hey there Aubrey how's everything going today I'm great how are you Lindsay I'm awesome I'm
feeling great today yes I am so excited about our new podcast business English podcast from
allers English how's it working out by the way it's working out great Aubry because the point
is you know we publish so much here on allers English which is fantastic but sometimes I know
our listeners who are super focused on their careers they want to show just for business
English and that's what we're giving them so guys if you haven't found our new business
English podcast from allers English Aubrey how can they find it yes you need to search all yours
English in the search bar wherever you listen to podcasts and all three of our podcasts will show
up look for business English and make sure that you follow it especially if you work in English
or will it sometime in the future so that you have all those episodes in one place yes good stuff so
today I'm excited because we are answering a student question I love it when we bring our
student our listener questions in on the episodes yeah us and you guys will notice that I asked
Lindsay how's that working out which is a very native natural way to say is it working is it
successful and that is the phrasal verb that we're focusing on today so let's read this question and
dive in this is a really good one all right here we go so our listener what is this listener's name
do we have their name no unfortunately it was a listener on WeChat in China and we get these great
comments and questions but unfortunately you guys don't always leave your name so shout out to this
Chinese list of the name all right good stuff so so here she says can you girls explain how
to use the phrase work out I heard others say this phrase in different situations and I was
wondering how to use this phrase correctly thanks in advance Chinese listener on WeChat all right
oh guys this is so fascinating because as soon as I started I know I know a lot of them but I
thought oh there are quite a few and I did a bit of a deep dive there are so many phrasal
verbs just for work out are there there's so many meanings for that one phrasal verb right
oh we love this as native speakers we love this phrasal verb there's so much we can do with it
we can be sarcastic we can be straightforward we can be professional right Aubry so what are
we focusing on today when it comes to this one yes we are going to focus in on the meaning that means
be successful there are lots of meanings for this phrasal verb you've definitely heard it used to
mean to exercise to make calculations but today we're talking about one meaning which is to have
success yes and that's why it really applies in the business world because we often are we want
to check in with our colleagues on how something is going right yeah you know they've set a goal or
they just did a presentation this is such a great way to connect to us them how it worked out yeah
I love it so let's go into it Aubry yes so first we use this three different ways this phrase over
the meaning of being successful and the first is to make predictions so for example you might ask
oh do you think it'll work out yes or how do you think that's going to work out right exactly and
then the answer might be it'll all work out or it'll all work out that sounds really natural
it'll all work out it'll all work out right that's quite a pronunciation wise that could
be a little confusing for our listeners true really it's it will it will all work out but we
always squish these together in that contraction it'll all work out yes I love it what else Aubry
and then you'll definitely hear also battle instead of that will work out right do you
think that'll work out oh yeah that'll work out yes I love it so good that'll work out or
do you think it's gonna work out I use gonna all the time and I actually type it in text messages
too sometimes I wonder should I type this in a text message even to friends it seems kind of
weird right but I do and it's just natural it's what I want to say to sound friendly yeah right
I probably wouldn't put it in a business email if it's not a co-worker you know very well maybe
a new client but we say it all the time yeah we went to a new planet I would still be like
you know are you gonna come to happy hour yeah and we get yeah yeah and maybe we should come
back to another episode on that you know going to when should you use gonna when should you not when
should you write it when should you not but here's the phrase with work out guys I think it's gonna
work out or I don't think it's gonna work out now could this be to talk about relationships we use
it a lot that way right if someone someone's just starting a relationship you might ask
someone and you think it's going to work out you might say I don't think that's going to work
or they say not a match not a match that's the big phrase now yes okay so the second meaning
is discussing results right so this is where if someone has done a presentation you might want to
ask them how it went you'd say how'd that work out or how'd it work out yeah how'd that work
out or and I would respond by saying what yeah either yeah it worked out or it didn't right oh
it didn't really work out and I love how you know we as native speakers like to say really right it
didn't really work out maybe we add that really in all the time to feel natural I don't know just
to add kind of a filler word I guess yes and it sort of takes the sting out of something instead
of saying it didn't work out I'd be like oh it didn't really work out yes I love less harsh
yeah it does it does for sure okay so we've talked about discussing results guys making predictions
write those things down now there's a third bucket what is it Aubry yes it's asking about goals or
about something new like maybe something a new purchase so first of all you might say
um if it's like a goal you might say how's not eating sugar working out or how's reading every
day working out right someone has told you a goal they've made and you're going to say how's blank
working out to ask them about that goal yeah and then there's kind of a more skeptical side of this
just as a bonus for our listeners the phrase how's that working out for you right very sarcastic
what is that just as a little asterisk for our listeners what does that mean when I say that
how's that working out for you all right what does that mean where I told you something that you know
is either destined to fail or doing something you don't agree with right yeah um and you're you're
gonna be like yeah how's that working out for you I mean like I know it's not going well let's be
real here yeah so that's a little different from what we're sharing now it's in the same kind of
meaning but it's putting a layer of skepticism on it which is a again Supernatural you'll hear it
but it does mean something different than someone earnestly checking in you know how's that going
right how's that working out think of a good example I've started um getting up at 4 a.m to
work because I'm awake anyway you know sound like I may as well use this time like I'll wake up at
four and can't fall back to sleep but I feel like a friend said this to me recently I was telling
her that and she was like how's that working out for you because then she's like are you going to
sleep at seven or eight pm because yeah there's no way you can stay up late if you're getting up at
four or maybe she thinks ultimately it'll catch up with you in a couple of weeks you'll crash and it
just won't be sustainable so there is a layer that is a way to express skepticism but let's get back
to the make the more Earnest ways of expressing this right yes for sure so this also works with
um new things that you maybe have purchased like you know how's that new car working out or how's
your new boyfriend working out right there's all kinds you can so you can add anything here
and then someone just be like oh it's not really working out or yeah it's working out right right
yeah is there anything we need to know Aubry grammatically speaking in terms of our grammar
when we answer this yes right there's something really important here that in order to sound more
natural and Native if someone says to you like how's not eating sugar working out it is very
unnatural to answer eating sugar is not working out right you always want to replace the noun or
the gerund or the noun phrase with a demonstrative pronoun so either this or that right you'd always
say oh that's not working out to repeat that noun feels repetitive and very unnatural yeah and I
mean I think that's generally true across so much of the English language right we don't it's too
repetitive if we're repeating the same thing the other person just asked us we're wasting
their time yes and if you're studying for the IELTS exam The Examiner is listening for this
specifically if you're repeating vocabulary instead of using a pronoun that would be much
more native and natural that's a skill that you are specifically being tested on oh that's a
good point guys check out our third podcast we now have three podcast dollars English crazy uh
IELTS energy podcast with Jessica and Aubry two days a week good stuff all right anything else
about let's give two more sample sentences for our listeners in this in this way perfect yeah
so I might say like how's drinking more water working out again like I know someone set the
goal of drinking more water I recently set this goal so I would like for a friend to kind of
um give me that uh what's that word when you you want to be accountable to someone like an
accountability accountability a um yeah like you know how's not drinking water working out are you
able to do it how's drinking more water working out right yeah for sure no I love that yeah you
have to bring a big jug up to your office and have it sit there all day is is the way yes right
it has to be very handy right handy and it has to work really well yet easy to pour easy to do
um here's another example how's that new car working out right so this is you know
these are standard everyday ways of saying this right but in just a minute we're going to talk
a little bit about business English and how this might fit into our work worlds yeah yes
okay Aubry so in the business World which I know a lot of our listeners are there what do we need to
know yeah this is so perfect for talking about anything that can be successful so we use this
a lot in business English it's such a great way to build relationships if you know someone has a
pretty high stakes interview meeting presentation to ask them ahead of time that prediction you know
how do you think it's going to work out are you ready or afterward to ask them how it worked out
yeah you know there's something about on this show whether it's in the business world or our daily
lives it's connection connection and when your colleague knows that you remember that you had
a proposal today or you had that presentation even if they weren't there and weren't involved that's
super valuable right that you can go to them and check in yes when someone remembers something
that was important to you I it really feels like the relationship is deeper is more meaningful if
they care to remember and are willing to take the time to ask you about it you got it so as you said
Aubry anything like proposals uh plans goals presentations you might have meetings uh maybe
you are doing a salary negotiation you shared that with a colleague right maybe that or an
interview you're interviewing at another company all sorts of things promotion right yes I would
definitely hope that a close colleague or friend would ask me how it went yes I had a meeting about
something important like that I love it so good so guys check in with people using this we have a
role play Aubry should we do it yes this is going to get so Lindsay and I are co-workers we're just
leaving a meeting that I led I'll start us out I wasn't sure how that'd go but I think it worked
out yeah you did a great job thank you I'm a bit worried about meeting the annual goals I hear you
I think it's going to work out though speaking of goals how's your goal of running every day
working out oof it's not really working out yeah if I set that goal it definitely wouldn't work out
I kind of love this how as co-workers we pivot from talking about how the meeting went how my
presentation went and then say speaking of goals how's your goal of running every day working out
this is so native I do this all the time oh my gosh it's so normal for native speakers of
English to move in and out of topics and they might come back to the work thing right they
come and often they don't even do that transition speaking of sometimes they just go break straight
to the other topic which is I know what we want to help you guys with right to hang in there to
get to the moment of connection so let's review what we did here Aubry yes so first I say I wasn't
sure how it go but I think it worked out this is very native to say about something you did
it would be you don't want to brag you don't want to sound like you're not humble there are a lot of
things you can't really say comfortably like I did really well I think I did a great job what you can
say is I think it worked out yeah because there's something about that that's taking the emphasis
off of you and more onto the whole Endeavor I guess or the presently right itself yeah you're
not bragging about yourself you're just saying yeah I think it worked out I think it went well
I think it's a nice way to be like assertive but also humble in a way you know yeah yeah so let's
see what else did we say here and then you said because I said I'm worried about the annual goals
and you said I think it's gonna work out though and we definitely could say I think it'll work out
yeah yeah exactly I think it'll work out I think it's gonna work out and then we did the flip to
the personal life right speaking of goals how's your goal of running every day working out yeah
you said oh it's not really working out meaning I'm not really doing it I'm struggling yeah
it's not happening right and there's something convenient that's why I love this episode and I
love this phrasal verb because there's something more comfortable and less vulnerable about not
about not saying I'm not doing it exactly right we don't need to beat ourselves up I'm just saying no
it's not really working out I'm not going to the gym everyone I'm just not doing it right it's not
working out and that it could be a little more vague too like other things could be going on
right maybe the family is getting in the way right exactly and this is a real skill to not
have TMI right you don't need to share that the families you don't need to share why you're not
doing it always you can just be like yeah it's not working out yeah and then you said yeah if
I set that goal it definitely wouldn't work out so you're empathizing with me trying to mirror
my difficulties in making which I think is also a real skill to show empathy this way if someone has
set a goal and they let you know it's not working out especially if it is true for you to say uh
same if I set that goal it probably wouldn't work out yeah I love it I love it so what's a takeaway
what is the key way we want our listeners to remember today for working out yes right this
is such a great way to make connections with co-workers especially at work but also friends
everyone in your life to use the phrasal verb workout to discuss success ask about results
of goals ask about new purchases right these are all such fun things to talk about and great ways
to build those deeper connections yeah guys keep in mind you know what your colleagues are doing
what's going on in their work day maybe they're on another floor but you meet them for lunch a
couple times a week right make sure they know that you know what's happening in their work lives and
then you could transition into their personal lives right there in that conversation and
this phrasal verb works for it all it's actually kind of amazing it's sort of an amazing word it
is right and don't stress out about phrasal verbs there are I think there are like 21 phrasal verbs
for the verb work and there are like six meanings for work out so this listener on WeChat that
posted this you've probably seen it used all these different ways this is really helpful to focus on
one way perfect how you can use the one meaning then move on to the next one don't let yourself
get confused yeah don't get overwhelmed guys good stuff super inspiring Aubry thanks for hanging out
today to show us you know how this phrasal verb works I think it worked out it didn't work out and
that worked out great all right I'll talk to you very soon have a good one you too bye-bye [Music]