Can Learning English for Professional Purposes REALLY be Fun?
Absolutely.
I’m asked this a lot by prospective immersion holiday guests.
I say that almost all our English learners join us for Professional English (or English for Specific Purposes as it is also known) of some description, and everyone does have fun.
The number one priority of our guests is to improve their English, in order to impress at work, to perform better or to feel more confident speaking English with their peers.
Having this goal does not exclude you from enjoying learning English!
Even when the pressure to learn is real – the process can be fun!
Read on to find out how simple this actually is.
Tomnah’a Summer Solstice Party
Professional Doesn’t Mean Corporate
Learning professional English will be fun if you love your job or career, enjoy talking about your job – and enjoy meeting business owners and other professionals while on holiday.
If you hate your job, then learning in order to progress in it is just never going to feel fun.
(Any kind of learning has got to feel like it’s for you.)
Professional doesn’t mean corporate. (We have no interest in making that more palatable).
Professional means expert, skilled, trained and experienced – and these are all rich subjects for conversation.
Professional is whatever is authentic to you and your business – even if that’s a pint of beer, a BBQ and a flower crown.
And even if that this not the professional world you exist in (few are so lucky) – you can have enormous fun talking professional English subjects with those outside your professional domain – in their space and learning about their business.
(Pint of beer and a flower crown optional, but why not!).
Our English language coaching feels fun – and like being on holiday – because it is a kind of professional tourism in which you want to get talking.
The best news is that when you are ‘immersed’ and interested, relaxed and enjoying yourself, you lose inhibitions about speaking – and find a lasting love of being you in English.
“Learning professional English will be fun if you love your job or career, enjoy talking about your job – and enjoy meeting business owners and other professionals while on holiday.”
Ruth, 2023
Meet the Makers | A Perfect Example
Last night, our friends at Tomnah’a Market Garden hosted a Summer Solstice party.
It was a joyous celebration of season, produce and community. The kids felt free. The adults relaxed in the evening sun. We shared food, drinks and live music.
It is the kind of local community event that we are proud to share with our English language learners while they are here on holiday in Perthshire.
This was a celebration of a business and business community.
It was also full of great conversations with professionals chatting about what they bake, grow and make.
Great for English practice!
Tomnah’a Summer Solstice Party
REAL Professional English Practice
Tomnah’a are one of the food (and flower) producers on our Meet the Makers tours in which we take our English learners ‘behind the scenes’ to discover eco/craft businesses using the Scottish landscape.
Our makers tours are about discovering place as well as practicing professional English in real-life contexts.
We particularly focus on:
Creative businesses combining traditional crafts and modern technology
Producers using the Scottish landscape in unique ways
Businesses with alternative & social business models.
Lhamo Grace performing at Tomnah’a’s Solstice Party
We Take You Behind the Scenes
Tomnah’a said that this is a crazy busy time of year for them – further complicated by the recent heat drying up the soil. They still wanted to take the time to share this moment: to celebrate the solstice and share food (a potluck – everyone brought a dish) and the experience of being on the farm with us all.
As food growers, they are keen for people to see where food comes from. (Something missing from many people’s lives – and arguably key to solving many modern issues like food waste and ultra-processed foods).
Such an event celebrates eco, social and sustainable ways of producing food and/or choosing your food suppliers.
It also celebrates alternative ways of running a business.
It thanks customers, builds loyalty and spreads values.
We love bringing our English learners to visit Tomnah’s growing fields, to learn about the work they do – and to promote their alternative business model to an international community.
(While there, we also visit the world-famous eco-business, Comrie Croft.)
Sharing Our Community With You
Tomnaha share a respect for their community similar to our own.
We have our own ways of supporting and thanking our community.
If you are a regular at Blue Noun, you’ll know that we like to host a party too.
It takes a bit of extra energy, but our community always makes it worthwhile.
Thinking about last night’s event made me realise that hosting our parties actually helps define our business values (in our case, bringing people together, celebrating remarkable local assets, sharing cultures and being generous with experiences).
(Maybe if you are stuck in an aspect of your business, throw a party. You need to know what you do before you can celebrate it).
Learn Professional English in Perthshire
We know that our local community enriches the professional English of all our language guests.
We are here because of all the brilliant micro-businesses on our doorstep.
Come and join us for an immersion English holiday here in Scotland. We promise it will be fun!
