Describe an occasion when you displayed kindness to someone you didn't like

You should say:

• When and where it happened 

• Who he/she was 

• Why you didn't like this person 

• And explain why you were friendly to him/her on that occasion

Exemplary topic: “Describe a habit you and your friend wish to cultivate”

It was a year ago when I still worked for my old company. I had to work on a project with one of the most vexing co-workers in my workplace. We were like oil and water. While I am very into trying new ideas and solutions, he was a very conventional person, and I considered him to be quite narrow-minded. Whenever I came up with something new, he would be the first person to reject it. Besides that, we share different interests so we rarely had a conversation with each other.

He and I were assigned a project from my boss, which required us to work together. I was quite worried when I knew that I had to work with him on this project as we hadn’t done anything together before that. I tried to seek his approval for many ideas that I had. I didn’t say anything when he rejected my ideas because I didn’t want to argue with him so that we could progress faster and meet the deadline of the project.

Pretending to be nice to him is the only way that I could think of that would allow us to collaborate together effectively. Sadly, our relationship did not improve after that project as we had nearly nothing in common.

IELTS Speaking Part 3 Vocabulary

• Oscar-worthy /ˈɒskə-ˈwɜːði/: diễn xuất xuất sắc 

Ví dụ: I made an Oscar-worthy job of convincing the boss

• irksome /ˈɜːrksəm/: khó chịu

Ví dụ: I found the restrictions irksome.

• vexing /ˈveksɪŋ/ làm phật ý

Ví dụ: I found their attitude extremely vexing.

• oil and water (idiom): như nước với lửa

Ví dụ: Like oil and water, the worlds of work and pleasure do not blend easily.

• narrow-minded  /ˌnær.əʊˈmaɪn.dɪd/(adj): bảo thủ, khó chấp nhận ý kiến của người khác

Ví dụ: There is no point in trying to persuade her because she is very narrow-minded

• progress /prəˈɡres/: tiếp tục tiến hành

Ví dụ: Things are progressing well.

• collaborate /kəˈlæbəreɪt/: hợp tác

Ví dụ: Researchers around the world are collaborating to develop a new vaccine.

Illustrative example for IELTS Speaking Part 3

1. What is the reason behind individuals being friendly with those they don’t like?

To show their politeness. Even when you are talking to a person you don’t like, you have to be respectful towards the other person. I think it’s a part of our culture, we were taught to be nice to the people around us, even to those who are irritating and annoying.

• respectful  /rɪˈspektfl/ tôn trọng

Ví dụ: The onlookers stood at a respectful distance.

• irritating  /ˈɪrɪteɪtɪŋ/: khó chịu

Ví dụ: I found her extremely irritating.

2. What types of individuals tend to be friendly?

Celebrities. They have to be well-rounded in the eyes of the public. Everything they do can affect their image and reputation as they are closely watched by other people. So I think that those people have to be friendly all the time to gain the love and trust of the public. Well, rising to stardom isn’t an easy

thing to do, right?

• Well-rounded /ˌwel ˈraʊndɪd/: toàn diện

Ví dụ: Famous people make others think that they are well-rounded individuals.

• Stardom /ˈstɑːr.dəm/ trở thành ngôi sao

Ví dụ: From childhood, Britney Spears seemed destined for stardom.

3. What are the distinctions between being friendly and being courteous?

Friendliness and politeness are often associated with each other so I guess they are kind of similar. You have to be friendly to show your politeness, right? But I guess being friendly means you have to be fun and sociable, you know, to bring people together. Meanwhile, it’s not necessary to do that to show your politeness.

• Friendliness /ˈfrendlinəs/: sự thân thiện

Ví dụ: We were greeted with warmth and friendliness.

• Politeness /pəˈlaɪtnəs/: lịch sự

Ví dụ: He stood up out of politeness and offered her his seat.

4. What is your opinion on individuals who are forthright?

For me, it’s a virtue. I love those who are honest and open, willing to tell you the truth in the most direct way. Eventually,the truth will come out, so it is pointless and time-wasting to keep beating around the bush. It is quite annoying to listen to a meaningless story before getting to know the main point.

• The truth will come out (idiom): sự thật cuối cùng cũng sẽ phơi bày

Ví dụ: This is the time when the truth will come out.

• beating around the bush (idiom): nói vòng vo

For example: Cease beating about the bush and express your desires clearly.

Hopefully, through the aforementioned article, learners have gained insight into the potential questions in Speaking Part 3 pertaining to this topic, how to outline ideas, and the most suitable ways to respond to each question related to the theme “Describe a time you were friendly to someone you didn't like”.