Page 143 - Perfect Phrases ESL Everyday Business

Directions on the Job

Culture Hints: Never be shy to ask for clarification It is not
shameful to ask questions. It was better for the man in the anec-
dote to find out how to spell gym before he incorrectly painted it
on the sign on the door. It would have been still better if he had
asked his boss to write it down for him before he was about to
paint it and before he began searching for strangers in a parking
lot, strangers who might have spelled it incorrectly.
As a general rule, it is impolite to interrupt. However, when
someone is giving you multiple directions, it may be necessary to
stop the person for clarification before he or she finishes a long
series of complex commands. When a person tells you how to do
a specific job in many steps, for example:
First, you unload everything from the truck, including the
hardware.
Then, you unpack the boxes.
Then, you read the directions carefully.
And finally, you assemble the furniture.
You may have a question or comment, for example, about the
first direction; you may be thinking I didn’t see any hardware.
Is it in the cab of the truck instead of the back of the truck?
You may interrupt after step 1 and say, “Excuse me, I hate to
interrupt, but I want to ask this question before it gets lost in
the shuffle.”
Another interesting point about directions: Don’t be confused
by elevators that go from the 12th to the 14th floor. In many
office buildings or apartment houses, there is no “13th floor”; 13
is considered bad luck, and many don’t want to live or work on
the 13th floor.

125