This lesson will focus on using a variety of expressions related to hard work.
This lesson will help you use these idioms describing hard work. You will also get a chance to talk about your own experiences.
The topic is hard work, which should 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’s the difference between being busy, and being productive? Which one requires more hard work?
This warm-up should take 2–3 minutes.
Answer:
1. Busy—spending time doing any kind of work.
2. Being productive—the output is of the highest quality.
3. Hard work—spending energy doing any kind of work, so it applies more to being productive than simply busy.
Follow-up question:
Which one describes you most of the time in your job: busy, or productive?
Extra resource: Being Busy or Being Productive? (Medium.com)
Note: You can share the above-linked article for reading homework.
Please consider each expression and match them to the images. Your instructor has an example and a question regarding each one.
- be snowed under—have a lot of work to do.
- work your fingers to the bone—work very hard for a long time.
- crack the whip—use your authority to push someone to work harder.
- all in a day’s work—express the idea that although you have accomplished something, it's just a normal part of your job.
- put your nose to the grindstone—work very hard.
- burn the candle at both ends—go to bed late and get up early.
A:  |
B: |
C: |
D: |
E: |
F: |
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) be snowed under
E.g.: She wasn’t able to take a break all day because she was snowed under with work.
Practice: I am so busy this morning I haven’t even had a cup of coffee.
→Example answer: I am so snowed under this morning I haven’t even had a cup of coffee.
Question: What is the busiest time of year at work for you?
→Example answer: The end of the year is always a busy time when we are snowed under with work.
2. (A) work your fingers to the bone
E.g.: She had financial difficulties and had to work her fingers to the bone just to survive.
Practice: He works really hard to support his entire family.
→Example answer: He works his fingers to the bone to support his entire family.
Question: Do people in your country work harder than people in other countries? Why?
→Example answer: In my country, a lot of people work their fingers to the bone because their jobs are so demanding.
3. (B) crack the whip
E.g.: My team leader cracked the whip because we were behind schedule.
Practice: We had a tight deadline so the boss made us work harder than usual to meet it.
→Example answer: We had a tight deadline so the boss cracked the whip.
Question: When does your boss make you work harder than normal?
→Example answer: The team leader cracks the whip at the end of the project to make sure we don't miss the delivery date.
4. (C) all in a day’s work
E.g.: No need to thank me for fixing the IT system. It’s all in a day’s work for me.
Practice: Yesterday I left the office at 11pm, but that’s not unusual in my job.
→Example answer: Yesterday I left the office at 11pm, but it's all in a day's work.
Question: Do people thank you for doing something which you think isn’t unusual?
→Example answer: Once, a client thanked me for a simple explanation of a point, but it was all in a day's work for me.
5. (D) put your nose to the grindstone
E.g.: I had a huge report to deliver the next morning, so I put my nose to the grindstone and managed to finish it in time.
Practice: In the retail sector, you are obliged to work very hard at certain times of year, like Christmas.
→Example answer: In the retail sector, you are obliged to put your nose to the grindstone at certain times of year, like Christmas.
Question: When do you have to work especially hard?
→Example answer: I have to put my nose to the grindstone every day!
6. (F) burn the candle at both ends
E.g.: He's working late every evening and only sleeps two or three hours each night before he goes back to work early in the morning. He is really burning the candle at both ends.
Practice: When I go out drinking with clients the night before a very early meeting the next morning, I feel very tired.
→Example answer: When I burn the candle at both ends, I feel very tired.
Question: Do employees in your country work late and start early? Is this healthy?
→Example answer: The government is trying to stop employees from burning the candle at both ends because it's affecting productivity.
A. Complete the anecdote
Read each section and choose an appropriate idiom from the list above.
- Basketball legend Michael Jordan was known to practice at least 5 hours every day. In addition to that, before regular practice started, Jordan would practice at his house. He...
- Today I had to prepare for a big presentation. I worked through lunch, but when I showed my PowerPoint slides to my manager, he had a lot of feedback. So I ended up revising most of the slides. But I'm really happy with the final version. It's...
- Our colleague Jim can't come out for drinks after work. He...
- Back in college, I not only studied, but I also worked a part-time job, and on top of that, I went out with friends 3 or 4 nights a week. I...
- Steve Jobs was known to push his employees harder than they even thought possible. But apparently, at times he wasn't that nice about it. He...
- Our team has a big deadline next Monday. I'm not sure we'll make it. We'll have to...
B. Discussion
Use idioms to discuss the following questions.
- When in your life have you had to work the hardest?
- Who is the hardest-working person you know?
- Have you ever been obliged to work more than you wanted to?
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Images:
Joel Tasche via Unsplash
Vignesh Moorthy via Unsplash
Jeff Griffith via Unsplash
Brad Neathery via Unsplash
Malte Wingen via Unsplash
Nick Fewings via Unsplash