48 Making things easier

A Choosing your approach

COMPLETING A TASK – HOW TO DO IT

When you need to work out the easiest way to do something, you have to explore
different ways of approaching the task. Sometimes there will be many feasible1
alternatives to consider and sometimes there will only be one or two viable2 options.
You need to enlist the help of people to give you advice before you decide on which
method to adopt.
The best advice is to take a step-by-step approach: break the task down into stages,
so that you are dealing with small, manageable chunks. This way you will soon find
that something you thought was hard is in fact simplicity itself 3. But be careful, don’t
always take what looks like the easy option. Think first. At the end, you can feel proud
that you didn’t just take the easy way out4.

1 3
possible extremely simple
2 4
workable do what is easiest but not what is best – which may mean avoiding doing anything at all

B Ways of remembering
Notice the collocations in this text introducing techniques for improving your memory.

WAYS OF REMEMBERING
A trained memory is an immense asset1, particularly in public life. Mnemonics are
systems we use to help us remember complex information easily, and people who use
them can recall things with an amazing degree of accuracy.
The Ancient Greeks perfected2 a number of mnemonic techniques, some
of which are still used today, for example, using the first letter of each item
to form a word that will help you remember the whole list of items. For
instance, you might remember the female first name ADA to help you recall
the phrase amazing degree of accuracy. Or you might think of the word BAG,
which will give you three colours that collocate with hair (blond, auburn,
ginger).
A simple rule of all memory training systems is the idea of ‘Initial Awareness’. This
works in a straightforward3 way. The basic principle is that the system helps you
concentrate the mind on whatever you are trying to remember for just long enough to
force Initial Awareness.
All memory training systems are perfectly simple. Once you have taken the time to
learn them, you will be able to instantly recall any new items of information you want
to, with remarkable ease. You may find it a steep learning curve4, but I assure you that
it is worth the effort.

1 3
something of great value easy to understand or simple
2 4
the verb is pronounced /pfekt/ something which is difficult to learn and takes a lot of effort

Tip
Do you know any mnemonic techniques to help you learn vocabulary? If possible, share
them with other students.

100 English Collocations in Use Advanced

 Exercises
48.1 Answer these questions about the text in A.
1 Which alternatives is it best to focus on when considering ways of doing something?
2 What sort of options are those that could work well?
3 Which option is not always the best one to take?
4 What sort of approach can one take to make a big task more manageable?
48.2 Match words from each box to form collocations from the opposite page.

adopt concentrate enlist immense asset ease help a method the mind
instantly perfect perfectly remarkable recall rule simple a technique the time
simple take

48.3 Complete B’s responses using collocations from the opposite page.
1 A: I notice your tennis serve is much better these days.
B: Yes, I think I’ve finally
perfected the technique,
though it took months of practice.
2 A: Was the new computer easy to set up?
B: Yes, it was simplicity itself.
3 A: How did you get on in the charity race?
B: Well, I actually managed it with remarkable
ease , given how unfit I was!
4 A: Did it take you long to learn to fly?
B: Yes, it did! Almost a year. But it’s so amazing, it was
certainly worth the effort .
5 A: How well does the pedometer your son made at college actually work?
B: With an amazing a degree , in fact.
of accuracy
6 A: I have to sort out all these old papers and I just don’t know where to start!
B: Why don’t you concentratethe task down into smaller chunks and deal with them gradually?
7 A: Do you enjoy working with collocations?
B: Well, it’s worth take the time to learn them as they make your language sound
so much more natural.
8 A: How did your year in China work out? Did you manage to learn any Chinese?
B: Well, it was a step learning curve , but I did manage to acquire a basic
knowledge of Mandarin.
48.4 Choose the correct collocation.
1 I always use mnemonics to help me recall important of information.
A spots  B objects  C items  D stuff
2 We all the different ways of getting home before eventually deciding to fly.
A exploded  B exploited  C explicated  D explored
3 The system works in a way.
A straightforward  B strong  C straight  D forthright
4 It’s a good idea to divide a task up into chunks.
A portable  B manageable  C edible  D thinkable
5 All memory systems work on the same basic .
A promotion  B prime  C principal  D principle

Over to you
Look at this mnemonics site: www.fun-with-words.com/mnemonics.html.
Make a note of useful ones.

English Collocations in Use Advanced 101