Hello readers!
Do you get cold feet every time someone talks to you in English?
Does the thought of speaking English in front of a group of people send chills down your spine?
Then, my friend, today’s blog is for you.
English plays an important role in shaping our social life and personality. Those who cannot speak English fluently often find themselves feeling left out as their friends converse in English with others but they hesitate in doing so. Gradually, they alienate themselves from everyone and an inferiority complex starts to set in.
Trust me, I understand that feeling, everyone does, actually. No one is born with exceptional spoken English skills, one has to develop them. And I am going to tell you exactly how to do that. If you follow these steps, you will also be able to speak English confidently and kick start your social life!
How to Speak English Confidently
• Read Aloud
Reading aloud improves pronunciation as it helps familiarise the words. This makes the speaker confident, as a result of which, interaction with others becomes easy.
Practice reading aloud daily. Start by reading at a comparatively slower speed so that you understand the text as well. The ability to process words would increase as you increase your reading speed.
How to begin:
1. Choose a text that interests you of approximately 100-200 words.
2. Ask someone who speaks English fluently to read the same text and record it. It can be your friend, teacher, or family member
3. Record your voice while reading the text.
4. Compare the two recordings and ask your mentor to correct your pronunciation.
• Participate in English Forums Online
Forums are a place where learners and experts interact with each other. Those who are learning English ask their questions and experts guide them. The biggest advantage is that you can interact with native English speakers in the comfort of your own home!
How to begin:
1. Choose a forum and read the old posts to understand how it works.
2. Start asking and answering questions to get involved in the forum.
• Make friends with people who do not speak the same language as you
Talk to people from different parts of the country. This will leave you no other option than to speak in English. Interact with them, engage in conversation, discuss your traditions and so on. Basically, be friends with them so that you are forced to use English and cannot get out of it.
How to begin:
1. Join a club of your interest. For example, a sports club, reading club etc. There are bound to be people from other cultures in such groups or clubs.
2. Strike a conversation with a stranger wherever you go: in the market, in the bus or at work.
• Join Spoken English classes
It is absolutely essential to have someone correct you when you speak so that you do not get used to speaking incorrect English. Join spoken English classes: you can join an institute for face to face classes or take classes on phone/online.
How to begin:
1. Choose the way of learning you prefer: in institutes, on phone or online. To help you choose, read about each of these methods in detail by clicking on them.
2. Start taking classes and focus on the corrections your trainer makes. Practice after the session to improve spoken English faster.
• Do not Pressurize Yourself
The faster you plan to learn, the more pressure you will have to deal with. Do not set unrealistic goals as failure to achieve these will frustrate you more. Set small goals that are easily attainable to keep yourself motivated.
• Remind Yourself Why You Want to Learn English
For all those days that you feel blue, remind yourself what all will change once you learn English:
1. You will be able to speak English fluently.
2. You will become more confident.
3. It will become easier for you to put your thoughts into words and communicate with others.
4. Social interaction will not be a task anymore.
5. People will be impressed by your impeccable English.
6. You will perform better at your workplace/academic front.
Most importantly, you will not feel left out, which will automatically boost your morale and self confidence.
These simple ways can turn your life around if you follow them properly. Make the most of them and speak English confidently with your friends, colleagues and customers!
Keep following my blog for more such simple yet effective ways of learn spoken English. Here are the meanings of some phrases that I used in this blog, how many did you get right?
1) Cold feet: loss of nerve or confidence
2) Send chills up your spine: feel extremely worrisome or excitable
3) To feel blue: to feel sad