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Dear email,
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In German, there’s a phrase, in eigener Sache. I love this phrase. It’s so much better than “on our own behalf”. So even though this is your 10-minute English boost, I will say: This week I am writing in eigener Sache. Why? Because Business Spotlight is celebrating its 25th anniversary this month.
In 2001, Business Spotlight launched and took off like a rocket. Founding editor Ian McMaster knew that a unique product to help German learners of business English would be a success. He believed in his idea and his team. Today, we’re a new team, and we enjoy continuing that legacy by giving you a global perspective on relevant current events, while helping you practice and improve your English, so you can be part of the global conversation. That's why we've decided to send out this extra newsletter for our 25th anniversary, with our special 2-for-5-euro offer for you! And if you order by March 12, you'll get our anniversary issue, too!
Federico Fellini once said that learning a foreign language is acquiring a different vision of life. Charlemagne said that speaking another language is to have a second soul. Rita Mae Brown calls language a roadmap of a culture. We couldn’t agree more. From the team at Business Spotlight to you, thank you! Here’s to another 25 years!
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Judith Gilbert
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Editor-in-chief, Business Spotlight
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launch: auf den Markt kommen | take off: abheben, starten | founding editor: Gründungsredakteur(in) | unique: einzigartig, einmalig | legacy: Erbe, Vermächtnis | Charlemagne: Karl der Große | roadmap: Landkarte, Straßenkarte
Note: Judith's editorial is written in US English.
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| 25 years Business Spotlight |
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Festive Word
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red-letter day
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Did you know...? This idiom refers to a day that is particularly significant or memorable. The expression comes from old calendars, where church holidays and important feast days were printed in red ink instead of black. These “red-letter days” stood out from normal days. Today, it can describe anniversaries, historical events, or any particularly happy occasion – such as Business Spotlight's 25th birthday!
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feast day: Festtag | ink: Tinte
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© Illustration: Georg Lechner
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Quiz
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2001
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1. Which of these items was released in 2001?
A) Apple iPod
B) Playstation 1
C) Nokia 3310
2. What was the highest-grossing film in 2001?
A) Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
B) Shrek
C) Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
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highest-grossing: mit dem höchsten Einspielergebnis
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© Illustration: Georg Lechner
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| Answers: 1. A) The Playstation 1 was released in 2002 and the Nokia 3310 in 2000 ; 2. C)
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Ihr Gutschein für Business Spotlight
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Sie erhalten die erste Ausgabe unseres Abonnements gratis
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Interview
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Interview with a reader
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Ruairi Braddell is a business English trainer from Cobh, Ireland, who teaches in Düsseldorf. We spoke to him about how he uses Business Spotlight, and how the magazine has evolved over the years.
How long have you been a Business Spotlight reader?
I've been a Business Spotlight reader for around 20 years, since the early 2000s when I started teaching business English in Germany. What I liked most about it was the mix of authentic business-related content and language-training material. There are sections on intercultural communication, business skills, management, technology and the working world. It quickly became my go-to supplement for standard coursebooks, filling gaps in areas like intercultural training and business skills development.
How have you seen the magazine evolve?
I noticed that the magazine has expanded its scope in topic areas like AI, wellbeing and sustainability, but has retained its solid intercultural and skills content base. It has also grown with more multimedia content, such as digital audio files, etc.
Has the magazine helped you stay up to date with developments in international business and communication?
For sure! I find the magazine a very accessible source of information. It gave me insights into presenting, negotiation, and intercultural pitfalls that I couldn't find elsewhere.
How has business English changed over the past 25 years?
Business has become very global and much less formal than in the past. That change has also been driven by the fact that a lot of interactions are remote and take place digitally over Teams, Zoom and Slack.
What are the biggest challenges German professionals face when using English at work?
German professionals generally have strong English skills. However, they often make mistakes with things like false friends or grammar structures like the present perfect, which seem similar but are used in entirely different ways. One other aspect is German directness compared with English politeness.
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evolve: sich entwickeln | go-to: Lieblings... | supplement: Ergänzung | accessible: zugänglich | pitfall: Fallstrick
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© Image: Katharina Braddell
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Gewinnspiel
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Gewinnen Sie eines von fünf Jahresabos
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Seit 25 Jahren informiert Business Spotlight seine Leserinnen und Leser über wichtige Themen aus Wirtschaft, Kultur und Gesellschaft – auf Englisch, mit einem Fokus auf internationaler Relevanz. Zur Feier unseres Jubiläums verlosen wir fünf Freiabos.
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© Bild: ZEIT SPRACHEN
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Archives
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“What I want is a search engine that understands what I'm saying!”
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We delved into our archives and found a delightful article in the very first issue of Business Spotlight. Contributor Eamonn Fitzgerald wrote about the difficulty of googling a topic when there are so many results to be read. And that was back in 2001! “What I want is a search engine that tries to understand what I'm saying by looking at the words in my question and how my sentence is put together,” he complained. “Is that too much to ask? Surely ... there's someone who can solve this problem. Think of the rewards: venture capitalists will love you.”
We think Eamonn pre-empted ChatGPT!
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delve into sth.: hier: etw. durchforsten | delightful: entzückend | reward: Lohn | venture capitalist: Risikokapitalgeber | pre-empt: zuvorkommen
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© Image: Business Spotlight
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Im aktuellen Magazin
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How we see the Germans
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What international business partners think of working with you | 10 tips to boost self-confidence | The cost of being single
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Quiz
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Milestones
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Do you know which other company is celebrating its 25th birthday this year? Find out and test your knowledge of other milestones in our fun quiz!
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© Image: Grégoire Bertaud / Unsplash.com
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Mitarbeit: Dennis Draber, Judith Gilbert, Susanne Krause, Mae McCreary, Richard Mote, Rachel Preece, Inez Sharp.
Sie haben diesen Newsletter zurzeit an die Adresse subs@emailshot.io bestellt. Eine Abmeldung ist jederzeit über Newsletter-Abmeldung möglich. Bitte antworten Sie nicht auf diese E-Mail. Bitte wenden Sie sich an abo@zeit-sprachen.de.
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USt-IdNr.: DE -265 -973 -410 Datenschutz | AGB | Impressum | Kontakt © ZEIT SPRACHEN GmbH 2026
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