If you do THIS, you're fluent in English

Vanessa: I want to be a   fluent English speaker. Have you ever said that?  Well, I have some bad news and some good news.  

I'm Vanessa from SpeakEnglishWithVanessa. com and  the bad news is I do not have all the answers,   but I do have some good news. I have searched  the internet far and wide for the best English   teachers so that they can also help to  answer this question, how can I become   a better English speaker?

How can I speak  English fluently? So today, drum roll. I   would like to present to you 15 wonderful,  incredible English teachers here on YouTube   who will be helping to answer the question,  how can I become a better English speaker?

All of these teachers tips are tried and true.  Tried and true means they actually work. In fact,   I used Lucy's tip when I was learning French  and I used Anne-Marie's tip to get a great   scholarship into my college or university.

So I  challenge you to use these tips. And what's more,   I have a free PDF worksheet for you with all  of these teachers' tips and ideas plus a link   to their channel so that you can continue to  learn more with them. You can click on the link   in the description to download that free PDF  worksheet today so that you can speak better   English and go out into the real world and use  it.

Are you ready for our first speaking tip? These are in no specific order except that my  tip will be at the very end. Here we go with   how to be a better English speaker from some of  the best English teachers that I know.

Let's go. Bob: Hi, I'm Bob from the YouTube channel Learn English   with Bob the Canadian. The technique I think you  should be using to improve your English speaking   is called narrate your life.

This is when you  simply say out loud everything that you're doing   as you do it. Here's an example. I am sitting on  this park bench.

I am putting on my sunglasses. I   am enjoying the day. When you say everything  out loud as you are doing it, it not only   improves your spoken English, but it helps you to  start thinking in English as well.

And of course   you're going to want to do this when you're in a  place like this where there's no one else around. So start to narrate your life. If you want an  advanced version, try talking about the past,   the present, and the future.

Yesterday I sat  on this park bench. Right now I'm sitting on   this park bench. Tomorrow I'm going to sit  on this park bench.

So start to narrate your   life. Start to talk about what you're doing out  loud and it will improve your spoken English. Tiffani: Hey, I am Tiffani from Speak   English with Tiffani, and my English-speaking  tip is embrace your mistakes.

One more time.   Embrace your mistakes. As an English learner,  my friend, you are going to make mistakes, but   instead of feeling frustrated, instead of feeling  overwhelmed, instead of feeling discouraged,   I want you to realize when you embrace your  mistakes, they will actually propel you forward.

They are showing you the things you need to tweak,   the things you need to hone in on, the things  that you need to fix in order to be the amazing   English speaker you can be. So instead of being  frustrated, I want you to embrace your mistakes. Lucy: Hello to all   of Vanessa's students.

I'm Lucy and I run the  English with Lucy YouTube channel. If you are   constantly reaching for vocabulary, you don't  have it already in your brain, it stops you   from speaking fluently. My tip for improving your  English speaking is very simple and it's all to   do with vocabulary.

I know that it works because  it's the strategy that I used to learn Spanish   and I speak Spanish fluently. I kept a simple  vocab diary on my phone. I went about my daily   life and I started to narrate in my head what was  going on in the world around me.

I did this when   I was walking, when I was traveling to work,  when I was sitting in a cafe, people watching. I narrated in my head in the language I was  learning, and every single time that I came across   a word that I didn't know how to say, I wrote it  down in my own language. Then every single evening   before I went to bed, I made a commitment  to myself.

I translated all of those words   and I reviewed them again the next morning.  So I was constantly learning new words that   were related to my daily life. They  were useful for me.

It was amazing   how quickly this strategy made an impact  on my language skills. Keep a vocab diary   and never miss an opportunity. Make that  commitment to yourself.

Onto the next tip. Dori: Hi, I'm Dori. I speak English and French.

Brittany: How old are you? Dori: I'm three. I'm one, two, three.

Brittany: Don't learn to speak English with me. Here are   three tips from my child instead. Children copy  everything they hear.

Choose a character from a   TV series. This is your mom now. Copy everything  this person says.

What percentage of the day do   English words actually come out of your mouth? All  day long, my son talks to his toys, he talks to   animals. He makes his toys talk to each other. 

He talks to the wall. Is his English perfect? Dori: My english perfect.

Brittany: He makes hundreds of mistakes a day,   and that's okay. All of these mistakes will  one day make him a fluent English speaker. Dori: Thank you, Vanessa.

Emma: Hi, I'm Emma from mmmEnglish and Hey Lady,   a speaking community for women. The best way  to improve your speaking skills is to speak,   but if the thought of actually speaking to  other people in a real English conversation   makes you feel a little ill or anxious, I would  argue that it's because you do not yet have the   space or the people who will help you to feel  good as you start speaking English. To improve   your speaking skills, you simply need to gain  more experience speaking English.

Experience in   different conversations with different  people talking about different topics. The best thing that you can do to improve your  English-speaking skills is not to learn more   words or to study more. It's to put yourself into  more speaking opportunities where you can use the   thousands of English words that you already  know and learn through that real experience.  

If you don't have a supportive space where you can  regularly speak English, make that your priority. Hadar: Hi everyone.   My name is Hadar from Accent's Way English  with Hadar, and thank you so much Vanessa   for inviting me to share my advice with your  audience.

And what a great idea, by the way.   So my piece of advice for you is to learn and  practice pronunciation to improve everything   about your English. Let me explain.

We're used  the thinking of pronunciation work as a way to   just improve your clarity and your accent, which  is true, but it's so much more than that. Working   in your pronunciation can help you improve your  listening skills because by repeating words and   phrases and reductions, it makes it easier for  you to recognize it when other people speak. Repeating common words and new vocabulary and  new grammatical structures will help you learn   those structures and words subconsciously, making  it automatic for you to use them.

Therefore,   you're improving grammar and vocabulary  simply by practicing pronunciation,   not to mention the confidence boost that  you're going to get by no longer avoiding   words and sounds that you're not sure  of how to pronounce. So with all that,   I believe that learning pronunciation can level  up your fluency and your confidence in English.   This is why I'm passionate about it and I hope  you will be too.

Thank you so much and good luck. Veronika: Hi, I'm Veronika from   Veronika's Language Diaries, and today I want  to share a powerful mindset shift with you.   The words you use when you talk to yourself  have a tremendous impact on your language   learning journey.

If you constantly think, "I'm  just not good at English. I can't get past this   beginner stage," then you're setting up  mental barriers that hold you back. This   negative self-talk can trap you in a cycle  of frustration and keep you from achieving   your English goals.

Every time you tell yourself,  "I'm stuck at the intermediate plateau. " You are   actually reinforcing that belief and you make  it even harder for yourself to move forward. What if instead of focusing on what you  can't do, you start focusing on what you   can achieve.

For instance, instead of saying,  "I'll never understand native speakers. " Shift   your language to, "I'm improving every day  and soon I'll understand more and more. "   When you start telling yourself,  "I'm capable of becoming fluent,"   your actions will start aligning with that belief. 

You'll find yourself more motivated to practice,   more open to making mistakes and learning  from them. My native language is Russian   and I know firsthand how daunting  it can be to learn a new language. I used to have the same doubts and the same fears,  but I made a conscious decision to change the way   I spoke to myself.

I believed in my ability to  improve and I took consistent action to make   that happen. I've been where you are and I've made  it to the other side. If I can do it so can you.

Anne-Marie: Hey, I'm Anne-Marie with Speak Confident   English. And first, a big thank you to Vanessa for  this opportunity. If you're feeling shy, stuck,   or too nervous to speak, here's my favorite  strategy to improve speaking skills.

Give   yourself the gift of clarity. Clarity to know what  you're doing well and what you want to improve,   plus the certainty to know that you can make  those improvements. This is a strategy I use   time and time again for myself, and it's perfect  for getting unstuck, refining small talk, prepping   for job interviews and gaining confidence  to share your thoughts.

And here's how. Choose a specific topic or question like  an upcoming meeting topic or a conversation   starter. Next, record yourself speaking naturally,  just like in a conversation.

Then listen back and   evaluate your pronunciation, clarity, vocabulary,  and grammar. Take note of what you've done well   and what you want to improve. Finally, record  again, focusing on those improvements.

As you   repeat this process, you'll notice your speaking  skills becoming sharper and more confident. Bez: Hello. Laura: Hello.

We are Laura and Bez from Smashing English. Bez: Our   tip for improving your English speaking is this. Laura: Don't   let perfect be the enemy of good.

We teach  students every day and they are so focused   on being perfect and making perfect sentences  that they just stay in their comfort zone. Bez: And they use   the same words and sentence  structures again and again and again. Laura: They are so worried about not sounding   like a native speaker, that they don't challenge  themselves and try new words and phrases.

Bez: This is how vocabulary and speaking   skills get stuck. You will never improve if you  say the same stuff over and over and over again. Laura: So when you are practicing   either on your own or with a teacher, take risks. 

Say something even if you think it might be wrong. Bez: Practicing   is not the time to be perfect. It's  the perfect time to make mistakes.

Laura: Think of it   like training at the gym. You are not supposed  to look good at the gym. You're supposed to look   sweaty and red-faced.

Learn to appreciate your  mistakes because they're the things that help you. Greg:  Hello, I'm Greg from the English with Greg  YouTube channel where I teach British English   pronunciation and grammar. And one piece of advice  that I always give to my students is when you're   speaking English, don't focus on everything  that you don't know.

Don't worry about that.   Don't feel embarrassed or blocked just because you  don't know the word for something. But instead,   focus on the grammar and vocabulary that you  already know and use that to describe everything   else.

If you are at work and you need to say that  something is in the warehouse, but you don't know   the word warehouse, you can say it's in the big  building where we keep all the products. Easy. And when you do this, you soon realize  that you are able to talk about advanced   topics with quite basic English.

So change  your mentality and don't think, "Ah, panic,   I don't know a word. " Instead, think, "Wow with  a bit of imagination, I can say anything in   English. " And the best thing is that when you do  this and people understand you, you feel great.  

It fills you with confidence and isn't that  what you want? To speak English confidently. Anna: Hi, my name's Anna from   English Like a Native, and my speaking tip for  you is to value all practice regardless of where   you get it and of the level of the person you're  talking to.

I'm a great squash player, but the   majority of my playing time has been practicing  with people the same level, a little bit higher,   but mostly lower than my level. I've had a  few hours of coaching, but I'm a great squash   player because I've practiced for thousands  of hours with people at all different levels. When you speak, it doesn't matter if  you know the vocabulary and the grammar,   you have to practice the recall  of those lessons.

So practice,   practice, practice. It's all valuable  and it will all serve you. Good luck.

Luke Thompson: Hello, I'm Luke Thompson from Luke's English   Podcast and my advice for improving your speaking  in English is actually to do more listening. Do   loads of listening in English because if you  think about it, how can you expect to learn how   to speak this language if you don't know what it  sounds like? So doing lots and lots of listening   helps you to get a natural sense of the speech  patterns of this language, the pronunciation,   the intonation, the sentence stress, the connected  speech.

Basically, just get used to hearing how   this language is spoken by people when they're  communicating spontaneously and naturally. Also, it exposes you to lots of  vocabulary and grammar. Basically,   listening a lot really feeds your speaking. 

It really kind of helps your speaking,   inspires it and allows you to find something that  you can kind of copy. It leaves an imprint on   you so that when you open your mouth, hopefully  the right words and structures will come to you   because you've inputted so much. That's the basic  idea.

What do you listen to? Well, of course,   listen to podcasts for learners of English.  So I'm Luke Thompson, and that is my advice.

Hannah: Hey everyone,   I'm Hannah from English Fluency Journey, and first  of all, I want to say a huge thank you to Vanessa   for giving me this amazing opportunity to share my  wisdom with her audience. The best tip I can offer   to improve your English-speaking skills is to find  the method that works best for you. The only way   to improve your speaking skills is by speaking.

So  use every opportunity to practice English, but to   be more specific, I'd say that shadowing is one of  the most effective ways to improve your speaking   skills on your own and for free. Those of you who  know me know that I rave about it all the time. Shadowing is like playing a fun game of copycat  with English.

And here's how it works. You listen   to someone speaking English, it can be from a  podcast or your favorite TV show or Vanessa, and   then you try to repeat what they say as accurately  as possible. But you're not just mimicking words,   you're also matching their speed, intonation  and accent.

And the magic of shadowing is that   it helps you improve your pronunciation,  rhythm, listening skills, vocabulary,   and even grammar, all while getting you used  to the natural flow of the language. Plus,   it's a great way to feel more confident speaking  English, even if you're just talking to yourself. And remember, no matter what method you  choose to improve your speaking skills,   the key to success is consistency. 

Speaking English has to become part   of your routine and everyday life. If you manage  to incorporate English into your daily routine,   your improvement and success are inevitable. Brent: Hello,   my name is Brent from American English  with Brent, A huge thank you to Vanessa for   allowing me to share my tip on how to speak  better English.

Over the last four months,   I have been lucky enough to travel to  three different countries, Brazil, Poland,   and Turkey. I've spoken to many non-native English  speakers and the first thing they said to me was,   "I'm sorry for my English. " My tip to you is be  confident in your English.

If you're speaking   to a native English speaker, chances are they  only know one language, you know at least two. If it wasn't for you, the two of you wouldn't be  able to have a conversation. Don't be embarrassed   about your accent.

We all have accents. If I went  to England, they would think I had an accent. So   my tip to you is be confident when you speak  English.

It's probably better than you think. Patti: Hello, Patti   here from English with Patricia. Vanessa, thank  you so much for having me.

Today we're talking   about speaking. I know how it feels because I am  not a native speaker. I am Brazilian.

But when I   was in England, I learned that I had to listen  and I had to copy what people were saying. So   I heard someone saying that they were eating  something and they said that it was delicious.   So I came home, grabbed myself a yogurt, I  swear to you and did the same.

Delicious. I started to copy people and really hear my own  voice speaking. I was at school and everyone   around me said, "See you later.

" And I always  said, "See you tomorrow. " And one day I was like,   "Hold on a minute. Everyone's saying see you  later, I'm going to do the same.

" So remember,   do lots and lots of copying and  one day you'll be ready to create. Wes: Hey everyone,   my name is Wes from Interactive English. And when  it comes to improving your speaking skills, I   often hear people tell me that, "Well, whenever I  try to express a thought, opinion or idea, I just   get stuck and I lose my train of thought.

" So if  this has ever happened to you, then one suggestion   would be to use a speaking framework. And there  are many of them. So you could use the PREP   framework.

It stands for point, reason, example,  point. So I'll give you an example right now. I think that you should try to use this  speaking framework because it's going to   help you structure your speech and you'll be able  to get your point across easily.

For example,   if you are in a meeting at work  and you want to share your idea,   you'll be able to do so easily and quickly. And  for this reason, I think you should try to use   this speaking framework. Point,  reason, example point.

Give it a try. Ariannita la Gringa: Hey everyone,   I'm Ariannita la Gringa and I'm a native English  teacher. As you know, this video is about how to   improve your English-speaking skills.

Well, from  my own experience learning a second language,   the fastest way for me to improve  my Spanish-speaking skills was by   practicing with native speakers. So I started  making friends who spoke Spanish and I hung   out with them everywhere. After a couple of  months, I realized how much my Spanish had   improved.

So you can apply the same method to  learning English. And if you're wondering why,   well, I feel like speaking English won't feel like  homework or a chore when you're with your friends. You'll naturally pick up common  phrases and expressions and you'll   feel more comfortable to speak around them  since they're your friends.

For example,   my friends who made English-speaking friends  have improved much faster than those who didn't   because they can practice real-life English  outside their English course, outside work,   etc. So for me, this is one of the best ways to  improve your English-speaking skills in a natural   way. But remember, this is only one way to improve  your speaking skills.

So follow this tip and   other teacher's tips too to help you improve your  English-speaking skills. Thanks for watching. Bye.

Ethan: Hey guys,   I'm Ethan from RealLife English and my tip  is called practice like you play. When any   professional athlete goes out for game day, it's  not the first time that they are playing. They've   done tons and tons of practice beforehand, so  they're prepared when it really comes time to   perform.

However, most language learners will just  throw themselves into a conversation hoping that   things will go well based on what they've  already learned. So in language we practice   like we play using scripts. You can write a  script for any sort of situation.

If you've   not had many interactions speaking English, then  a great place to start can be with an introduction   of yourself because this is something you're  going to need to do with anyone that you meet. So in your script, you're going to write out  everything that you need for the situation that   you're preparing yourself for, and then comes  time to practice it. So you'll practice it on   your own at first, and then you can actually  record yourself, listen back and think of   ways you can improve it.

And then finally, it's  game day. It's time for you to actually go use   it in an English conversation. And I promise  you, if you've done all of this preparation,   all of this practice, you're going to  feel so much more natural and confident   when you actually have that conversation.

All  right? So I hope it helps a lot. Good luck.

Vanessa: Thank you so much   to those wonderful English teachers for your great  tips about how to be a better English speaker. Now   it's my turn. How can you speak better English? 

Well, the number one thing that I tell my students   is that I highly recommend that you speak in  English with another person for at least 30   minutes per week. When you set up this appointment  to speak with someone else, you will have instant   motivation to speak better English because  nothing is more motivating than knowing that   you have a deadline and you need to do it. So as  humans, I think we are naturally procrastinators.

We wait till the last minute, we put things  aside that we don't want to do or that are   too hard or we feel worried about. So when  you know that you are going to speak in   English on Mondays at 8:00 PM well that  whole week or at least a few days before,   you are going to start preparing, you're going  to study English, you're going to be thinking   about your conversation. You might even use  some of these teachers tips like shadowing,   recording, listening to English.

You will  start to prepare because you know you have   a deadline coming up. You're going to be  speaking with someone else at that time.   And when you do it every week, you're going to  be building on your English skills each week.

And after a few months, you'll be amazed  at how much your English skills and your   confidence grow. If you're not speaking with  someone once a week, at least for 30 minutes,   I highly recommend starting that now. Well,  thank you so much for learning English with me   and all of these wonderful English teachers.

Yes,  there are many more wonderful English teachers on   YouTube. Most of them I reached out to. Some of  them were not available to participate.

So if   there's someone you love who is not in this video,  it is not because they're not great, they were   just not available. Well, don't forget to download  the free PDF worksheet for today's lesson. It will include every single teacher's  tip, ideas, and a link to their channel   so that you can continue learning English  and speaking better day by day.

You can   click on the link in the description to  download that free PDF worksheet today.   A big thank you to all of the teachers  who have participated in today's lesson,   and I will see you again next Friday for a new  lesson here on my YouTube channel. Bye.

But wait,   do you want more? I recommend watching this video  next where you will practice speaking with me   specifically about if you are a guest at my house  for multiple days, what kind of conversations   would we have together? Well, you can practice  in this video here and I'll see you there.