Welcome back to ABCi Business English! We hope you had a great summer and are feeling inspired and full of new ideas.

Speaking of new ideas – have you ever had suggestions for your manager on how to improve certain things? Or wanted to say something at a staff meeting or business lunch, but didn’t quite know how? Here are some ideas for presenting your ideas!

1. How to introduce your idea

Getting people’s attention and preparing them for what you have to say is a great way to begin:

• “I was thinking about how we could optimise some of our processes.”
• “Here’s what I’ve been thinking.”
• “How about this.”

2. How to make a suggestion

Unless you are the boss, try to avoid phrases like “We have to”, or “It is necessary to”. Use something softer and more polite. Here are some examples:

• “We could create a marketing campaign.”
• “We could try creating a marketing campaign.”
• “I think it might be a good idea to create a marketing campaign.”

Using a question to present your idea is particularly team-friendly:

• “How about creating a marketing campaign?”
• “What if we created a marketing campaign?”
• “Why don’t we create a marketing campaign?”

3. Use words to create a positive vibe

Try to use “us” and “our” rather than “I”, and “this idea” instead of “my idea”. These small words will support team spirit and make it clear that your idea will benefit everyone, not just yourself. In addition, the following questions could help round up your presentation:

• “How does that sound?”
• “What is your view on this?”
• “Anyone have any thoughts on this?”
• “I’d be interested to know what you think!”

Try and think of a specific idea you have now or had at some point in the past. Present it to an imaginary or real team in your own words using the suggestions above. Good luck!

Our next lessons will pick up right here: we will discuss how to agree and disagree with other ideas. Stay tuned!