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20091024Lily章

你真的會用英文打招呼嗎?

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 有一本書頗值得向企業界人士推介,那就是Henry Mintzberg教授的《Managers not MBAs-A hard look at the soft practice of managing and management development》Berrett Koehler Publisher., Inc. 2004。國內有中譯本《MBA≠經理人》(培生教育出版)。這本書絕非泛泛之論,因為作者 four years in the writing, fifteen years in the developing, thirty five years in the thinking-draws together a great many of my ideas.(三十五年的思考,十五年的孕育,四年的寫作所構成的個人巨著)絕對值得細讀。

 你也許覺得英文打招呼是很簡單的一件事,不就是『Hello!』『How do you do?』『How are you?』『I'm fine, thank you. And you?』『Nice to see you. 』、『 Nice meeting you. 』 嗎?

 先問你兩個問題:

1.Job interview時,和考官打招呼用Nice to SEE you或Nice to MEET you?

2.Nice to SEE you和Nice SEEING you有何不同?

打招呼還是有點學問的。先來解答以上問題。

●"Nice to see you"='Hello', 認識的人打招呼時用的。

●"Nice to meet you" ='Hello', first meeting of a new acquaintance.(不熟的人見面打招呼用的,面試、見新客戶都要用meet)

●"Nice seeing you" ='Goodbye'認識的人道別時用的。

●"Nice meeting you" ='Goodbye', first meeting of a new acquaintance.(不熟的人道別時用的) 美國很少聽人用『How do you do?』,只有在特別正式,類似國宴這樣的場合才用,美國人聽到你用這個字,就像我們聽到外國人用「久仰、久仰」一樣,聽起來很彆扭。很多老外說他一輩子沒用過這句話打招呼,直到他到台灣,這句話經常出現。自然打招呼用『Nice to meet you』、『It's a pleasure to meet you』即可。

1. A: How are you doing?

B: I'm doing great./ I'm doing OK./Pretty good./Not too bad./I get by. (還過得去)

2. A: How's life treating you? 你日子過得怎樣?

B1: Not bad。/It could be worse。還可以

How's life treating you?用於朋友之間。對好久沒見的人就說:How's life been treating you?

3. A: What's up? 有什麼新鮮事兒?

B: Not much. 沒什麼。

4. A: What's new? 近來如何?

B1: Nothing much. I'm still the same./Not much. How about you?/Same shit, different day.

 人生的得意失意,天天都有,但不必加深人生的沮喪感,打招呼時候多用點:Terrific!/Wonderful!/Fabulous!/Never better! 換一個微笑,會讓你一天的精神振奮,別人聽起來感覺也很好。

哈佛個案點點滴滴 林富松專欄

 有一本書頗值得向企業界人士推介,那就是Henry Mintzberg教授的《Managers not MBAs-A hard look at the soft practice of managing and management development》Berrett Koehler Publisher., Inc. 2004。國內有中譯本《MBA≠經理人》(培生教育出版)。這本書絕非泛泛之論,因為作者 four years in the writing, fifteen years in the developing, thirty five years in the thinking-draws together a great many of my ideas.(三十五年的思考,十五年的孕育,四年的寫作所構成的個人巨著)絕對值得細讀。

 Mintzberg教授的風格頗接近偶像的破壞者(Iconoclast),他首先提出實務的觀點(Management as a practice),語出驚人的說:Management is not a science, management is not a profession. 他的論點是:After almost a century of trying, by any reasonable assessment management has become neither a science nor a profession. It remains deeply in the practice of everyday living. 所以他認為經過一個世紀的嘗試,管理既沒成為科學,也沒成為專業,它依然深植於日常生活的實務中。

 赫胥黎(Aldous Huxley)認為「經驗不是發生在你身上的事,而是你如何處理發生在你身上的事」(Experience is not what happens to you. It is what you do with what happens to you.) Mintzberg教授則認為:Trying to teach management to someone who has never managed is like trying to teach psychology to someone who has never met another human being. 教一位從未接觸過管理的人管理,就如同教一位從未見過人類的人心理學一樣。畢竟Organizations are complex phenomena. Managing them is a difficult, nuanced business, requiring all sorts of tacit understanding that can only be gained in context. Trying to teach it to people who have never practiced is worse than a waste of time-demeans management. 組織係複雜的現象,管理組織不僅困難,也頗微妙,只有建立好的默契方能水到渠成,也只有置身其中,才知其五味。所以MBA學位絕非魔法杖(magic wand),無法把沒經驗又不成熟的大學生變成合格之經理人。(The MBA degree is not a magic wand that transforms inexperienced and immature undergraduates into licensed managers.)因此,We need leaders with human skills, not professionals with academic credentials. 社會需要的是俱備人際技巧的領導人,而非有學術認證的專家。

 採用個案教學早已成為哈佛管理學院的傳統,以其MBA(企管碩士)的訓練而言,每週閱讀三或四個個案實乃稀鬆平常之事,所以兩年的累積300至400個個案絕不成問題,當然在方法論上,這能否形成系統化訓練是見仁見智,但累積各種狀況之經驗是不成問題的,暫且不論其一般化的問題,先看看個案教學法所需俱備的基本假定(assumptions):

1.It brings the reality of management practice into the classroom. 將現實世界的管理實務帶進教室

2.It exposes students to the"big picture". 使學生接觸宏觀的想法

3.It develops the skills of the general manager. 培養總經理式的技能

4.It challenges conventional thinking. 挑戰傳統思想

5.It is participative. 參與式教學

 不過說真的,那種方式真能培養出傑出的經理人員?讓學生排排坐,僅以昨晚閱讀的素材,就要抓住領導的本質(captures the essence of leadership),接觸「宏觀的想法」,給與"responsibility for decision"(能為決策負責),進而"learning by doing"(做中學習),使其能"risk taking"(承當風險),成為"General Manager"(總經理式的管理者),別傻了!Mintzberg教授吶喊。(只是可別惹火那些成千上萬的哈佛MBA畢業生!)

 當你認真讀 Mintzberg 教授這本書之際,你先感受到他那排山倒海的批評,用的章節就頗觸目驚心了:Part One中,Wrong people, Wrong ways, Wrong Consequences(包括Corruption of educational process, managerial practice, established organizations and social institutions.);幸好Part Two 提出解決方案,用八章提出他的做法,重點就是建立IMPM(The International Masters in Practicing Management),落實他先前的想法。記得Chapter 2 Wrong Ways,第一句便是:There are no right ways to develop the wrong people. 意指如果教學對象不對,好的教學方法亦枉然。介紹這麼一本擲地鏗然有聲的重量級著作,絕對會使讀者意猶未盡,所以採重點式方式打住,最後提出 Mintzberg教授給希望教育真正經理人的教授需遵守的六大條規:

1.Don' pack it, Don't pack it, Don't pack it. 別老採灌輸方式

2.Schedule an extra hour for each session, but don't tell the"instructors"until they arrive. 每單元多安排一小時,但別事先告訴講師

3.Profess less: the participants have at least as much to learn from each other as from the professors. (This is about what they learn, not about what we teach.) 教授們,少說些吧,同學間還可透過切磋而擦出火花呢

4.Let the participants run with the concepts on their agenda. 讓參與者依其自己的想法進行討論議程

5.Be flexible; let good discussion go: If necessary, cut what is supposed to be"covered." 要有彈性,讓好的討論盡情發揮,如有可能,刪掉一些既定的議程

6.Listen. Listen. Listen 傾聽、傾聽、傾聽

 Mintzberg教授也鼓勵研究人員要常保持熱忱(enthusiasm),他提出幾點建議如下:

1.終身職無何要緊(Screw tenure)

2.有想法才發表(publish only when you have something to say)

3.一次暢汝所言,別保留(Say it all at once, right, altogether)

4.別把目標定在最好,盡力就好(Never set out to be the best. Do your best.)

5.創造知識(Create knowledge)Discover something new.

6.為有思想的實踐者而寫(Write for the thoughtful practitioner)

7.化想法為行動(Get close to action)

8.對你所做要保持熱忱(Be passionate about what you do.)

 林富松教授(Douglas Lin),是土生土長、台灣培養出來的商管博士,他靠有方法意識的自學,把英文的表達訓練到優雅、傳神,又準確!今年甫自交通大學管科所IMBA退休,林教授以往教Human Resources Management, Organizational Behavior,他形容,現在用英文分享世界觀才真有「流浪鯨魚回到海洋」的歸屬感。

 即日起「企業英語教室」將定期刊出林富松專欄。

Debug專欄

 Debug專欄是企業英語教室最受歡迎的專欄,連續幾周都接到讀者鼓勵,也希望我們debug專欄不只提供答案,還能提供解釋,讀者才能確保不犯同類型錯誤。本周起,debug專欄將對類型錯誤提出解釋。

1.It's still early. Let's go to the airport rest-place.

2.So it is. I understand soon after your explanation.

(原來如此)

3.Daddy painted the desk with a layer of paint.

4.Let's begin from page 10.

5.Please give me a chance again. I won't do this again.

Debugged

1.It's still early. Let's go to the airport lounge.

英語的 resting-place 雖然有"休息處"的意思,但更經常的是用來指"墳墓",即"最後安息之處"。因此,把"休息處"說成resting-place 不合適。說成 rest-room,但更不妥,因為英語中的 rest-room 是"廁所"。

Lounge的英文解釋是:A public waiting room, as in a hotel or an air terminal, often having smoking or lavatory facilities.一間公共的等候室,比如在旅館裡或機場,經常有吸煙或衛生設備。lobby也有休息室的意思,特別指公部門的休息室,它的英文解釋為:A public room next to the assembly chamber of a legislative body.立法院大廳邊上的公共活動室。

2.So that's how it is. I understand soon after your explanation.

So it is 的意思是"的確如此",它是用來表示贊成對方觀點的贊同的。例如:

A: It is a fine day today!

B: So it is.

而在表達恍然大悟時,英文要用 So that's how it is 或 So that explains it, 或更簡單地道的說法 Oh, I see.

3.Daddy painted the desk with a coat of paint.

layer 和 coat,雖然翻譯成中文都是"層",但用法卻不同。如:Onions have layers(洋蔥是一層一層的),但塗上一層油漆卻要用 coat。鍍鋅,鍍銅之類的用layer,都是錯例,應該用coat。

4.Let's begin at/with page 10.

很多人搞不清楚Begin和start,事實上begin、end;start、stop剛好可以對照的兩組詞。begin 的相反詞是end;start 的相反詞是 stop.

 begin 表示"開始",其內涵是"使處於進程中"

 Work on the building had begun before she left.

 這座房子在她離開之前就已經動工了。

 The meeting began last week.

 那次會議是上星期開始的。(這句用start也可以,但會議是個"過程",在這個意義上用 begin 更好)。

 start 表示"開始",其內涵是"啟動"。

 He started to complain about this wicked world.

 他開始抱怨這萬惡的世道了。

5.Please give me another chance, and I'll make a difference.

 有關difference有兩個重要的片語:

make a difference(有很大不同)或make no differences(沒什麼不同)。

 用Google查詢,make a difference這一片語搜尋結果近4,800萬,可見其使用度之廣。

以上內容由【世界公民文化中心】提供。

一對一,沒有別人,只有你和一個遠從美國、加拿大、英國或澳洲而來,商業經驗豐富的外籍顧問。他負責打開你的英語思維開關,讓你從結巴、語無倫次,到看見一個嶄新的世界。而你呢,你負責停止優柔寡斷,終結一個每年年初歲末就喃喃自語: 今年一定要把英文學好的無聊人。My English Year甄選30個來自金融、高科技、服務業專業精英,一年之內把他們改造成為世界公民。

我們負責:讓你透徹了解自己為什麼需要學英文,把你交給跟你同樣專業背景的外籍老師們,以Core & Corner method的成效,證明考試英語教育完全錯誤。上網填好問卷,就來參加第一個小時free的1 on 1 SWOT 分析,只限30名。不放棄英文的,我們就能圓你的英文夢!報名請撥電話台北(02) 27215033 新竹(03) 5721099或上網www.core-corner.com.