Considered as a cradle of civilization the Middle East has been a place of constant change. This year marked by colossal social unrest, the region has dominated the news headlines throughout the world (where news are not censored). Humanity is at the harbingers of a new era of hope; where true democratic values based on our human rights will not be taken for granted by tyrant states, embezzling corporations, corrupt entities or criminals of all stirps. People across the Middle East have stopped to be silent, history is unfolding before our eyes and we are hearing the same message across their land very loud and clear – Enough is enough! Proud and at the center stage are the courageous people of these ancient lands that once again will lead humanity to a genuine rebirth of our civilization and add true meaning to our universal human rights. To mark this awakening I have selected two videos about our human rights. The third one shows a chronological map of the evolution of the Middle East since the onset of civilization.
Imperial History of the Middle East Who has controlled the Middle East over the course of history? Pretty much everyone. Egyptians, Turks, Jews, Romans, Arabs, Persians, Europeans...the list goes on. Who will control the Middle East today? That is a much bigger question.
This week you will learn how to make effective Business Presentations and to create a powerful business case. The video is a courtesy of Howcast as featured in YouTube, and the slideshow presentation at the bottom from DocStoc. We recommend both sites to all our Business English students. Note to our students: you will find the text of the video beneath the video frame; please read the text a few times and then watch the video for better retention. - Cheers and happy learning!
Text:
Keep your palms dry and your audience alert with these tips.
To complete this How-To you will need:
Visuals
Handouts
Practice
And a strong closing statement
Red visuals (optional) (optional)
And tongue twisters
Step 1: Focus
As you prepare, focus on your main points, and illustrate each one with a visual aid, which can be anything from PowerPoint slides to a flip chart to sample products. Studies show that people's minds begin to wander after 10 minutes of passive listening.
Step 2: Clean up your visuals
Go for a minimalist look in your visuals; educational psychologists have found that the fewer words and pictures you have on a visual, the more your audience will remember.
Tip: Use the color red; psychologists say it's the color most quickly noticed and easily remembered.
Step 3: Use handouts
Prepare handouts that list all your main points. This will make it easier for the audience to follow along, and people will pay better attention if they don't feel pressure to take notes.
Step 4: Practice
Practice your speech as much as you can -- in the mirror, with a friend or coworker, or in front of a video camera.
Step 5: Check your surroundings
Before your presentation, familiarize yourself with the room you'll be using. Make sure you have all the equipment you need, that it works properly, and that you know how to use it.
Step 6: Visualize success
Imagine your presentation going well. Research shows that visualizing success can help you make it happen.
Tip: Do some tongue twisters before you take the stage; it's a favorite trick of speech-givers to loosen up.
Step 7: Position yourself correctly
Stand to the left of the screen or your flip chart from the viewpoint of the audience, making it easier for them to see the material.
Tip: Take a step toward the audience when you want to emphasize something; it unconsciously signals them to pay special attention.
Step 8: Have a strong close
Save your most memorable lines for your close, because that is what your audience will remember most when the presentation is over.
Preparing and Presenting an Effective Business Case.
English mindset is joyous to announce that Georgina Hudson has joined our instructor’s team. She has specialized in adult education and believes that teachers should lead by their example. She has a passion for helping students achieve their learning objectives and believes that radiating happiness is the most effective way to deliver; a trait that comes built in her professional demeanor. We are certain that Ms. Hudson will make significant contributions to English Mindset. Like us, she is also the type that makes every minute count because our accomplishments are based on our shared belief that success is happening right now!
Bio: Born and raised in Argentina within an Anglo-Argentine family, she got her College Degree in Teaching English at the Profesorado Nacional de Rosario in 1997. She’s specialized in teaching adults ever since. She has worked in Argentina, France and England. She taught Franco-African children in Paris with no knowledge of the Spanish or English language encouraging everyone to speak in the target language at all times. This proved how effective teaching methods can be even when there has been no contact with the new language. While living in London, she got her Certificate in Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language and upon getting her certificate, she became an International Houseteacher, one of the most respectable language schools worldwide with a strong global presence and a high reputation for innovative and quality teaching. Convinced that teachers should be excellent communicators who inculcate happiness and a passion for learning through creative and innovative activities, she embarked on the completion of herNeurolinguistic Programming PractitionerCertificate at Instituto Argentino de Formación e Investigación last year. She runs aconsulting firmwhich specialises in “in-company teaching and learning” implementing the academic program, managing the teaching team, displaying a flexible bespoke teaching approach, handling testing and liasing with training departments. Among her publications are “Teaching English at University level: How to Make it a Memorable Experience when Reading Comprehension and Grammar Instruction Prevail”Humanising Language Teaching Magazine, UK, Jan / Feb 2011 issue, ISSN 1755-9715 and her teaching blogs at the BBC & British Council. These articles have been frequently chosen and recommended by the editor. Her main areas of professional interest are how adults learn and developing hands-on curriculum that reaches every student learning style and ability. Georgina is fond of modern dance lessons, yoga and drama classes.
Trafalgar Square: photo remix permitted. original by Alex Dawson - (Creative Commons)
This post is about the Playing for Change Foundation. They started their activities about 10 years ago from a group of documentary filmmakers who had the idea to film music from people out in the streets. What started as a small project today has grown into a global movement; they are dedicated to connect people from all over the world through music. One of their main objectives is to help people by bringing hope through music and education. Please visit their site at http://playingforchange.org/ and find out how they make a difference. By the way, the last video on this post was not filmed by Playing for Change; instead it was put together by musicians from La Garriga, a town 35 Km away from Barcelona. Their intention was not to intentionally copy the initiative from the original filmmakers; they only wanted to add to their cause through the universal language that anyone understands: music. Now sit back and enjoy their music - you may want to get involved...
Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires (Bkgd - Luis Argerich - Creative Commons)
English Mindset is proud to announce that Ms María Salaberry of Bahía Blanca, Argentina, has joined our teaching staff. She brings with her many years of experience teaching English to executives and professionals of prestigious corporation. She is a real agent of change and we are sure that her work will have a significant impact on her students' education and careers.
As a Sworn Translator from La Plata University in Argentina, María began her career in 1979 at the National Research Council helping in the edition of scientific papers and the organization of international seminars and conferences. Upon getting a Post Graduate Degree in Education she was also hired to provide in-company language training for professionals and executives at prestigious global companies doing business in South America, also assisting them with legal and technical documentation as well as business video conference sessions. She works as a free-lance translator and interpreter mostly in topics related to exports, business, finance, engineering, medical science, human resources and education and teaches English at Universidad Nacional del Sur. Getting involved in various educational, art and cultural exchange programs, such as the Bahía Blanca-Jacksonville Sister Cities Association, which she has chaired for the past 3 yrs has been a passion. With interests varying from tango dancing to travelling, cycling and swimming, she is the proud mother of two under-graduate university students. Helping develop effective communication at all levels has always been her main professional focus.
A Letter to prospective instructors. It may seem a bit unusual for a career consultant in engineering & business development to make an unusual turn and start something totally new. As absurd as it may look to you, my paradigm shift happened as a consequence of being dissatisfied foot-soldier-on-demand, a mercenary of sorts. I am not complaining for I had my share of joys: a few “hired-gun-solution” trophies here and handful of “problem-solver-sniper-shooter” medals there. Yes, the front lines are always thrilling and packed with action; it is indeed a place for the tough! But my traveling adventures reached a point that I told myself that being a lone warrior was not enough and that my time to change had come. So here I am back in Tokyo close to my family after having roamed the world; I am now starting a new chapter in my life. English Mindset has been “brewing” for a long time and it was not until early November of 2010 that I decided to virtually lock myself up and promised not to leave my office until I had it done; on January 8th 2011 a new website went on-line. We all have seen ventures start and then vanish, why? There are numerous reasons, some say that start-ups fail for a lack of a mission, a myopic vision or because of both. Sometimes they go under because of bad leadership or bad financing or are forced to close by catastrophic events of which one has no control. There are so many reasons and many more excuses. On the other side of the spectrum, there are other ventures that flourish and become prosperous, but why? I feel that most entrepreneurs are obsessed with making a sizeable “bottom line” as their ultimate goal. The minute they start to deviate from that course they loose their bearings, they panic and finally succumb. Giving extreme consideration to only one, but important metric: the “bottom line” misses the broader picture. But such is the “status-quo” that prefers to maintain a very simplistic but universally accepted misconception: that 2 is greater than 1, but 3 is greater than 2 and 1 and thus is better than either one! Unfortunately that is how most have been indoctrinated to think. Many tend to tag a price to success and sneer at those who made less. That is why people loose contact with the real value behind the numbers. But, let’s recall Oscar Wilde adage: "A cynic is a man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.” This is so true and we must not loose sight of it. As an MBA, I was trained to snap my whip with the most effective management techniques. Arrogantly I thought I had mastered the sciences that maximized the proverbial bottom line – I unmistakable “knew” the course and took command. Invincible, I graduated to conquer the world – “vini, vidi, vici, stand asside I am Cesar”!
But today, decades after, I stand deeply humbled by my former arrogance and narrow mindedness; for I have witnessed and shared the disastrous consequences when corporations packed with gurus much “better” than myself went under! I have transformed myself from a foot-soldier into a Naval Commander! Today I am set to steer our course on the right direction – I think to have learned a few good lessons! But we must be careful to avoid following the crowds that set sail only to seek for "Paradise Island" and her "forbidden treasures" or the types that brag about their bottom line as their ultimate destination. Now as you stand out there considering joining our fleet, I will ask you to promise one thing before you make that commitment: Please make every minute of your journey counts because our accomplishments are based on our shared belief that success is happening right now!
Who are we? English Mindset is an Internet platform where students of the English language and instructors meet and the results of that interaction translates into a value added experience for the student and the instructor. We will provide the infrastructure so you have all the resources to plan and conduct your classes successfully. But this is not a job for anyone; to become an instructor at English Mindset you must buy into our values. Allow me to explain:
You must be a firm believer that you are an agent of change. That your work will have a significant impact on your students and consequently your efforts will help them improve their lives.
We aim to create long term relationships based on trust, respect, tolerance and kindness. We equally offer the same respect to all those who come within our sphere of influence for we don’t take our values for granted, we act on them.
What is in it for you at English Mindset?
A place where you can stand tall for being amongst those who like you, care for others and want to make a real impact
Become part of an international community of instructors who collaborate to make us all successful; a true culture of synergy where the sum of our collective efforts produce greater results than sum of our individual(istic) efforts, that is 1 + 1 > 2
You will be able share your work related experiences, your joys and struggles with the world and learn from that. Our blog, website and social media channels are open for you to express your thoughts and broadcast your goodwill.
You will be able to earn money to support your livelihood, but equally important you will also be able to help those who cannot afford to pay for our programs. These persons will be able to access the same tools we use to teach our paying students and all that from within our own website.
At English Mindset you will find an environment that is conducive to continuous learning and discovery; where trustworthiness is our common currency.
If you look around our websites you can already begin to see sings that we are working to fill those expectations; please visit our video channels, our self-study corner and our soon to be expanded page for featured sites and blogs. It is not our intention to become a one stop destination for all the English language needs, but we will at least offer our visitors veritable information and point them in the right direction when they seek our help. Finally, as we learn to recognize each other’s strengths and weaknesses we will be able to proactively draw from our reserves to solve our problems when setbacks occur. I also believe that we are all capable of continuously strengthening our significant others through our own example, and as you become an advocate of our shared goodwill, you will understand why the path to success is effectively now and the rest is a forgone conclusion. Welcome on board!
Dear Friends, Today English Mindset is going to take you on a virtual trip to London! We will visit three magnificent places; so please relax and enjoy the trip. The picture of the Royal Albert Hall at the bottom of this page, is an spherical image - try spinning the picture with your mouse on full screen mode - it is simply hallucinating! Enjoy your tour! Buckingham Palace: The Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality. It has been a rallying point for the British people at times of national rejoicing and crisis. Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames in the heart of the London borough of the City of Westminster, close to the historic Westminster Abbey and the government buildings of Whitehall and Downing Street. Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is one of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, recognisable the world over. Since its opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from every kind of performance genre have appeared on its stage. Each year it hosts more than 350 performances including classical concerts, rock and pop, ballet and opera, tennis, award ceremonies, school and community events, charity performances and lavish banquets. (source Wikipedia)
English Mindset is proud to announce that Ms Ana Maria Beeck of Miami Florida has joined our teaching staff. She is a native speaker of English, however since the age of three she has had the opportunity to enrich her life by living in various countries where she learned Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and French. Her capacity to communicate cross-culturally is second to none; she is a firm believer that the English language has attained a unifying role in its ability to make people around the world understand each other better. We are absolutely delighted to have you with us and we hope that you find English Mindset a place where you will find great pleasure helping others improve their English speaking abilities.
Bio: Ana was born in the US but her journey into living and working in different countries began at the age of 3… She is a native English, Spanish and Portuguese speaker, is fluent in Italian and understands French. Throughout her career she used her language skills to effectively communicate with nationals of different countries and backgrounds. After working in the corporate world for many years she now enjoys teaching, transcribing and translating from the shores of Miami, Florida. She also teaches a self-healing, expansion of consciousness seminar on-line (www.isha.com). She holds a JD and a Masters in International Management and Finance. Here is a short video of the Isha Judd System that claims to be a "revolutionary method that creates an internal experience of peace, joy and unconditional love." and from where Ana Maria teaches people to attain internal beauty.
