ESL Podcast 656 – Ordering Business Stationery

　　Jermaine: How did the investor¹ meeting go?
Teresa: That meeting has been postponed² until next week. One of the potential investors³ is out of town.
Jermaine: In that case, can you help me with some of this work?
Teresa: I would, but I’m busy ordering stationery⁴ right now.
Jermaine: Stationery? You’re ordering stationery?
Teresa: Yes, of course. For us to be taken seriously as a new company, we have to project a professional image. Having good stationery is part of that.
Jermaine: I’m not sure…
Teresa: Look, we can’t go to business meetings without good business cards, right?
Jermaine: I guess so…
Teresa: If we have any correspondence with our potential investors, we need letterhead and envelopes, right?
Jermaine: I suppose…
Teresa: Okay, so I’m ordering those things. In the process, I’m ordering some embossed greeting cards and some promotional postcards. We’ll also need some notepads and…
Jermaine: Whoa! Aren’t you jumping the gun?
Teresa: Why do you say that?
Jermaine: First, we need to establish a company, and then we can start behaving like one.
Teresa: That’s where you’re wrong. If you build it, they will come.
Jermaine: You mean if we start behaving like a company, then the investors will come?
Teresa: Precisely⁵!
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

1 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

2 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

3 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

4 stationery   

n.文具；(配套的)信笺信封

参考例句：

• She works in the stationery department of a big store.她在一家大商店的文具部工作。
• There was something very comfortable in having plenty of stationery.文具一多，心里自会觉得踏实。

5 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。