ReadOasis Step 2 The world is in financial crisis. American employers cut 598,000 jobs in January 2009. This is the most job cuts in one month in the US since December 1974. 11.6 million people in the US don't have work. That is about 7.6% of people who can... Read more
By Tek Smith ReadOasis Step 4 Black liquid exploded out of the ground towards the sky. It was oil—black gold—and it had the energy to light up homes. It had the massive force to drive the engine of the American economy, and it had the power to make a... Read more
ReadOasis Step 2 In 1966, Richard was 16 years old. He was a student, but he didn't like the way he was taught in school. He wanted to change his world, and he was going to do something about it. He decided to create a magazine that was for... Read more
A Wee (Wii) Gaming Machine
B1-IntermediateBizBiz Step 2ABNC LevelsCEFR LevelsCoursesProtectedStep 2StoriesTech 1
ReadOasis Step 2 Nintendo makes video games and gaming machines. It is one of the largest gaming companies in the world. Nintendo's popularity took off in 2006 with the release of the Nintendo Wii. The portable Nintendo DS is also extremely popular. In 2007, the company had an income... Read more
A Musical Money-Making Machine
B2-Intermediate+BizBNC LevelsCEFR LevelsCoursesListen!Music Step 3AProtectedStep 3Stories 0
ReadOasis Step 3 Carrie Underwood by Eva Rinaldi (Creative Commons) Carrie was a country girl from Checotah, Oklahoma. She lived on a farm, and in the mornings, she would help her father feed the cows. Carrie loved to sing. She started singing at church when she was 3 years... Read more
ReadOasis Step 1 Tom Carvel invented soft-serve ice cream. Carvel was born in Greece on July 14, 1906, and he moved to America when he was a child. As a young man, he borrowed $15 from his future wife Agnes, and he started selling ice cream from a truck.... Read more
By Tom Peters (Creative Commons) ReadOasis Step 4 Does this require more explanation than the Golden Rule (“Do unto others ... ”): Badmouthing competitors diminishes you. Period. “Win” with better product. “Win” with better relationships. “Win” when your industry is prospering and has a good reputation. (Think consultants, ad... Read more
Book Trailer by Sheryl Sandberg ReadOasis Step 2 I entered the workforce believing that my generation was going to have equal responsibility and equal opportunity. And it didn't work out that way. Women are getting more college degrees, more graduate degrees, entering the workforce at every level. But in... Read more
By Tom Peters (Creative Commons) ReadOasis Step 4 He/she who has the best story wins! In life! In business! The White House! Consider the following: “A key — perhaps the key — to leadership is the effective communication of a story.” — Howard Gardner, Leading Minds: An Anatomy of... Read more
Big Time Car Trouble
B1-IntermediateBizBiz Step 2ABNC LevelsCEFR LevelsCoursesProtectedStep 2Stories 0
ReadOasis Step 2 US car makers are in serious trouble. Their sales fell about 35% in January compared with last year. Ford Motor Company sales dropped 42%. General Motors reported a 49% drop. But Chrysler was hardest hit. Their sales went down 55%. This decline in sales is not... Read more
Book Trailer by Dambisa Moyo ReadOasis Step 5 In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, commodity prices increased 150 percent. Over the last twenty years, rising resource demand and constrained commodity supply have increased global tensions and triggered over 20 wars and conflicts worldwide, with more inevitably to... Read more
By Guy Kawasaki ReadOasis Step 3 The first thing I figured out and learned sometimes the hard way, about entrepreneurship is that the core, the essence of entrepreneurship is about making meaning. Many, many people start companies to make money, the quick flip, the dot-com phenomena. And I have... Read more
ReadOasis Step 3 In 1966, Richard was 16 years old. He was a student, but he was annoyed with the way he was taught in school. He wanted to change his world, and he was going to do something about it. He resolved to publish a magazine that was... Read more
By Fast Company and Gina Trapani ReadOasis Step 5 A human’s ability to do several things at once, it’s a wonder of biology. It means we can eat a burrito while we walk down the street and listen to music and daydream about the weekend, all at the same... Read more
ReadOasis Step 4 (Part 1) It was two hours before closing time. But Mr. Lee had to ask his customers to leave the store. “I’m very sorry. You have to leave now. I have special business to take care of.” His wife looked sad. "The store is so busy,... Read more
Get Up Earlier than the Next Guy
A3-Beginner++BizBiz Step 2ABNC LevelsCEFR LevelsCoursesProtectedStep 2Stories 1
By Tom Peters (Creative Commons) ReadOasis Step 2 Flying to Boston from London on Saturday morning. 7 hours. Professional woman sitting in front of me. I duly swear, she did not look up for 7 hours. She produced more on her laptop than I do in ... a week... Read more
ReadOasis Step 4 The scariest word in the economy right now is the word routine. Anything that is routine is disappearing from this country, and routine is work you can reduce to a spec sheet, to a script, to a formula, to a series of steps that has a... Read more
Call of Duty Game Breaks Records Again
BizBiz Step 2BBNC LevelsC1-AdvancedCEFR LevelsCoursesNewsProtectedStep 2Stories 1
ReadOasis Step 2 The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported this gaming news on November 12, 2010, summarized here at ReadOasis Step 2. The video game Call of Duty: Black Ops reached first-day sales of $360 million in the U.S. and U.K. The game is made by the company Activision.... Read more
By Benjamin Franklin ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 1) Benjamin Franklin By David Martin "The Way to Wealth" is an essay written by Benjamin Franklin in 1758. In it, Franklin focuses on two main ideas. The first is hard work, which he often calls “industry.” For example, an industrious person... Read more
Get Down to Business in English
B1-IntermediateBizBiz Step 2BBNC LevelsCEFR LevelsCoursesProtectedStep 2StoriesTop Picks 1
ReadOasis Step 2 (Part 1) A Big Decision As usual, the boss spoke clearly and in short sentences. “Okay, it’s decided. This meeting is over. You all know what to do.” One by one, the managers closed their notebooks and stood up. There were no jokes and no laughter.... Read more