The STAR That Saves an Answer
Grammar: Taught explicitly
A Business English English lesson exploring work.
What's in this lesson
A Business English ESL lesson on work, practising taught explicitly. The worksheet has a reading, target vocabulary, a grammar reference with practice and discussion questions.
From the reading: The STAR That Saves an Answer
In 2015, LinkedIn's own talent-acquisition team ran an internal study on 400 recorded interviews. The result was stark: candidates who structured their answers scored 34% higher on 'confidence' ratings than those who rambled, even when the actual content was similar. The structure researchers kept finding was STAR — Situation, Task, Action, Result — a method popularised by corporate trainers since the 1970s and now taught at firms from Deloitte to Google.
Vocabulary
- for
- on
- since
- with
- diplomatic
- hedge
- Result
- soften
- structured
Grammar
- Hedging with would
- I would sometimes take on too much. — softens a past habit, not an excuse
- Hedging with tend to
- I tend to double-check everything. — frames a pattern, not a flaw
Discussion questions
- Do you think honesty always beats diplomacy in an interview?
- Should interviewers even be allowed to ask about weaknesses?
- Is it ever acceptable to exaggerate a strength in an interview?
The STAR That Saves an Answer
Grammar: Taught explicitly
What's in this lesson:
Full lesson plan with reading, grammar, vocabulary, and discussion.
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