LESSON
3
Skim to find the main idea
READING
GET READY
Biata read a blog about being late to work. Are you usually on time for work or class?
Skimming
is reading something quickly to get the general
idea of the text. To skim an article, look at the title and any
subtitles. Then read the first sentence in each paragraph.
Reading Skill
Read the Reading Skill. Skim the Internet blog. What is the main idea?
READ
Listen and read the blog. Was your answer about the main idea correct?
Some people just can’t get up in the morning. They
hit the snooze button on their alarm clock over and
over before they finally roll out of bed. I also have
this trouble from time to time, so I’m understanding
when my employees arrive a little late to work.
In fact, surveys show that 16% of employees are late to work at least once a week.
Of course, everybody has an excuse. I hear the usual explanations often—people get stuck
in traffic jams, have sick children, or miss their bus. But I get some weird ones, too! One of
my employees was an hour late today. He told me he’d bought a new GPS, and it took him
to the wrong address. I wasn’t very sympathetic. “Surely you know the way to work after
three years,” I said. That made me think about the odd excuses I’ve heard over the years.
Here are some of the strangest:
1.
“I didn’t think you’d notice when I came in.”
2.
“I ate my wife’s breakfast by mistake, so I had to make it again.”
3.
“I had to go back to change my shoes because I noticed I was wearing two
different ones.”
4.
“The right turn signal of my car wasn’t working, so I could only make left turns to
get to work.”
5.
“I had to stop to let a mother duck and her ducklings cross the road. She was not
in a hurry.”
I think we can all get a good laugh from these excuses. But being on time is important.
Come in to work late too often, and you’ll make a really bad impression on your boss.
I did have to fire someone once for chronic lateness. Thirty-one percent of employers say
they’ve had to do that. So in your own career interest, I recommend getting to work on
time. No more excuses!
MY PROFILE SUBSCRIBE BLOG ARCHIVE
P O S T E D B Y K K E Y E S A T 1 0 : 5 8 A M
You’re Late Because of
What
?
Like
Share
22
UNIT 2
