Speak Up! How to Improve Your Foreign Language Confidence

Speak Up! How to Improve Your Foreign Language Confidence Speak Up! How to Improve Your Foreign Language Confidence When many of us start speaking a new foreign language, it can seem like our favorite new words are  um, er and uh.After all, we say them all the time, so they must be our favorites, right?Its exciting and fun to start learning a new language, but it can be a bit disappointing when, after studying a little while, you find yourself saying filler words like um and uh more than any of the new words youve learned.Much of the time, though, you struggle not because you dont know the word, but because you doubt yourself.When youre learning any new skill, youre more than likely to feel uncomfortable with actually using it in the beginning, and thats OK. Its natural to be unsure of what youre doing at the start.Of course, youll also experience those same feelings of discomfort when youre learning a new language.It doesnt matter if youre learning that new language in a class or by yourself at home. Either way, those first conversations with native or fluent speakers can be nerve-racking.You mig ht stumble through your sentences worrying about where to place the negation in Japanese, whether or not youve chosen to use the right prefixes in German or if the idea youre trying to communicate is getting lost because of your accent when speaking French.Striking up conversation with a stranger is difficult enough for a lot of people. But doing it in another language? Forget about it!The fact of the matter is, youre never going to master that language without using it in conversation, but youre not going to get through a conversation (if youre even able to begin one) if you dont stop doubting yourself. So how do you push yourself toward speaking without hesitation in a foreign language? Speak Up! How to Improve Your Foreign Language ConfidenceIts easy to give advice like Be confident! or Dont worry! However, thats much easier said than done, since being confident (or worried) are basically uncontrollable reactions we have to a situation.In this post Ill try to give you some acti onable tips that you can follow, as well as a bit of good, old-fashioned motivational pep talk speech thrown in for good measure.Well start with things you should (and shouldnt) do with your body, since a lot of your emotions are manifested through body language.Then well look at how to deal with your accent and actually begin speaking in a foreign language, since a lot of language learners lack confidence because they struggle with those areas.So dont worry: Confidently keep reading and well get you all ready to talk in a foreign language!Work That Body!Lets start with body language.I know youre probably wondering, What the heck does my body language have to do with speaking  a foreign language?Body language is strongly linked to behavior. Studies have shown that one greatly affects the other. Ergo, working on your body language will impact your confidence when speaking another language.Body language: Fake it till you make itWhat do we do when we dont feel confident? We give away m uch more through  our body language than we do with our faces.We slouch, we speak softly, we dont occupy as much space as we usually would and we start breaking eye contact. You might even stop smiling or get an uncomfortable look on your face, which tends to make everyone feel a little bit uneasy!Observe your own behavior the next time you have a conversation. Are you maintaining eye contact? Are you speaking loudly and clearly? Are you standing up straight? These are just some things to think about the next time you approach someone with the intention of speaking in a foreign language.Make a habit out of ensuring that you maintain eye contact (unless thats frowned upon in the cultural context in which you find yourself), and be sure that you dont start fidgeting or trying to shrink down with your body.You tend to do these kinds of things when you feel that youre not in control of a situation. All those doubts you have about what youre saying will start to really show and, as weve said before, itll make conversing with people that much more difficult.You need to counteract all of those instinctive physical expressions of doubt.Be Golden with Your Eye ContactWhen it comes to appropriate eye contact, its all about achieving a balance between too much and not enough. You want to be the Goldilocks of eye contact and get things  just right.The golden rule for making eye contact is to do it about a third of the time for a comfortable conversation, and you can do even more once youve mastered it.Try not to have that shifty, uncertain gaze. Its acceptable if you break eye contact every now and then in conversation. Take a moment to look into the other persons eyes, then switch to something else, then back again; just be sure not to do so too often.Other Handy TipsDont stuff your hands into your pockets or fidget with your hands. If youre that nervous, try interlocking your fingers (behind your back, if necessary!) to keep yourself from doing these things.You can also try holding somethingâ€"anything that wont cause a distractionâ€"in your hands. Youll often find that public speakers do this to avoid that awkward, I dont know what to do with my hands look. If all else fails, try using your hands to clarify what youre trying to say (obviously, without going overboardunless youre a mime and thats your thing).And remember to smile!These might seem obvious but theyre good things to pay attention to regardless. It may not be that extreme for you, but no matter how confident you are when speaking your native tongue, youre going to change slightly when you switch to a foreign language. Keep that in mind.Word UpNow lets talk about actually speaking a foreign language.No matter how incorrect you think your use or pronunciation of a word or sentence is, remember the most important point of all: You should do everything you can to speak clearly and loudly.A Moment of ClaritySince youll be speaking to someone, its important that you dont start mumbling when you get nervous. Its difficult at times to know for sure when youre being too quiet, so remember to enunciate when you speak. This is especially important since youre trying to learn a new language.Try to fill the room (or your immediate area) with your voice. If it helps, pretend youre talking to your grandmother whos hard of hearing! Itll feel strange at first, but youll quickly grow accustomed to it.Even if you dont feel confident, you have to act like you are, at least for a while. The feelings of confidence while speaking will follow naturally, regardless of how well you actually speak. Thats what I mean by fake it till you make it.Youll find that most people are more than accommodating and, more often than not, theyll have fun helping you while youre trying to learn. Well get into that in just a bit.Now that youve pretty much mastered the basics of confident body language and how you should speak, the next thing were going to talk about is the batch of exaggerations and fabri cations you might have concocted in your head.Dont Worry: Most People Love an AccentAccentuate the PositivePeople are generally most afraid of being teased or mocked when they speak a new language. They cant stand the thought of native speakers laughing at their accents or their misuse of a word, even if they do it behind their backs.The thing is, people dont generally do that. In fact, accents can be attractive! And the people who mock or make fun of you in a mean-spirited way simply arent worth worrying about.People all over the world adore it when you try to speak their language, no matter how bad you are at it. Its worth it just to try. You dont have to be afraid of making yourself sound stupid. And even if you do sound a bit stupid, just enjoy it! Laugh it off with everyone else, and realize that some people might be surprised and even nervously chuckle a bit when you speak at first. Usually, they dont mean to.When that happens, its not something you should take personally even if it kind of feels personal at times.The truth is, its often hilarious when unexpected things happen, and people dont usually expect to hear their own language being spoken with a thick foreign accent. That doesnt mean people are laughing at you, theyre just laughing at the sound of your words.So laugh with them! Speak more! If its really that bad, most people will gladly help you, as long as youre genuinely trying to learn. Youre putting in effort and people love that, especially these days when its so easy to just switch to English when things get too tough.Know that there will definitely be times when you say the wrong thing in the right way or the right thing in the wrong way. It happens. But youre still learning.In fact, oftentimes youll discover that you actually know more than you think you do, but youre just too full of self-doubt to speak. So dont pause so much to think, just speak!No more umms and errs as you try to fill the silence, just so you can struggle to recall so me silly  grammatical structure or the correct placement of a preposition. Just speak, and let those beautiful new words you learned flow.Youll have fun, theyll have fun and you might find that through learning and being unafraid to speak, youll have made some new friends.The Takeaway: Just Speak!The next time you start talking to someone in a new language, remember what you learned here. Take a breath, stand up straight, approach the person youre going to converse with, start speaking and laughing and then, when all that is done, youll come back and thank me.Mastering your confidence, like mastering a language, comes with time, patience and practice. But controlling one will impact your control over the other.When you stop being afraid of speaking and really start mastering that language, new countries and experiences will unlock for you in completely new ways, and youll  encounter all kind of new people. Youll find opportunities you would have never been given otherwise.Thats all worth being the butt of a joke a couple of times, isnt it? So dont be afraid to be the fool: make those mistakes with confidence, and youll find that you actually make fewer mistakes than you thought you did.And slowly but surely, youll become more and more confident.Narayan Liu is a writer based in Sweden who has contributed to several websites, all of which revolve around his fascination with culture, both old and new. Its a passion hes cultivated by growing up in the bustling city of Hong Kong. You can discover more about him on his website.   And One More ThingFluentU does wonders for your confidence by exposing you to authentic material that lets you get a feel for real-world situations. FluentU makes it possible to learn languages  from music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks.With FluentU, you learn real languagesâ€"the same way that real people speak them. FluentU has a wide variety of videos, like movie trailers, funny commercials and web series, as you can see here:FluentU App Browse ScreenFluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an image, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go back and listen again. Missed a word? Hover over or tap on the subtitles to instantly view definitions.FluentU Interactive TranscriptsYou can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs quiz mode. Swipe left or right to see  more examples for the word you’re learning.FluentU Has Quizzes for Every VideoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that you’re learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.