English B2 FCE

Many people (0) SEEM to get a great, but sometimes undeserved (1) ............ for working like a dog when in reality, they achieve about the same as a panda bear: in (2) ............ words, just about nothing. So why is it that these people seem to get away without doing anything at all in the workplace or (3) ............ the house? The key to being able to do what you fed like in this type of context (4) ............ in a couple of key factors. The first being the (5) ............ with which you give your explanations. For example, when you are approached and put on the spot by your boss or line-manager, you had better give an explanation of everything with the (6) ............ detail and also make it look as if nothing gives you greater pleasure than to explain your actions. The next thing is to have an endless list of menial tasks that do not really exist that you can pull out of the hat at a whim and use as a (7) ............ justification of your actions when needed. Sometimes you have to pretend you are working hard or simply try to (8) ............ something done, even if it's only a simple task.