📘 Part 3: Jobs

This episode's vocabulary

Flexible working (noun phrase) – a way of working that suits an employee's needs, such as having non-traditional hours or working from home. → My dream job would definitely include flexible working hours.

Pick and choose (phrasal verb) – to choose only the things you like or want from a group of things. → A benefit of being a freelancer is that you can pick and choose your projects.

Aims and objectives (noun phrase) – the goals or purposes that a person or organization wants to achieve. → The company's aims and objectives are clearly stated in the report.

Manual labor (noun phrase) – physical work done with the hands, rather than by machines. → Construction work involves a lot of manual labor.

Out of work (adjective phrase) – unemployed; without a job. → After the factory closed, many people were out of work.

Reinvent oneself (verb phrase) – to change your job and way of life so you seem very different. → After losing his job in finance, he had to reinvent himself as a teacher.

Strengths and limitations (noun phrase) – a person's good qualities and abilities, as well as their weaknesses. → It's important to understand your own strengths and limitations when choosing a career.

Change with the times (idiom) – to adapt one's ideas and behavior to keep up with the modern world. → Businesses that fail to change with the times often go bankrupt.

Onerous (adjective) – difficult to do or needing a lot of effort. → The paperwork for the visa application was quite onerous.

Stick to (phrasal verb) – to continue doing or using something and not change it. → You have to stick to the regulations if you want to keep your license.

Demanding (adjective) – needing a lot of skill, patience, and effort. → Being an emergency room doctor is a very demanding job.

Reputable (adjective) – having a good reputation and being respected. → We only work with reputable suppliers to ensure quality.

The be all and end all (idiom) – the most important thing. → Salary is important, but it isn't the be all and end all of a job.

Questions and Answers

Maria: What kind of job can be called a dream job?

Rory: Anything that people think would work well for them in the most ideal way, probably. For a lot of them, that might be related to their salary, but it could also be about flexible working or being able to pick and choose who you work with and how. It's a very individual thing.

Maria: Can you explain it further?

Rory: Yes, people have different drives and motivations in life along with differing aims and objectives. So it would make sense the criteria for a dream job would be similarly broad.

Maria: How can people find a perfect job?

Rory: I don't know really. I'm not sure the perfect job exists for a lot of people, but they can get close to it by maybe looking for things in a field related to their interests and researching what the work conditions might be like before agreeing to them to reduce any potential stress.

Maria: What kind of jobs are the most popular in your country?

Rory: I don't know to be honest. At a guess, I'd say ones that involve service compared to manual labor, just because that's what you see most people doing these days.

Maria: Do you think that can change?

Rory: That's been the trend for a while, but it might reverse if there's some kind of shift in the economy and a lot of people find themselves out of work. Well, then they might have to reinvent themselves.

Maria: What jobs do children want to do when they grow up?

Rory: Oh, probably the ones they chose from the limited selection they're exposed to. And the ones that seem most fun for them. So being a vet is quite popular because kids love animals, for example.

Maria: And what evidence do you have for that?

Rory: Well, they can't make choices in a vacuum, can they? There has to be some input from the outside or they'll have no clue about anything that's on offer.

Maria: Do people's ideal jobs change as they grow up?

Rory: Probably. They become aware of other options and their own strengths and limitations in terms of character and temperament and knowledge. So, it makes sense they would adapt to these changes. Some of them might stick at it, if they're determined or ambitious. Otherwise, no one would do anything complicated like being a doctor or a lawyer.

Maria: Will this be true in the future?

Rory: Yes, as long as people are finding things out about themselves and the world and what the possibilities are, logically, they will change with the times and their context.

Maria: What should people consider when choosing jobs?

Rory: The salary is the most obvious. But they might also want to give some thought to the responsibilities or any particularly onerous regulations they have to stick to. Some jobs can be quite demanding that way. And there's also the impact it might have on other parts of their lives like the ability to raise a family or if it conflicts with other goals they have.

Maria: Has that always been true?

Rory: Some things more than others perhaps. I think payment of some kind has always been a consideration, but some people haven't given much thought to the detrimental impacts of some lines of work on family life until very recently, just as we've become more conscious of mental health.

Maria: Is salary the main reason people choose a certain job?

Rory: It could certainly be a big factor for a lot of people. And why shouldn't it be? You've got to pay for basic necessities somehow. But there will be other things like the working hours or conditions, like whether the employer is reputable or even sustainable or ethical. These are growing considerations nowadays, especially in light of climate change and environmental issues.

Maria: Are people's interests more important than money?

Rory: I mean, a certain degree of financial security is important to allow people to do other things, but money isn't the be all and end all, is it? There's much more to life than that.