It’s common for most language learners to feel nervous about talking in English, but don’t be scared. No one’s going to make fun of you – in fact, they will mostly be happy to help. It’s important to realize that the best way to learn to speak fluently in English is to get plenty of daily practice – and this means you can’t be afraid; you have to accept the fact that you’re going to make mistakes and open your mouth and talk anyway!
In this article, I have outlined what I have found to be some of the best tips for improving your confidence and fluency in English.
Breathe
Something that’s easy to forget when you are nervous. Making sure you breathe deeply and consistently is vital to feeling confident and speaking a language well. Take a deep breath before you speak to give yourself time to think and help yourself feel more confident.
Take it slowly
Most of the best public speakers in English speak slowly, this can be because sometimes our mouth speaks faster than our mind can think when we are speaking in a second language. Speaking slower makes you sound more confident and believable and will make you feel more confident in yourself. As well as that, it gives you a bit of time to think about what you are going to say next.
Smile and look happy
It has been shown that smiling has a positive impact on people’s moods, making them feel happier and calmer even when there is no other change in their actual situation. Use this to your advantage when speaking English to feel happier and more confident.
Mistakes are ok.
One of the biggest barriers to putting new sentence structures and vocabulary into action is the fear of getting it wrong. Even though mistakes are a natural and important part of learning, it can be easy to feel embarrassed or uncomfortable when you make one. So, to overcome that fear put yourself in a situation where you know you are wrong. For example, go into a restaurant and ask if they sell computers. It’s a difficult thing to do, but finding out that people are usually polite and friendly, even when you make an obvious mistake is an important realization to make.
Be positive
Confidence is an attitude. You need to adopt an ‘I can’ mindset and try not to focus on the negatives.
- When you’re listening to English conversations concentrate on the words you can understand, rather than focusing on and worrying about the words you don’t understand yet.
- Instead of taking criticism to heart, turn it into a positive. When someone points out your mistakes, don’t take it personally – it’s a chance for you to improve your English. Ask them to explain where you’re going wrong, and offer you some advice as to how to improve.
- Say yes. Don’t turn down opportunities to practice your English – even if it takes you out of your comfort zone. Whether it’s meeting someone’s family or friends, talking to someone in English online, or joining your friends on a holiday to an English-speaking country, accept the challenge, say yes, and you won’t regret it.
Practice every day
The more you speak out loud the more confident you’ll become. Get into the habit of speaking in and listening to English every day and it will soon become second nature. There are lots of ways that you can fit daily English speaking into your everyday life:
- Talking to English-speaking friends and family face-to-face, over the phone, or online – talking with someone supportive can give you the confidence you need to later reach out and start conversations with people you don’t know
- Using ZOOM, Skype, Facetime etc to talk to an online study buddy – even if it’s just a little every day, getting used to speaking in English will boost your confidence and help your English fluency too
- Join conversation classes – English Live’s online conversation classes allow you to speak with English language learners who are at the same level as you. You’ll learn from listening to and talking to each other in a supportive online environment – and the more you speak up in class the more you’ll see your progress grow and the more confident you’ll become
- Travel – traveling is a lot of fun, and it forces us to speak English too. Being completely immersed in English, and surrounded by native English speakers, you’ll learn fast. You’ll get used to a range of accents and dialects, and meet new people along the way
Read out loud
As babies, we learn our native language by listening to and mimicking the language we hear around us from our parents and family. Only later do we learn to read and write the language. When we learn a new language at school or as adults we often learn by reading and writing first, and by listening and speaking second.
The reason many people learning English can read and listen is that that’s all they practice. But in order to speak English confidently, you need to practice speaking. Don’t stop at the listening portion, and when you study, don’t just listen. Whether you’re reading, writing, or listening, speak the material out loud and practice what you hear.
By practicing speaking out loud your mouth and brain will become used to working together and making the shapes and facial expressions needed to pronounce things correctly. Soon they’ll work together without you having to think about it, and your English conversation will become more fluent.
Relax
When you speak English, take it slowly, don’t rush it. Talking too fast can stress you out and make you seem nervous. Breathe, relax, and give yourself time. This will reduce the pressure you feel, and help you to speak more clearly and with confidence.
Visualize your success
Before you speak English, imagine yourself speaking clearly and fluently. By visualizing the most positive outcome of the situation, you’ll feel confident and know what you’re aiming for.
Congratulate yourself
Make sure to celebrate your strengths. Make a list of the things you can already do well in English and keep it to date. When you look down the list of all the things you are already great at, it will make you feel more confident.
I hope that you found this article interesting, and the tips helpful in your endeavors to become a fluent speaker of Advanced Level English.
Good luck and good studying.
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