I have to make up my mind in Spanish
Talking about a choice: opportunity, necessity and doubts in Spanish. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Me han ofrecido un puesto en Valencia y no sé qué hacer.» — I've been offered a position in Valencia and I don't know what to do. Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: talking about a choice: opportunity, necessity and doubts. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Me han ofrecido un puesto en Valencia y no sé qué hacer.I've been offered a position in Valencia and I don't know what to do.
- Es una buena oportunidad. ¿Cuándo tienes que contestar?It's a good opportunity. When do you have to answer?
- El viernes sin falta. Y todavía tengo muchas dudas.On Friday without fail. And I still have many doubts.
- A ver, por un lado el sueldo es mejor. ¿Y por otro?Let's see, on the one hand the salary is better. And on the other?
- Por otro, tendría que mudarme y dejar a mis amigos aquí.On the other, I would have to move and leave my friends here.
- Ya, pero eso se arregla poco a poco. No creo que sea un problema.True, but that gets fixed little by little. I don't think it's a problem.
- Tienes razón en parte. Aun así, me da miedo equivocarme.You're partly right. Even so, I'm afraid of making a mistake.
- Tarde o temprano hay que elegir. Y siempre queda un plan B.Sooner or later a choice has to be made. And there is always a plan B.
Lines one by one
| Spanish | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Me han ofrecido un puesto en Valencia y no sé qué hacer. | — | I've been offered a position in Valencia and I don't know what to do. |
| Es una buena oportunidad. ¿Cuándo tienes que contestar? | — | It's a good opportunity. When do you have to answer? |
| El viernes sin falta. Y todavía tengo muchas dudas. | — | On Friday without fail. And I still have many doubts. |
| A ver, por un lado el sueldo es mejor. ¿Y por otro? | — | Let's see, on the one hand the salary is better. And on the other? |
| Por otro, tendría que mudarme y dejar a mis amigos aquí. | — | On the other, I would have to move and leave my friends here. |
| Ya, pero eso se arregla poco a poco. No creo que sea un problema. | — | True, but that gets fixed little by little. I don't think it's a problem. |
| Tienes razón en parte. Aun así, me da miedo equivocarme. | — | You're partly right. Even so, I'm afraid of making a mistake. |
| Tarde o temprano hay que elegir. Y siempre queda un plan B. | — | Sooner or later a choice has to be made. And there is always a plan B. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Spanish in this situation?
“Me han ofrecido un puesto en Valencia y no sé qué hacer.” — I've been offered a position in Valencia and I don't know what to do.. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.