部门经理Fay找手下Steve来，讨论他的年度中期工作表现。
Fay: Hi there, Steve….grab a seat.
Steve: Hi, Fay. How are you this morning?
F: Very well, thanks. Great weather we’ve been having.
S: I know! Makes me want to sneak away from work and go hiking!
F: Yeah…hiking would be great right about now! Ok…let’s get down to the task at hand…your bi-annual performance evaluation.
Steve的上司Fay让他随便坐，grab a seat, 是非常口语的说法，意思就是请坐。寒暄过后，谈正事吧。
S: So how did I do?
F: Well, in many areas you get high marks. You have a lot of creative thoughts and your enthusiasm regarding work projects is very much appreciated.
S: That’s good to hear. I enjoy being creative and I’m glad to see you appreciate that. Now what’s the bad news?
F: (Chuckle) Well, we all have areas in which we could do better.
S: And what are my areas?
Fay首先表扬Steve，说他很多方面都做得很好，get high marks, 得高分，尤其是他点子多 ，工作热情高。Steve问，So what’s the bad news? 坏消息呢？意思是缺点呢？Fay婉转地说，we all have areas in which we could do better, 大家都有可以改进的地方。
F: For starters, there is an issue of punctuality. You’ve been clocking in roughly 20 to 30 minutes late almost every day.
S: But I moved last month and the office is almost 40 miles away from my home now! Sometimes the traffic is really terrible.
F: Yeah, I know. I also live out in the suburbs. Sometimes I’m stuck in traffic for 45 minutes! But, as you know, the company requires all employees to be at work by nine A.M. sharp.
首先是准点上班的问题，the issue of punctuality. Steve几乎每天迟到二、三十分钟，to clock in, 指进办公室的时间，to clock out, 则是指离开办公室的时间。Steve解释说，这是因为他最近搬家，路上堵车。Fay表示理解，说自己有时也会stuck in traffic for 45 minutes, 有时路上会堵45分钟，可是公司要求员工九点准时到办公室。
S: Yeah…I know…but it’s really been tough for me lately! Can you possibly make an exception?
F: If it were up to me, I’d love for everyone to come in at noon. But I can’t make exceptions; otherwise everyone else will be unhappy. We’re a team and we all have to follow the rules.
S: All right. I guess I’m just going to have to wake up an hour earlier.
F: Sounds like a good plan.
Steve问Fay能不能make an exception, 破例，让他稍微晚点到。Fay说，如果依她，if it were up to me, 大家中午到都行，但是公司的规定，每个人都要遵守。除了上班迟到，Steve还有哪些缺点，我们下次继续听。