2020 was a year of …

– change and transformation,
– surprises,
– loss, but so many wins,
– ups and downs,
– learning lots and lots of new things,
– discovering what I love doing most,
– finding out what I don’t like doing at all,
– appreciating those little things in life,
– connecting with more strangers than ever before,
– challenges, but also successes and achievements.

And what about you? What was 2020 for you?

How do you make a pot of tea? Do you use loose leaves or tea bags? And what kind of sugar do you take? And how do you stir your tea in the cup?

British etiquette expert William Hanson explains the rules in this 37-second video clip!

Have you learnt anything new? Is this how you’ve been making your tea? Or have you been doing things differently?

If you work internationally, there are some things you might like to consider.

Should you be using the imperial or metric system?
How are dates and times formatted?
What about numbers? Some cultures use commas, while others use decimal points. 
And what about money? The location of the currency symbol varies according to language.

It’s also important to know that gestures might be understood differently and can cause confusion, but can also cause offence.

So take care! 

Euphemisms are polite expressions we use when we want to talk about negative things without sounding too negative.

Let’s look at euphemisms for people today.

Imagine you’re talking about someone you know. Instead of saying that they’re “old“, you can say that they are “getting on“.

Instead of saying that someone is “fat“, you might like to say that they are “rather on the large side” or “big boned“. (You might even have heard that someone is “horizontally challenged“, but I don’t use that term myself!)

And instead of saying that someone is “unemployed” or “out of work“, you can say that they are “between jobs” or “taking a break from regular work“!

Of course, you’ll find a lot more euphemisms —some of them quite crazy and inventive. So it’s up to you to decide which ones you’d rather use!

Did you enjoy this post? Do you know anyone else who’ll find it useful?

“We often avoid taking action because we think “I need to learn more,” but the best way to learn is often by taking action.”
James Clear

If you feel you need to learn more before starting, remember that it’s not about moving in the right direction. Because as you start moving, you’ll gain clarity on the next steps.

Take a minute to reflect: Where are you hesitating or procrastinating on taking action because you feel you need to learn more?

(Don’t worry. I need this reminder, too!)

We have different types of questions.

Open or open-ended questions don’t invite any particular answers. We use them to open up our discussions.
What do you think about the company’s new rules?

Closed or closed-ended questions are specific and are generally answered with a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’.
Do you like the new building?

Fact-finding questions are aimed at getting information on a particular subject.
How many participants have handed in their questionnaires?

Follow-up questions are intended to get more information or to elicit an opinion.
Are you happy with the results you received?

Feedback questions are aimed at getting a particular type of information.
Were you able to find the information you were looking for on our website?

Tag questions are very common in English. They are statements followed by a mini-question. We use them to ask for confirmation.
You like learning English, don’t you?
He doesn’t work on Fridays, does he?

Do you have a question for me?