German · BeginnerKannst du mir helfen?Solve a Work Problem

Follow along

201 lines
00:00Intro
Hello Mia! My morning was chaotic. I had stress.
Oh no, Lukas! What happened? Tell me more!
I arrived today at eight o'clock. The bus was late.
Oh, that is annoying! And how was it in the office?
In the office it was busy. Everyone was working hard.
Did you have a lot of work on your desk?
Yes, a lot! And the printer was broken.
The office printer often doesn't work. What did you do?
I stood in front of it. It simply did not work.
Did you ask a colleague for help?
Yes, I asked Sarah: Can you help me?
Very good, Lukas! That is exactly what today is about.
Right! Today we learn six important sentences.
You need these sentences every day in the office.
I wrote down all sentences for myself.
That is a fantastic tip for our listeners!
Our most important main sentence is: Can you help me?
This sentence always helps you at work.
Today we learn five more expressions.
All expressions are very useful for beginners.
We first learn the sentence: I have a problem.
Afterwards we learn the sentence: That does not work.
Later we also explain the sentence: No problem!
We also show you the question: How does that work?
At the end we say: Thank you very much for your help!
Lukas, do you know the secret in the office?
Which secret do you mean, dear Mia?
It is about our German coffee kitchen in the office!
Haha, no! What is special about the coffee kitchen?
I will tell it soon. First comes a story!
Perfect! I am very excited about the story.
We start now together. Listen carefully!
I am ready. Let's start right away!
Here comes the story from our office.
I am happy. It will certainly be very exciting.
Let's go! We learn German together now.
Yesterday morning at nine o'clock, I had stress.
Why did you have stress at work?
My boss wanted to have an important report.
Did you have to print the report immediately?
Yes, exactly! The boss was waiting in the room.
And what happened at the big printer?
The red light on the printer flashed.
Oh dear! What did you think in that moment?
I called out loud in the room: I have a problem.
Did your colleague in the office hear you?
Yes, colleague Sarah was standing right next to me.
And what did you say to Sarah?
I asked politely: Sarah, can you help me?
And how did Sarah react to that?
She smiled. Then she opened the printer.
Was there simply no white paper left?
Yes, exactly! I hadn't seen that.
Sarah put new paper inside.
That went very fast. It took ten seconds.
And did the printer print again after that?
Yes! I called out happily: That works again!
And what did you say to Sarah?
I said warmly: Thank you very much for your help!
And Sarah certainly answered: No problem!
Yes, exactly! That was a really big rescue.
Afterwards I immediately went to the boss.
Was your boss happy with the report?
Yes, the boss was very satisfied with the work.
Then you were certainly very relieved and glad.
Yes, totally! Afterwards we went to the coffee kitchen.
Did you drink a fresh coffee there?
Yes, Sarah made me a hot coffee.
You know, Lukas? In Germany that is normal.
What do you mean by completely normal in the office?
In German offices people inform directly.
I find that very good and very honest.
When something doesn't work, one asks right away.
One saves so much time at work.
Many small problems are solved in the coffee kitchen.
So the coffee kitchen is an important place?
Yes! There colleagues speak relaxed with each other.
They drink coffee together and help each other.
That is a nice culture at the workplace.
Good communication makes work very easy.
That's absolutely true. Together one is always strong.
I will gladly go to the coffee kitchen tomorrow.
Very nice! Now we come to block three.
We look at all six sentences now.
With pleasure! We start with our first sentence.
The first sentence is: Can you help me?
In English that means: Can you help me?
You say that when you need support.
For example, when a box on the shelf is heavy.
Or when a word in the letter is difficult.
Even when the chair is broken, you ask that.
You can also say: Can you please help me?
The little word please sounds even friendlier.
Native speakers use this sentence every day.
It is the best sentence for good teamwork.
The second sentence is: I have a problem.
In English that means: I have a problem.
You say that to the boss or colleagues.
When the internet doesn't work, you say that.
It shows everyone immediately that help is needed.
One says this sentence very calmly and clearly.
It is a very clear and honest sentence.
The third sentence is: That does not work.
In English that means: That does not work.
You say that with broken computers in the office.
My screen was dark yesterday, there it fit.
When the keycard doesn't work, you say that.
Also with the coffee machine you say this sentence.
One also says that when the heating is off.
The fourth sentence is briefly: No problem!
In English that simply means: No problem!
You answer that kindly when someone says thank you.
It is a very nice answer in daily life.
Your colleagues are happy about this answer.
One smiles and says it with joy.
The fifth sentence is: How does that work?
In English that means: How does that work?
With new software you ask that.
Or when you want to learn to use the new copier.
Also for the wifi password you ask that.
When you use the scanner, you also ask that.
Asking always helps a lot when learning in the office.
The sixth sentence is: Thank you very much for your help!
In English that means: Thank you very much for your help!
With that you thank the team very warmly.
Good manners are very important at work.
All colleagues prefer working with friendly people.
A nice thank-you immediately brings a good mood.
Readiness to help belongs to everyday life in Germany.
One forms a strong team and learns from each other.
That makes the workday really very pleasant.
Now we have a question for you!
Are you in Team Lukas, or Team Mia?
I am firmly in Team Lukas!
What does Team Lukas do with problems in the office?
Team Lukas asks for help immediately when something is missing.
And I am proudly in Team Mia!
What does Team Mia do differently than Team Lukas?
Team Mia first tries it alone for ten minutes.
I prefer asking already after one minute.
I try out everything myself first.
Both ways have many advantages in the office.
Do you know a statistic about office work?
No, what statistic do you mean?
I read that many in the office need help.
What percentage of people ask for help?
I estimate about thirty percent ask colleagues.
I heard it is fifty percent!
That is a really big number in the office!
No one has to know everything alone at work.
A short question quickly moves everyone forward.
Now comes our practical test in the podcast!
Excellent! I have six typical tasks.
I am ready for your questions, dear Mia.
Task one: A heavy box is standing there.
You cannot manage alone. What do you say?
In this situation I say: Can you help me?
Perfect, Lukas! That was completely correctly said.
That was spoken very naturally!
Thank you! I practice this sentence every day.
Task two: The computer suddenly goes off.
The screen stays black. What do you say to the boss?
I reply calmly: Excuse me, I have a problem.
Very good! That is clearly and politely phrased.
Task three: The coffee machine makes loud noises.
No coffee comes out. What do you shout out loud?
Then I shout out loud in the room: That does not work.
Wonderful! All colleagues understand that immediately.
Task four: You lent a colleague a pen.
The colleague brings it back. She says thank you.
I smile kindly and answer: No problem!
Great! That sounds very nice and friendly.
Task five: A new program is on the computer.
You do not know how to save. What do you ask?
I simply ask my neighbor: How does that work?
Absolutely right! That way you learn the program quickly.
Task six: A colleague prints your report.
You are very grateful. What do you say to him?
I am happy and say: Thank you very much for your help!
Super, Lukas! You solved all six tasks.
Thank you! That was really great fun.
You did that really masterfully!
That makes me very happy, dear Mia!
You are now a real pro in the office!
And our listeners also learned a lot today!
That was a really great lesson for us.
Here is your homework for tomorrow morning!
Stand in front of your mirror tomorrow morning.
Look in the mirror and smile kindly.
Say out loud three times the sentence: Can you help me?
Speaking out loud helps a lot when learning languages.
Have no fear of small mistakes in the office!
Asking is smart and moves you forward quickly.
Also think of the nice coffee kitchen in the office.
Always be friendly to your colleagues.
Tomorrow I will drink my coffee very relaxed.
But please don't break the coffee machine!
Haha, promised! I will pay very good attention.
Goodbye! Until next time in our podcast!
Goodbye! Lots of success learning German!
Goodbye, dear listeners!

Key phrases

6 to keep
Kannst du mir helfen?Kannst du mir helfen?
Can you help me?
Kurz, kannst du mir helfen? Der Rechner hängt.Real quick, can you help me? The computer is frozen.
Ich habe ein Problem.Ich habe ein Problem.
I have a problem
Hallo IT, ich habe ein Problem mit dem WLAN.Hi IT, I have a problem with the Wi-Fi.
Das funktioniert nicht.Das funktioniert nicht.
That does not work
Ich klicke und klicke, das funktioniert nicht.I click and click, it doesn't work.
Kein Problem!Kein Problem!
No problem!
Brauchst du meinen Stift? Kein Problem!Need my pen? No problem!
Wie geht das?Wie geht das?
How does that work?
Zeig mir bitte: Wie geht das?Please show me: How does that work?
Vielen Dank für deine Hilfe!Vielen Dank für deine Hilfe!
Thank you very much for your help!
Ohne dich wäre ich verloren. Vielen Dank für deine Hilfe!I'd be lost without you. Thank you so much for your help!

Du bist dran

Your turn
laut sagen
Today's small task

Here is your homework for tomorrow morning!Here is your homework for tomorrow morning!

cocoaKannst du mir helfen?
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