourself professionally and share your ideas confidently in group settings. By practicing these materials, you can overcome nerves and contribute meaningfully, ensuring your voice is heard in any meeting environment.
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- Agenda - A list of topics to be discussed in a meeting.
- Speak up - To voice your thoughts or opinions, especially in a group setting.
- For those who don't know me - A phrase to introduce yourself to new participants in a meeting.
- I'm responsible for - A way to explain what your role entails without using job titles.
- I have a background in - A phrase to highlight your expertise or area of knowledge.
- Contribute - To offer ideas, suggestions, or feedback during discussions.
- Tripping over your words - A phrase used when someone struggles to articulate thoughts clearly.
Practice Tips
To effectively engage with the content of this lesson and improve your overall speaking skills, consider using the shadowing technique. This method is particularly useful for learners working on pronunciation, intonation, and fluency. When practicing with the lesson video, try shadow speech by mimicking the speakers as they talk, matching their speed and tone.
Given the conversational nature of the dialogue, focus on both the rhythm and emotional undertones of the speakers. Start by listening to short segments of the video and pause frequently to repeat phrases out loud. This technique, often referred to as shadowspeak, helps reinforce the natural flow of English speech.
Don't hesitate to practice in front of a mirror or record yourself speaking. Listening to your recordings can help you identify areas for improvement. As you become more comfortable with the phrases, gradually increase the length of the segments you shadow. This will build your confidence and help you speak up in meetings with ease and clarity.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.
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