103 I’m Pretty Good at This, But Hopeless at That

Topic 103 I’m Pretty Good at This, But Hopeless at That 16 October 2020

1. What are you pretty good at? Tell us about it.

2. What are you hopeless at? Why do you think you are bad at this thing?

3. Some people think they are good at everything. What is an English word (or two) to describe people like that? What do you think of such people?

4. When you apply for a job, usually you have to submit a CV (curriculum vitae) and have an interview. What are some lies that people tell about their skills and abilities in job interviews & CVs?

5. You are a lot better at English than when you began to learn it. What are some other things you would like to become good at in the future? Why?

6. Champions in sport, in business, in music ... in anything ... usually need a very long time to become extremely good at what they do. What personal qualities do you think they need to reach this kind of success?

7. A lot of people are not very good at their jobs. They are just barely good enough not to get fired. Some people are very, very bad at their jobs. Try to remember some real examples from your life experience of people like this.

8. What can happen to the minds of people who become “too successful” ( ... in love, in careers, in making money, .. whatever)?

9. Often people feel they have no chance to succeed because of the society they are in. The problem might be racism, or gender, or coming from a very poor family, or many other reasons. What are some solutions (good or bad) that people try if they feel they have no chance of success?

10. It takes all kinds of people to make the world go around [.. idiom from my father ^_^ - Thor]. How tolerant should we be of people who make choices we personally think are very bad? Examples?

Comment, Thor - It’s great if you can get a job you are good at, but … Useful information: here is a list of the best paying jobs - if you can get one - in Australia WITHOUT a university degree. It includes the salary for each job : https://www.strongmoneyaustralia.com/best-paying-jobs-in-australia-without-a-degree/ . This is kind of interesting to someone like me who was stupid enough to do a PhD (Doctor of Philosophy degree, taking forever). I mostly never earned anything like the better of these incomes, and now retired I live (comfortably enough with simple tastes) below Australia's poverty line (officially less than AU$457 per week). The poverty line is 50% of median income