Look. See. Watch. Stare. Glimpse. Glance. Glare. Peak. Gaze.
All right, so there's no doubt that getting to a more advanced level in a language can
help you to communicate more confidently when you speak it. Over the last 10 years that I've been
teaching English and learning languages myself, there's a lot of things that I've noticed that
advanced learners do or speakers do that make them successful that unfortunately other learners don't
do and they stay stuck at intermediate. So we're going to be looking at 10 of these insights today.
These points include mindset, attitude and more technical aspects of the language.
So if you want to take your English to the next level, then this video is for you.
And if you're new here, every single week we make new lessons like this one that help you go
from being a lost and insecure English learner, to being a confident and successful english speaker.
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So let's get right into it. Advanced speakers are always pushing the limits. They always challenge
themselves by using a new word that they learned or a new expression.Even at the risk of maybe
using a bit incorrectly the first time they might experiment with using different grammar
structures or saying a word that they don't know how to pronounce yet. So this is definitely a big
difference of advanced speakers. They know and actually use different or similar ways to say
the same thing. You won't find an advanced speaker always using the same words over and over again.
Advanced speakers also know and use multiple idioms and they certainly don't shy away
from using phrasal verbs and when they speak.
So when advanced speakers don't understand something, they don't panic or freeze up
and really break the conversation. They try to understand. First of all,
from the context when the can. If not, they might depend on some survival phrases like asking What
does that mean? Or Could you say it again? A bit slower? Or can you spell that out for me?
The important thing here is that advanced speakers keep the conversation
flowing even when they don't understand. So without a doubt, there are different levels
of fluency that one can achieve. A beginner can be fluent in some situations. For example,
when they have to introduce themselves, they can do that in a very fluent way. An intermediate
learner can also be fluent in certain situations. Maybe when they're traveling at the airport,
or maybe when they need to order something in a restaurant. They can do that effortlessly.
Now, the really cool thing is that the more advanced that you become,
the more situations that you will feel comfortable communicating in.
Now, the main difference about advance speakers is that they feel confident in most situations, if
not virtually all situations, speaking in English. And another big difference is that advanced
speakers communicate smoothly They don't put a strain on their speaking partner, which means that
their speaking partner doesn't have to try really hard to understand what they're saying. They have
the tools available to be able to figure out a different way to say it. And I think this really
is the upper edges of fluency is when you are able to describe anything that you need to say.
Even if you don't have the exact word by saying it in a different way. And I know what you're
thinking. You're probably saying in your head, But Ethan, how can I become an advanced speaker
if I don't have anyone to speak to? Well, so many learners feel exactly how you do,
and that's exactly why we thought we would go ahead and create a solution for you.
So we developed the real life app where you can actually, for free, go and press a button and
connect to another English speaker in another part of the world for a fun and dynamic conversation.
In English. So one of the things that advanced learners definitely know that other learners don't
is that the only way to get better at speaking is by actually speaking.
So if you are frustrated at still being stuck in an intermediate speaking level, then what
are you waiting for? You really have to practice and practice and practice. No excuses. And with a
Real-Life app, it's really easy to do that every single day. So you can download it now by calling
up here or down description box below. Or you can look for really an Apple app or Google Play store.
So accuracy is the precision with which you speak. So saying it, in other words, it's how
many mistakes you make when you speak. So advanced speakers don't make as many mistakes when they
speak. The reason for this is because along their English learning life, they've made lots and lots
of mistakes and van speakers are really curious. So they're always looking for different ways to
try to use the language or do new things, which inevitably is going to lead them to make mistakes.
But they don't just make those mistakes over and over and over again. They figure out what mistakes
they're making. Be it with a teacher, or maybe by recording themselves, watching and seeing what
they can identify or with friend who maybe is a bit better than they are in English, and they
really work at correcting those. I'm actually not trying to say that you should not make mistakes.
Mistakes are fantastic. They are your guides to English fluency, but you do need to identify your
weak points. So, for example, if there's something that you're often confused about with grammar,
then you need to identify those weak points and work at correcting them, work at fixing them
so they aren't recurring anymore. He go to work every day I didn't went to the party
it was development project I work at their very basic.
Mistakes should not happen anymore at an advanced level at this level. Mistakes
should happen because you're pushing your limits by trying new vocabulary or
structures. Or maybe because of tiredness. And this will be cause slips. I can't stress this
enough learners who get to the advanced level do not make excuses. So you won't hear them saying,
Oh, I can't study because I don't have time, or I just can't become an advanced English learner
because I don't have the natural learning skills or I'm not a good language learner.
Advanced speakers got to where they are because they actually made English a priority. They
looked at their time and they figured out how they can fit English in, and some of that might
be through deliberate practice by actually having to study, for example, the grammar structures that
they're still not comfortable with. But also, some of it's going to be fun and convenient.
They're probably, by the time they get to an advanced level,
consuming a lot of content in English even if they're not living in English being country.
They're creating their own immersion experience. And advanced speakers don't have any superpower
that got them to where they are. They persist when things get really difficult. They get to those
plateaus just like everyone else did, but they don't give up. They keep pushing through it. And
that's how they got to where they are today. Now, let's be honest, most of us in our everyday lives
aren't using much sophisticated language when we communicate. However, all of us know that there
are situations that call for it maybe you have a job interview or you have to give a presentation,
or with your English, you might even have to take a proficiency exam that's going to require you
to act up some situations where you have to use that type of language.
So advanced learners, even though they're not using it very much,
are comfortable with that type of language when they're in a situation where it's necessary.
So there's a quote I absolutely love from Picasso that says, Learn the rules like a pro so you can
break them like an artist. Now, if you're at the beginner or intermediate level, you still haven't
learned the rules like a pro. So you should not be trying to break them. But advanced learners are
to this point, they can use the language flexibly. They can sometimes make a great mistake on purpose
because they want to create humor, or maybe because they're in a really casual situation
where we would use that kind of language. They can also identify it when a native is speaking,
if they're using grammatically correct English or not. And finally,
whether they're watching their favorite TV series or maybe they're hanging out with some friends,
they can usually understand the humor, be that sarcasm or different types of jokes.
So advanced English speakers don't blame the other person when they make mistakes. They realize that
they need to be proactive and take responsibility for that other person, not understanding them.
Even though, you know, a conversation goes two ways and both people should make an
effort. But a lot of times we just don't have that luxury when we're speaking a foreign language.
So an advanced speaker is going to see this as an opportunity to figure out,
you know, what am I missing from my speaking? Did I make a pronunciation error? Am I using a word
incorrectly or maybe I'm using an expression in a way that doesn't fit the context. It could even
be a cultural misunderstanding, something that you're bringing from your own background that
doesn't really make sense in the place where you're currently at or with the person that
you're currently talking to. So the main point here is that advanced speakers of English have
a really high self-awareness, and they won't let making a mistake again wreck their confidence they
can self-correct if necessary. So finally, I have already mentioned this earlier, but
advanced speakers aren't going to make the excuse that, well, I can't get fluent English because I
don't live in an English speaking country. Of course, not nowadays. It is just so easy
to create your own English immersion experience. And this is especially easy in English because
there's more media published in English than any other language. So they probably will have their
technology set to the English language just to see little things all the time when they're using
their phone or their computer. Beyond this, they're probably going to be filling a lot of
their time with different types of English media, which might be watching TV series movies consuming
podcasts, listening to music. And they're doing a lot of this in English all the time,
filling all those little convenient moments. So even if they don't live in the United States or
the U.K., they are spending a huge amount of their day surrounded by the English language.
And again, they're probably pushing out of their comfort zone by consuming harder and harder books,
like books that natives would actually be reading or reading the newspaper instead of reading it
in their native language consuming paper from the United States. Or from the U.K..
And they won't just be consuming visual media either, like TV series and movies. They're going
to, again, try harder things like watching a TED Talk or maybe even taking a course in English
instead of taking it in their native language. They see this as a way to kill two birds with one
stone. That means that they're getting double the benefit out of one activity because they're taking
the course in English. Not only are they learning about whatever they want to learn in that course,
but they're also improving their English. And another important difference would be
that they're not just going to watch these things passively, because you do get to a point where you
can understand everything through the context. But the advanced speaker, when they notice a new
expression or they know some interesting use of grammar, they're going to take note of that so
they can study it later. So trust me, it is not at all necessary that you spend a ton of money
to move abroad to become an advanced speaker on our team. We have some incredible native
English speakers who have never even traveled outside of their native country.
So you can do it to the tools are available. I highly recommend that you subscribe to our channel
because we create content like this to help you to get there. And I'd love to hear from you. What do
you need more help with? Which of these points do you find the most interesting? And you would
like us to make an individual video on it. You can let me know by commenting down below
and maybe we'll just make that video that you need. And now you're probably feeling pretty
motivated to sound more advanced, right? Well, how about starting out by really increasing
your and fancy vocabulary? You can do that with this lesson. Let's check out a clip.