Warning! Danger ahead……! (But I’m here to save you!)

Heloooo! I hope your week is off to a great start!

Today I wanted to highlight the danger (OMG VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION COMING UP AHEAD, BUCKLE UP DARLING! ) of using the wrong word after certain verbs.

For example, many clients of mine get this one wrong.
(I mean, ‘got’. I saved them, and of course, I’m here to save you too!)
Do you know the difference between:

He stopped smoking.
He stopped to smoke.

Do you? Yeah, confetti cannon for you!
If not, let me explain.

If you stop DOING something, this means that you don’t do it anymore. If you stop TO DO something, this means you stop whatever you are doing in order to do something else. Big difference!

‘He stopped smoking an hour ago.’ – this is great news! This means that he doesn’t smoke anymore.
‘He stopped to smoke an hour ago.’ – this means that he stopped what he was doing so that he could take a cigarette break.

Big difference, right?

Let’s look at another common mistake:

‘She must remember to call him.’
‘She must remember calling him.’ 

Do you see/hear/feel a difference here?
In the first sentence, if you ‘must remember to DO something’, this means that you haven’t done it yet. For example, I must remember to tell you how great you are at the end of this message. Wouldn’t want to forget that!

In the second sentence, if you ‘must remember DOING something’, this means that you must recall doing it. You’ve already done it. It’s the complete opposite of the previous sentence.

If you’re dealing with a client and she asks you about shipping something, you can say ‘I remember sending it’ or ‘I’ll remember to send it’. If your client is waiting for her products, which one would she want to hear? (The first one. Believe me, never keep a woman waiting. Ever. Thank you.)

Did you find this interesting?
I hope so! One word really can make a difference!
This, and so much more English communication tips and tricks are covered in my new online program Sunday’s Cool, where you get a video lesson and an interactive, comprehensive workbook every week for 12 weeks. It’s just 129 euros for the whole program if you act soon!

See you next time! Oh, and…you’re great!

Liefs,
Buffi

PS: Do you have questions about how to get the most out of my new online course? Click here to get some answers!

More News & Blogs

Shocking news – English people usually don’t speak Dutch. We read text through English eyes. This is often where it goes dramatically wrong – when...
‘Never again.’ This is what she mailed me after her presentation. ‘I can’t speak English. I’m not good at it. And there’s no way I...
Ever feel nervous before giving a presentation? Or get the jitters just before you walk into a job interview? Or…before you go on a rollercoaster?...