“Why should I keep going? I will never be able to learn English well. I will never feel fluent.” I’ve heard these words from many English learners who, with frustration in their voice, tell me that they’ve started learning English a long time ago, but still don’t feel confident in their abilities to speak the language. They claim that they will “never” feel as smart in English as they feel in their native language. Resentment creeps in and they usually stop practicing.
How is it possible to put all your heart into something if you think that you will never be able to achieve it? How to keep going?
This was the question I was asking myself while staring with astonishment at Sagrada Familia when I was in Barcelona, Spain.
When Gaudi started building Sagrada Familia more than 100 years ago, he knew that he would never be able to see it finished. Can you imagine working so hard and passionately on something when you know for sure that you will never be able to see the fruits of your labor? But major projects take hard work, faith, passion, and willingness to risk never seeing the end results.
Learning a foreign language might not be as grandiose a project as building Sagrada Familia. It is nevertheless a project that requires a significant amount of time, patience, deliberate practice, and persistence.
One of the reasons why people find achieving fluency in English to be so hard is the fear of making mistakes and being laughed at. But there is no other road to fluency than speaking.
Say no to perfectionism and allow yourself to make mistakes. Accept that at times you might feel embarrassed or frustrated. This is just a part of the journey. In the end, persistence always pays off.
Seven tips for your road to fluency
Below are some tips that have worked for me and I’m sure that they will be helpful to you too.
1. Practice every day for at least 15 min
Even if you’re busy, you still find time to take a shower or cook a meal. Some people sing in the shower (not me; that’s why my neighbors still like me 😅), but you can choose to speak in English. Even if you only talk to yourself, you are still practicing putting different words in sentences, using grammar, and pronouncing sounds that might be challenging for you. Of course, if you have time to practice longer, you will see the fruits of your labor earlier. However, what’s the most important is consistency.
2. Listen and repeat
Listen to a sentence without reading it and try to repeat what you’ve heard. If you don’t understand some words, that’s ok. Just repeat what you hear. Being able to hear, distinguish between, and pronounce sounds is as important as knowing vocabulary and grammar. Pronunciation is often neglected in regular English classes, but it is crucial not only for understanding and being understood, but also for your self-esteem.
3. Repeat, repeat, repeat, …
Repeat the sentence at least 10 times without looking up words in the dictionary. Muscle memory does wonders. By repeating a sentence many times, your mouth muscles get used to the sounds and your brain doesn’t work so hard to retrieve the words. They are there when you want them.
4. Repeat isolated sounds
If there is a specific sound that gives you a hard time, isolate it and repeat it 10 times. Then repeat the whole thing again. I suggest that you Google “how to pronounce” (the word of your choice) and click on the mouth icon next to it. You will be able to hear how a word is pronounced and practice.
5. Listen to you own voice
Record yourself and listen to your recording to compare it to the original. You might cringe at the sound of your own voice in the beginning, but soon you will get used to it. I promise.
6. Imitate not only sounds, but intonation as well
Intonation is the rising and falling of our voice when we speak and is sometimes more important than producing the exact vowel or consonant. It expresses our feelings and attitudes about something and helps us connect to our listener. Many times, the same words said with a different intonation convey a completely different meaning and feeling. There are certain intonation patterns that are unique to the English language and it can take some time to get used to them. A great way to learn how to speak with an English intonation (in my case American) is to listen or watch native speakers and try to repeat whole phrases and sentences with the same pitch. It will probably feel unnatural in the beginning, but after only two weeks of such everyday practice, you will already feel more confident with your pronunciation. Trust me, I’ve done it.
7. Start a diary in English
Putting words on paper is a powerful exercise because when you write you have more time to think and choose the words that you want to use. You can start a journal describing your day, some of your future goals, or any topic of your interest. When you speak to someone, you don’t have much time to think about the particular word you would like to use. But when you write, you can spend some time searching for different words that would perfectly fit the thought you are describing. Eventually, you will remember more words and this will help you with your speaking skill as well. Who knows, you might discover that you are a talented writer 😉.
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Have you ever felt like quitting because you feel that it’s been taking “forever”? Leave a comment and let me know.
And don’t forget to sign up for our Speaking club, where you will meet incredible people from all over the world who come to practice their speaking skills. A language is meant to be spoken. There is a reason why the other word for “language” is “tongue.” 😉
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Hi, Daniela! Thank you for such a wonderful tips. I’ve been using some of them already.! All I need is adding more efforts in practicing. I feel a sort of attractive vibe to your inputs. I guess I’m going to use them a lot in my way to fluency.
Hi Fidel, thank you for your comment. I’m glad that you find my tips helpful.