I saw this picture, taken spontaneously just after my Rock Your Business English! Masterclass Day had ended last Thursday. (No filter, no hairstylist or makeup artist, just me, enjoying the afterglow in very good outdoor light :)) I so wish I could have shared this picture with my 14-year old self. This is what I […]
Are you? Trapped in that trap? The trap you got yourself into in the first place? (With the help of that voice of your teacher, your parents, peers, colleagues, etc who said you couldn’t/shouldn’t do it/ you are/were a failure/fraud/poser/loser etc….) What trap, you might ask? The trap of ‘I don’t do it because I’m […]
I couldn’t believe it when that Google Alert popped up in my inbox yesterday – I had to read it twice before it started to sink in. I was named Harper’s Bazaar Woman Of The Week! I joined a list that includes Solange Knowles, Eva Jinek, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Neelie Kroes. WOW. (I mean, WOW! […]
Ok, darling, let’s get something straight. Just because you watch Netflix without subtitles, it does NOT mean that your English is good. *shock and awe* It means that your EARS are good. Your EYES are good. Yeah for them! #TeamEyesAndEars Your mouth, however? Well, that’s another story. Just because you understand words, does NOT mean […]
He said it. And so did she. And maybe so have you, once upon a time. He just insulted his whole team. How? By saying ‘They are really working so hard this week.’ This actually means ‘My team just sits around all day, doing nothing but checking how many likes their latte got on Instagram, […]
Photo by Frans van Zaalen, taken at Utrecht Train Station, on Feb 14th 2018. This is me last Wednesday, on Valentine’s Day. My friend Sylvia and I took the train to 4 different cities and held up our FREE HUGS signs and hugged random strangers for 7 hours. Hugging strangers is something that I’m pretty […]
Happy Monday! And thanks so much for letting me slip into your inbox today! I really like it here! Let me tell you a little (true!) story. Once I was shopping with a friend who didn’t speak Dutch. We went into a small boutique, and my friend pulled a lovely dress off the rack to […]
Sweet darling, You’ve probably done it. And maybe you’ve done it without realising it. I know I’ve done it. And I realised it….too late! Done what? Disagreeing with someone in a way that could be perceived as being too ‘blunt’ or ‘aggressive’. You know – saying things like ‘No way.’ ‘No.’ ‘That won’t work,’ etc. […]
Wow! Can you believe that January is nearly over already? I cannot. Can. NOT! Time sure flies when you’re having fun! And I am! Hope you are too, my dear! Today I wanted to highlight the danger (OMG VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION COMING UP AHEAD) of using the wrong word after certain verbs. For example, many […]
‘Hey, Buffi, my English is good – I watch Netflix without subtitles!’ Does this sound familiar? It sure does to me – I hear All. The. Time. Watching a TV show you understand does NOT mean your English is great. It means you UNDERSTAND what you see and hear. Your PASSIVE knowledge of English is […]
