What's Your Proudest Moment?
Jean, can you share with me any personal accomplishment that you are proud of?
Note, "that you are proud of" is a relative clause. "that" is the relative pronoun, and it's the object of "proud of".
Sure, but why do you want to know about it?
Well, last day, I was thinking about my career. I [vocab word=realize]realized[/vocab] I didn't have any accomplishments that I can be very proud of. So, I was wondering if you had any such accomplishment that you can be proud of.
Okay, David. There is one achievement that comes to my mind. It's about a project I managed a few years ago. This was a project that was significantly behind schedule and [vocab word=over-budget]over-budget[/vocab] when it was [vocab word=hand over]handed over[/vocab] to me.
"a project I managed a few years ago" has a relative clause: "I managed a few years ago". Here, the relative pronoun "that" is omitted (not written). You can omit a relative pronoun if it's an object.
That sounds like a difficult situation. I guess you [vocab word=manage to]managed to[/vocab] [vocab word=turn around]turn it around[/vocab]?
To "manage to" do something means you were successful at doing something. To "turn something around" means you made a bad situation better.
Yes, I did, but it was quite challenging. My first step was to communicate with the client, who had almost lost [vocab word=faith]faith[/vocab] in the project due to the delay.
"who had almost lost faith in the project" is a non-defining relative clause. It's extra information about the client. You can say, "My first step was to communicate with the client" and it would make sense.
After I communicated with the client, I [vocab word=revisit]revisited[/vocab] the project plan to set more realistic goals. I also involved the team in the planning process.
Jean took a look at the project plan again, set realistic goals, and asked the team to plan together.
Sounds like a smart move.
It was, if I may say so myself. The team's [vocab word=involvement]involvement[/vocab] resulted in better motivation. At the end, we finished the project within the [vocab word=revise]revised[/vocab] budget and [vocab word=deadline]deadline[/vocab].
You say "if I say so myself" when you are praising yourself but you don't want to appear arrogant.
That's [vocab word=outstanding]outstanding[/vocab]. It's something that you should really be proud of.
I'm proud of it for sure. You must have some accomplishments, too.
Jean is using "must" to make a strong guess. She is saying, "I'm sure you have some accomplishments."
No, I don't think I have any.
I don't believe that. Think hard for a moment. Any small achievement is okay.
Okay. I'm not sure if it's an achievement but I became less shy in the last few years.
"less" is a comparative adverb. "I became less shy" means you were shy before, but you are not very shy now.
That's an accomplishment! Tell me more about it.
During my early days in the company, I used to be extremely [vocab word=introverted]introverted[/vocab]. I was a guy who would smile at paintings all evening at an office party.
An introverted person doesn't want to talk to other people. He / She is usually quiet and likes to be alone.
An extroverted person loves to be around other people. He / She is usually talkative and active in a crowd.
That must have been tough.
Absolutely. But, a few years ago, I found a [vocab word=mentor]mentor[/vocab] who [vocab word=encourage]encouraged[/vocab] me to fight my [vocab word=shyness]shyness[/vocab] and interact with others more. I started going to parties and networking events. Now, I attend two or three events every month and meet about twenty to thirty people every time.
"who encouraged me to fight my shyness" is a defining relative clause. It's important information that describes "a mentor".
That's really [vocab word=brave]brave[/vocab], David! Good for you!
It's nothing. It's not an accomplishment in my work or anything.
It's something, David. You should be proud of it. Not many people can overcome their shyness.
The achievements that make us proud are always those that require the most effort. You put in effort to become more [vocab word=extroverted]extroverted[/vocab], and now you love meeting new people.
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