Archive for the ‘English for Business’ Category

Tips on how to build up your confidence when speaking in English

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

Learning to speak English with confidence is not as easy as one might think.  Most if not ALL of the students who sign up with TalktoCanada.com have just that problem… lack of or no confidence when communicating and speaking in English.  As a teacher — no progress is really complete without building that confidence — so it is my main goal when teaching to boost up a student’s confidence as much as possible.  Students can also speed up the process by taking into account these tips (however it is understandable that they are easier said than done):

  1. MAKE MISTAKES
  2. – the only way to learn is by making mistakes — your English tutor is there to correct those mistakes and to help you understand WHY they are mistakes and what the proper form is.  If you don’t feel comfortable making mistakes with your teacher — your confidence level will take that much longer to increase.

  3. GO OUTSIDE YOUR COMFORT ZONE
  4. – sure its easy to stick with vocabulary that is simple — but do you really learn anything that way?  Try new words, grammar and sentence structures — increasing your vocabulary and comfort zone will give you a larger range of words to work with in a variety of situations.

  5. ASK FOR HELP
  6. – your tutor is there to help YOU learn to speak English.  Ask them questions — ask for their help if you don’t understand something.  Don’t be shy — remember that these are YOUR classes.

If you follow these basic steps during your English lessons with TalktoCanada.com not only will your confidence level increase but your knowledge, understanding and overall fluency will as well!

How TalktoCanada.com can help YOU pass the IELTS test

Saturday, February 20th, 2010

The IELTS Test is quickly becoming the English Test of choice for many students who wish to study, work or live abroad.  It is a holistic approach to assessing ones English level, and includes a listening, reading, writing and speaking component.  For those of you who don’t know what IELTS stands for, it is, International English Language Testing System.  The test managed by the University of Cambridge, IDP Education and the British Council whom we have partnered with to work on corporate English language training contracts in Saudi Arabia.

Many students who take this test need the most help with the speaking component.  Being put on the spot — even as a native speaker is sometimes scary — public speaking is not an easy thing for anyone – and especially for topics that you have only 2 minutes to prepare for — it can seem impossible.

TalktoCanada helps you with all aspects of the test — but most importantly we help you with building confidence when you speak.  The training will also help you build up your vocabulary with words that you would not normally use (simple words — for general conversation).  While also helping you think on your feet and feel confident while answering questions of any type.

TalktoCanada helps you improve your speaking by simulating the speaking section of the exam — you have the option of going through Part I, Part II and Part III of the IELTS test — with your teacher you will go over each answer afterwords while working on grammatical structure, sentence building and of course fluency.

Typically students sign up for an intensive month long course with TalktoCanada (which entails having a lesson everyday) helping to guarantee results.  We focus mostly on the speaking section, as that is the section that requires the most amount of work.  We encourage students to work on the writing exercise (we also help and correct any mistakes) and lastly, you will work on your listening and reading exercises portion of the IELTS exam.  The success rate thus far has been 100% and students have noticeably increased their confidence and their fluency…just ask to to talk to one of our students who has taken the IELTS test after training with their very own online English trainer at TalktoCanada.com.

TalktoCanada helps you achieve your goals and your dreams whether it is to move, study or work in an English speaking country — don’t limit yourself and know that with the right amount of dedication anything is possible!  Get the help you need by registering for IELTS training sessions today!

Virtual Manager MUST have Tools…

Sunday, February 14th, 2010

Being a manager and a teacher who works in about 10 different time zones every week — I’ve come to realize the importance of being organized and punctual.  I’d like to share some of my tricks with you to keeping organized — especially when you have a pretty full plate.

  1. Google Calendar –  by far the BEST google application since gmail!  I’m able to organize all of my appointments, classes, and teachers.  I can invite others to join on the calendar — and it is all synced automatically.  I can even get reminder pop ups or emails before I have something scheduled.  A must have for ANYONE who has a busy schedule.
  2. Time Zone Converter – another essential tool – it lets you figure out your time zone differences.  So for example 2pm in Uruguay is 11am in Toronto and 5pm in Madrid.  I use this application all the time — to check and double check appointments — can’t be an effective manager if I’m doubled booked all the time :
  3. Sticky Notes – yep just like post its — only on your computer — I have a few going at once — they stay on my desktop even after a shutdown — great for keeping notes in a meeting, or words during a lesson — or a “TO DO” list of sorts.

With Virtual managing becoming more and more popular the need for ease and tools to make your job more efficient are a must.  I’d be interested to hear your tips to keep things in check…

A Day in the Life of a TalktoCanada.com Manager — Marc Anderson – General Manager

Thursday, January 21st, 2010

Marc Anderson

- General Manager
- Working at TTC since early 2006

What is a typical day for you at TalktoCanada.com?

Good question, not getting very much sleep..just kidding.  I would say that a typical day starts with answering a lot of emails, keeping up on prospects and than talking with my other managers either on telephone or on Skype.  After the usual stuff is done, I probably spend the rest of my time on the phone or in meetings with current and potential clients.  Some of my time is spent supervising projects and making sure they are delivered in the way that the client requested which can sometimes get difficult depending on the highly specialized nature of the course materials.  The rest of my time, is probably spent reading, which can include the latest business book or visiting several of my favourite websites including entrepreneur.comsearchenginewatch.commsnbc.com and checking up on our industry competitors.  My day doesn’t end at a specific time or start at the same time everyday, having to deal in so many countries around the world, some days I have to wake up while I am sleeping for a meeting or at supper time.  You have to give up the 9-5 hours if you expect to be successful in this type of job.

What is the toughest challenge you have faced since starting with TalktoCanada.com in 2006?

I would have to say beyond a doubt, getting our first client was the toughest challenge.  With such a new service by a very unknown company it’s hard to convince individuals and companies of your worth.  Naturally the vast majority of those people interested in our services were skeptical and without my selling skills being full developed it took a while to get off the ground.

What would you say is your biggest triumph?

This would probably tie into the previous question.  Getting our first client was the most exhilarating experience you could possibly have in a new business.  A client was willing to give us the chance and I will never forget the name of this company for the rest of my life.

What is the best part of your job?

Meeting with clients around the world.  I majored in accounting in university and seriously contemplated being an accountant but than thought if I am going to be in an office, I would rather do something more exciting.  I haven’t looked back since and I love my job and would trade it for any other business job.

A Day in the Life of… A TalktoCanada.com Manager Series

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

I thought it would be fun to start a “mini series” of

A Day in the Life of a TalktoCanada.com Manager

I’m 100% positive that no one really knows what we actually do all day and all night long at TalktoCanada.com, and thought that it would be a neat idea to let you in our daily lives at work.

So say tuned for a weekly blog over the next four weeks detailing one of TalktoCanada.com’s senior managers.  I encourage you to post questions if you like as well — make the posts interactive — it could be fun :)

The Five Best Books On English, for Business Students.

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010

For everybody out there learning business English as a second language, here are my top 5 books that I recommend. The books are not listed in any particular order.

  1. The Business Writer’s Handbook, Eighth Ed, by Walter E Oliu, Charles T Brusaw and Gerald J Alred.
  2. The Art of War, by Sun Tzu.
  3. Swim with the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive: Outsell, Outmanage, Outmotivate, and Outnegotiate Your Competition, by Harvey B. Mackay.
  4. Jack: Straight from the Gut, by Jack Welsh and John A. Byrne.
  5. The Market Leader Business Book Series for English Learners, by various.

This list is by no means the best of the best, just the top 5 books that I think would be most valuable to an English learner studying business.  The ‘Market Leader’ series is a great place to start if your looking to study English usage for business.  The series comes in all levels meaning you can find something just right for your level of English.  If you know of any other great business books for learners, please post them in the comments section as our readers would definitely like to know of the quality resources that are out there.

Monster Book