Project You!

Hi Class,

Here are some small talk dialogs that we did in class today:

A: What are you going to do today?
B: I'm going to do some recruiting.
A: Oh, sounds busy.

A: What are you going to do today?
B: I'm going to attend a meeting and go to dinner with a client.
A: Who is the client?
B: It's a tin manufacturer and container company.
A: What kind of containers do they produce?
B: They produce shipping containers, metal drum containers, and stainless steel containers for chemical manufacturers.

A:What are you going to do today?
B: I'm going to prepare for tomorrow's meeting.
A: What kind of meeting are you preparing for?
B: We are meeting with a company (that we are collaborating with) to create educational programs for junior high school students.
A: That sounds interesting.

A: What are you going to do today?
B: I'm going to visit a client to develop a training program for company freshmen.
A: What kind of training?
B: A training for communication.
A: Sounds fun!

A: What are you going to do today?
B: I'm going to an educational training for market researchers.
A: Oh, sounds hard.

A: What are you going to do today?
B: I'm going to make a tenant list for all the buildings we purchased recently.
A: Oh, sounds fantastic.
B: Well, not so fantastic because we purchased buildings that aren't earthquake-proof and we have to kick out the tenants so we can tear down the buildings.
A: Oh, sounds very severe.

There are three points I'd like you to notice.
First the phrase of the day, "What are you going to do today?"
The answer should start with "I'm going to..."
Lastly, take a look at the different examples of "back channeling" or あいづち:

• Oh, sounds busy.
• Sounds fun!
• Oh, sounds hard.
• Oh, sounds very severe.
• That sounds interesting.

Remember that back channeling is used to keep a conversation going smoothly.
Try some of these English expressions in your next session of small talk.

Have a great week!