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Get Ahead of Oneself

Learn English with this excitement English lesson

Date: Sep 09 2014

Themes: Friend, Hobbies, Romance, Soap Opera

Grammar: Modal Verbs

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Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

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2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

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Have you ever heard of a “Type A” personality? A person with a Type A personality is someone who wants to get things done. He may have a long list of activities to do, and he probably doesn’t have the patience to wait for anything. But there are times when we have to wait. We can’t take cookies out of the oven until they’re baked, right? It’s important to remember not to get ahead of oneself.

If you get ahead of yourself, you make decisions or act too quickly. It’s not just about cookies, obviously. People who get ahead of themselves sometimes think they already know what’s going to happen. They make choices without waiting to see if they’re right, and that doesn’t always work out. It may be hard, but it’s important to be patient. It can feel good to sit back and just wait for life to happen.

Gary thinks that Brian might get ahead of himself, and he wants to stop that from happening. Will he be successful? Read on in today’s English lesson about first dates.

3. Watch - Watch the video without reading the dialog.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Brian

Gary

Lily

Brian: You know, you really didn’t have to chaperone on my first date with Lily.

Gary: I kind of think I did.

Brian: Why?

Gary: Because you have a tendency to get ahead of yourself. This way if I’m here, maybe you’ll slow things down a little.

Brian: Seriously? With you here, it will be like going on a date with my father.

Gary: Yeah, I don’t think so. Shhh, she’s coming.

Lily: So, how’d you like the movie, Gary?

Gary: I liked it a lot. Thanks for letting me sit between you, though. There were some scary parts.

Brian: Anything for you, man. So sorry that you have to take off early. That’s a bummer.

Gary: Oh, yeah. I have to go in early tomorrow. So I’ll see you both in the morning?

Lily: Yeah. See you later, Gary.

Gary: Yeah.

Brian: Bye!

Lily: That was very unusual. Was he keeping an eye on us or something?

Brian: You could say that. So, do you have any more travel plans for the summer? I heard you had fun in Spain.

Lily: Yeah, I had a really great time. But it was also really expensive, so anything else I do this summer has to be super cheap.

Brian: Like camping? Do you like to head out to the mountains with a tent and a sleeping bag?

Lily: Oh, yeah. I love the outdoors. It’s always nice to get away from the city.

Brian: We should go camping. We should head out there, start a fire, make some s’mores, go on hikes…

Lily: Hey, let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. Why don’t we go to another movie? Or, I don’t know, maybe a bike ride or something?

Brian: Fair enough. Bikes are good. I like bikes.

Lily: Sounds like fun. Well, thanks for the movie, Brian.

Brian: Yeah. See you, Lily.

Grammar Point

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Discussion

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Lily and Brian are ending their date… with Gary! Gary decided to join them because he thought that Brian might make bad choices or say the wrong thing. But Brian doesn’t want Gary there, of course. It’s his first date with Lily, and he’s perfectly capable of taking her out by himself.

After Gary leaves, Brian tries to learn more about Lily’s interests. He asks if she likes camping in the forest, and he’s happy to hear that she does. Brian wants them to go together, but Lily suggests that they start with something less serious. A bike ride, for example. She likes Brian, but she’s not ready to take a trip together.

Do you think that Brian got ahead of himself? Do you get ahead of yourself sometimes? What makes you do it?

Comments

mahbubeh92

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

to be honest iget ahead of myself many times because i am not patient and cann’t wait for the outcomes so it does’nt always workout.besides this lesson is full of useful expressions.thnx

vik32

India

yup sometimes i get ahead of myself this is like a human tendency whenever you want sth so much you want it to happen asap. but sometimes we should be patient otherwise everything will be spoiled in act of excitement.

mshare

Saudi Arabia

I always get ahead of myself, I dunno why!. Many times i tried to slow things down but with no success. I think it’s a tendency of one more than anything else.

Marcel We

Germany

@buttafly

That’s exactly what I was trying to say. I mean, it’s just not the same as you’re going on a bike ride together where you spend just an afternoon together :D

buttafly

Germany

@Marcel We

“Man is a goal-seeking animal. His life only has a meaning if he is reaching out and striving for his goals” * Aristotle :)

But I agree with you. When it comes to the dating game, no one wants to rush into something. It’s always better to get to know someone and see what their qualities are before heading out to the mountains and being jammed together in a tent and a sleeping bag ,)

Marcel We

Germany

In my opinion, it wasn’t the right step to ask her to go on camping trip with him at their first date. It’s for sure that Brian got ahead ahead of himself ‘cause they just don’t know each other well enough to do something like this together. They are neither good friends nor do they have something like a relationship going. To me, it seems like Lily was really surprised about his suggestion which is understandable ‘cause it’s just too daring considering the points I’ve already mentioned above.

buttafly

Germany

Yep! Been there :)

It’s so easy and tempting to think 10 steps ahead. I learned to slow down, though. Not that I felt demotivated by all the bitter tasting backfires..it was more of finding a balance between all the “quick wins” and my long term ambitions. Instead of focusing on a “tiny screen” I rather keep an eye on “the big picture”.

houstonboo

Hong Kong

Brian obviouslt gets ahead of himself as he wants to go camping with Lily. But it’s understandable that he did that. For me, my fantasy always get head of itself, dreaming of winning a hugh lottery prize when buying lottery…...Sometimes, when I have a great desire for my goal, I would rather start the work by myself without disscussion or advice with others.