- And if you wait to be perfect,
then you won't get the natural practice that you need,
and you won't enjoy speaking in English,
which is the number one reason
why most people want to learn this language.
(music)
Hello, this is Jack from tofluency.com,
and in this lesson I'm going to share five tips
to help you overcome your fear of speaking in English.
And this will help you become
a more confident English speaker.
It is important to overcome this fear
if you want to make progress,
but also because most people who learn English
want to do so, so that they can have conversations.
And if you are too fearful to speak
then you'll never do what you want to do,
which is to talk to people in English.
So, be sure to watch all this tips
and then at the end of the video,
I need your feedback.
Tip one is this:
Know that native speakers don't care if you make mistakes.
This is vitally important to know
because the number one fear that people have
when they speak in English is that other
people are going to laugh at them when they make mistakes.
I'm sure you have this fear too,
that people will judge you or say something
if you make a mistake when speaking in English.
But again, the majority of native speakers
won't make fun of you.
And in fact, we are so used to hearing different accents,
the different ways that non-native speakers speak.
And also, the mistakes that people make on a regular basis,
that we don't really care about it.
We're used to hearing this.
What we care about is making that connection with you.
Know that there will be times when someone
will laugh when you say something.
This has happened to me so many times in Spanish.
People have laughed at the way I said something
or they smiled or I said something
that didn't make any sense.
And the key is just to embrace it, enjoy it,
to know that you are going to make mistakes when you speak.
And tip number four is going
to help you overcome this problem.
But for now, know that native speakers,
again, don't care when you make mistakes.
Tip number two is to get out of your comfort zone.
Now, your comfort zone is where you feel comfortable.
It's where things are easy,
it's where you don't really have to make any big effort.
When it comes to learning English,
this maybe lying in your bed and watching YouTube videos.
But in order to make meaningful improvements,
it's important to get out of your comfort zone
if you need to do this.
And this is important when it comes to speaking to,
and it can be difficult to take that first step
in order to get the practice that you need.
But I'm here to tell you to make that extra effort
to do something that might be a little bit uncomfortable
at first so that you can make the progress you want to make.
Tip number three is going to tell you how.
What I want you to do is this,
take a baby step.
Now, taking a baby step means taking a small step.
Something where you just get a little bit
outside of your comfort zone,
so then it's not too overwhelming or too difficult at first.
When it comes to overcoming your fear
of speaking in English,
what I recommend to do is to find a person
who you can practice with.
Just one person, somebody who you can practice with
on a one to one basis.
Someone who you like and someone who you trust.
Practicing with this person
will help you build up your confidence.
And after a while, you'll start thinking,
"This isn't so bad,
I don't have that fear of speaking anymore,
instead I'm excited to speak in English."
And then you'll find yourself taking advantage
of other speaking opportunities.
For example, speaking up in class when you know the answer.
But it's all about taking that first step
so that you can build up your confidence.
So, look for a teacher,
a language exchange partner
or a friend who can help you.
Tip four is so important and it's this:
improving your level doesn't necessarily mean
that you're going to have more confidence
when speaking in English.
I know people who have really high levels of English
but they still have a fear of speaking in English.
And I also know people who have lower levels
but they are super confident and they're always speaking.
Now, the reason why those with high levels don't speak
is because they're waiting to be perfect.
They want to be perfect before they start speaking.
But you have to let this idea of perfection go.
No one is perfect and if you wait to be perfect
then you won't get the natural practice that you need,
and you won't enjoy speaking in English,
which is the number one reason
why most people want to learn this language.
So, don't wait for perfection.
Take that baby step today in order to improve.
Having said that, it's still important to improve
your speaking because when you have a higher level
and when you say things in an ultimatic and natural way,
you'll enjoy speaking more.
And, you'll be able to talk about a variety
of topics with different people.
Now, I have a method that is going to help you with this.
Here it is.
Firstly, learn the sounds of English.
Know what to do with your mouth
in order to produce the correct sounds.
And then, start imitating English speakers.
Do this by finding sentences and phrases
with audio and repeat them.
Record your version,
compare it to the original
and then make any necessary changes you need to make.
Now, you might have to get out
of your comfort zone to do this,
because it isn't so easy.
It isn't as easy as watching YouTube videos.
And you might not like the sound of your own voice,
but this method is powerful.
And then once you have made changes,
get long-term repetition.
Repeat these sentences and phrases over time
in the most effective way.
Now, I have a program that gives you the full method
and the materials that you need in order to follow these.
So, learn more about that at tofluency.com/tfp.
Now, I want to hear from you.
Please let me know what has stopped you
in the past from speaking in English.
Think about specific situation
where you have the opportunity to speak
but you didn't and what stopped you from speaking.
And then once you have left your comment,
check out my other videos to help you
improve your speaking and become more confident.
Thank you so much for watching.
(upbeat music)