Did you play a joke on anyone? Or did anyone play a joke on you?

We always said that if you wanted to play a joke on someone, it had to be before 12 noon. If you played a joke on someone after midday, you were considered the “April fool” yourself.

I used to go Nordic walking with a neighbour before he moved away. Last year, he told me that a brass band was rehearsing early in the morning close to a nearby stream, and that we could see them if we hurried up.

I was a little disappointed as I thought we had missed them. I needed a few minutes to realise that he had played a prank on me. 

In Germany, we say, “April, April”. And in the UK, we say “April fool!”

Did you know that spaghetti grows on trees?

Well, that’s what the British television programme Panorama broadcast on 1st April, 1957.

After watching this short video, you could easily believe what you hear and see!

Do you have a daily routine?

My day normally starts with my fitness programme. So you’ll either find me on the terrace, or walking through the woods or over the fields early in the morning.

When I’ve finished, I’m ready for my breakfast smoothie.

From there my calendar dictates my day.

Questlove, according to Wikipedia, is “an American musician, songwriter, disc jockey, author, music journalist, and film director”.

Listen to him in this YouTube video as he takes us through everything he does in a day—and find out how he makes time to listen to 100 new song every single day.

Remember to watch with subtitles if you need a little help.

Do you have a specific daily routine?

“I think I speak for the rest of us when I say, sorry—sorry we left you our mess of a planet.”

This is how Prince Ea—the stage name of American activist and spoken word artist, Richard Williams—begins his moving apology to future generations.

In his short video, Prince Ea urges us to take immediate action to stop climate change.

We all know that we desperately need to tackle climate change while we still can!

I feel I’ve learnt more over the past two years than in the last ten. Do you feel the same?

Here are just a few of my learnings:

I’m not afraid to try.
I’ll get better as I go along.
People don’t pay for interesting, they pay for valuable.
It’s not about me.
I’m not afraid to fail.
Simple is more successful than complicated.
I need to emphasise the benefits and not the features.
Clarity is the most valuable thing I can have.
I’ll never know if something can work until I put it into the world.
I’m not selling something to people, I’m offering them an opportunity.

And what about you? What have you learnt over the past few years?

(My list was inspired by an article written by Josh Spector.)

Every language has its own idioms and expressions.

But I believe they are not as important as you might think.

Instead of taking the time to learn them, spend more time on learning grammar or vocabulary, or working on your fluency skills. Especially if you want to be understood by everyone.

Why is that? Because so many idioms are regional. The idioms I use might not be understood in other parts of the world. And vice versa. I often come across idioms I’ve never heard before.

On top of that, if you don’t use idioms correctly, they sound unnatural.

Learn the most common ones if you like. But try to avoid them when you’re working with an international audience. Focus more on communicating in plain and simple language. 

Talking about idioms, here’s a German one I often used: “Abwarten und Tee trinken.” In English? “Wait and see!”

Do you have a favourite English idiom?