📘 Part 3: Growth and change in personal and professional life

This episode's vocabulary

Prepare (verb) – to make ready for something. → Parents should prepare their children for the first day of school.

Packed lunch (noun) – a meal prepared at home to be eaten at school or work. → She brought a packed lunch to school.

On hand (phrase) – available or nearby when needed. → Have a lunch box on hand so the child doesn’t go hungry.

Pay for (verb) – to give money in exchange for something. → You have to pay for lunch at some schools.

Socialise (verb) – to interact with others in a friendly way. → Children socialise by playing and talking together.

Joke (noun) – something said or done to cause laughter. → They shared jokes during break time.

Common (adjective) – shared by two or more people. → People connect when they find something in common.

Deprived (adjective) – lacking something necessary. → Kids deprived of social contact may suffer.

Hormesis (noun) – beneficial effect from low-level exposure to stress. → Playing outside helps kids build resilience through hormesis.

Neurotransmitter (noun) – a chemical in the brain that affects mood. → Social interaction boosts neurotransmitters linked to happiness.

Norm (noun) – an expected standard of behaviour. → Children learn social norms through interaction.

Convention (noun) – a traditional or widely accepted way of doing things. → Social conventions are learned at school.

Get to grips with (phrase) – to start understanding or dealing with something. → You need to get to grips with new policies in a job.

Progression (noun) – advancement or moving forward. → Big companies often offer more career progression.

Awash (adjective) – filled or covered with something in large amounts. → Large firms are awash with policies and systems.

Peer (noun) – someone of the same age or status. → Children learn a lot from interacting with their peers.

Adapt (verb) – to adjust to new conditions. → Changing jobs requires you to adapt quickly.

Workload (noun) – the amount of work someone has to do. → A smaller company might mean a lighter workload.

Resilience (noun) – the ability to recover from difficulties. → Children build resilience through social play.

Salary (noun) – money paid regularly for work. → Many people change jobs to get a higher salary.

Questions and Answers

Maria: What would parents prepare when their children go to school on their first day?

Rory: Ideally, they'll have prepared their children for the experience. If we talk about physical things, then making sure the school bag is all packed and ready, and if they take one, or if their children take one, having a packed lunch or a lunch box on hand is also a good idea, so they don't go hungry. Or having money to pay for lunch, if they're eating at the school as well, and you have to pay.

Maria: How do children socialise with each other?

Rory: How does anyone socialise with anybody? They play together, share jokes and stories, and anything else people do together. I suppose it's all about finding out what you have in common so you can keep doing the things that interest you, or talk about them.

Maria: Is socialisation important for children?

Rory: Definitely. I think there was a case where kids deprived of physical touch and opportunities to run around and meet people, well, they died or had pretty dismal health outcomes. And that makes sense for a variety of reasons, since they're not exposed to various things that can strengthen their immune systems by hormesis, or get the neurotransmitters flowing that contribute to positive feelings. Or they miss out on the chance to learn various social norms and conventions. It's also just nice to have friends and meet people, at least I think so.

Maria: What are the advantages and disadvantages that come along with changing jobs?

Rory: Well, you need to get to grips with a whole new work environment and the policies that come with that, which there's no escaping, sadly. But you get the chance to meet people and make new friends, which is nice for the reasons that we talked about earlier when we talked about young people.

Maria: Are big companies better than small companies?

Rory: I have no idea, really. I mean, from a certain perspective, big businesses are relatively more stable and have more opportunities for progression and development, and possibly allow for larger salaries, just because they're likely to generate more income in general. However, they might also be awash with complex policies and operations and a whole array of social arrangements which people could struggle to handle. A smaller company has none of those problems, but it probably has fewer opportunities too, because it's confined to a smaller space. So it likely depends on the sort of person you are and how able you are to handle these things, rather than the company itself.

Maria: What are the reasons for job change?

Rory: As many as there are people, frankly. I think the most common ones are, or at least seem to be, things like getting a higher salary or more opportunities in new places. But it could also be about disliking the work environment or actually wanting fewer responsibilities for less stress.