Need a few useful phrases

I've got my writing exam coming up on Monday.

A while back now i posted a similar thread. Where i got a few really useful phrases but most of them i knew how to say. Some however were really useful.

If someone could post small list of useful phrases i would really appreciate it. The essay in the exam will normally be about what are the pros and cons of something. Topics that might come up are sport, relationships, holidays, cinema television etc. If someone could give me a small list of phrases which i could just put into nearly every essay, i would really appreciate it.

For example: Les gens ont l'habitude de croire que la popularite est quelque chose de primordial.

Thank you!