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Words and Their StoriesChannel Library · English for Work
Speak Confident English
Workplace English lessons focused on useful wording, communication strategies, and practical speaking confidence. These are English-teaching lessons—not recruiter advice or promises about hiring and career outcomes.
Professional communication lessons
28 lessons
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Use evidence—not impressive-sounding labels—to describe your work
Annemarie reviews interview vocabulary such as responsibility, collaboration, initiative, and results. The useful practice is to connect an accurate word to a real example; no adjective or verb guarantees that an interviewer will choose you.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Prepare flexible interview stories instead of memorizing a script
Annemarie walks through recurring interview topics, including a brief introduction, interest in the role, and examples from your work. This is a practice guide, not a prediction that every employer will ask the same questions.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Handle an interview question you cannot answer immediately—with honesty
Annemarie demonstrates ways to pause, clarify, reason through a question, and follow up when stuck. Use these techniques to communicate truthfully; do not bluff about qualifications or experience.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 6 tips
Prepare your English and examples so you can answer with clarity
Annemarie focuses on preparation, clear speaking, emotional-intelligence vocabulary, practice, and active listening. These are language and preparation suggestions—not a formula for getting hired. Adapt them to the role, the interview format, and your own experience.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 7 tips
Make your voice and preparation work for you in a phone interview
This lesson covers the distinct demands of a phone interview: preparing your voice, setting up the call, keeping helpful materials nearby, pausing before answers, researching the role, and following up with thanks. Treat the ideas as practical preparation—not guarantees about how an employer will decide.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Write work emails that are clear, polite, and still sound like you
Annemarie’s lesson covers email goals, tone, and revision—including when AI helps and when it can make a message sound unlike you. This is practical English-teaching advice, not a claim about hiring outcomes.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Guide a meeting from a clear opening to agreed next steps
Annemarie models useful meeting language for setting an agenda, listening, keeping discussion focused, and closing with actions. The lesson teaches communication—not a guaranteed path to better business or career outcomes.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Prepare a negotiation without losing sight of the relationship
This lesson teaches English phrases and preparation strategies for negotiation. It is language instruction, not compensation, legal, or recruiter advice; use qualified advice for high-stakes negotiations.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Ask a colleague for help with a clear, specific request
Annemarie’s four-step lesson models how to make a specific request, explain relevant context, recognize the other person’s expertise, and agree on a next step. It does not claim that asking this way changes hiring or performance outcomes.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Be direct about a need while keeping your wording respectful
This English lesson contrasts passive, assertive, and aggressive wording, then practices “I” language and boundaries. The examples are communication coaching, not recruiter guidance or a promise of workplace results.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Introduce yourself with just the details your listener needs
Annemarie demonstrates brief introductions for a new coworker, a potential client, and a group meeting. These are adaptable English examples—not a rule that every workplace expects the same level of formality.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Give feedback and encouragement without losing your point
This lesson teaches positive-language choices, open questions, “I” statements, and sincere recognition. It is communication-skills instruction; positive wording alone cannot guarantee agreement, trust, or career advancement.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Build trust with follow-through, listening, and specific language
Annemarie connects professional phrases with behaviors such as listening, owning mistakes, sharing credit, and keeping commitments. These are the instructor’s communication recommendations, not a guarantee that others will trust you or that career outcomes will change.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Give yourself time to organize an idea before sharing it
This meeting-focused English lesson offers ways to prepare, ask for thinking time, and contribute before an idea feels perfectly formed. The instructor’s introvert framing is a teaching perspective, not a claim that all introverts communicate the same way.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 3 tips
Organize a work idea so listeners can follow the point
Annemarie’s lesson focuses on preparing and expressing an idea clearly in English. It is a speaking-skills lesson—not a claim that confidence or a particular phrase guarantees influence or career advancement.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 6 tips
Choose precise workplace words instead of dressing up every sentence
Annemarie introduces vocabulary for workplace conversations. The practical lesson is to choose a word that accurately fits the situation—not to reach for fancier language just to sound impressive.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Make a work opinion easier to follow with a simple three-part structure
Annemarie demonstrates how to state an opinion, explain the reason, and finish with a conclusion or question. These are communication strategies, not a guarantee that a listener will agree.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Write a work email around the reader’s next step
Annemarie walks through professional email choices such as a specific subject, greeting, clear purpose, and proofreading. Adapt formality to your workplace and relationship rather than treating one style as universal.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Keep an online meeting clear, inclusive, and on track
Annemarie models language for starting online meetings, managing turns and interruptions, and wrapping up. Use the parts that fit your role and the norms of your team.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 4 tips
Soften a request without hiding what you need
Annemarie shows how modal verbs, indirect grammar, qualifiers, and negative questions can adjust the tone of workplace requests. These are options—not a rule that direct language is rude or indirect language is always better.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 6 tips
Handle common work calls with clear openings and check-backs
Annemarie’s lesson covers answering and transferring calls, asking for repetition, taking messages, and closing a call. The examples are language practice; adapt them to your organization’s phone etiquette and privacy rules.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 4 tips
Start coworker small talk with a relevant question and real listening
Annemarie presents three ways to open low-pressure conversations with colleagues: a relevant compliment plus a question, an open-ended question, or a request for a recommendation. Follow the other person’s cues and keep personal boundaries in mind.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Choose precise verbs to describe how you lead and contribute
Annemarie explains ten stronger verbs for describing leadership work, including achieving results, delegating, facilitating, and spearheading a project. Use each word only when it accurately describes your role; stronger wording should make your contribution clearer, not larger than it was.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 6 tips
Use work phrasal verbs naturally—and understand their tone
This lesson explains common work phrasal verbs for progress, focus, postponement, planning, product launches, and review. The cards distinguish similar meanings so you can choose a phrase that fits the situation rather than dropping idioms into every conversation.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Describe professional strengths with specific, credible vocabulary
Annemarie teaches vocabulary for describing professional traits in interviews and performance conversations. The lesson gives meanings, alternatives, and sample sentences; use the words as truthful descriptions supported by examples, not as labels to claim without evidence.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Make small talk with a senior leader brief, warm, and work-appropriate
This lesson offers a low-pressure approach to starting conversations with a boss or senior leader: remember they are people too, favor professional topics, and let the exchange stay brief. It also includes preparation and conversational practice; adapt the ideas to your workplace and the other person’s cues.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Disagree clearly without turning the conversation into a personal conflict
Annemarie explores how English speakers can express a different view across everyday and workplace situations. The lesson highlights that disagreement norms vary by culture and relationship; the goal is to make your meaning clear while staying open to discussion, not to avoid every direct statement.
Open lesson
J1Professional Communication · 5 tips
Talk about emotional intelligence through observable workplace behaviors
This lesson connects emotional intelligence with workplace vocabulary and habits such as self-awareness, self-regulation, empathy, social skills, and motivation. Treat these as skills to develop and demonstrate through behavior—not fixed personality labels or a diagnosis.
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