15 Different Ways To Say ‘I'm busy!' - Alternative English Phrases! (+ Free PDF & Quiz)

462,069 views ・ 2020-11-18

English with Lucy


Please double-click on the English subtitles below to play the video.

00:00
- Hello, everyone,
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and welcome back to "English With Lucy".
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Today I want to talk about a big topic
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because everyone that I meet seems to want to tell me
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about how busy they are.
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It's like the latest new thing.
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Everybody wants to talk about how busy they are,
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and I hear everyone repeating the same phrase
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over and over again.
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"I'm busy, I'm busy, I'm busy."
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Now you know that I love providing you with lots of better
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and alternative phrases.
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In today's lesson, I am going to teach you 15 alternatives
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for the phrase "I'm busy".
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We're going to include some idioms,
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a couple of slang phrases, some other formal ones as well.
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These are really good phrases to use if you are too busy
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and you want to explain that to somebody in a polite way
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if you want to get out of, to avoid, doing something.
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This lesson will really enrich your vocabulary.
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As always, I have created a free PDF for you to download
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for this lesson with all of the phrases and the examples.
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All you've got to do to claim that is click on the link
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in the description box,
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enter your email address and your name,
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and I will send it directly to your inbox.
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Before we get started,
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I would just like to thank the sponsor of today's video.
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Right, let's get started with the lesson.
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Phrase number one is, "I'm all booked up.
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I'm all booked up."
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If something is booked up, then it's fully reserved.
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There are no spaces left.
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This means that in your "virtual diary",
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there's no space left.
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So somebody's going to have to book in with you another day.
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An example, "I'm all booked up today,
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but I could fit you in on Monday."
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Number two is quite informal.
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It is, "I'm swamped. I'm swamped."
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If you are swamped, you have got so much work on,
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you are so busy, there's no time or room for anything else.
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An example, "I haven't had any time to myself recently.
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I've been so swamped with work!"
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Number three is, "I've got a lot to do,"
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or "I've got so much to do."
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When we write lists at the top, we normally put "To Do",
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the things we have to do.
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So if we've got a lot to do or so much to do,
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it means we are incredibly busy.
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An example, "I need to crack on. I've got a lot to do!"
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To crack on is a slang phrasal verb meaning to start
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or to continue with work.
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Number four, "I've got a lot going on.
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I've got a lot going on."
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Now this one can be used to say
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you've got a lot going on at work
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or you've got a lot in your personal life as well.
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She's got a lot going on, so treat her nicely.
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You know, her home life is difficult at the moment.
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It's used to insinuate
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that somebody's having a difficult time.
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An example, "Don't call her till Monday.
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She's got a lot going on right now."
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Number five sounds very similar,
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but it's different in meaning.
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"I've got a lot on the go. I've got a lot on the go."
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This insinuates less about them having a difficult time
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and more about having a lot of work.
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It implies that you've got lots of different tasks going on.
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We often say that we're spinning a lot of plates,
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we're juggling tasks.
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You know when clowns spin plates
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and they keep them all going?
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Sometimes we use that to describe how we feel.
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An example, "I've got so much on the go right now,
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I don't think I can cope."
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Number six, I've just mentioned plates.
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I'm going to mention them again.
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"I've got a lot on my plate. I've got a lot on my plate."
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This means that I've got lots to think about,
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lots of tasks, lots of responsibilities.
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It generally is used to describe a negative emotion.
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I've got a lot on my plate. I'm a bit overwhelmed.
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An example, "In January I'll start my new position,
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and I'll have a lot more on my plate."
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Number seven is, "I'm up to my ears."
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I'm up to my ears with work.
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So if you imagine you're in a bathtub of work,
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the work is up to here.
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An example, "Will doesn't have any time to watch rugby.
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He's up to ears with farm work!"
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This is only true in the summer,
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but luckily, there isn't so much rugby on in the summer.
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(laughs lightly)
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Number eight is, "I'm tied up. I'm tied up."
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So physically, this is a phrasal verb meaning
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that you are tied with rope, and you can't move.
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But we use this to say
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that we've got so many responsibilities,
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we really can't move.
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We can't leave or anything.
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An example, "I can't come over right now
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because I'm tied up."
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You're not physically tied up.
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It might mean that you've got children depending on you,
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you have to give them dinner, you've got work to finish.
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You can't fathom leaving.
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Number nine, another phrasal verb,
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"I can't take anything else on."
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To take on, I can't take any more on. I can't take that on.
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To take on means to undertake a task or responsibility.
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If you can't take any more on,
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you can't undertake any more tasks or responsibilities.
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An example, "I would love to volunteer for your project,
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but I can't take any more on."
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Now we're going to go through a couple of more simple ones
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that I actually think are underrated.
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Number 10, "I'm stressed." (chuckles)
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We're always told in professional environments
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to not say when we're stressed,
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but I think we should say that
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because I've seen my dad work himself to the bone
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and collapse on the floor from stress.
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Stress is a very serious condition.
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I know when I become very stressed
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over a significant period of time,
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my body does some weird things.
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It is not good for your health.
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So if you are feeling stressed because you are so busy,
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put it in simple terms.
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Just say, "I'm really stressed. I'm really stressed."
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And that person needs to understand you and help you out.
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An example, "I'm really stressed right now.
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Could we rearrange for a quieter time?"
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Another one, number 11,
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maybe not one to say directly to your boss
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but one to explain how you're feeling.
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"I'm overworked."
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I'm overworked implies that somebody else
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is working you too hard.
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An example, "I think I'm overworking myself."
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See, there I'm implying that I am overworking myself.
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I'm working myself too hard.
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"I think I need some time off."
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Number 12, I'm actually including two here
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because they're so similar.
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We have, "I'm overstretched" and "I'm overloaded."
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So if you're overstretched, you're being pulled too far,
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and if you're overloaded,
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you've got too much weight on your back
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and your back's going to break.
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They both mean that you've got too much work
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or too much pressure on.
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An example, "Last year I totally overstretched myself.
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So this year I'm trying to focus on my key tasks."
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Number 13 is another slang phrasal verb. I love it!
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It is, "I am snowed under. I am snowed under."
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And this means that I've got so much work on.
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It's like when you're in a snowstorm
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and your house is surrounded by snow,
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and you've just got this tiny shovel to dig out a path.
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An example, "This winter I've been completely snowed under,
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and it hasn't even snowed!"
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Number 14, a very simple one, but I think it's very good.
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"My diary is full. I'm really sorry, my diary is full."
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I think in American English, you would say "my agenda"
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or "my schedule".
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In American English, it's schedule.
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Let me know if you've lived in an English-speaking country,
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what they said there.
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Diary, agenda, schedule, schedule? Comment down below.
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An example, "My diary is full this month.
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I'll see if I can squeeze you in next month!"
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To squeeze someone in
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is to just make a bit of time for them.
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And the last one very to the point, very direct,
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number 15, "I have other priorities right now."
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I'm so sorry. I can't prioritise what you want me to do.
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I've got other priorities right now.
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An example, "I've got other priorities right now,
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but I expect things to calm down next month."
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There we have it, 15 more interesting, more advanced ways
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to say that you are very busy
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and also a couple of ways to express that you are too busy
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and that you need to be less busy.
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Very important to do that.
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I have completely overstretched myself in the past,
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had a breakdown, come back better than new.
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(laughs)
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Ideally, you realise before, before you have a breakdown.
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(laughs)
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Don't forget to download the PDF for this lesson.
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It's got all of the vocabulary
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and all of the examples as well.
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Just click on the link in the description box,
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enter your name and your email address,
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and it'll be sent straight to your inbox.
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Don't forget to check out the Lingoda language sprint.
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You can use my code 'WIN7' for €10 off.
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Just click on the link in the description box.
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Don't forget to connect with me on all of my social media.
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I've got my Facebook, my Instagram, and my mailing list.
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And I shall see you soon for another lesson.
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Mwah!
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(peaceful mid-tempo music)
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