The Monday Byte

Welcome to the Monday Byte where I send you 5 things each week so you can improve your English and land a remote dev job.

📖 Word/Phrase - alternatives to “you’re welcome”

I don’t know about you, but “you’re welcome” feels formal to me most of the time.

Instead, I like to use one of these phrases, which feel more relaxed

• anytime

• no problem (no prob, or np if super casual)

• no worries

• of course

• don’t mention it

Next time someone thanks you, try using one of these. It’ll help you blend in :)

💬 Pronunciation - Critique of Guido from Argentina

Thank you to Guido for sharing a video for me to critique. He’s a reader of the English Byte newsletter and a friend from Twitter.

Here’s ang 11-min video where I critique his pronunciation.

Want me to critique your English? Reply to this and let me know!

🗣️ Real World Conversation - Accept/Refuse Job Opportunities like a Native

Guido (same community member as above) also shared some screenshots of job opportunity conversations. And he asked me to share feedback.

In this12-min video, I fix his messages to sound more like a native speaker. Then I share some of my own LinkedIn DMs to show you how I (politely) refuse job opportunities.

🔗 Content - Faster JavaScript Newsletter

Similar to last week, this is another area you can dive deep into as a way to level-up your career. If your primary programming language is JavaScript, then this newsletter is for you.

It’s written by Aaron Abrams, a Software Engineer at Meta, who is like you — non-native English.

The first issue hasn’t come out, but from everything I know about Aaron (from our friendship), I know it’s going to be epic.

Sign up here

💪🏼 Exercise - Copywork this DM

Sending cold DMs on Twitter is a powerful technique. It can lead to life-changing opportunities. But, it’s scary doing it in your non-native language.

That’s why I want you to practice. Grab a paper and pen and write this one out by hand. Why? It’s called copywork. And it’s a proven way to develop a “feel” for good writing.

I choose this example because it helped me get a reply from one of my idols, Shaan Puri (co-host of My First Million).

Bonus: We’re at 947 subscribers! When I hit 1,000, I’m sending out a free goodie exclusive to you and the English Byte community :)

Do me a favor and tell 1 friend about the newsletter. It would mean a lot to me 🙏 

Enjoy the week, we’ll talk again soon.

- Joe