You're speaking English, you're having a great conversation
and then it happens.
You get stuck.
Now, don't panic.
In this lesson, you'll learn English expressions
that we native speakers use when we're speaking English
and we just don't know what to say next because hey
it happens to all of us.
And if you use them the next time
that you're speaking English
and you get stuck in a conversation
you can relax because you know what to do.
All right, let's go.
Hi, I'm your business English coach Christina
and welcome to Business English with Christina
where you become better at business and better at English.
And if you are serious about speaking better English
I want to invite you
to a five day challenge that is going to happen very soon.
It's you and me, some live sessions, and it's totally free.
You'll get five smart
and surprisingly simple ways to boost your English.
And if you want to join me for that challenge
the link is down below this video.
You might be surprised in this video to see how
many expressions we have for when you get stuck in English.
Why are there so many?
Well, it's like I said, because everybody gets stuck
at some point in a conversation
even in your native language.
You do it, I do it.
And you don't have to wait
until you never get stuck to feel confident
because confidence is knowing what to do when
you do get stuck.
So if you're speaking English and you get stuck
at some point, just take a deep breath and remember
it's okay you got this because you have one
of these nine expressions that you can use.
The first expression, ah, it's on the tip of my tongue.
You know, we all forget words when we're speaking
and that's why we have this great expression.
It's on the tip of my tongue, which is like literally
it's like, it's like right here.
It's like it's just waiting to come out of your mouth
but it's just not quite making it.
So if someone hears you use this expression, then
they will probably help you try to find the word
that you're looking for.
And sometimes you don't know the word that you need
and that's okay.
I mean, it's totally okay.
You can just say it.
Nobody expects you to know every word
in the English language because you are not
a walking dictionary, as we say.
So let, let's imagine you are, I don't know
you're going to present, you're making a big presentation
and you're looking for, you know, the thing to
change your slides.
And you can say this like, yeah, I'm looking for my
I don't know the word for it
but it's the thing that, you know, you click the button
And it changes your slides.
And then probably
either the person will give you the word like, oh yeah
the the clicker.
Or they will know what you're talking
about and help you define the thing.
So it's okay to not have a word.
Yeah. And then sometimes it's like
you know the word, you have the word
but just right there in the moment, you don't have it.
And that's okay.
Again, you can simply say, my mind just went blank.
My mind just went blank.
That's totally okay.
We use this expression all the time.
And sometimes, you know, if you feel
like you're in a conversation
and you know you're talking, you're explaining something
you feel like you're not being very clear.
You can see it on the face of the other person.
They're like, don't stress.
You can simply say, nevermind, it's not important.
And just change the topic.
Totally. This is totally natural
and no one is going to find it strange
that you're changing the topic
in the middle of the conversation.
Just say, nevermind.
It's not important.
So anyway, about your project, for example
and smile, relax, it happens to the best of us.
Now, going back to these techniques, sometimes you're
in a conversation and you are explaining something
but you start your story and then you like
you can't remember where you were going with that story.
And I mean, think about it, it probably happens
to you sometimes in your native language.
It happens to me.
And in this case, you can just say, you know
I don't know where I was going with that.
Or you can also say
I forgot what I was going to say anyway.
And then you change the subject.
Now what about if you're in a conversation
someone says something or asks you a question
and you don't know how to respond.
Now don't panic when someone asks you a question.
Sometimes you have to think about what they just said.
You have to think about what you want to say
and then you've gotta put all of that into words.
And sometimes just having a little more time to
think and not feel like the pressure to respond immediately
that can make all the difference.
And this is why we have a lot of phrases for
asking for more time to think.
You can use one of these.
Let me think about how to answer that.
Let me think about how to explain that.
Hmm, that's a good question.
I mean, what do you think about it?
And I love that last idea, just
because it gives you a lot more time to answer
maybe get a little inspiration
from what the other person says
and also shows that you're interested in their opinion also.
And you know, sometimes I see that people
they go into their conversations in English
and they put so much pressure
on themselves to speak perfectly
to always have the exact vocabulary to not hesitate.
But remember that a conversation, it's not a test
it's not an evaluation of your level.
It's a connection.
It's an exchange with another person.
And it's normal to sometimes to be stuck
and to not find the word that you need.
It's totally normal, it's totally natural
but now you know how you can manage it
so that you can go into any conversation
in English with confidence because you know what to do.
Now, if you would like more strategies
like this to help you feel confident
in English to help you feel
that you can go into any conversation and feel prepared
even when you didn't prepare
then join me for my five day challenge.
It's coming up very soon.
It's totally free, and you're gonna love it.
I'm gonna love it.
We're it's, it's gonna be a lot of fun.
So join me.
You can sign up for your invitation
for the challenge in the link down below this video
and if you don't use it, you lose it.
So here's how you can start to use some
of the things that you learned today.
Tell me about a time in a conversation in English
or in your native language when you forgot a word
or you didn't know what to say.
What did you do?
Did you panic and feel a little nervous?
Or were you totally relaxed
because you know how to handle it?
Either way is fabulous.
Just tell us about what happened in the comments below.
And like I said, if you want to join me
for some live fa, you know, surprisingly simple strategies
and tips for boosting your English
and becoming more confident right now, join me
for this five day challenge coming up very soon.
And you can get your invitation in the link below the video.
And as always, I just want to say thank you very much
for improving your English and improving your business
with business English with Christina
and I'll see you next time.