📙 Part 2: Describe a creative person you admire

This episode's vocabulary

Novel (adjective) – new and original; not like anything seen before. → The company became famous for its novel approach to space travel.

Entrepreneur (noun) – a person who starts and manages a business, especially involving risk. → Many people see Elon Musk as a visionary entrepreneur.

Inventive (adjective) – good at thinking of new and original ideas. → The team was very inventive in solving complex engineering problems.

Get off the ground (idiom) – to start successfully; to begin and progress. → It takes a lot of funding for a new technology company to get off the ground.

With regards to (phrase) – concerning; about a particular subject. → With regards to innovation, he’s one of the leading figures in the industry.

Invested in (phrasal verb) – emotionally or personally involved in something. → I’m not very invested in celebrity gossip or online drama.

Oversee (verb) – to manage or supervise a project, company, or activity. → She oversees several major research projects at the university.

Commercially viable (adjective) – able to make a profit and succeed in the market. → The first commercially viable electric cars changed the auto industry.

Satellite constellation (noun) – a group of satellites working together as a system. → The satellite constellation provides internet access to remote regions.

Original thinker (noun) – someone who has fresh, unique ideas and perspectives. → Being an original thinker is essential in cutting-edge technology fields.

Visionary (noun/adjective) – someone with strong, imaginative ideas about the future. → Many people view him as a visionary who wants to change the world.

Trailblazer (noun) – a person who is the first to do something, making it easier for others to follow. → She is a trailblazer in renewable energy technology.

Disruptive innovation (noun) – a new idea or product that radically changes an existing industry. → Electric vehicles were a disruptive innovation in transportation.

Cutting-edge (adjective) – very modern and advanced; at the leading edge of progress. → The company is known for its cutting-edge research in AI.

Problem-solving mindset (noun) – a way of thinking focused on finding solutions. → A strong problem-solving mindset is crucial for creative entrepreneurs.

Questions and Answers

Maria: You should say who he or she is, how you knew them, what his or her greatest achievement is, and explain why you think he or she is creative.

Rory: I'd like to talk about Elon Musk, who is, at least I think, the founder of SpaceX and Tesla, which are pretty novel companies that needed a lot of creativity to get off the ground, quite literally in some cases. When it comes to who he is, aside from what I already mentioned, he's an American entrepreneur, though I think he's originally from South Africa. Other than that, I don't know much about him, apart from the fact that he's apparently quite inventive when it comes to his work.

With regards to how I know him, he's in the news all the time for the work he does in both business and politics. It's not always positive, but I suppose nobody's perfect. And it's the creative side of things I think most people like about him anyway. At least that's certainly the case with me, I don't get invested in drama like that.

In terms of his greatest achievements, well, I don't think he's finished doing things, but so far he's overseen the delivery of things like the Tesla, which is an electronic vehicle, and I think it was the first commercially viable one, actually. And he helped develop some reusable rocket engines. I also think he's responsible for the development of Starlink, which is a satellite constellation that spans the globe. Needless to say, all of these are pretty great accomplishments that benefit a lot of people, as well as create numerous jobs and opportunities.

To tell you a bit more about why I think he's creative, well, to be honest, I think it takes a pretty inventive person, or at least an original thinker, to come up with all these ideas or at least facilitate their development. Obviously, no man is an island, but undoubtedly he has lots of people helping him out with this stuff. But it seems like he's the main organising force behind it all.

If we didn't have Elon, it's possible the world would be a little quieter, but it would also be one with fewer options.

Maria: And what about your friends? Do they admire this person?

Rory: Unfortunately, I haven't heard them say many positive things, but he was the first person that came to mind.

Discussion

So, dear listener, a creative person you admire, so what does admire mean? It's like adore.

Rory: Yeah, or you think they're cool, or you like them. You think they've done something positive, or made a difference in the world.

Maria: And here you can choose to talk about an artist. An artist meaning like a painter, Van Gogh, for example, Picasso, a musician, an architect, someone who is connected to art. If you don't have such a person, you have to find them, okay? So it's up to you. And learn about their life, write out 3-5 words, and off you go. Rory chose to talk about Elon Musk. Well, he is quite creative, but I'd say he's a... What do you call Elon Musk?

Rory: An entrepreneur? An entrepreneur, a businessman.

Maria: Entrepreneur, yeah, like a businessperson, according to Wikipedia. But again, why not? He's quite creative. Actually, that's an interesting choice, Rory, because I would choose Van Gogh.

Rory: Well, we were talking about him in the Part 1 episode.

Maria: Yeah, that's true. So, you see, okay, it's possible. But Rory is actually risking it, because the examiner might kind of think like, hmm, is he creative? Is he connected to art in some way?

Rory: Well, does a creative person have to be an artistic person?

Maria: Yeah, exactly.

Rory: We are creative on the podcast. We create new ways to develop grammar and vocabulary.

Maria: Yeah, so you can pick somebody from art or, again, you know, make a choice. But you should know about this person, and you should be able to talk about them. Rory, can I talk about a writer here?

Rory: You could, yeah. Writing is art. And well, even if it's nonfiction, it could also be very nicely done, which requires some creativity.

Maria: Yeah. And you start talking. You don't read out the card. You just say, I'd like to talk about Van Gogh. I'd like to talk about Picasso. And then the founder of ta-ta-ta, or a famous painter, a famous architect. Novel companies, new companies. Novel is a very nice synonym to new. Like a new approach. You can say a novel approach.

Rory: A unique approach. A unique take. A novel take. Take is just meaning understanding here.

Maria: And here Rory explains, like, which needed a lot of creativity. So, we are talking about a creative person, and we are using a noun. Creativity. So, he founded these novel companies that needed a lot of creativity. To get off the ground. So, to get off the ground. To start them going. To make them work.

Rory: I made a fun joke, though.

Maria: Yeah, because Elon Musk deals with, you know...

Rory: Rockets. And then I had to say, to get off the ground. Quite literally. Like, literally. Like, in real life. The rockets are going off the ground. There you go. A joke in part two. The examiner will love that.

Maria: So, get something off the ground is an idiom. So, if a plan or activity gets off the ground, you get it off the ground. It starts, or it succeeds. So, for example, a lot of money is needed to get this project off the ground. So, you have an idea for a company, or a business, or a project, or something. And you say, like, yeah, I need to get it off the ground. I need people. I need money. I need creativity to get it off the ground. To make it successful.

Rory: Maybe you need a miracle.

Maria: I need a miracle to get it off the ground. We change the topic when it comes to who he is. So, that's the first bullet point in our card. Who he is. When it comes to who he is. He's an American… How do you pronounce it? Entrepreneur.

Rory: Entrepreneur. How do you not know that word? I thought you would be very good with that word.

Maria: I know the word. I just struggle to pronounce it.

Rory: How? It's so easy. Entrepreneur.

Maria: Entrepreneur. Oh, look at the spelling, Rory.

Rory: French.

Maria: It's outrageous. Entrepreneur.

Rory: It's French, yes.

Maria: Entrepreneur.

Rory: Entrepreneur, je ne sais quoi.

Maria: Vous parlez français, non? Vous parlez français, excusez-moi.

Rory: Yes, you do. You do now.

Maria: Croissant. Entrepreneur, dear listener. Entrepreneur. If you can't be bothered pronouncing this word, just say a businessman. A business person.

Rory: No.

Maria: But entrepreneur is a nice one. An entrepreneur is a person who starts their own business. Especially when this involves a new opportunity. Creativity, you know, it's like, yay. Like Elon Musk is a famous entrepreneur. He's originally from South Africa. Oh, really? Oh, okay.

Rory: I think so. I think he was born there and became an American citizen, perhaps.

Maria: Oh, yeah, in South Africa. Yeah, you're correct. He's of British and Pennsylvania Dutch ancestry.

Rory: My god.

Maria: Oh, yeah, and he has a very interesting mother, a model. And she's into diet and stuff.

Rory: Nice.

Maria: And she was raised in South Africa, yeah, okay.

Rory: I see, okay. Well, there you have it.

Maria: Right, so...

Rory: But the other thing is, if you don't know, then you can always speculate and say, I don't know, but I think he is from there. Or at least I think he is from there. And the way you say it, so he's from South Africa. Or at least I think he is from there. It will be good for your pronunciation, but also it means that you can show how to handle things when you're not sure about them.

Maria: He's quite inventive when it comes to his work. So, again, we're paraphrasing creative, inventive. He invents stuff. Like, very good at thinking of new, original ideas. He's very inventive. We change the topic, again, using the phrase with regards to how I know him. So, we used when it comes to, who he is, ta-ta-ta. With regards to how I know him. Or with regards to who he is, ta-ta-ta. So, he's in the news all the time. Yeah, so he's in the spotlight.

Rory: The media spotlight.

Maria: In terms of his greatest achievements. Again, a new phrase to change the topic. And this is the last task. Like, what his or her greatest achievement is. In terms of his greatest achievements, blah-blah-blah-blah. And we say that so far his greatest achievement has been the Tesla. An electric vehicle. An electric, dear listener, not electrical, not electricity, but an electric car. An electric vehicle. Vehicle, like a car. Why did you say the Tesla? Why not Tesla?

Rory: Well, Tesla, if I say that, it's the company. But the Tesla is the car as well, or the type of car.

Maria: He is also responsible for the development of, ta-ta-ta, a starlink, right? Which is a satellite constellation.

Rory: That just means a group of satellites. It's a fancy word for a group of satellites.

Maria: And another synonym for achievements is accomplishments. So, he has achieved a lot, or he has accomplished a lot. Achievements, accomplishments. Nice one. Like, one of his greatest accomplishments was the invention of tu-tu-tu. Like, an accomplishment is something successful. And his accomplishments, his achievements benefit a lot of people all over the world. So, people get a lot of useful things out of his accomplishments. Numerous jobs, for example, opportunities.

Rory: At least I think so. I think these are quite big companies. If you're launching rockets, then they're probably very big.

Maria: He's an original thinker. Another synonym for creative, original thinker.

Rory: Or inventive.

Maria: He has original ideas. Inventive, yeah. And Rory says, So, he's not alone. He has a lot of people helping him out. How many children does he have?

Rory: Oh, it's a lot. I think it's like seven or six or something. It's a lot.

Maria: A lot of children. Yeah, now Elon Musk is 54 years old. It's just like, wow, young, active. At least 14 children. What?

Rory: Wow, 14.

Maria: 14. At least, it says. According to Wikipedia.

Rory: I don't know if that's connected to being creative, though. I think that's just another aspect of personality.

Maria: 14 kids, at least. Officially. So, yeah. You see? A productive person.

Rory: A reproductive person.

Maria: And you can wrap it up with a conditional. The second conditional. We're imagining. So, if we didn't have Elon Musk, the world would be a little quieter. Our life would not be as fun without him. Lovely.

Rory: I think we've drawn attention to just about everything. So, who would your creative person be? Maria already said Van Gogh. I said Elon Musk. But who would you choose?

Maria: Thank you very much for listening. And we'll get back to you in our next episode. Okay? Bye!

Rory: Bye!

Make sure to subscribe to our social media to see some of the “behind the scenes” stuff:

Our Instagram: bit.ly/instagramswi

Our Telegram: bit.ly/telegramswi