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BUSINESS ENGLISH · ENGLISH IN VIDEO · UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

EMBRACING
EMOTIONS AT
WORK
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1 Warm up

Look at these three people answering the question, "How was your weekend?" How do you feel about
these people? What do you think about their answers?

It was good thanks, And It was great thanks! We
yours? took the kids swimming
which they loved! You
know the new swimming
pool in the centre of town?
Then we watched this silly
Ben Stiller film that always
makes me laugh and ate
pizza. Yesterday, we just
caught up on sleep and
went for a walk. How about
you?
It was OK, I guess. We
went to this new Mexican
restaurant near us and I had
the nachos. I don’t know
what was in them, but it
gave me really bad wind.
My wife told me we should
have gone to the Italian
place so had no sympathy.
But Italian food always
gives me heartburn.

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UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

EMBRACING EMOTIONS AT WORK

Look at the following emotions in the box. With a partner, discuss if they are acceptable emotions
to display in a professional environment in your culture, and if so, in what situation would they be
appropriate?

Anger Sadness Joy

Jealousy Fear Anxiety

Which of these emotions would you display in your professional environment?

2 Vocabulary development

Look at these phrases from the video. With a partner, discuss what they mean. When you have
finished, check your answers with your teacher or on the Internet.

1. Being stoic
2. More ... than they bargained for
3. Undermine yourself
4. A wide spectrum of ...
5. Under-emoters/Over-emoters
6. Selective vulnerability
7. Flag your feelings
8. A looming deadline
9. Read the room
10. Prone to doing something

In pairs, answer these questions.

1. Would you describe yourself or someone you know as stoic? How do you/they behave?
2. Can you describe a situation where you got more of something than you bargained for?
3. In what ways do you sometimes undermine yourself? Has anyone ever undermined you? What
happened?
4. Would you describe yourself as an under-emoter or an over-emoter? Why?
5. What action can you take to flag your feelings?
6. How do you react to a looming deadline?
7. What can you do to read the room?
8. What things are you prone to doing in your daily life?

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EMBRACING EMOTIONS AT WORK

3 Watching for general understanding

Watch the video and answer these questions.

1. The speaker says that we work better together when ...

a. we present ourselves as professionals at all times.

b. we allow colleagues to see our human side.
c. we share all of our feelings at work.

2. The first way the speaker suggests to show your emotions is ...

a. if you’re in a bad mood due to something outside of work, acknowledge it and reassure
colleagues that it’s not about them.
b. tell your colleagues exactly why you are in a bad mood.
c. don’t tell anyone if you’re in a bad mood because they are contagious.

3. The second suggestion the speaker has is ...

a. get other people to help you with your deadlines.

b. stop communicating with your colleagues if you are stressed.
c. analyse what your emotions are telling you and what needs you have.

4. She suggests that you should share your feelings if ...

a. it will make you feel better and you will be able to do your job better.
b. it will make your colleagues feel more supported and understand the situation.
c. you have a deadline and you are feeling really stressed about it.

5. Her final suggestion is ...

a. to understand how people feel and give them a way to move forward with their work.
b. if you’re having a difficult time, tell your boss about everything.
c. have a party for everyone so they will see you as a fun person.

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EMBRACING EMOTIONS AT WORK

4 Watching for detail

Now watch the video again and complete these notes on the talk with no more than three words.

1
Pervasive myth = emotions don’t belong at work = stoic, cold.

Research shows when colleagues are more human, show emotions, we

2
them more.
3
However, sharing builds trust / .

4
Emotional expression is a wide .

5
One side = over-emoters, other side = under-emoters. Balance? .

Four ways to start:

6
1. Flag your feelings. Bad moods are . If it’s nothing to do with work,
7
just point out that you are having a .

8
2. If it is work related try to understand the need . Try to take positive
action to deal with it.

3. If you want to share your feelings, see it from the other person’s point of view. If what
9
you want to say will help them and feel more supported, then share. If
not, don’t.

4. Try to understand how people in the office are feeling, and provide
10 11
. Acknowledge the efforts of others and show .

Look back at the warm-up activity. Which person was:

a. an under-emoter?
b. an over-emoter?
c. practising selective vulnerability?

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EMBRACING EMOTIONS AT WORK

5 Talking point

In pairs, practise one of the following role plays. Remember the steps from the talk and try to use the
advice given in the roleplay.

Role play 1

Person A Person B

You need to ask Person B if they can stay You’ve been working long hours recently
later to help you complete some work that and you are tired because one of your
will help you hit a deadline. You are feeling children was ill during the night.
very stressed about the situation. You
should approach Person B and ask them
for help.

Role play 2

Person C Person D

It’s the end of the week. You have an upset
stomach and you want to ask Person D,
your supervisor, if you can leave early
today. It has been a very busy week and
you have stayed late several nights this
week.
It’s been a really long week and you are
tired. Your car hasn’t been working very
well and you think you may have to get it
fixed over the weekend. Your team needs
to complete the project by the middle of
next week. They have all been working
hard, but you are still concerned that it
may not be enough.

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