Project 3:

Giving Advice. Expressions

• “Advice” is an uncountable noun. As such:
 Does not have plural form
 Cannot be used with articles a/an

• Most frequent by itself:

• If you are worried about your symptoms, contact your doctor for advice.

• Also
• He gave me some advice (also ‘a piece of advice’, ‘a word of advice’ or ‘a bit of
advice’).

• Never
• He gave me an advice.
1. Giving advice.
Frequent expressions
• Listen to the language they
1. What do you think I …………………………………… do?
use for giving advice in the 2. If I …………………………………… you, I’d ask her to
video and fill in the gaps. stop.
3. I’m not …………………………………… that’s a good idea.
4. Perhaps you could …………………………………… talking
to Noelia about it.
5. Why don’t you try ……………………………………
nothing?
6. Perhaps you could just ……………………………………
nothing.
7. I’m not …………………………………… sure about that.
8. So, I tried what you …………………………………… .

https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/skills/speaking/b2-speaking/giving-advice
Expressions to avoid sounding arrogant or opinionated when giving
advice
• Why don’t you…?
• Have you tried…?
• In my experience, … works really well.
• If I were in your shoes, I would / wouldn’t…
• Have you thought about…?
• In this kind of situation, I always recommend…
• You have no choice but to…
• Maybe you should / shouldn’t…
• It’s generally a good idea to…
• Your only option is to…
• The sooner you … , the better.
• I’d suggest…
• Certain situations call for slightly delicate language. You might not want to be too
direct and so you soften your language when giving advice.
+DIRECT SOFT
I think you should speak to your boss and Why don’t you speak to your boss and tell
tell him you are unhappy with your current him you are unhappy with your current
duties. duties?
You could speak to your boss and tell him Perhaps you could speak to your boss and
you are unhappy with your current duties. tell him you are unhappy with your current
duties.
How about speaking with your boss and
For casual situations… telling him you are unhappy with your
current duties?
Use the previous expressions to give a recommendations for these problems
1. I’ve just started renting a room in a shared house and my new housemates love to have parties at home. I like
having a good time, but I’m not sure how I feel about it.
2. I’ve decided to delete all my social media accounts, but I’m worried that I might lose touch with some of my friends.
3. I can’t decide whether I should start looking for a new job. I feel like I could be climbing the career ladder faster
than I am.
4. My niece has decided to join the army as soon as she finishes school, but I’m a pacifist so I’m not very keen on the
idea.
5. I’ve noticed that my neighbour never recycles and I think I should bring it up next time we see each other.
6. I’ve been struggling with sleepless nights recently. I’m not really sure what else I can do to ensure a better night’s
sleep.
7. My husband never wants to help out around the house and I’m starting to feel like I do the lion’s share of the work.
8. I’m thinking about taking my daughter out of school and teaching her from home instead. It’s a big decision to make
though.
9. A friend of mine is on track to become a professional athlete, but I’m worried he might be heading down a
dangerous path.
10. A huge chain store is moving in next door to the clothes shop I own. Should I be concerned about it affecting my
business?
• Vocabulary. In pairs, study the following sentences and complete the definitions
with the underlined terms.

• If you have a problem with your computer, call Mike. He’s very good at
troubleshooting.
• You could try emailing Kate. It’s a bit of a long shot, though - she rarely replies.
• After a slight hiccup, we managed to launch the product on time.
• Taking out a loan to pay for your bills is just a quick fix.
• You will need to find a more permanent solution.
• Lack of employee motivation is a serious obstacle to a company’s financial
success.
• The television screen isn’t very clear. I think there must be some sort of defect.
• Scientists are studying long-term solutions to the problem of global warming.
Definitions

• 1. a technical problem that prevents something from working properly

• 2. a problem which causes a delay but is not very serious
• 3. a solution that has little chance of being successful
• 4. something that prevents you from making progress
• 5. a fast and easy solution that solves a problem only for a short time
• 6. discovering and solving problems
• 7. solutions which solve a problem for an extended period of time
2nd Conditional
 Second Conditional to Give Advice
•  If + past simple + would + infinitive

• If we want to be polite or professional:

• If I were* you, I would …

• If I were you, I would be honest about what happened.

• If I were you, I would study a little bit every day. You’ll be more likely to
succeed on the exam if you do.
• If I were you, I would tell them that we cannot negotiate on the costs –
it just isn’t possible.
What do you think about life coaching?

Have you ever used a coach before?

Would you like to use one? Why/Why not?

In groups, prepare a list of pros and cons of life coaching.
Share your ideas with the class.
Pros Cons
Life coaching. Is it a scam or a useful tool?
Watch the video. Do you agree with the narrator?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjSo5ZKWa58
5 things a coach does.
5 things a coach does.
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/es/business-english/business-magazine/coaching
Choose the seven answers mentioned in the text
• Which of these things do business
coaches do? • let the coachee lead the conversation
• help with decision making • get the coachee to consider their
• support the development of an individual goals and dreams
individual's career • ask leading questions
• provide an objective analysis of • explore emotions
problems
• set tasks for coachees to do
• give advice
• keep coachees focused on their end
• prepare an agenda before the session goals
• give coachees strategies to achieve
success