WEBVTT FILE 1 00:00:00.340 --> 00:00:04.280 Well hey there I'm Emma from mmmEnglish! 2 00:00:04.420 --> 00:00:07.900 Today I've got some very common English expressions 3 00:00:07.900 --> 00:00:11.640 and idioms to help you talk about working from home, 4 00:00:12.380 --> 00:00:14.820 something that many of us have been getting used to 5 00:00:14.820 --> 00:00:15.740 lately, right? 6 00:00:15.740 --> 00:00:17.060 Are you working from home? 7 00:00:17.180 --> 00:00:19.660 What do you think about it so far? Do you love it? 8 00:00:19.720 --> 00:00:21.000 Do you hate it? 9 00:00:21.480 --> 00:00:24.300 Do you feel like you're being very productive? 10 00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:27.220 Let me know about it in the comments. I'm curious. 11 00:00:27.220 --> 00:00:30.400 In the meantime, I've got fifteen English expressions 12 00:00:30.400 --> 00:00:33.520 for you to learn to help you talk about working 13 00:00:33.520 --> 00:00:36.440 from home and doing things professionally at home. 14 00:00:36.580 --> 00:00:39.940 Now some of them are informal but you can definitely 15 00:00:39.940 --> 00:00:43.100 still use them in a professional context, especially 16 00:00:43.100 --> 00:00:46.620 if you've got a good relationship with your clients, 17 00:00:46.620 --> 00:00:48.760 and your team and your customers. 18 00:00:48.760 --> 00:00:51.100 So if you all like to have a laugh together 19 00:00:51.540 --> 00:00:52.940 and make each other smile, 20 00:00:52.940 --> 00:00:55.620 then these are some really great idioms to use. 21 00:00:55.620 --> 00:00:56.820 So let's get started! 22 00:01:09.200 --> 00:01:12.040 Lockdown and working from home has shown 23 00:01:12.040 --> 00:01:14.000 millions of us around the world 24 00:01:14.140 --> 00:01:17.040 that we don't necessarily need to be in the same room 25 00:01:17.040 --> 00:01:19.360 to feel like we're together and to connect 26 00:01:19.360 --> 00:01:20.380 with each other. 27 00:01:20.660 --> 00:01:23.160 And even though video chat is nothing new, 28 00:01:23.160 --> 00:01:25.640 it's funny how we've all been getting used to having 29 00:01:25.640 --> 00:01:27.560 conversations by a video 30 00:01:27.720 --> 00:01:30.380 in ways that we didn't really do before. 31 00:01:30.740 --> 00:01:34.680 So being able to see each other is so easy now and it 32 00:01:34.680 --> 00:01:36.620 makes such a difference. 33 00:01:36.680 --> 00:01:39.500 You probably know that I'm a huge fan of Lingoda, 34 00:01:39.500 --> 00:01:41.580 the online language school that offers 35 00:01:41.580 --> 00:01:44.820 everything you'll find in a traditional language school 36 00:01:45.020 --> 00:01:48.840 but with the flexibility of everything being online. 37 00:01:49.080 --> 00:01:52.080 And what's so great about it is that when you study 38 00:01:52.080 --> 00:01:55.080 with Lingoda, you're studying with real people 39 00:01:55.080 --> 00:01:57.560 who are just like you via video. 40 00:01:57.840 --> 00:01:59.760 You can see them, you can hear them, 41 00:01:59.760 --> 00:02:03.340 you can read their facial expressions, their tone of voice, 42 00:02:03.420 --> 00:02:06.620 their mood, all of these things that are so important 43 00:02:06.620 --> 00:02:08.620 to great conversations. 44 00:02:08.620 --> 00:02:11.100 Yeah there are language apps that you can use 45 00:02:11.100 --> 00:02:12.700 and they're good for some things 46 00:02:12.720 --> 00:02:14.300 like learning vocabulary 47 00:02:14.540 --> 00:02:17.280 but interacting with a robot on your screen, 48 00:02:17.280 --> 00:02:19.160 it really isn't the same. 49 00:02:20.240 --> 00:02:22.999 Hello Emma shall we enjoy a walk in the apartment? 50 00:02:23.180 --> 00:02:23.999 What? 51 00:02:24.160 --> 00:02:26.960 Joining live online classes with Lingoda, 52 00:02:26.960 --> 00:02:30.540 with native teachers and real classmates is so much 53 00:02:30.540 --> 00:02:33.960 better and being online means that you can easily study 54 00:02:33.960 --> 00:02:36.100 from home at a time that suits you. 55 00:02:36.280 --> 00:02:39.400 Each Lingoda class is a small group class 56 00:02:39.400 --> 00:02:41.840 so you'll always have the chance to participate 57 00:02:41.840 --> 00:02:45.320 and get personal feedback at every step along the way. 58 00:02:45.360 --> 00:02:49.180 If you haven't tried Lingoda before well now is a really 59 00:02:49.180 --> 00:02:52.520 great time to see what it's like studying from home 60 00:02:52.520 --> 00:02:55.200 and there are a couple of ways that you can try it out. 61 00:02:55.460 --> 00:02:58.419 The first is to sign up for their free offer 62 00:02:58.419 --> 00:03:01.039 which includes three group classes 63 00:03:01.040 --> 00:03:03.340 that you have to take within seven days 64 00:03:03.340 --> 00:03:06.660 or alternatively use this code to get 65 00:03:06.660 --> 00:03:09.500 a thirty euro discount off your first payment. 66 00:03:09.639 --> 00:03:12.959 I'll put the details and the link to join in the description 67 00:03:12.960 --> 00:03:15.160 below. If you go and check them out 68 00:03:15.160 --> 00:03:16.799 let me know what you think. 69 00:03:16.900 --> 00:03:20.380 So we've all been through quite a bit of change lately, 70 00:03:20.560 --> 00:03:24.080 haven't we? Adjusting our social lives obviously 71 00:03:24.080 --> 00:03:28.720 but we've also had to learn new skills and get organised 72 00:03:28.720 --> 00:03:31.880 so that we can actually work effectively from home 73 00:03:31.880 --> 00:03:34.380 and when our teams are apart. 74 00:03:34.380 --> 00:03:37.460 Now perhaps you've had to be a little creative 75 00:03:37.460 --> 00:03:40.180 getting your workspace set up so that you can actually 76 00:03:40.180 --> 00:03:41.860 do your work effectively. 77 00:03:41.980 --> 00:03:44.660 So let's start with some really common idioms 78 00:03:44.660 --> 00:03:48.120 that talk about learning new things. 79 00:03:48.820 --> 00:03:50.600 Anyone feel like they've been 80 00:03:50.600 --> 00:03:52.600 thrown in the deep end lately? 81 00:03:53.580 --> 00:03:56.560 You might also hear this expression as 'thrown in 82 00:03:56.560 --> 00:03:59.380 at the deep end' as well. Either's fine. 83 00:03:59.380 --> 00:04:03.660 But this is a really common idiom especially in 84 00:04:03.660 --> 00:04:06.939 a professional context because it describes that 85 00:04:06.940 --> 00:04:11.620 moment when you're forced to do something unfamiliar 86 00:04:11.620 --> 00:04:14.800 or perhaps something that's quite complex and 87 00:04:14.800 --> 00:04:16.920 without much help from anyone else. 88 00:04:17.260 --> 00:04:20.880 You've just got to sort of try and work it out on your own 89 00:04:21.060 --> 00:04:24.620 which is why this idiom is so relevant now 90 00:04:24.620 --> 00:04:27.440 because so many of us have been thrown in the deep 91 00:04:27.440 --> 00:04:31.240 end recently because working from home is a very 92 00:04:31.240 --> 00:04:33.240 new and different experience. 93 00:04:33.440 --> 00:04:36.460 Often at a new job, this happens right? When you're 94 00:04:36.460 --> 00:04:39.279 put in an unfamiliar situation and you're just 95 00:04:39.279 --> 00:04:44.259 expected to work it out or to get good results. 96 00:04:44.680 --> 00:04:47.100 Your manager might throw you in the deep end 97 00:04:47.100 --> 00:04:49.480 to see how you respond under pressure. 98 00:04:50.460 --> 00:04:53.520 Something to note about this idiom is that you'll often 99 00:04:53.520 --> 00:04:55.900 hear it used in the passive voice. 100 00:04:56.300 --> 00:04:59.800 It's good to be thrown in the deep end. 101 00:04:59.800 --> 00:05:01.340 It's the fastest way to learn. 102 00:05:02.200 --> 00:05:04.940 But by using the passive voice here, 103 00:05:04.940 --> 00:05:08.040 we make the experience the most important part 104 00:05:08.040 --> 00:05:11.600 in the sentence. It doesn't really matter who 105 00:05:11.779 --> 00:05:14.719 threw you in the deep end right? Doesn't matter. 106 00:05:15.560 --> 00:05:19.160 But that's why using the passive is a really good option 107 00:05:19.160 --> 00:05:20.120 with this idiom. 108 00:05:20.300 --> 00:05:23.420 This is a really great, really common expression 109 00:05:23.420 --> 00:05:25.280 'to get the hang of something' 110 00:05:25.400 --> 00:05:28.279 and it really just means to learn how to 111 00:05:28.279 --> 00:05:31.519 do something, especially when it's not obvious 112 00:05:31.520 --> 00:05:32.820 or it's not simple. 113 00:05:33.260 --> 00:05:36.120 Don't worry, I'll teach you how to use the software. 114 00:05:36.120 --> 00:05:37.520 You'll get the hang of it soon. 115 00:05:37.520 --> 00:05:40.880 So that just means you'll learn how to do it soon 116 00:05:40.880 --> 00:05:42.980 and then it's not going to be a problem for you. 117 00:05:43.240 --> 00:05:46.260 Now if you've only just recently started 118 00:05:46.260 --> 00:05:47.560 working from home, 119 00:05:47.560 --> 00:05:50.500 you might still be getting the hang of it 120 00:05:50.720 --> 00:05:53.520 but a lot of us have been working from home 121 00:05:53.520 --> 00:05:56.520 for a few weeks now or a few months. Perhaps you're 122 00:05:56.520 --> 00:05:58.200 getting comfortable with it. 123 00:05:58.200 --> 00:06:00.820 So I want you to think about the tense that you 124 00:06:00.820 --> 00:06:03.360 should be using with this expression right? 125 00:06:03.360 --> 00:06:06.860 Is it happening now or did it happen in the past? 126 00:06:08.620 --> 00:06:11.920 It wasn't easy to sell products to customers on Zoom. 127 00:06:12.420 --> 00:06:14.660 It took a while for me to get the hang of it. 128 00:06:15.660 --> 00:06:19.140 Or eventually, I got the hang of it. 129 00:06:19.440 --> 00:06:21.900 So I want to know, have you been 130 00:06:21.900 --> 00:06:24.720 getting the hang of something lately? 131 00:06:25.040 --> 00:06:27.260 Definitely share it in the comments. I'm curious. 132 00:06:27.260 --> 00:06:28.700 Use it in a sentence! 133 00:06:29.380 --> 00:06:32.540 So another idiom with a very similar meaning 134 00:06:32.540 --> 00:06:36.360 to that one is 'to get your head around something' 135 00:06:36.640 --> 00:06:40.080 which means to understand something that is 136 00:06:40.080 --> 00:06:42.660 challenging or confusing. 137 00:06:42.720 --> 00:06:45.979 So have any of you had to teach your parents 138 00:06:45.980 --> 00:06:48.080 or your grandparents how to use Zoom 139 00:06:48.080 --> 00:06:50.300 or Skype in the last few weeks? 140 00:06:50.540 --> 00:06:52.580 I think they've been some painful moments 141 00:06:52.580 --> 00:06:54.460 for all of us right? 142 00:06:55.300 --> 00:06:58.360 It took my grannie a few attempts to get her head 143 00:06:58.360 --> 00:07:00.660 around it but now she loves it. 144 00:07:01.500 --> 00:07:03.740 And you can definitely use this expression in 145 00:07:03.740 --> 00:07:05.500 all sorts of contexts, 146 00:07:05.500 --> 00:07:07.820 anytime that you're learning something new. 147 00:07:09.100 --> 00:07:11.500 Bryan ran me through the process yesterday 148 00:07:11.500 --> 00:07:13.840 and I think I've got my head around it now. 149 00:07:14.480 --> 00:07:18.160 I think I've finally got my head around how this works. 150 00:07:19.080 --> 00:07:22.100 And there's a couple of variations on this idiom as well. 151 00:07:22.100 --> 00:07:24.980 To wrap your head around something 152 00:07:25.180 --> 00:07:28.360 or to get your mind around something 153 00:07:28.360 --> 00:07:30.280 which is a bit less common but you'll 154 00:07:30.280 --> 00:07:33.880 hear those different variations from time to time. 155 00:07:34.420 --> 00:07:35.600 To take a hit. 156 00:07:36.140 --> 00:07:40.040 Now this is an informal expression that's used to 157 00:07:40.040 --> 00:07:43.920 talk about when something suffers damage or loss. 158 00:07:43.920 --> 00:07:47.780 So for example, the hospitality industry right now 159 00:07:47.780 --> 00:07:51.460 has taken a huge hit due to the corona virus. 160 00:07:51.580 --> 00:07:53.660 Same with the tourism industry. 161 00:07:54.320 --> 00:07:57.860 Some companies may have noticed that employee 162 00:07:57.860 --> 00:08:01.360 productivity took a hit over the past few months 163 00:08:01.360 --> 00:08:03.780 as everyone adjusted to their new 164 00:08:03.780 --> 00:08:05.780 home working environments. 165 00:08:06.160 --> 00:08:09.400 So can you think of a way to use this expression 166 00:08:09.400 --> 00:08:12.159 in a sentence? You know, can you think of 167 00:08:12.160 --> 00:08:15.439 something else that has taken a hit 168 00:08:15.760 --> 00:08:20.120 over the last few months? So it has been negatively 169 00:08:20.120 --> 00:08:22.420 affected or negatively impacted. 170 00:08:23.080 --> 00:08:26.020 And maybe you're thinking: you know what, Emma? 171 00:08:26.120 --> 00:08:30.340 Surprisingly this transition, you know, of 172 00:08:30.340 --> 00:08:31.700 working at home now. 173 00:08:31.700 --> 00:08:34.640 It's not been as difficult as I was expecting. 174 00:08:35.440 --> 00:08:38.559 Then this expression is the one to use. 175 00:08:38.559 --> 00:08:40.559 It's been smooth sailing. 176 00:08:41.460 --> 00:08:44.780 Now it's used as an adjective to say that something 177 00:08:44.780 --> 00:08:47.039 is easy or it's manageable, 178 00:08:47.500 --> 00:08:50.179 that everything is going according to plan. 179 00:08:50.179 --> 00:08:52.179 There's nothing you need to worry about. 180 00:08:52.300 --> 00:08:55.260 If you're a school teacher or a university teacher, 181 00:08:55.260 --> 00:08:58.420 I'm sure when you first found out that you needed 182 00:08:58.420 --> 00:09:01.340 to take online classes, you're a bit worried. 183 00:09:01.340 --> 00:09:03.440 Maybe you were worried about the technology 184 00:09:03.440 --> 00:09:06.000 or maybe you were worried if your students would even 185 00:09:06.000 --> 00:09:10.120 participate in online classes but hopefully, 186 00:09:10.380 --> 00:09:12.100 to your surprise, 187 00:09:12.100 --> 00:09:14.940 there haven't been too many problems at all. 188 00:09:15.380 --> 00:09:18.960 So when someone asks you "Hey how's it going?" 189 00:09:19.440 --> 00:09:22.860 You could answer 190 00:09:23.240 --> 00:09:25.220 "Surprisingly, it's all been smooth sailing." 191 00:09:25.700 --> 00:09:27.300 When the schools closed, 192 00:09:27.300 --> 00:09:29.800 it was a difficult transition for the kids. 193 00:09:30.080 --> 00:09:32.320 But once we got a routine in place, 194 00:09:32.320 --> 00:09:34.160 it's been smooth sailing! 195 00:09:35.200 --> 00:09:37.940 And you can definitely use this same expression 196 00:09:37.940 --> 00:09:41.280 in the negative form to express the opposite idea right? 197 00:09:41.280 --> 00:09:44.300 You can say "It hasn't been smooth sailing. 198 00:09:44.360 --> 00:09:48.200 The team's found it really hard to collaborate remotely." 199 00:09:48.420 --> 00:09:51.520 I love this one. A madhouse. 200 00:09:52.500 --> 00:09:55.120 Now this is a place where there is no order 201 00:09:55.120 --> 00:09:57.280 and no control whatsoever. 202 00:09:57.280 --> 00:09:59.760 I'm wondering if this expression could be useful 203 00:09:59.760 --> 00:10:02.700 to help you talk about your home office. It's a really 204 00:10:02.700 --> 00:10:04.140 humorous expression, you know, 205 00:10:04.140 --> 00:10:07.220 when you're trying to make a joke about how crazy and 206 00:10:07.220 --> 00:10:10.980 frustrating a situation is. So if you've got your kids 207 00:10:10.980 --> 00:10:15.039 and your partner and a dog and you're all at home, 208 00:10:15.040 --> 00:10:19.800 you're all stuck inside working, studying, eating, cooking, 209 00:10:19.800 --> 00:10:22.179 working out in the same space, 210 00:10:22.179 --> 00:10:26.379 you could joke with your colleagues about how wild it is, 211 00:10:26.380 --> 00:10:27.700 you know, when they're asking you 212 00:10:27.700 --> 00:10:30.240 "How's it going over there? How are you coping?" 213 00:10:30.460 --> 00:10:34.200 You can just laugh and say 214 00:10:34.200 --> 00:10:37.960 "It's a madhouse! I will be glad when all of this is over!" 215 00:10:38.380 --> 00:10:39.920 Or when you're on a video call 216 00:10:40.240 --> 00:10:43.240 when you're talking to a colleague and you know, 217 00:10:43.240 --> 00:10:44.780 your kids burst in. 218 00:10:44.980 --> 00:10:46.800 "I'm so sorry about the disruption. 219 00:10:46.800 --> 00:10:49.660 It's a madhouse around here!" 220 00:10:50.059 --> 00:10:53.819 But always use the expression with humour you know, 221 00:10:53.820 --> 00:10:57.140 when you're smiling and you're making a joke okay. 222 00:10:57.140 --> 00:10:59.140 Hopefully, they understand. 223 00:10:59.900 --> 00:11:03.100 So if you're cooped up somewhere, you're in a small 224 00:11:03.100 --> 00:11:05.100 closed space, 225 00:11:05.260 --> 00:11:07.460 a space that you can't escape from. 226 00:11:08.360 --> 00:11:10.840 I hate being cooped up inside working 227 00:11:10.840 --> 00:11:12.580 when it's a sunny day outside. 228 00:11:12.580 --> 00:11:15.800 Or maybe a little more relevant to you right now. 229 00:11:16.300 --> 00:11:18.780 There are five of us cooped up inside this 230 00:11:18.780 --> 00:11:20.440 one tiny apartment! 231 00:11:22.020 --> 00:11:24.400 This is a really great idiom to learn 232 00:11:24.400 --> 00:11:26.020 and start using regularly. 233 00:11:26.120 --> 00:11:29.940 You can use it to say that you are really annoyed 234 00:11:29.940 --> 00:11:32.219 or you're really frustrated about something 235 00:11:32.220 --> 00:11:34.479 and you want it to end or stop. 236 00:11:34.880 --> 00:11:35.640 Like 237 00:11:35.640 --> 00:11:39.020 the neighbour that I have on the other side of this wall, 238 00:11:39.440 --> 00:11:42.199 he's learning to play the trumpet and 239 00:11:42.200 --> 00:11:46.219 it wasn't so bad before but now he's home all the time 240 00:11:46.220 --> 00:11:49.200 and he practises so much like I don't know 241 00:11:49.200 --> 00:11:50.780 when he's getting his work done, 242 00:11:50.780 --> 00:11:53.280 he's just playing the trumpet all the time. 243 00:11:53.280 --> 00:11:54.480 And I'm sick of it. 244 00:11:54.780 --> 00:11:57.700 Are you sick of being cooped up inside all day? 245 00:11:57.880 --> 00:12:01.380 If your kids are disrupting you while you're trying to work 246 00:12:01.700 --> 00:12:03.300 tell them you're sick of it! 247 00:12:03.540 --> 00:12:07.000 If you're frustrated because your internet speed has 248 00:12:07.000 --> 00:12:09.820 halved since everyone is now working at home, 249 00:12:10.120 --> 00:12:11.679 call the phone company 250 00:12:11.679 --> 00:12:13.379 and tell them that you're sick of it. 251 00:12:15.020 --> 00:12:18.260 So it's a really good one to use when you are frustrated 252 00:12:18.260 --> 00:12:19.700 and you're annoyed 253 00:12:19.700 --> 00:12:22.140 and since we're talking about being so frustrated 254 00:12:22.140 --> 00:12:27.420 and annoyed, let's talk about work meetings by video. 255 00:12:28.280 --> 00:12:31.000 There are so many annoying things about online 256 00:12:31.000 --> 00:12:33.720 meetings. Mute yourself if your kids are yelling in the 257 00:12:33.720 --> 00:12:36.220 background or there's a dog barking. 258 00:12:36.220 --> 00:12:38.479 Everyone else in the meeting can hear it. 259 00:12:38.480 --> 00:12:41.400 Or if you're working a little later in the evening 260 00:12:41.400 --> 00:12:43.840 when everyone else is watching Netflix, 261 00:12:44.260 --> 00:12:46.840 how annoying are all of the connection problems? 262 00:12:46.840 --> 00:12:50.260 It's like overload right so you get video and audio 263 00:12:50.260 --> 00:12:53.580 problems which are pretty frustrating when you have an 264 00:12:53.580 --> 00:12:54.520 online meeting. 265 00:12:54.640 --> 00:12:57.820 So I've got some expressions to help you talk about that 266 00:12:57.880 --> 00:13:02.340 The first one is to freeze or to be frozen, right? 267 00:13:03.260 --> 00:13:06.019 This is, you know, when your connection is bad. 268 00:13:06.320 --> 00:13:08.620 Hang on, you're frozen! 269 00:13:09.160 --> 00:13:12.760 Or you keep freezing! We can't hear you! 270 00:13:12.920 --> 00:13:15.699 Another useful one is to say that there's a lag 271 00:13:15.700 --> 00:13:18.640 or there is a delay which is really annoying. 272 00:13:18.640 --> 00:13:23.120 So you know when someone's mouth is moving but 273 00:13:23.120 --> 00:13:26.860 the voice is behind it so it's really frustrating 274 00:13:26.860 --> 00:13:28.600 to try and understand what's going on. 275 00:13:28.640 --> 00:13:34.020 And the last one is to say that the connection cut out. 276 00:13:34.020 --> 00:13:35.480 It cut out. 277 00:13:35.480 --> 00:13:38.840 I didn't hear you there, I missed something that you said. 278 00:13:39.280 --> 00:13:41.720 So all of these are really useful expressions 279 00:13:41.720 --> 00:13:45.180 when there are connection problems in online meetings. 280 00:13:45.720 --> 00:13:48.600 And this idiom is another one that's really useful 281 00:13:48.600 --> 00:13:50.920 in this situation. Hit and miss. 282 00:13:51.120 --> 00:13:54.700 So if something is hit and miss, you can't rely on it right? 283 00:13:54.700 --> 00:13:58.179 You can't confidently say that it's gonna be good quality 284 00:13:58.179 --> 00:14:00.239 and accurate and perfect. 285 00:14:00.559 --> 00:14:03.039 Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. 286 00:14:03.200 --> 00:14:04.620 So you could say 287 00:14:04.620 --> 00:14:07.920 "I'm really sorry, my internet connection has been a bit 288 00:14:07.920 --> 00:14:09.559 hit and miss today." 289 00:14:09.559 --> 00:14:12.059 Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad. 290 00:14:12.460 --> 00:14:15.520 But you can also use this same expression to talk about 291 00:14:15.520 --> 00:14:18.440 something else, the quality of something, you know. 292 00:14:19.380 --> 00:14:24.000 The coffee at my local cafe is a bit hit and miss. 293 00:14:24.400 --> 00:14:25.539 Sometimes it's good, 294 00:14:26.100 --> 00:14:29.260 sometimes it's bad, depends on who makes it. 295 00:14:29.440 --> 00:14:32.560 Now I want to share a few expressions that will help you 296 00:14:32.560 --> 00:14:36.000 during meetings, online meetings or in-person meetings 297 00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:36.980 down the tracks. 298 00:14:37.440 --> 00:14:39.860 But 'hold that thought' is a good one 299 00:14:39.860 --> 00:14:42.320 because the chances of getting disrupted while you're 300 00:14:42.320 --> 00:14:44.820 working from home are quite high, right? 301 00:14:45.000 --> 00:14:47.240 Your kids might wander into the room. Your dog 302 00:14:47.240 --> 00:14:50.260 might stop barking. The postman might 303 00:14:50.260 --> 00:14:53.280 ring the doorbell. The phone might ring. 304 00:14:53.280 --> 00:14:56.200 So it's really hard to avoid these distractions 305 00:14:56.200 --> 00:14:57.940 when you're working from home, right? 306 00:14:57.940 --> 00:14:59.840 So this expression is a really good one 307 00:14:59.840 --> 00:15:02.720 to let someone know that you 308 00:15:03.040 --> 00:15:05.660 want them to remember what you were talking about 309 00:15:05.660 --> 00:15:08.560 and you want to keep talking about it when you 310 00:15:08.560 --> 00:15:10.980 come back in a couple of moments okay 311 00:15:10.980 --> 00:15:14.160 so you're asking them to hold that thought. 312 00:15:14.160 --> 00:15:16.160 Keep it in your mind while I 313 00:15:16.920 --> 00:15:19.600 duck off and take the kids out of the room. 314 00:15:19.880 --> 00:15:24.240 I'm so sorry my son is calling me from the bathroom. 315 00:15:24.880 --> 00:15:26.760 Hold that thought, I'll be right back. 316 00:15:27.400 --> 00:15:31.260 This is a really great set of expressions to learn, given 317 00:15:31.260 --> 00:15:33.920 all of the distractions that we've been talking about. 318 00:15:34.280 --> 00:15:36.060 When you're in an online meeting, 319 00:15:36.060 --> 00:15:38.980 you want to make sure that you all stay focused, right? 320 00:15:38.980 --> 00:15:41.720 You need to keep focused on what you're doing, 321 00:15:41.720 --> 00:15:45.960 you need to stay on track and try not to get off track. 322 00:15:46.120 --> 00:15:48.980 So on track is when things are happening 323 00:15:48.980 --> 00:15:51.840 as they should be, there's no problems at all. 324 00:15:52.160 --> 00:15:55.820 And if something is not happening as you want it to 325 00:15:55.820 --> 00:15:57.260 and you want to change it, 326 00:15:57.260 --> 00:16:01.240 that's when we use the expression 'to get back on track' 327 00:16:01.460 --> 00:16:07.080 So logically if something is not on track, it's off track. 328 00:16:07.080 --> 00:16:09.720 It's not happening as it should be, right? 329 00:16:09.880 --> 00:16:12.080 So I want you to imagine this. 330 00:16:12.080 --> 00:16:14.359 You're meeting some of your colleagues to discuss 331 00:16:14.360 --> 00:16:16.100 a project that you've been working on 332 00:16:16.100 --> 00:16:19.660 but halfway through, someone's cat walks across 333 00:16:19.660 --> 00:16:22.880 the screen, across the keyboard and everyone starts 334 00:16:22.880 --> 00:16:24.820 laughing and talking about how 335 00:16:24.820 --> 00:16:26.780 hard it is to work from home. 336 00:16:26.780 --> 00:16:29.240 They're talking about their kids and what they had 337 00:16:29.240 --> 00:16:31.640 for dinner last night and 338 00:16:31.640 --> 00:16:35.260 anything else except what you should be talking about 339 00:16:35.260 --> 00:16:36.240 in the meeting. 340 00:16:36.240 --> 00:16:39.460 So you might want to just interrupt the conversation 341 00:16:39.460 --> 00:16:43.060 and say "Guys we're getting off track. 342 00:16:43.060 --> 00:16:44.740 We've only got ten minutes left 343 00:16:44.740 --> 00:16:46.920 until the end of the meeting and we haven't even 344 00:16:46.920 --> 00:16:49.360 started talking about the marketing budget yet." 345 00:16:50.020 --> 00:16:52.340 We should have completed the project last week 346 00:16:52.340 --> 00:16:55.520 but we got off track with a few technical issues. 347 00:16:56.360 --> 00:16:58.840 Hey have you heard this expression before 348 00:16:58.840 --> 00:17:00.660 about brownie points? 349 00:17:00.960 --> 00:17:03.900 It's quite a funny expression, a humorous expression 350 00:17:03.900 --> 00:17:05.840 as well just like madhouse. 351 00:17:05.840 --> 00:17:09.040 It's relevant now but you can use it at any time 352 00:17:09.040 --> 00:17:11.819 because you earn brownie points by getting 353 00:17:11.820 --> 00:17:15.460 praise or approval for something that you've done. 354 00:17:15.460 --> 00:17:19.020 So if you do something good, you earn or you get 355 00:17:19.020 --> 00:17:20.440 brownie points, right? 356 00:17:20.440 --> 00:17:23.180 So I've got a good example to share from just yesterday. 357 00:17:23.260 --> 00:17:25.900 I had a funny conversation with one of my 358 00:17:25.900 --> 00:17:27.180 team members, Kat. 359 00:17:27.260 --> 00:17:30.700 She overslept and missed a meeting which 360 00:17:30.700 --> 00:17:33.700 I wasn't too worried about because she works so hard 361 00:17:34.220 --> 00:17:37.080 and I said to her "Don't worry Kat, 362 00:17:37.080 --> 00:17:40.480 you've got enough brownie points to sleep in once." 363 00:17:40.540 --> 00:17:41.900 But she was like 364 00:17:42.200 --> 00:17:45.520 "I know, but I don't want to lose my brownie points" 365 00:17:45.820 --> 00:17:50.119 But the funny thing is that these points are not real, 366 00:17:50.119 --> 00:17:52.939 you know, they don't get you anything except 367 00:17:52.940 --> 00:17:55.000 someone else's good opinion of you. 368 00:17:55.280 --> 00:17:58.480 But having brownie points is definitely a good thing. 369 00:17:58.480 --> 00:18:00.920 It's really important to have someone's good opinion 370 00:18:00.920 --> 00:18:02.559 of you, right? So you would 371 00:18:02.560 --> 00:18:04.859 probably earn brownie points with your neighbours 372 00:18:04.859 --> 00:18:08.199 if you left a cake on their doorstep for them. 373 00:18:08.580 --> 00:18:11.500 Or if your partner cooked a meal and cleaned the whole 374 00:18:11.500 --> 00:18:15.400 house for you, you might be a little suspicious and think 375 00:18:15.560 --> 00:18:18.780 why are you trying to earn brownie points with me? 376 00:18:18.980 --> 00:18:22.420 So can you think of something that would earn you 377 00:18:22.420 --> 00:18:24.560 brownie points with someone in your household 378 00:18:24.560 --> 00:18:26.520 at the moment? What could you do 379 00:18:26.520 --> 00:18:29.340 to earn some brownie points? 380 00:18:29.340 --> 00:18:32.640 Hang in there! Everything is gonna be okay. 381 00:18:32.880 --> 00:18:36.000 It will become easier, you will get used to it. 382 00:18:36.000 --> 00:18:39.500 So this expression is really useful 383 00:18:39.500 --> 00:18:41.460 when you want to tell someone not to give up 384 00:18:41.460 --> 00:18:44.500 even though it's hard, even though it's difficult. 385 00:18:44.920 --> 00:18:47.320 So if you've got friends or you've got family members 386 00:18:47.320 --> 00:18:49.880 or colleagues who are having a difficult time 387 00:18:49.880 --> 00:18:53.400 adjusting to this new situation that we're in 388 00:18:53.780 --> 00:18:56.500 and you know, they're sharing their troubles with you 389 00:18:56.500 --> 00:18:58.750 about how their kids keep interrupting their online 390 00:18:58.750 --> 00:19:01.040 meetings, tell them to hang in there. 391 00:19:01.900 --> 00:19:04.420 Or if you know health care workers and they're 392 00:19:04.420 --> 00:19:07.100 exhausted and they're anxious, tell them 393 00:19:07.100 --> 00:19:10.780 "Hang in there. You know this won't go on forever." 394 00:19:11.240 --> 00:19:14.140 So this is the new norm my friends 395 00:19:14.520 --> 00:19:16.180 or the new normal. 396 00:19:16.180 --> 00:19:19.020 You know and we use this expression, it's quite informal 397 00:19:19.380 --> 00:19:22.240 to talk about when our circumstances have changed 398 00:19:22.240 --> 00:19:25.840 you know, and we have to get used to a new situation 399 00:19:25.840 --> 00:19:27.460 and get comfortable with it. 400 00:19:27.460 --> 00:19:30.800 Obviously, it's a really relevant expression to use 401 00:19:30.800 --> 00:19:34.580 right now but you can also use it in other contexts 402 00:19:34.580 --> 00:19:37.620 as well when your life circumstances change. 403 00:19:37.859 --> 00:19:41.679 So for me, I had a friend who has just had a baby 404 00:19:42.000 --> 00:19:45.080 and I was saying "I just don't know how 405 00:19:45.080 --> 00:19:47.359 you function with only three hours sleep" 406 00:19:48.220 --> 00:19:51.499 and she said "Emma, it's the new norm in our house. 407 00:19:51.500 --> 00:19:53.500 We're just having to get used to it." 408 00:19:54.260 --> 00:19:56.280 It's the new norm. 409 00:19:56.420 --> 00:19:59.000 So I hope you're hanging in there my friends and that 410 00:19:59.000 --> 00:20:00.740 you're getting used to the new norm. 411 00:20:00.740 --> 00:20:02.500 I would love for you 412 00:20:02.500 --> 00:20:06.119 to think of any other English idioms that are relevant 413 00:20:06.119 --> 00:20:10.539 to working from home. It's really important right now 414 00:20:10.540 --> 00:20:14.300 to find ways to express ourselves to talk about 415 00:20:14.300 --> 00:20:16.960 working from home and some of these challenges. 416 00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:19.200 Like I said, if you can think of some others 417 00:20:19.200 --> 00:20:22.580 definitely add them in but what I want you to do 418 00:20:22.760 --> 00:20:26.700 is to choose a few of the ones I talked about today, 419 00:20:26.700 --> 00:20:29.140 practise them, pause the video right now. 420 00:20:29.140 --> 00:20:31.540 Write your sentences, add them into the comments 421 00:20:31.540 --> 00:20:34.220 below because I'm gonna be down there checking, 422 00:20:34.300 --> 00:20:36.980 giving some feedback and making some corrections 423 00:20:36.980 --> 00:20:38.000 if you need it. 424 00:20:38.020 --> 00:20:42.039 But this really is the best way to try and remember 425 00:20:42.100 --> 00:20:45.400 these idioms and these new expressions, right? 426 00:20:45.400 --> 00:20:47.280 Put them into practice. 427 00:20:47.920 --> 00:20:51.939 So that's it my friends! Stay safe, take care of yourselves 428 00:20:51.940 --> 00:20:54.300 and I will see you in the next lesson 429 00:20:54.300 --> 00:20:56.080 here at mmmEnglish. 430 00:20:56.760 --> 00:20:59.140 Bye for now!