Johns Keys to Success Idiomatic Story

John's Keys to Success Idiomatic Story Here is a story about an accomplished businessman and happily gave advice to young people whom he mentored. Youll find idiom definitions and a short quiz on some of the expressions at the end of the story.  Try reading the story one time to understand the gist without using the idiom definitions. On your second reading, use the definitions to help you understand the text while learning new idioms. Johns Keys to Success John is an incredibly accomplished and successful businessman. As such, he is quite popular as a mentor. He enjoys showing young professionals the ropes. The first thing he says is that his career has certainly not always been smooth sailing. In fact, he learned a number of lessons along the way. First and foremost, John said, dont believe that success is ever mana from heaven. He said that everyone he had met had a similar rags to riches story, and that a lot of hard work had gone into the success. John believes in hard work, but also in recognizing the right opportunities. Its absolutely essential to never spread yourself too thin John advised. If you have too many irons in the fire, youll certainly miss out on real opportunity he continued. Ive seen people as busy as a bee who never really seem to do anything he pointed out. The more I thought about this advice, the more I understood what he was saying. If you put on your thinking cap, youll realize that its impossible to really concentrate if you have to worry about fifty different things. Another important lesson was that its important to know which side your bread is buttered on and make sure to give that activity your full attention. In other words, you need to ride the gravy train. Dont start looking for new challenges if everything is working out for the best! John stressed that the most important ability of any successful entrepreneur was to have the presence of mind to not only take advantage of an opportunity but also to keep your eye on the ball. Some people are quick on the uptake, but then they get bored. Its important to be consistent, but not spread yourself too thin. Finally, make sure to never show your hand to your opponents. In any case, thats how to be successful according to John. Idioms Used in the Story smooth sailing an easy life with no problemsknow which side ones bread is buttered on to understand what is most important for oneselfride the gravy train to make money by doing something that is already proven to be successfulkeep ones eye on the ball to concentrate and continue doing wellmana from heaven surprise richesfrom rags to riches from poor to richshow someone the ropes to explain and show by example how something is done properlyas busy as a bee very busy (also busy as a beaver)work out for the best to end with the best possible resultquick on the uptake to understand very quicklyhave the presence of mind to do something to be aware and able to grasp an opportunityshow ones hand to show others what advantages you have in a situationput on ones thinking cap to concentratespread oneself too thin to do too many thingshave too many irons in the fire to do too many things Idioms Quiz My friend is as ________________ these days. He never gets time to relax.Weve been lucky in life. Its been _____________ since the very beginning.  Im sure the situation will improve. It will _________________.You need to ____________________ for this problem. It requires a lot of concentration.Alan ___________________ during the negotiations for the business deal.Franklin went from ________________ in his life. He started with nothing and ended up a very rich person.Some artists are lucky and have a huge hit early in life. Then they ______________________ for many years afterwards.My boss _________ me ______________ at work because it was my first week. Quiz Answers busy as a beesmooth sailingwork out for the bestput on your thinking capshowed his handrags to richesride the gravy trainshowed me the ropes More Idioms and Expressions in Context Stories Learn more expressions using stories with one or more of these further  idioms in context stories with quizzes. Its important to learn and use idioms in context. Of course, idioms are not always easy to understand. There are  idiom and expression resources  that can help with definitions, but reading them in short stories can also provide context that make them come more alive.

Battle of Gallipoli in World War I

Battle of Gallipoli in World War I The Battle of Gallipoli was fought during World War I (1914-1918) and represented an attempt to knock the Ottoman Empire out of the war. The plan for the operation was conceived by First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill who believed warships could force the Dardanelles and strike directly at Constantinople. When this proved unfeasible, the Allies elected to land troops on the Gallipoli Peninsula to open the straits. The early stages of the campaign were badly handled and Allied forces were effectively trapped in their beachheads. Though the Allies spent much of 1915 trying to breakout, they were not successful and the decision was made to withdraw late that year. The campaign marked the Ottoman Empires greatest victory of the war. Fast Facts: Gallipoli Campaign Conflict: World War I (1914-1918)Dates: February 17, 1915-January 9, 1916Armies Commanders:AlliesGeneral Sir Ian HamiltonAdmiral Sir John de Robeck489,000 menOttoman EmpireLieutenant General Otto Liman von SandersMustafa Kemal Pasha315,500 menCasualties:Allies: Britain - 160,790 killed and wounded, France - 27,169 killed and woundedOttoman Empire: 161,828 killed, wounded, and missing Background Following the entry of the Ottoman Empire into World War I, First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill developed a plan for attacking the Dardanelles. Using the ships of the Royal Navy, Churchill believed, partially due to faulty intelligence, that the straits could be forced, opening the way for a direct assault on Constantinople. This plan was approved and several of the Royal Navys older battleships were transferred to the Mediterranean. On the Offensive Operations against the Dardanelles began on February 19, 1915, with British ships under Admiral Sir Sackville Carden bombarding Turkish defenses with little effect. A second attack was made on the 25th which succeeded in forcing the Turks to fall back to their second line of defenses. Entering the straits, British warships engaged the Turks again on March 1, however, their minesweepers were prevented from clearing the channel due to heavy fire. Another attempt to remove the mines failed on the 13th, leading Carden to resign. His replacement, Rear Admiral John de Robeck, launched a massive assault on Turkish defenses on the 18th. This failed and resulted in the sinking of two old British and one French battleships after they struck mines. General Sir Ian Hamilton, 1910. Library of Congress Ground Forces With the failure of the naval campaign, it became clear to Allied leaders that a ground force was going to be needed to eliminate the Turkish artillery on the Gallipoli Peninsula which commanded the straits. This mission was delegated to General Sir Ian Hamilton and the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. This command included the newly formed Australia and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC), the 29th Division, the Royal Naval Division, and the French Oriental Expeditionary Corps. Security for the operation was lax and the Turks spent six weeks preparing for the anticipated assault. Ottoman machine gun team during the Gallipoli Campaign. Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-S29571 / CC-BY-SA 3.0 Opposing the Allies was the Turkish 5th Army commanded by General Otto Liman von Sanders, the German advisor to the Ottoman army. Hamiltons plan called for landings at Cape Helles, near the tip of the peninsula, with the ANZACs landing further up the Aegean coast just north of Gaba Tepe. While the 29th Division was to advance north to take the forts along the straits, the ANZACs were to cut across the peninsula to prevent the retreat or reinforcement of the Turkish defenders. The first landings began on April 25, 1915, and were badly mismanaged (Map). Meeting stiff resistance at Cape Helles, British troops took heavy casualties as they landed and, after heavy fighting, were finally able to overwhelm the defenders. To the north, the ANZACs faired slightly better, though they missed their intended landing beaches by about a mile. Pushing inland from Anzac Cove, they were able to gain a shallow foothold. Two days later, Turkish troops under Mustafa Kemal attempted to drive the ANZACs back into the sea but were defeated by tenacious defending and naval gunfire. At Helles, Hamilton, now supported by French troops, pushed north towards the village of Krithia. Trench Warfare Attacking on April 28, Hamiltons men were unable to take the village. With his advance stalled in the face of determined resistance, the front began to mirror the trench warfare of France. Another attempt was made to take Krithia on May 6. Pushing hard, Allied forces only gained a quarter mile while suffering heavy casualties. At Anzac Cove, Kemal launched a massive counterattack on May 19. Unable to throw the ANZACs back, he suffered over 10,000 casualties in the attempt. On June 4, a final attempt was made against Krithia with no success. Gridlock After a limited victory at Gully Ravine in late June, Hamilton accepted that the Helles front had become a stalemate. Seeking to move around the Turkish lines, Hamilton re-embarked two divisions and had them landed at Sulva Bay, just north of Anzac Cove, on August 6. This was supported by diversionary attacks at Anzac and Helles. Coming ashore, Lt. General Sir Frederick Stopfords men moved too slowly and the Turks were able to occupy the heights overlooking their position. As a result, the British troops were quickly locked into their beachhead. In the supporting action to the south, the ANZACs were able to win a rare victory at Lone Pine, though their main assaults on Chunuk Bair and Hill 971 failed. Soldiers of the Royal Irish Fusiliers in the trenches on the southern section of Gallipoli Peninsula during World War I. Australian War Memorial On August 21, Hamilton attempted to revive the offensive at Sulva Bay with attacks on Scimitar Hill and Hill 60. Fighting in brutal heat, these were beaten off and by the 29th the battle had ended. With the failure of Hamiltons August Offensive, fighting calmed as British leaders debated the future of the campaign. In October, Hamilton was replaced by Lt. General Sir Charles Monro. After reviewing his command, and influenced by the entry of Bulgaria into the war on the side of the Central Powers, Monro recommended evacuating Gallipoli. Following a visit from Secretary of State for War Lord Kitchener, Monros evacuation plan was approved. Beginning on December 7, troop levels were drawn down with those at Sulva Bay and Anzac Cove departing first. The last Allied forces departed Gallipoli on January 9, 1916, when the final troops embarked at Helles. Aftermath The Gallipoli Campaign cost the Allies 187,959 killed and wounded and the Turks 161,828. Gallipoli proved to be the Turks greatest victory of the war. In London, the campaigns failure led to the demotion of Winston Churchill and contributed to the collapse of Prime Minister H. H. Asquiths government. The fighting at Gallipoli proved a galvanizing national experience for Australia and New Zealand, which had not previously fought in a major conflict. As a result, the anniversary of the landings, April 25, is celebrated as ANZAC Day and is both nations most significant day of military remembrance.