Describe a Piece of Good Advice that you gave to Someone: IELTS Speaking Cue Card model answers have been provided below. The answers are centred upon questions - Who did you advice?, What was the advice?, Why did you give the advice?, How was it helpful, and how did he/she feel about it?
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Topic: Describe a piece of good advice that you gave to someone: IELTS Speaking Cue Card
You should say
Answer 1:
Who did I advise?
I gave the advice to my younger cousin. He’d just started college and was totally overwhelmed—classes, assignments, trying to have a social life, the lot. Everything was piling up, he was stressed out of his mind and had no idea how to juggle it all.
What did I tell him?
Just told him the basics: grab a notebook, sketch out a dead-simple weekly plan. Rank stuff by what’s actually urgent and important (most “urgent” things aren’t). And those massive assignments that freak you out? Slice them into tiny bites so they stop looking like total monsters. Nothing fancy, just works.
Why did I bother?
Because the poor kid was a mess. He kept saying “I have no time” while spending half the day scrolling or panicking. You could see his confidence was shot. I figured if he could just see his week laid out on paper and knock off a couple of small things each day, he’d calm down and realise he wasn’t actually doomed.
How did it go?
Better than I expected, honestly. After a couple of weeks he was getting stuff done early instead of at 3 a.m., his mood totally changed, and he even started going out and doing college things again instead of hiding in his dorm. A month later he called me just to say thanks – told me it was the first time in ages he felt like he was running his life instead of his life running him. Made me stupidly happy to hear that.
Answer 2:
Who did you advise?
My best mate was gearing up for this massive job interview, the kind that could change everything for her. She’s ridiculously talented, but the nerves were eating her alive. She kept texting me at 2 a.m. like “I’m going to bomb this, I just know it.”
What was the advice?
So one evening we sat on my couch with a bottle of wine and I basically said: stop trying to memorise perfect answers, that’s not you. Just know the company inside out (what they do, who they compete with, the actual job description), so you sound like you already belong there. Then we ran through the usual questions (“tell me about yourself,” “biggest weakness,” all that rubbish) until she stopped sounding robotic and started sounding like the clever, funny person she actually is.
Why did you give the advice?
We did three proper mock interviews. I threw curveballs at her, interrupted her, asked stupid follow-ups, the lot. By the end she was laughing at me instead of panicking. She walked into the real thing calm as anything, apparently chatted to them like they were old mates, and nailed it. Got the offer two days later.
How was it helpful, and how did she feel about it?
She rang me from her car, practically screaming down the phone: “I got it! They loved me!” Then went quiet for a second and said, “Honestly, I’d have fallen apart without those practice rounds. You made me believe I was good enough.” Still chokes me up thinking about it. Best feeling ever, knowing you helped someone see themselves the way you’ve always seen them.
Answer 3:
Who did you advise?
One of the lads on my team was losing the plot over this new software we were forced to learn. Every meeting he’d slump in his chair, muttering that his brain just wasn’t wired for it and he was falling behind everyone else.
What was the advice?
I’d been in his exact shoes twelve months earlier, so I grabbed him after work for a quick pint and said: “Look, forget the weekend cramming marathons that leave you hating life. Just give it fifteen minutes a day, no more. Pick one short tutorial, play with the feature, scribble a couple of notes like you’re back in school, done. Tomorrow, another fifteen.”
Why did you give the advice?
He laughed, thought I was taking the piss, but started doing it anyway. Sent me photos of his desk absolutely plastered in neon sticky notes and scribbled shortcuts.
How was it helpful, and how did he feel about it?
Four weeks later he’s zipping through reports that used to take him hours, and suddenly he’s the one wandering round showing the new starters how it’s done. Yesterday he rocked up with a coffee for me, plonked it down and went, “Mate, fifteen minutes a day actually worked. I genuinely thought I was too thick for this thing.” The relief on his face was massive. Said it’s completely changed how he tackles anything new now. Proud of him, and yeah, felt pretty good that something so simple made such a difference.
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