Meaning of GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER - A Really Short English Lesson with Subtitles

So in English when you say to someone,

"Get your act together!," you're basically telling them

that they need to get organized

or they need to get started on something.

A great example of this would be if your brother

doesn't have a job and he lives with you

and he doesn't give you any money for food or for rent

and he just sleeps on your couch all the time.

You might eventually, after a few months,

say to your brother,

"It's time for you to get your act together.

"Please get your act together and find a job.

"Get your act together and go out there,

"find a job, earn some money, and start contributing

"to the costs of the apartment and the costs of the food."

It's not a nice thing to have to say to someone,

but occasionally in life you might have to tell someone

that they need to get their act together.

Hopefully no one's ever had to tell you this.

Hopefully you have had your act together your whole life.

We have another phrase which isn't the same phrase.

It means something slightly different

and that's, "Let's get this show on the road."

When you say, "Let's get this show on the road,"

it basically means you want to get something started.

I often say this to my kids when we're going on a trip.

I'll say, "Get all your stuff in the van.

"Let's get this show on the road."

And basically what I'm saying to them is that

I really want to get this trip started.