#61- 18 Words for Work, Business and The Office

Welcome to episode #62  of the Real Life English with Gabby Podcast! In this episode, you'll learn 18 popular phrasal verbs, slang words, and idioms that you’ll hear in real American conversations about work and business. This is such an important topic for everyone, because of how many English learners want to learn English in order to get better jobs. Whether you want to learn English for career purpose or just want to improve your general knowledge of English, this episode is for you. 

In this episode, you’ll learn expressions like: 

 👉 crunch time

👉 pull your weight

👉 in the loop

👉 touch base 

...and more!

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• All vocabulary from the episode
• Definitions + new examples
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Transcript

[00:00:00] On this episode of The Real Life English with Gabby podcast, I'll be teaching you 18 phrasal verbs, slang words, and idioms—all about the office, work, and business. You'll be learning vocabulary like crunch time, pull your weight, in the loop, touch base, and more. Let's get to it.

Hey there. Welcome to The Real Life English with Gabby podcast. I'm your host, Gabby, your fun and friendly English teacher from the one and only New York City. My goal is to teach you phrasal verbs, idioms, and slang that will help you speak English confidently and understand real American conversations.

Are you ready to improve your English skills? Let's jump right in.

Hey, hey, hey. Greetings from New York City. Welcome to episode number 61. How are you doing today? Over here in New [00:01:00] York City, we're doing well. We're hot, but we're doing well. As always, things are crazy here in the USA. This is our new normal.

If you don't know who Jeffrey Epstein was, I highly recommend that you look up that name on Google. Jeffrey Epstein. Do a Google search and find out why he's the hot topic of the week—well, really the hot topic of the past two years, but it continues to be a hot topic every week.

We currently have a lot of coverups and government scandals happening here. I actually did an episode about this—one of my favorite episodes, episode number three, back when I just started the podcast. It's called 20 Political Crime and Scandal Words, Phrasal Verbs and Expressions That Americans Love to Use.

I know it's a long title. After you [00:02:00] Google Jeffrey Epstein, listen to that episode because it has a lot of good political crime and scandal vocabulary.

This episode, however, is all about the office, work, business, and basically learning how to communicate in any type of professional setting.

For many of you, this is an extremely important topic because you'll be working for English-speaking companies. Or maybe because of your English level, your current job gave you a position that requires you to speak English. Maybe you don't work at an English-speaking company yet, or maybe you don't have an English-speaking role yet—but maybe that's your goal or your dream, to get an English-speaking job.

If you fit any of these categories—or even if you don't and you just want to continue to improve your English—this [00:03:00] episode will be very beneficial to you.

I've mentioned this in previous episodes, but I was inspired to become an English teacher in the first place because of an experience that I had on a humanitarian trip in Cambodia. At the time, I was a pre-medical student. I wanted to be a doctor, and we went down there to do medical clinics, and everyone we came across begged us to teach them English.

And this was the first time I ever experienced anything like that. I had traveled on other humanitarian trips. I've been on 13 humanitarian trips—something that I loved to do and hopefully can do again in the future.

Most of the time we had gone on these trips, people asked us for medicine, medical help. [00:04:00] But this was the first trip where people were actually begging—literally begging—us to speak English with them and teach them English. And I found this so unbelievable. And when I asked them why, they said it’s because they wanted to get English-speaking jobs so that they could get their families out of poverty.

And that's when I felt a little spark in my heart, because I wanted to be a doctor, and I wanted to do Doctors Without Borders. I wanted to do medicine in developing countries and help people. But this was the first time that I actually realized how much English could impact someone's life. And they told us, “If I can get an English-speaking job, I can literally get my family out of poverty.”

And this is the first time that I really understood what a life-saving tool the English language could be. [00:05:00]

And so here I am. That was actually back in 2007—unbelievable, almost 20 years ago. I was in college. So I know the impact of speaking English and what doors English can open in all of your lives.

And so, this topic I love. And of course, every episode can help you with your job, but this episode is specifically for this.

We've briefly touched on this in previous episodes, but American culture lacks the formality that many other cultures have. Formality is really limited to specific scenarios and situations here in the United States. And even then, we don't really have many rules surrounding formality.

A lot of students, when they come here, they ask, "Oh, is this formal or informal?" [00:06:00] And I explain to them, we don't really have that sense of formality that many other languages do.

In the workplace, we do maintain a certain level of formality. We call it professionalism. However, that more refers to how we speak—not necessarily the words that we use. Like how we carry ourselves, how we say something.

For example, using profanity—bad words, curse words—at work is often frowned upon, meaning it's a negative thing. However, using phrasal verbs, idioms, and slang is often accepted and seen as normal. So while speaking to your manager or coworkers, you can use academic language if you want, but you can also use phrasal verbs and slang words.

In a business email, however, we do encourage [00:07:00] you to use more formal language—use more academic English. You can use idioms and phrasal verbs; there's no problem with that. Slang—hmm, questionable. But we have some slang that's very acceptable and even normal in society now. It's been accepted for years.

So, you know, don't feel like you have to only use formal or academic language in the workplace.

Typically, we say for job interviews: try to be as professional as possible, use big words, maybe don't use slang. But honestly, every situation is so different.

But all that to say: don't worry too much about formality.

Alright, so let me tell you the vocabulary that you are going to learn in this episode.

Clock in, clock out, lay off, micromanager, step up, take on, climb the corporate ladder, crunch time, pitch in, on or off the clock, pull your weight, [00:08:00] drop the ball, think outside the box, behind the scenes, in the loop, out of the loop, touch base, on the same page, hit the ground running, and lastly, follow up on.

So we've got a nice mix of phrasal verbs, idioms, and slang words here.

Alright. Now, before we get to the story, I just want to remind you that there's a free study guide waiting for you that has extra study materials that you need. You can use the study guide to practice what you learn in the episode. It has all of the words, definitions, example sentences, and the transcript—along with the story and, most importantly, practice activities.

You can also join the mailing list this way—the email list—which means that you'll get every study guide sent to you automatically. You get free [00:09:00] lessons that I send out, and you'll hear about any cool updates that are going on with English with Gabby, which there will be a lot of in the next few months.

To get the guide, click the link in the episode description.

Alright, now let's get to the story. Listen to this story that has all the words in real-life contexts. See if you can guess their meanings based on the context. After the story, we'll review all of the definitions and hear more examples so that you can understand exactly what they mean.

It was Monday morning, and Maya clocked in at exactly 9:00 a.m. She worked as a marketing assistant at BrightPath Solutions, which was a mid-sized tech company. The company recently had a round of layoffs, but thankfully her position had been spared. Her team had a big presentation coming up for [00:10:00] a new client, and everyone was feeling the pressure.

Her boss, Mr. Caldwell, was a known micromanager. He liked to be in control of every little detail, and it made the team nervous. Still, Maya was ready to step up and show what she could do.

"Who's going to take on the final presentation slides?" Mr. Caldwell asked during the morning meeting.

"I can do it," Maya said, raising her hand.

She wanted to climb the corporate ladder, and this was her chance to impress her boss. It was crunch time, and the deadline was just two days away. The whole team had to pitch in and work extra hours. Some stayed late, others came in early, and a few even answered [00:11:00] emails off the clock.

Maya noticed that some coworkers weren't really pulling their weight. One person even forgot to send an important file, completely dropping the ball. It caused a delay, but the team managed to recover quickly. To impress the client, Maya decided to think outside the box.

Instead of using boring PowerPoint slides, she designed an interactive demo. She worked behind the scenes with the tech team to get it ready. The day before the big meeting, Maya realized that one department hadn't been in the loop. They didn't even know the client's name.

"We need to touch base with the sales team and make sure we are all on the same page," she told her coworker.

Maya stayed late that night, finishing the demo. She wanted [00:12:00] to hit the ground running at the meeting the next day. The next morning, the team was nervous; however, their hard work ended up paying off. During the meeting, the client was extremely impressed. Maya led the presentation confidently. Her creative demo got everyone's attention.

Afterward, Mr. Caldwell smiled for the first time all week.

"Great work, Maya. That was outstanding. Let's follow up on this next week."

As Maya clocked out that evening, she felt proud. She had proven that she was ready for more responsibility. She was definitely ready to move up within her company.

The end.

Okay, let's now talk about all of the definitions to the vocabulary that you just heard.

First up, we have clock in and [00:13:00] clock out. So it says that Maya clocked in at 9:00 a.m., and then at the end of the story, it says, Maya clocked out that evening. She felt proud.

Clock in and clock out are both phrasal verbs, and they mean to officially record your arrival time and the time that you finish working. So if you get to work early, but you're just eating breakfast, relaxing—you don't clock in yet. You clock in right when you start to work, and then you clock out when you finish working.

For example:
 I usually clock in at 9:00 a.m. and clock out around 5:00 p.m.

Next up, we have layoff. Maya's company had just gone through a round of layoffs. There, we used it as a noun. This is a phrasal verb: lay off. It means to stop employing someone for business reasons, [00:14:00] typically financial reasons. This is different than being fired, where your own actions lead to your loss of employment.

Layoffs typically happen for financial reasons. And as I said, we can use it as a noun—layoff, one word—but in this context, to lay off is a phrasal verb.

For example:
 The company had to lay off 50 workers due to budget cuts.

Next up, we have the noun micromanager. A micromanager. This comes from the verb to micromanage. Micro means small or detailed. A micromanager is a boss who very closely controls every detail of work—often, they do a little bit too much.

So in the story, Maya's boss is a micromanager. He wants to know every detail. He is very [00:15:00] much on top of his employees.

For example:
 My boss is such a micromanager. He checks every single email I send.

Next up, we have the phrasal verb step up. Step up means to take responsibility or take action when needed. So someone needs help and you are there to take action. You are going to take responsibility.

For example:
 When the manager got sick, Jenna stepped up and ran the meeting.

Next up, we have to take on a task. So take on is a phrasal verb. When you take something on, you accept responsibility for something. So her manager asks, Who's gonna take on the final presentation slides? Who's going to accept responsibility for this? And she [00:16:00] volunteers.

For example:
 I decided to take on a new project even though it was a challenge.

Next up, we have the idiom to climb the corporate ladder. This means to get promoted or move up in a company. So in American corporate culture, this is how everyone who is a CEO—this is typically how they start. They typically start with a low position within a company and they work their way up. So this is another similar expression: to work your way up.

They start low, then eventually they become CEO. So to climb the corporate ladder is to get promoted or move up within a company.

For example:
 He's been working hard to climb the corporate ladder and become a director.

Next up, we have crunch time. Crunch time is a slang expression. This is a short, intense period when a lot of work has to be [00:17:00] done. So we say, All right guys, it's crunch time. We've got to focus and get some work done.

For example:
 It's crunch time. We need to finish this report by tomorrow morning.

Next up, we have the phrasal verb pitch in. This means to help with work, usually as part of a group. So everyone's working on something—okay, your turn to pitch in.

We've talked about this in previous episodes when we were discussing gift giving. So: I want to buy a gift for my boss. Would you like to pitch in? Everyone's pitching in $20. Here, it's more about helping with work for a project as part of your job.

For example:
 Everyone pitched in to help set up the office party.

Next up, we have to be on the clock or to be off the clock. To be off the clock [00:18:00] means you're not officially working. To be on the clock means officially working.

So, for example, when you're on the clock, that's the only time you're supposed to be working in American culture. And when you're off the clock, you're not supposed to be working—for legal reasons.

For example:
 I can't talk right now—I'm on the clock. Let's discuss this later when we are off the clock.

Next up, we have the expression to pull your weight. This means to do your fair share of work. So imagine if you have your weight and you are pulling it. Okay? You are responsible for pulling your own weight. If you don't pull your weight, someone else is going to have to do it.

For example:
 If you don't pull your weight, the whole team will suffer.

Next up, we have drop the ball. [00:19:00] To drop the ball means to make a mistake or fail to do something.

For example:
 I dropped the ball and forgot to send the file on time.

Next up, we have to think outside the box. This is to be creative and use new ideas. Don't do the same old thing.

For example:
 We need to think outside the box to solve this customer issue.

Next up, we have the expression behind the scenes. This means secretly or privately—things that are not seen by the public. So you might say: She looks happy on Instagram, but behind the scenes, she's actually miserable. Secretly or privately. In this context, it means the things that the public cannot see.

For example:
 A lot of work happens behind the scenes [00:20:00] before a product launch.

Next up, we have to be in the loop/to be out of the loop. This means being informed or uninformed about something. So to be in the loop means you know what's going on. To be out of the loop means that you don't know what's going on.

For example:
 I was out of the loop, so I didn’t know about the meeting.
 Please keep me in the loop about the project updates.

Next up, we have to touch base. This is to contact or talk with someone briefly. This is a very, very common thing to say to coworkers.

For example:
 Let's touch base later this week about the next steps.

Next up, we have to be on the same page. This is having the same understanding or [00:21:00] agreement—to have the same views on something, the same opinions. We say this in personal relationships. We see this in a lot of different aspects of life.

For example:
 Before we start the project, let's make sure we are on the same page.

Next up, we have to hit the ground running. This is an idiom and it means to start a job or task quickly and successfully.

For example, we see in the story that she wanted to hit the ground running at the meeting the next day. So the minute the meeting begins, she wanted to start quickly and successfully.

For example:
 She hit the ground running on her first day and impressed everyone.

And lastly, we have follow up on. This means to check on or continue with something previously discussed.

Let’s break this down a little bit: you talk to someone [00:22:00] about a topic—it could be anything—and then you have a second conversation about it. So you check on their progress or you continue talking about something that was previously discussed. This is a big communication phrasal verb.

For example:
 I'll follow up on that email tomorrow and let you know what they say.

Well, guess what? You just learned 18 phrasal verbs, slang words, and idioms all about work and business.

Hearing the definitions is great, but I'm gonna challenge you to do more so that you can really commit these to your memory.

So here's a little bit of homework.

Step one: go download the study guide if you haven't already. Take a look, do the practice activities, review all of the words and definitions so that you can really get them into your mind.

The strategy that I take [00:23:00] when it comes to teaching vocabulary is to expose you to vocabulary six to seven times, because that's typically what it takes for you to get something into your memory. So hearing it in context, then hearing the definition, then hearing an example—

In the podcast episode, you're exposed to these vocabulary words and expressions three times. With the study guide, there are three to four more touchpoints so that you can really remember everything that you hear.

So for today, your only homework is to download the study guide and do the practice activities. Trust me—you won't regret it.

Well, that’s a wrap for today’s episode of the Real Life English with Gabby podcast. Be sure to download today’s study guide so that you can learn how to use this vocabulary confidently. If you enjoyed this episode, [00:24:00] don’t forget to subscribe for more weekly adventures in English learning. Also, I’d love to hear from you, so please leave me a review.

Thanks so much for tuning in.