3 challenging to pronounce B2/C1 level phrases

Yesterday, at 6PM Moscow time, the most dedicated readers took 1 power step to confident English speech. They met with @ybeymlina via Zoom to discuss the topic "Inside the mind of a procrastinator," based on Tim Urban's TED talk.

3 phrases appeared challenging to pronounce during yesterday's discussion. Here they are, fully clarified, for you to master them

🫧To pursue creative dreams: /tə pərˈsu kriˈeɪtɪv drimz/
> To actively work toward achieving your artistic or imaginative goals.
> After years in banking, she quit her job to pursue creative dreams of becoming a painter.

🫧Guilt-filled: /ˈgɪlt fɪld/
> Full of guilty feelings; feeling bad about something you did or didn't do.
> After eating the entire cake, Maria had a guilt-filled evening on the couch.

🫧Frantic all-nighters: /ˈfræntɪk ɔl ˈnaɪtɚz/
> Staying awake all night in a rushed, stressed, and desperate way to finish work.
> His college years were marked by frantic all-nighters fueled by coffee and panic.

🎧 Play the video to listen, repeat, and nail the pronunciation. Feeling ambitious? Drop a voice message saying these words out loud!

🪴

👩‍💼 See how a Linkedinese coach turns every slip-up into a chance to shine up

Slept through an alarm, got fired, getting a divorce? It's all a matter of perspective. Jokes aside, language is your tool to bend reality to your will.

Transcript

— Hi mommy. How would you translate "I slept through my alarm" into LinkedIn?

— This morning, my body executed an autonomous override* to maximize sleep intake. In our hustle-obsessed culture*, we've forgotten a fundamental truth: peak performance* demands peak recovery.

I am not apologizing for honoring my body's intelligence. How about you? Are you listening to your body's wisdom, or are you bowing to* arbitrary* wake-up calls?

*Glossary

🫧Override: To take control and ignore a previous command or rule.
🫧Hustle obsessed culture: A society that is fixated on constantly working hard, being busy, and chasing success.
🫧Peak performance: Functioning at your absolute best.
🫧To bow to: To let something control you.
🫧Arbitrary: Based on random chance, not for any real reason.

IG reference julianachanphd

Your turn
💅 I'm popular on LinkedIn
⭐️ I want to get active on LinkedIn
😊 I don't care much about LinkedIn

A moment to celebrate achievement of @HackerIvan - a PitchUp club member

Ivan (LinkedIn), 25yo, MIPT graduate, lives in Zurich, Switzerland. He describes himself (and I agree) as "a supercharged individual who loves tech-capitalism, innovation, sales, business development, fintech industry."

Last week, Ivan's pitch got the 3d place at the Swiss {AI} Weeks UBS hackathon. You can get inspired with his 4min performance on YouTube.

💓Let's get a round of reactions to Ivan - we all have an imposter syndrome and it never hurts to get some acknowledgement from the community. It matters more than you think.

Want to sharpen your presentation skills in English with Ivan and other entrepreneurs? Text PitchUp to @ybeymlina to apply.
You can be an active builder or at the ideation stage.

8 Sc-Fi Book Recommendations by Aaron Rasmussen

Aaron Rasmussen (LinkedIn) is the co-founder of MasterClass (that celebrity-taught online course platform, $3B valuation). He later founded Outlier (dot) org ($200M valuation) for accredited college courses.

Extraordinary facts:
🫧turned a high school chemistry accident that temporarily* blinded* him into inspiration for an award-winning audio-only horror game;
🫧has a joined degree in Computer Science and Mass Communications (ads) from Boston University.

Aaron says: "Science fiction prepared me for AI better than my computer science degree."

Here, we share 8 books recommended by Aaron, with "Ease of Read" estimated by Claude, where 1 stands for "easy-peasy," and 10 for "oh, so hard." From the oldest, to the newest, Amazon links're included.

1. "The Machine Stops" by E.M. Forster, UK. 40 pages, 1909, 6/10. Early dystopian vision of technology isolation and control.

2. "I, Robot" by Isaac Asimov, USSR/USA. 224 pages, 1950, 5/10. Classic sci-fi short stories foundational to modern robotics themes.

3. "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" by Robert A. Heinlein, USA. 382 pages, 1966, 6/10. Classic libertarian sci-fi with political intrigue and revolution on the lunar colony.

4. "Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect" by Roger Williams, USA. 250 pages, 1994, 7/10. Mind-bending AI ethics, deep philosophical questions on humanity and control.

5. "The Diamond Age" by Neal Stephenson, USA. 355 pages, 1995, 8/10. Complex cyberpunk narrative blending tech, culture, and education.

6. "Ancillary* Justice" by Ann Leckie, USA. 409 pages, 2013, 7/10. Award-winning space opera focused on identity and AI consciousness.

7. "Blindsight" by Peter Watts, Canada. 400 pages, 2006, 9/10. Deep, scientifically rigorous first contact novel exploring consciousness and alien life, challenging norms.

8. "A Closed and Common Orbit" by Becky Chambers, USA. 336 pages, 2016, 3/10. Heartwarming exploration of AI and identity in a gentle, optimistic future.

*Glossary
🫧Ancillary - supporting to the main activities.
"The book includes an ancillary website with video tutorials and practice quizzes for students."
🫧Temporarily - for a limited period of time.
"I'm temporarily staying with my parents until my new apartment is ready."
🫧Blinded - unable to see.
"The bright flash of the explosion blinded him for a few moments."

Over to you
🫧Can you add a rommendation to the list in the* comments?
🫧Do you feel like picking a book from the list for us to read and discuss toegther over Zoom?

*Thank you @Roziy_15 for catching me dropping the "the" article - well done, keep going!

There won't be any posts here over the weekend. Take time to explore our podcasts on EnglishForImpact's YouTube channel. Have a good one ⭐️

12 Phrases to Read English Colleagues Between the Lines

Even though Anglo Saxons appear more polite and polished compared to many others, it doesn't mean they don't get annoyed or impatient. In the culture that doesn't encourage open expression of rudeness, it's important to learn to read the real intent behind the speech.

Especially common for communications with clients or higher ups, when you feel double constraints on genuine self-expression.

🫧I appreciate your concern - Your input is noted but I’m doing it my way. Translation: Stop bothering me

🫧Thank you for your patience - Sorry this took forever, but let’s pretend you agreed to wait. Often means: I know you’re annoyed

🫧Moving forward - Let’s forget that mess and never speak of it again. Subtext: That’s behind us now

🫧For clarity - You’re wrong and here’s why. Implies: Let me explain this since you clearly didn’t get it

🫧Gentle reminder - This is the third time I’m asking and I’m irritated. Means: Do this NOW

🫧I’m copying [name of the person CCed] for visibility - I need witnesses/backup or I want to make sure someone important sees this. Sometimes: Covering my ass

🫧Happy to discuss further - I’m done with this conversation but being polite.

🫧Thanks in advance - Do this, it’s not really optional. Implies: I expect compliance

🫧As stated previously - Can you not read? I already told you this. Subtext: I’m frustrated you’re making me repeat myself

🫧I’d love to hear your thoughts - Give me feedback but I’ve probably already decided. Sometimes genuine, often procedural

🫧Please advise - I need a decision/answer from you, or This is your problem now. Passive-aggressive way to push responsibility

🫧While I understand your urgency - Your panic is not my priority. Translation: Calm down, this isn’t that urgent​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

IG reference corporategags

⭐️ What phrase & interpretation won you over?

The Importance of Genuine Shout-outs ⭐️

When I find the motivation, courage, and strength to praise a person publically without expecting anything back, I always feel good after it. Sometimes I get tangible value back immidiately [as in the screenshot: gave a reco - received a reco], sometimes later, indirectly, sometimes it remains an energy boost.

3 pitfalls I've fallen into & the consequences

PITFALL 1: I gave a shout-out to someone I don't genuinely like cause I wanted to suck up to them.
📌Consequence: Lost self-respect for a bit and didn't win anyone over.

PITFALL 2: I gave a shout-out and asked that person to return the favor.
📌Consequence: the person feels pressured and the shout-out I received back felt contrived, not genuine.

PITFALL 3: I gave a shout-out to someone, didn't ask them to retun the favor, but felt bad cause she didn't do any promo back for me.
📌Consequence: I was trying to manipulate the person without realising it. If you expect a favor back, ask for it beforehand.

Luckily, I can reflect, learn, and change, at least a bit.

Shout-out Glossary
🫧a shout-out - a quick public thank-you or praise
🫧genuine - real, honest, not fake
🫧a deep appreciation for sth - a strong recognition of importance of sth
🫧a knack for - natural talent or skill for something
🫧persistent - not giving up; continuing even when it’s hard

🪴 Do you want to give a shout-out to a friend right now? Tell us about a person or project that inspires you and share a link to their social media page or website.
Don’t promote yourself;)

It'a all about people - The 21st Zoom Practice Happening RN

At the time when this message is released, @ybeymlina is in the Zoom meeting with the most committed and ambitious readers of this channel - summarising the S2S topic of the week, using 10 advanced phrases, building fluency and... network.

Now, it's time for a coming out.

Our 1st meeting took place on July, 9, 2025, as an experiment. There was no registration and everyone was pretty much invited to walk in. Things didn't run smoothly: guys connecting from noisy places, poor signal, pre-intermediate learners showing up for advanced practice cause they didn't read the description.

😱 Amidst all that mess, there was another fear creeping in: what if no one shows up? Will there be enough interest to sustain the practice? After all, @englishforimpact doesn't dumb down the content which may present a challenge. "Shall we lower the bar?" - the existential question was looming big.

It took us 3 months and 12 meetings of tweaking the format and registration process, when the idea finally landed: it's not about quantity, it's about quality. And exclusivity :) That's when we relaxed and started enjoying the process. And people.

Yep, it's actually the people that make these Zoom meetings bright. Spmetimes there's 1 participant. Sometimes 10. Always, they add to the magic, the 3d essential component. The learning materials, the facilitator, and the people, making up 3 components.

At the time of the 21st meeting, we're are giving the shout-out to 7 people who stood out and whose presence made our Zoom practice meetings special. There're more of them than 7, but 7 is Yulia's lucky number, so sticking to 7 this time.

🫧@duran - a "500 Startups" founder, building Talk Labs – Voice AI Simulations for Training Customer-Facing Staff. What makes him a great participnat - always generous with emojis and emotionally expressive.
🫧@marjoriefmr - a traveler from 🇨🇱 Chile. Gives us great perspectives on discussed topics.
🫧@irina_han - the admin of @chasingwine. A rare person combining a knack for systems thinking (a business analyst) and a developped creative side.
🫧@inc2205 - another interdisiplinary guy, an architect AND a product manager. The most interesting ideas are born at the intersections, and I'm convinced this fellow will produce some serious shit.
🫧@ggodunov - a co-founder of an influencer marketing agency and an owner of an inspiring LinkedIn account
🫧@anasteisha1k - a member who's been with us since S2S's very conception, before this channel popped up. Committed, adaptable, fun - I wish I had had such a practice buddy back when I was learning English.
🫧@Zelsystem - a software engineer and a builder of his own app for English vocabulary learning. Welcome to share the link in the comments, Anton!

I thank you for your commitment and staying true to your English practice goals. You're going strong, keep up the good habit.

🪴 Want to join the lucky 7, boost your English, and, potentially, get featured in this growing channel? Text Wednesday to @ybeymlina to apply. Share with a friend who needs that magic kick to get started.