The Only Way to Improve How You Sound When Speaking English: Trust the Process and Keep Going

“Improving your speaking is like training for sports.” Last year, one of my clients made this very wise observation. You show up almost every single day; you practice drills; you take small, consistent steps; you push yourself to improve a little each day, and over time you make big progress. The same goes for anything you practice: yoga, meditation, painting, drawing, woodworking, writing, photography, cooking, baking, you name it. The list goes on and on. … Read the article and watch the video lesson

Pretty Good or Really Good? How to Use Intensifiers in American English

I’m pretty sure you’re going to find this video really interesting. We’re going to talk about a fairly challenging subject which many non-native speakers find very confusing. If you’re not really that confident using intensifiers like the ones I just mentioned, this lesson will be pretty helpful! In this article and video, we’re going to discuss intensifiers, which are extremely common in everyday, natural speech. We’ll also talk about how to stress intensifiers and how … Read the article and watch the video lesson

The Difference Between Stress and Intonation, Why Intonation Matters, and Other Intonation Myths

You’ve probably noticed that I love talking about stress and intonation. In my opinion, speaking with clear stress and expressive intonation will help native speakers understand you better. You’ll communicate what you really mean, sound more natural, and feel more confident as a result. Even if you recognize that stress and intonation are important, you may feel confused about why they matter, what they communicate, or how to get started changing the way you use … Read the article and watch the video lesson

How to Say American Phone Numbers with the Right Stress and Intonation

Have you ever had to repeat yourself several times when giving your phone number in English? After all, accuracy matters! You want to make sure the other person gets the right number so they can actually reach you. How we say phone numbers varies from culture to culture and country to country. When I moved to Argentina, one of the first things I learned was how to give my phone number so that people would … Read the article and watch the video lesson

Pronounce the -ed Ending on Past Tense Verbs Like a Native English Speaker

Let’s go back to basics and talk about how to fix a common pronunciation mistake so that people understand you better. Learn how to pronounce the -ed ending on past tense verbs, past participles, and participial adjectives that you use all the time. The good news is that unlike most things you learn in English, the rules for how to pronounce these -ed endings are always true. (Finally, we have a rule without exceptions! 🎉) So … Read the article and watch the video lesson

Sound More American: Three Simple Changes to Improve Your Pronunciation for an American Accent

 Simple changes can often be the most effective. This is a guiding principle in most everything I do, including accent and communication coaching. So often we think that we need to make big, dramatic changes in order to get the results we want. This mindset can keep us from taking action because we think that we’re further from our goals than we actually are. When it comes to improving your accent and sounding more … Read the article and watch the video lesson