Imagine…
Two students in an English class.
One is an accountant.
The other is a surfer.
Who do you think would master English faster?
Surfer vs Accountant
My second year in Prague I taught two accountants.
Every Tuesday morning at 8 a.m. I was in their conference room waiting for my coffee to arrive and our lesson to begin.
I think I got to know Marketa and Renata pretty well.
I also used to live in Los Angeles.
When I was there I tried surfing twice and got to know a surfer named Justin.
Today I’m thinking about the differences.
Here’s what I see…
An accountant…
Arrives at 9.
Must be perfect.
Must never make a mistake.
Worries about making mistakes.
Tells the world he/she’s an expert/knows it all.
Glad to go home at 5.
A surfer…
Gets up early. Tries to be the first to arrive at the beach.
Enjoys the water, the sun, the sand, the waiting.
Doesn’t think about the sharks beneath his feet.
Falls. A lot. Every day.
Is still learning.
Hates to leave.
Who do you think would be a better English student?
Like I said, I’ve taught a lot of accountants.
But I’ve never taught even one surfer.
My guess is, they don’t need my lessons.
the surfer doesn’t need to talk to the sharks :), the accountant needs English to talk to his/her customers 🙂 maybe that’s why you never taught a surfer.
Happy holidays!
Good point. Also, not too many surfers (or sharks) in Central Europe…
So replace “surfer” with yoga instructor or snowboarder or dancer. I just like the image of the surfer… it’s more visual.
Accountants need English for their job.💯