I am often asked if there is an easy way to improve English fluency in a very short amount of time. The short answer is: no. Just like learning to play a new instrument or learning a new language, it takes time to really master it. BUT, there are 3 easy tips that all pronunciation and fluency training must begin with! These 3 easy tips are simple, but they are actually incredibly powerful strategies and will dramatically improve the quality of your spoken English! You can easily apply these 3 tips today and use these next time you speak with a native English speaker.
TIP #1: SLOW DOWN
Believe it or not, slowing down is very important to being understood by native English speakers. It is very common for nonnative English speakers to think that speaking fast will actually help them sound smarter and more fluent—but that is not true! Speaking fast will actually increase your pronunciation mistakes, decrease clarity, and will leave your listeners confused. Native English speakers will most likely ask you to repeat what you said again or will ask you to slow down.
Slowing down when speaking English allows your mouth muscles to get into the correct positions which will help you pronounce English sounds better. However, how do you know if you are pronouncing English sounds correctly? This is a topic for another day, but you can click here for a full accent assessment.
TIP #2: MOVE YOUR MOUTH
Have you noticed how much American English speakers move their mouth when they speak? American English sounds require a lot of mouth movement. Most foreign languages don’t require much mouth movement, so there is a big tendency for nonnative English speakers to hardly move their mouth when speaking English. This English pronunciation tip is critical to pronouncing English sounds correctly and will dramatically increase your clarity when speaking English. You will sound clear and will be understood much better by those around you.
Your mouth and tongue are muscles, so this tip will require a little more focus and practice. It will feel very weird moving your mouth a lot more than you previously did, and you will feel like you are overemphasizing English sounds, but trust me, it will actually sound normal to everyone else around you!
TIP #3: SPEAK LOUDER
Lack of confidence in your English communication usually goes hand in hand with speaking very softly at a low volume. Some nonnative English speakers will either speak very softly all the time, or will speak at a normal volume but will then “skip” a word they don’t know how to pronounce. Both of these scenarios will make you sound muffled, confusing, and like you are mumbling. Just like you need to turn up the volume to hear a song, you need to turn up your volume and speak louder so that others can actually hear what you are saying.
If you do not feel confident in your spoken English, or if you’re too scared of making mistakes when you speak English, then this last tip is especially for you! Speaking softly will make you be understood even less than speaking louder and making mistakes. Speak louder; you’ll be understood much better!
I know these 3 tips are effective because I have seen it work with my own students. I hear over and over again from my students, after only going through these 3 easy tips that they feel so much more confident to speak up and share their ideas and expertise in their workplace and in daily conversations with native English speakers.
Now it’s your turn! What other tips have you found helpful in improving your spoken English? In addition to that, what else would you like to see me post about in future posts? Feel free to contact me through my website or follow me on LinkedIn or Facebook so you don’t miss any future posts about English pronunciation.
Cheers!
Annie Ruden M.S. CCC-SLP
