Jan 20

IELTS Writing Task 2 - Model Answer - Jobs and social life

Some people think that a job provides not only an income but also a social life. Other people think that it is better to develop a social life with people you do not work with. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion. Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Work is a major part of our lives. On average, we spend around half a century at work, therefore, it is unsurprising that some individuals socialise with colleagues. Some disapprove of this, and, admittedly, there are valid reasons for this; nevertheless, there are benefits of spending time together outside of working hours.

Mixing your work and social life could be risky for several reasons. Firstly, the relationship between managers and staff might become difficult to manage. For example, I had a good rapport with a former manager and we frequently met up after work; however, when there was an issue at work, he found it difficult to deal with because of our close friendship. In addition, when you get together with your colleagues, you tend to talk about work and this might not be good for your mental health, as you need to switch off. Finally, you need to be careful how you behave because if a video of inappropriate behaviour was posted on social media, it could be detrimental to your career.

Despite these drawbacks, spending time with fellow employees can be advantageous. Firstly, teamwork can improve, as there is good communication between staff members and we tend to co-operate better with people we get on well with. Furthermore, if you are contented at work, you are likely to be less stressed. Moreover, in contemporary society, it is particularly difficult to make friends, as everyone is leading such busy lives, therefore, making friends with co-workers could prevent loneliness.

There are certainly risks involved with socialising with fellow workers, and, for this reason, everyone needs to behave appropriately. Despite this, I feel that if everyone acts professionally whilst in the workplace, and has enjoyable interactions outside of it, there should not be an issue. 

Vocabulary

  • socialise = participate in social activities; mix socially with others 
  • Some = note that the word 'people' has been omitted - you can use 'some', 'many' and 'others' without people e.g. some feel that...; many argue that...; others complain that...
  • valid reasons = a valid reason, argument, comment, or idea is based on sensible reasoning 
  • I had a good rapport with = I had a good relationship with (a good sense of understanding and trust)
  • former = previous
  • to switch off = to stop thinking about something; to stop giving your attention to something (this is quite informal, but it would still impress an IELTS examiner because it is less commonly used language)
  • detrimental to = bad for
  • contented = happy
  • co-workers = colleagues
  • fellow workers = colleagues
  • interactions = meetings

IELTS Writing Tip

When writing a main paragraph, it has to have a topic sentence. The topic sentence states what the paragraph is about. For example, in the first paragraph, the topic sentence is: Mixing your work and social life could be risky for several reasons. The rest of the paragraphs has reasons/examples to support this idea that there is a danger of spending time with your work colleagues. You should really have at least two reasons to support your argument if possible.

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