Page 18 - Perfect Phrases ESL Everyday Business

Part 1

The Global Workforce

“I Don’t Like to Be Alone”

Arturo came directly to our office from the airport, where he had just
arrived from Brazil, with his luggage and the statement, “I don’t like to
be alone.” We told him that our initial pre-assessment pinpointed his
interests and hobbies. We said that we planned to send him where he
could join others with similar interests. He responded that he meant
“not alone from this moment on.”
Akira had been here from Japan, without his family, for a month and
was going to be here for another five months. The U.S. counterpart of
his company anticipated that Akira had fluent English and an outgoing
personality. He had neither. Therefore, he was alone much of the time
when he wasn’t at work and alone and underused when at work.
Arturo and Akira were working for the same company. Arturo was
in the United States for one month and was staying in a hotel; Akira
was here for many months and lived in an apartment, both close to
the company. A trainer from my company, Customized Language
Skills Training (CLST), was to meet both men the evening after Arturo’s
arrival at their respective sites for private lessons. I asked the trainer
to arrange a meeting with both of them at the hotel lounge, after the
lessons, to introduce them and have them speak briefly to each other
in English (the only language they had in common).

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