ESL商务英语: ESL Podcast 268 – Get-rich-quick Schemes

ESL Podcast 268 – Get-rich-quick Schemes

GLOSSARY

infomercial – a very long commercial (TV advertisement) that is made to look like a television program instead of a commercial* Have you seen the infomercial for a knife that can cut through metal cans?

scam – a plan for making money by cheating and lying to other people* There are many Internet scams that use professional-looking emails to try toget people to share their bank account numbers.

to fall for (something) – to be tricked or fooled into doing something or believingsomething that isn’t true* I can’t believe I fell for it when that man asked me for money to buy a bus ticketto get home.  I’m sure now that he was lying.

get-rich-quick scheme – a dishonest way to make a lot of money very quickly; aplan or system to make a lot of money very quickly* Jacky is always telling other people to avoid get-rich-quick schemes after losinghis savings on one a few years ago.

capital – a large amount of money that is used to invest in a project, business, orsomething else, either to get it started or to make it grow* Reese wants to start a new business but he needs $23,000 in capital first.

a cut – a portion; a part; a percentage* Jaime gets a 15% cut of the sales every time he finds a new customer for his uncle’s business.

profit – money that is made in a business; the money that is left for a business orindividual after all the expenses (costs) have been paid* Corina’s bakery didn’t make a profit until the third year of the business.

pyramid scheme – an impossible business where each person thinks that he orshe will make only one payment and then receive payments from many otherpeople, but in reality this cannot work because it needs an infinite (no maximum)number of participants* If someone offers you a way to make money that seems too good to be true, it’s probably a pyramid scheme.

to lose (one’s) shirt – to lose everything; to lose all of one’s money and thethings that one owns* Cesar lost his shirt while playing cards in Las Vegas and now he’s in debt.

fraud – the act of cheating or lying to people to get their money* The woman said that she could see our future, but it was a fraud.  She didn’tknow anything except how to get our money.

testimonial – what customers and other people say to recommend a product orservice* Many companies put testimonials on their websites to try to get new customers to buy a product.

to strike it rich – to be very successful with something and make a lot of money* Many men in the 1800s struck it rich by finding gold in Oregon and California.

sucker – a person who is easily tricked or fooled by another person’s bad ideas or actions* Shane felt like a sucker when he finally realized that his roommate had beenstealing money from him.

installment – a partial payment; an amount of money that is paid every month toeventually pay the entire cost of something expensive* This store lets you pay in monthly installments for new furniture, instead ofpaying everything at once.

step-by-step – describing each phase or activity for doing something, one afterthe other* If your computer isn’t working, call the software company to get step-by-stepinstructions on how to fix the problem.

to waste – to use money, time, or something else in a bad or unnecessary way;to use more of something than is needed* Rob and Emily wasted more than $2,000 buying exercise equipment that they never use.

prerogative – a person’s right to do something or to decide something* If you want to start working right after high school, that’s your prerogative, but Ithink it’s a better idea to go to college first.

millionaire – a person who has at least $1,000,000* Aaron is saving all his money because he wants to be a millionaire before he is 40 years old.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS1.  What does Susan think will happen if she can get other people to sell theproducts shown on the infomercial?

a)  She thinks she won’t need to have any capital.

b)  She thinks the other people will lose their shirts.

c)  She thinks she’ll get a percentage of the money from sales.

2.  Why does Bill say that there’s a sucker born every minute?

a)  Because a sucker is a type of fish that has many babies.

b)  Because many people have struck it rich on the infomercial.

c)  Because a lot of people are tricked by pyramid schemes.

______________WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?

to fall forThe phrase “to fall for (something)” means to be tricked or fooled into doingsomething or believing something that isn’t true: “When Jacob told Maggie thathe used to be an astronaut, she fell for it and believed him, even though he was only 18 years old!”  The phrase “to fall for (someone)” means to start to like orlove someone romantically: “I think Ms. Pebley is falling for Mr. Dubois becausethey spend a lot of time together and once I saw her give him a present.” Or, “Inever thought I would fall for someone who is a lot older than I am.”  The phrase“to fall over (something)” means to fall or almost fall because one’s foot hits something while one is walking: “Bobby needs to learn to put his toys away! Today I almost fell over his blocks.”

capitalIn this podcast, the word “capital” means a large amount of money that is used toinvest in a project, business, or something else, either to make it get started or tomake it grow: “If you don’t have enough capital to start your business, I suggesttrying to get a loan from the bank.”  A “capital” is also the most important (andusually largest) city in a country, state, or province: “Washington, D.C. is thecapital of the United States and Montpelier is the capital of Vermont.”  A “capitalletter” is one of the taller and bigger letters of the alphabet (ABC, not abc): “Thenames of people, countries, and languages always begin with a capital letter inEnglish.”

CULTURE NOTEA “get-rich-quick scheme” is a plan for making money quickly and easily, oftenwithout having to make a large “investment” (money that is used to makesomething better).  In reality, it is very difficult to get rich this way, but many people are “eager” (excited and enthusiastic) to try.  Some get-rich-quick schemes are “legal,” meaning that they follow the laws, but others are “illegal,”

meaning that they are against the law.

Some legal get-rich-quick schemes advertise that people can make thousands ofdollars each week by working at home doing something easy, like typing orputting letters into envelopes.  These people are paid “piecework,” meaning thatthey get a little bit of money for each piece they make, but to get rich they wouldneed to be very quick, so it usually isn’t possible to make very much money.

Other legal get-rich-quick schemes offer to teach people ways to make money,usually by buying and selling homes, starting a new business, or “collecting”

(saving many types of a thing) something.  But the people must buy very expensive books or video tapes to learn how to do this, and often the things thatthey teach aren’t very helpful.

One type of illegal get-rich-quick scheme is a pyramid scheme.  In a pyramidscheme, people buy something once and then try to get many other people tobuy the same product.  They are supposed to get some of the money from eachof the sales, and then those people who bought the product should do the samething, trying to get more people to buy the product.  However, the only way foreveryone to make money is to always have more people join the pyramidscheme.  Since this isn’t possible, pyramid schemes can make only a few peoplerich.  Everyone else loses money.

______________Comprehension Questions Correct Answers:  1 – c; 2 – c

COMPLETE TRANSCRIPTWelcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 268: Get-RichQuick Schemes.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 268.  I'm your host, Dr.

Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development inbeautiful Los Angeles, California.

Visit our website at eslpod.com and download a Learning Guide for this episodethat contains all of the vocabulary, definitions, cultural notes, and a completetranscript of this episode.

This episode is called “Get-Rich-Quick Schemes,” or plans.  It's going to be adialogue between two people talking about a program that is supposed to makeyou rich very quickly.  Let's get started.

[start of story]

Bill:  What are you watching?

Susan:  I’m watching a really interesting TV program.  It’s about how to make alot of money quickly and easily.

Bill:  Are you watching an infomercial?  Those things are scams!  You shouldknow better than to fall for some get-rich-quick scheme. Susan:  This isn’t a scam.  This program is about how make money with nocapital.  All I have to do is to get other people to sell these products and I’ll get acut of the profits.

Bill:  That sounds like a pyramid scheme.  Only a few people at the top makemoney, while all of the other people lose their shirts. Susan:  It doesn’t seem like a fraud to me.  Sit down and watch for a minute andyou’ll see all of the testimonials from people who have used this system and whohave struck it rich.  It may really work.

Bill:  There’s a sucker born every minute.  How much do you have to pay to learnthe secrets to this system?

Susan:  It’s only $179.95, and I can pay in monthly installments.  The programcomes with a step-by-step book and video on how to get started. Bill:  I think you’re wasting your time.  I can think of a lot of things I’d rather spend$179.95 on. Susan:  That’s your prerogative.  Don’t come to me later when I’m a millionaireand you want my business advice.

Bill:  Don’t worry.  That will never happen.

[end of story]

Our dialogue between Bill and Susan begins by Bill asking her “What are youwatching?”  Usually that's a question when you are referring to the television –what are you watching on the television.  Susan says, “I’m watching a really interesting program.  It’s about how to make a lot of money quickly and easily.”

Bill then asks, “Are you watching an infomercial?”  An “infomercial” (infomercial)comes from two words, “information” and “commercial.”  An “infomercial” is aprogram that you see on television.  Usually they are a half hour or one hourlong, and they are, basically, long advertisements for certain products orservices. These became popular about 15-20 years ago on American television.  If youwatch American television, especially late at night, on some channels you willsee these 30 or 60 minute commercials where they try to sell you things; oftenthey try to sell you things that don't really work – diet plans, exercise equipment. Sometimes they sell a special course that will help you become rich, or so theysay!  So, the word “infomercial” has a negative meaning for most Americans; itmeans a program that tries to sell something that probably won't work.

Bill says that infomercials “are scams” (scams).  A “scam” is a plan for makingmoney, usually by cheating and lying to other people, so it's usually an illegalthing – a scam.

Bill says that Susan “should know better” – she should be smarter – “than to fallfor some get-rich-quick scheme.”  The expression “to fall (fall) for something”

means to be tricked or fooled into doing something, or believing something thatisn't true.  Someone may say to you, “Don't fall for that infomercial” – don't befooled; don't be tricked by that infomercial.  Bill says that it is a “get-rich-quick scheme” (scheme).  A “get-rich-quick scheme” is a plan to make a lot of money by cheating or lying to someone.

But Susan says, “This isn’t a scam” – is not a scam.  She says the program sheis watching “is about how make money with no capital.”  “Capital” (capital) heremeans a large amount of money, usually money that you invest in, or put in, abusiness or a project.  The idea is that you try to get something new started, likea new business, or to make it grow bigger.  The word “capital,” like theexpression “to fall for,” has a couple of different meanings.  Take a look at ourLearning Guide today for additional explanations.

So, Susan is saying that this is a program about how you can make money without having any money – with no capital.  “All I have to do,” she says, “is getother people to sell these products and I’ll get a cut of the profits.”  “To get a cut(cut) of something” means to get a part of or a percentage of.  In this case,Susan is going to get “a cut of the profits” (profits).  “Profit” is money that abusiness makes.  You take the money that a business spends to make its product, and you take the money that people pay for the product, you subtractone from the other and the money left over is your profit – it's the additionalmoney that you made.  So, Susan will get a cut of the profits if she can get otherpeople to help her sell these products.

Bill says that this “sounds like a pyramid scheme.”  “Pyramid” (pyramid) are likewhat you will find in Egypt.  In ancient Egypt, they built these large – triangularthey look – pyramids.  The Pharaohs of Egypt built the pyramids.  A “pyramidscheme,” however, is a business where you have one person on the top, andthen you have some people below him, and then more people below them, andso forth.  For example, I get two people to sell my product; these two people giveme 15% of the profits – I get a cut of the profits.  Then, they find two peopleeach, that will sell the product, and give them a percentage, and I get my percentage.  And so this continues until you get more and more people. Unfortunately, of course, this can't work for everyone because everyone wouldneed to find more people to sell their product.  These kinds of businesses –pyramid schemes – are illegal in many places in the U.S., but they were very popular in the 80s and the 90s.

Bill points out that “Only a few people at the top” of the pyramid “make money,while all of the other people lose their shirts.”  The expression “to lose you shirt”

means to lose everything – to lose all of the money that you have. Susan disagrees with Bill.  She says, “It doesn’t seem like a fraud to me.”  A“fraud” (fraud) is when you cheat or lie to someone to get their money; that would be called a “fraud.”  Usually that is illegal – it is against the law – but of course,some people do it.

Susan says to Bill, “Sit down and watch for a minute and you’ll see all of thetestimonials from people who have used this system and who have struck it rich.” “Testimonials” (testimonials) are what customers and other people say about aproduct or a service.  Usually it's a good thing; they say, “Oh, this was the mostwonderful ESL Podcast in the world!”  That would be a “testimonial.”  It's very common on these infomercials to have interviews with customers, or people they say are customers, who have been successful with the product; they givetestimonials.

“To strike it rich” – the past tense of strike is struck (struck) – means to be very successful with something, usually to make a lot of money.  “I'm going strike itrich in California.”

Bill says that “There’s a sucker born every minute.”  This is an old expressionthat a famous circus organizer – someone who had circuses and shows calledP.T. Barnum – P.T. Barnum said, “There’s a sucker born every minute.”  A“sucker” (sucker) is a person who is easily fooled or tricked by another person's ideas or actions.  Usually it's someone who loses money; someone who is notvery smart and they get fooled or tricked. So, Bill is saying with this expression “There’s a sucker born every minute,” thereare lots of people who are not very smart, who lose money because they don'tunderstand what is going on.  He, of course, is saying that Susan is a sucker.  It's a very negative term to use about someone; you're saying that they are stupidand they will lose their money.

Bill asks how much this course costs, and Susan says, “It’s only $179.95, and,”

she says, “I can pay in monthly installments.”  “Installments” (installments) arepartial payments.  When you buy something but you don't pay the whole thingright away, you pay a little bit each month; that would be to pay in “installments.” Susan says that “The program comes with a step-by-step book and video.”  Theexpression “step- (step) by-step” means that it describes each thing that youhave to do in order; it's a very detailed explanation.

Bill says to Susan, “I think you’re wasting your time.”  “To waste (waste) yourtime” is to do something that will not give you results.  Bill says, “I can think of alot of things I would rather spend” my money on.  

Susan responds, “That’s your prerogative.”  “Prerogative” (prerogative) is aperson's right to do something or to decide something.  If someone says, “That'syour prerogative,” they mean that's your right, you can do what you want to do. Usually you use that when you disagree with the other person, but youunderstand that they can make their own decision.

Susan says to Bill, “Don’t come to me later when I’m a millionaire and you wantmy business advice.”  She's saying someday I will have a lot of money; I willhave a million dollars.  A person who has a million dollars is called a millionaire(millionaire); a person who has a billion dollars would be a billionaire.  I am notmillionaire, or a billionaire!

Now let's listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.

[start of story]

Bill:  What are you watching?

Susan:  I’m watching a really interesting TV program.  It’s about how to make alot of money quickly and easily.

Bill:  Are you watching an infomercial?  Those things are scams!  You shouldknow better than to fall for some get-rich-quick scheme. Susan:  This isn’t a scam.  This program is about how make money with nocapital.  All I have to do is to get other people to sell these products and I’ll get acut of the profits.

Bill:  That sounds like a pyramid scheme.  Only a few people at the top makemoney, while all of the other people lose their shirts. Susan:  It doesn’t seem like a fraud to me.  Sit down and watch for a minute andyou’ll see all of the testimonials from people who have used this system and whohave struck it rich.  It may really work.

Bill:  There’s a sucker born every minute.  How much do you have to pay to learnthe secrets to this system?

Susan:  It’s only $179.95, and I can pay in monthly installments.  The programcomes with a step-by-step book and video on how to get started.  

Bill:  I think you’re wasting your time.  I can think of a lot of things I’d rather spend$179.95 on. Susan:  That’s your prerogative.  Don’t come to me later when I’m a millionaireand you want my business advice.

Bill:  Don’t worry.  That will never happen.

[end of story]

The script for today's podcast was written by Dr. Lucy Tse. That's all we have time for.  From Los Angeles, California, I'm Jeff McQuillan. Thanks for listening.  We'll see you next time on ESL Podcast.

English as a Second Language Podcast is written and produced by Dr. Lucy Tse,hosted by Dr. Jeff McQuillan.  This podcast is copyright 2007.