How to talk about CHANGING JOBS and sound professional - Business English vocabulary and grammar lesson

Talking about changing jobs can be challenging, especially in job interviews. We all want to sound professional when speaking English at work but there are so many ways to make mistakes when discussing this topic! Let's talk about quitting jobs, getting fired, and being unemployed, and why you should never use this vocabulary in job interviews. We'll also talk about some professional sounding, natural and native ways to communicate about these times in your career. So if you speak English as a second language at work, and you want to improve your communication skills when changing jobs, then hopefully the phrases, vocabulary, grammar, and examples in today's podcast will help.

Also, if you're studying for the IELTS, TOEFL, or Cambridge English tests and exams then you might find some of the vocabulary in this episode really useful.

This podcast is all about helping you to communicate better, in English, at work. I work with international English speakers from around the world who use English, at work, as a second or third language and I hope that I can bring some of the ideas, vocabulary, and grammar, from those sessions, to you in this podcast.

Don’t forget that my full time job is helping international professionals who use English at work to improve their communication skills. So, if you need English to do your job but don’t speak it natively then maybe we can work together to help you to achieve your language goals. 

Book a class: https://www.breakoutbusinessenglish.com/start

Transcript

Chris: 0:01

Welcome to the Breakout Business English podcast, where I help you to communicate better at work in English. Hi everyone, my name is Chris and I'm a Business English coach. Thank you so much for listening and today's topic is changing jobs. Changing jobs, leaving one job and starting another can be the most exciting or scary part of your career, depending on your perspective. What can also be really difficult is talking about this with colleagues and especially future employers. Today, we're going to discuss some common situations that you might need to talk about, some natural and native vocabulary that you can use to do this, and the best ways to speak about difficult situations, especially in job interviews. So let's get started. We're going to begin today with leaving a job. This is something that can be really important to talk about in a job interview. If you're asked a question like why did you leave, or why are you leaving your previous company or your current company, or maybe why did you apply for this job, this might be part of your answer there. Also, let's start by talking about some words that you might want to avoid using when talking to colleagues or interviewers. There are a couple of words that I think a lot of people know here, and these are to quit and to get fired, to quit and to get fired. Unfortunately, both of these sound really negative. If you tell me that you quit your job, then this can actually sound a little aggressive. Quit is the kind of word we might use when someone gets angry, shouts at their boss, grabs their things, grabs their coat and slams the door on the way out. It has this really negative feeling to it, just like the word fired is really negative too and suggests that you've done something really bad. So quit and fired have a similar feeling to them. They have similar emotions attached. The only real difference here is who made the choice. Firing was your employer's choice, quitting was yours, but both are negative. They have this negative feeling attached to them. They have this negative feeling attached to them. I should say that I lost my job also has a negative feeling around it. This sounds like something bad happened. So now that we've discussed everything, you shouldn't say, what should we say?

Chris: 3:23

Let's take a listen to some natural and native sounding examples of people talking about this difficult topic. I left my last job two months ago. I left my last job two months ago. I parted ways with my previous company when the company was restructuring, when the company was restructuring. I'm looking to move on from my current role because I don't find it challenging anymore. I'm looking to move on from my current role because I don't find it challenging anymore. Because I don't find it challenging anymore. I was laid off a couple of months. That was to be laid off, to be laid off. In the example we heard, I was laid off, I was laid off.

Chris: 5:01

If you are laid off, this is not exactly the same as being fired. It doesn't have the same feeling connected to it. As I mentioned earlier, the word to fire has a lot of negative feelings and emotions around it. It sounds like you've done something wrong. You've done something wrong. However, if your employer lays you off, this simply means that there was not enough money to pay you anymore or enough work for you to do. Layoffs often happen to large groups of people at the same time. We sometimes hear on the news about hundreds of people being laid off when companies change the way they do business or close a large part of their organization. Perhaps a group of stores or a whole factory is closing down, for instance. Unlike being fired, losing your job due to layoffs doesn't have that same kind of negative feeling. In fact, if you say in an interview that you were laid off, then you might even get some sympathy from your interviewer. So this is a very specific phrase, but if it does apply to you, then it's a really useful one to know.

Chris: 6:32

In the first example we heard I left my job. I left my job. This is probably the best general word that we can use for stopping working somewhere. We can use this if we quit. We can use this if we were fired. It really doesn't tell us who made the decision to end that contract contract, and this is probably the most common way for native speakers to talk about the end of their employment at a particular company. If you are going to choose one piece of vocabulary from this podcast to talk about this particular situation, I would go with to leave. So I want to leave, or maybe I left my company. We also heard to part ways with my previous company and to move on from my previous company. To part ways with and to move on from.

Chris: 7:45

These are less common but equally they don't tell us who made the decision. They are neutral, made the decision. They are neutral. This means that even if you were fired, you can go to a job interview with this handful of phrases these two or three phrases and not actually have to tell your interviewer that you were so bad at your old job that they fired you or you hated so much that you want to quit. You can simply say you want to part ways with, you're planning to move on from, or you left, your previous employer.

Chris: 8:26

And if you are looking for a new job and you want to make sure that you are prepared for the interview or maybe you've just started a new job and you want to improve your ability to communicate with your colleagues then don't forget that my full-time job is helping international professionals who use English at work to improve their communication skills. So if you need English to do your job but you don't speak it natively, then maybe we can work together to help you to achieve your language and communication goals. If you would like to book some time to meet with me through one-to-one video calls just you and me then you can go to BreakoutBusinessEnglishcom that's BreakoutBusinessEnglishcom and find out more. Also, I sometimes have offers and discounts on class packages, have offers and discounts on class packages, and entering your email address on the website is the best way to be the first to find out when those limited time deals are available. I've worked with over 1,000 non-native English speaking professionals, from new graduates up to CEOs and government leaders, to help them achieve their goals, and I look forward to meeting you.

Chris: 10:01

Okay, let's go in the other direction now and let's talk about something nicer. Let's talk about getting hired. Of course, we can just use that phrase I was hired by or they hired me but let's take a look at some other natural and native sounding ways to talk about beginning a new role with a new employer. I came on board at my current company in 2016. I came on board at my current company in 2016. I don't remember what it was like when I joined the firm. I don't remember what it was like when I joined the firm. I started my current job in early 2022.

Chris: 11:17

Okay, I think the vocabulary here is not quite as complicated as in the last set of examples. However, let's take a look at the idea of coming on board at a company Coming on board In the first example we heard, I came on board at my current company in 2016. I came on board at my current company in 2016. This phrase likely comes from maritime English, from the shipping industry Throughout its history. The UK has had a long history of working at sea and this has shaped our language in many ways, and although the way that we use this phrase has changed a couple of times, it definitely has its origins in that area and that field.

Chris: 12:19

These days, we use on board to say that something is on a ship or on a plane. You might have watched an on board movie the last time you took a flight, an on-board movie the last time you took a flight, or you might get told that unfortunately, you can't take that on board the plane. So when we use it at work, we mean quite simply to start working for a company. One of the most common places to hear this these days is in the word onboarding. This is the process of joining a company, although some companies also use it when new clients or customers decide to start using that company's products or services. Your onboarding process likely involves some training, meeting a lot of new people and, of course, lots of paperwork. And in the context of a new customer or client, it likely involves again meeting new people and, yeah, probably lots of paperwork again. In fact, this is one of the newer words that I've ever talked about on this podcast or my YouTube channel, because the word onboarding as a continuous verb or as a gerund noun first appeared in dictionaries only in 2015. So about 10 years ago at the recording of this podcast, so it's a really new word. So about 10 years ago at the recording of this podcast, so it's a really new word.

Chris: 14:09

Okay, we've covered the happier topic of starting a new job. Let's move on to something less positive now, and that is not having a job, not having a job, not having a job. Just as we discussed with the words quit and fired, there is a way to say this that feels very negative, and that is unemployed, unemployed. Describing yourself as unemployed doesn't suggest that you're looking for a new job. It simply tells us that you don't have one. For that reason, it feels quite negative and is generally best avoided, especially in job interviews. Let's now take a listen to some great, natural and native ways to tell someone that you currently don't have a job without telling them that you are unemployed.

Chris: 15:23

I'm between jobs at the moment. I'm really just waiting for the right opportunity. I'm job hunting full-time right now. I apply for a couple of jobs every day. I'm currently taking a career break and exploring new opportunities. I'm currently taking a career break and exploring new opportunities.

Chris: 16:22

Let's start with the phrase job hunting. Job hunting, which we heard in the second example. I'm job hunting full time right now. I apply for a couple of jobs every day.

Chris: 16:39

Hunt is a word that we usually associate with animals trying to find their next meal, especially if their next meal is another animal. However, we can use it professionally to say that we're looking very hard for something and putting a lot of effort into it. We often talk about house hunting, which is when you're looking for a new house, a new place to live, and I've definitely said things like I spent a whole hour hunting for my keys this morning. I spent a whole hour hunting for my keys this morning Because keys are really easy to lose and sometimes we all need to hunt for our keys. So if you tell someone that you are job hunting or you are a job hunter, then this means you're trying really hard to find a new job. I should say that this phrase doesn't necessarily mean that you don't currently have a job. Technically, you can be employed and be a job hunter at the same time. However, if you add something like full-time to the beginning and describe yourself as a full-time job hunter or say that you are job hunting full-time, then you should be able to avoid this confusion.

Chris: 18:12

The phrase career break from our third example is particularly positive. I think we heard I'm currently taking a career break. We heard I'm currently taking a career break. I'm currently taking a career break. This makes us feel like the period of unemployment was planned and that you became this way, without a job, intentionally. People often take career breaks to travel, to have children or to go back to university and study more. So generally for positive things. Maybe using this in an interview will even make your interviewer a little jealous that you've had more free time than them recently.

Chris: 19:03

And let's talk about the phrase in between jobs from our first example. In our example, we heard I'm in between jobs at the moment. I'm in between jobs at the moment. This is a well-known and very common phrase to communicate the idea that you don't have a job currently, but in the most positive way possible, and it's very common to hear in job interviews. I remember when I was interviewing people for roles on a sales team that I managed, I would often hear people say that they were in between jobs. Telling someone that you are in between jobs suggests that right now you don't have a job. However, in the recent past you did have a job and you expect to be employed again in the near future. Because of this, it's probably the most popular way to say this and to give this information, and let's do a fun, maybe interesting, piece of vocabulary.

Chris: 20:19

We talked about job hunting and being a job hunter. However, when we're changing jobs, sometimes we also use the phrase head hunter. A head hunter or to be head hunted. This sounds particularly scary. If someone is hunting for your head, then it sounds like you're going to get hurt, sounds like bad things are going to happen. But a head hunter is someone who actively seeks out people who are usually working for other employers and offers them jobs and opportunities that they might consider. A headhunter is very similar to a recruiter, but they are more active and they look for talent in other companies. People who get headhunted are often in particularly senior roles, senior management roles, or are particularly skilled, working in high-skilled industries, in high skilled industries.

Chris: 21:42

So if you have been contacted by a head hunter or if you have been head hunted, then you should take this as a compliment. It means that you are probably really good at your job. If a head hunter is interested in speaking with you, we can hear this in sentences like I was speaking to a headhunter this morning. I was speaking to a headhunter this morning, or I was headhunted for my current role. I was headhunted for my current role.

Chris: 22:12

Okay, so one more time, don't forget that my full-time job is helping international professionals who use English at work to improve their communication skills. So if you need English to do your job but you don't speak it natively, then maybe we can work together to help you to achieve your language and communication goals. If you'd like to book some time to meet with me through one-to-one video calls just you and me then you can go to breakoutbusinessenglishcom that's the title of the podcast, breakoutbusinessenglishcom and find out more and find out more. Also, I sometimes have offers and discounts on packages of calls with me, and entering your email address on the website is the best way to be the first to find out when those limited time deals are available. I've also worked with over 1,000 non-native English-speaking professionals, from new graduates up to CEOs and government leaders, to help them achieve their goals, and I look forward to leave a review. Every review really helps me out and helps to push the podcast to new listeners and grow the show.

Chris: 23:44

If you found this podcast useful and you think there are some valuable things in here, then feel free to write a couple of kind words, and I thank you in advance for that. Also, that's a great place to request a topic for a future podcast, if that's something that you want to do. Don't forget that between episodes of the podcast, you can get videos every couple of days on Instagram, tiktok and YouTube Just search for Breakout Business English. Also, if there's a topic that you'd like to hear me talk about on the podcast, then I'd be excited to hear your ideas. Leave a message or a comment on one of my YouTube videos and I look forward to hearing from you. That's it for today. Thank you so much for listening and for your time, and I'll talk to you again next time on the breakout business English podcast.