This lesson will focus on using a variety of expressions related to failure.
This lesson will help you use these idioms describing failure. You will also get a chance to talk about your own experiences.
The topic is failure, which may or may not be a familiar subject for most students.
Guide to Business Idioms
Why idioms?
Idioms bring up a lot of pre-packaged imagery. They are emotive and they resonate with native speakers.
Don't over-use them, but on the other hand, a well-placed idiom will bring your language to life.
Warm Up
- Be quick & interesting.
- Note idioms the student uses unprompted.
- You may say, "That was a clear answer, but it wasn't very natural. Let's add some natural expressions using the phrases in the Language section."
- Praise or recommend good spoken grammar:
- use of contractions (it isn't, they're, etc...);
- short, active sentences (clear spoken English often employs such language);
- emphatic language.
Language section
You may take multiple classes for this.
- Encourage short answers, but don't move too quickly (find a balance).
- Focus on the phrase at hand.
- Make sure the student is confident with each one before moving on.
- Encourage the student to express themselves using their own experiences or knowledge as much as possible.
- Model the target language as much as possible.
What failures were associated with the 2008 Global Financial Crisis?
This warm-up should take 2–3 minutes.
Note: In Japan, the G.F.C. is called the "Lehman Shock." While this is surely a catchier name, the Lehman Brothers collapse is widely seen as a symptom of dodgy practices like sub-prime mortgage lending—a practice that was surely a disaster waiting to happen.
Example: The Lehman Brothers
Lehman's bankruptcy filing is the largest in U.S. history and is thought to have played a major role in the unfolding of the financial crisis of 2007–2008. The market collapse also gave support to the "Too big to fail" doctrine. After Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, global markets immediately plummeted.
Please consider each expression and match them to the images. Your instructor has an example and a question regarding each one.
- lose ground—to fall behind; to fail to maintain your position.
- a no-win situation—a situation which is certain to end in failure.
- not going to fly—will not be successful.
- a disaster waiting to happen—something that is going to fail sooner or later.
- run into the ground—ruined or destroyed by bad management (can be used in the passive or active; here the subject is a company or a project, not a person; also has other meanings, e.g., exhausted)
A: |
B: |
C: |
D: |
E: |
Spend as long or as short a time as necessary on each phrase, but make sure the student can use it smoothly before moving on. The student should rephrase the "Practice" sentence with the target idiom, and then answer the "Question" using the target idiom.
1. (E) to lose ground
E.g.: Our sales are falling and we have lost ground on our competitors as a result.
Practice: We are not the market leader any more because our clients have left us.
→Example answer: We have lost ground in the market because our clients have left us.
Question: Why does a company sometimes fail to maintain its position?
→Example answer: Sometimes a company loses ground because its competitor has a better product.
2. (D) a no-win situation
E.g.: We can't sell the company and we can't afford to keep operating. It's a no-win situation.
Practice: Barry realised that he could not solve the problem successfully, no matter what he did.
→Example answer: Barry realised he was in a no-win situation.
Question: Have you ever faced a situation which was impossible to conclude successfully?
→Example answer: Once, we had a client who was either unhappy with the price or unhappy with the quality of the project. We couldn't satisfy them. It was no-win situation.
3. (B) not going to fly
E.g.: This proposal is no good at all. It's not going to fly.
Practice: I don't think the budget will be approved by the board of directors.
→Example answer: The budget isn't going to fly.
Question: Why do clients sometimes refuse to buy a project?
→Example answer: Sometimes if a client has no budget, then a project is not going to fly even if it's a really great proposal.
4. (A) a disaster waiting to happen
E.g.: The project team are inexperienced and the team leader has a poor record, so the project is definitely going to fail at some point in the future. It's a disaster waiting to happen.
Practice: The company does not have enough resources to deal with any unexpected situations, so I'm certain that there will be a problem in the future.
→Example answer: The company does not have enough resources to deal with any unexpected situations, so it's a disaster waiting to happen.
Question: What factors contribute to the failure of a company?
→Example answer: If a company has large debts and high expenses, it's a disaster waiting to happen.
5. (C) run into the ground
E.g.: He has run the firm into the ground with his disastrous management, and now its bankrupt.
Practice: The company has been ruined by the board of directors, who refused to reinvest the profits.
→Example answer: The company has been run into the ground by the board of directors, who refused to reinvest the profits.
Question: Do many companies close in your country due to poor leadership?
→Example answer: Generally speaking, managers in this country don't run their companies into the ground because the standard of management is pretty high.
A. Complete the anecdote
Read each section and choose an appropriate idiom from the list above.
- There was an accident at the warehouse, and as a result, we couldn’t distribute anything for a month. During this time, our competitors took advantage of the situation and increased their advertising. As a result, the quarterly figures clearly show that we have…
- The changes in the import tax mean that the price of the components we use from foreign suppliers will rise by about 5%. However, the same parts manufactured in this country are 5% more expensive than the foreign parts. So whatever we do, we are going to pay more for the components. It’s…
- Unless we have more investment in the company to develop the new product line, we won’t be able to take the next step. We have explored all the options, and quite clearly, we need more capital or we cannot move forward with the project. Without a cash injection, or a substantial loan, it’s…
- The consultant explained the terrible situation to the board. The company was not well-organised, communication was inefficient and the staff were unmotivated. The company wanted to expand into a new market at this time but the consultant thought it was a bad idea. In fact, he said it was…
- The manager had no experience and didn’t understand how to manage his staff or organise his team, and as a result, projects had failed, contracts had been lost and the company was losing money for the first time. The business had been quite successful, but due to his incompetence, it had been…
B. Discussion
Use idioms to discuss the following topics.
- Why do some companies go bankrupt?
- How important is the composition of a team in the success of a project?
- Is it easy to anticipate and avoid failure?
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