Struggling with English Communication: How Can I Boost My Skills and Confidence?

Hello Everybody,

How can I improve my English, and communication is my weak point. It is very painful that I struggle to communicate with others. Please advise on how I can enhance my English proficiency.

Thanks & Regards,
Radha

Here are some easy tips to do it on your own:

1. Improve pronunciation and diction

There are a few tricks to making a vernacular accent more globally understandable.

- Try making sure that "air" comes out of your mouth when saying the letters, "T, P, K," and the sound "Ch."
- Focus on elongating your vowel sounds. This will also automatically slow down your rate of speech.
- Sing English songs out loud!
- Watch news shows on channels like CNN and BBC.
- The website www.m-w.com is great for pronunciation help.
- I would also suggest buying books on pronunciation and language.

2. Spruce up your writing skills

- Believe it or not, you have to read more!
- Well-written magazines, like The Economist and India Today, are great to read not only to improve language skills but also to learn more about the world.
- In terms of books, read what interests you. The basic goal is to read as much as you can.
- People tend to forget basic grammar when writing emails. An email is nothing more than a letter that is sent electronically.

Make sure salutations and content are professional. Use special phrases when attaching documents. For example, "Please find attached with this email a report on..." This helps you sound professional.

3. Five exercises to practice every day!

i. Pretend you are a newscaster and read out the newspaper to your mirror.
ii. Do not read local newspapers. Focus on national newspapers.
iii. While reading a book, underline all the words you do not know. Look them up in the dictionary.
iv. Make a list of these words, and make sure you use at least five of them in a conversation during the day.
v. Most importantly, make an effort to speak in English to your friends and family.

Hi Radha,
I may not offer you much about improving your communication skills but I just wanted to recognize the fact that you are eager to learn and you are not hesitant to ask for help. This itself is a major step towards learning. Don't be afraid to ask for help!!
Whenever you come across a word which you don't know about, keep it on your mind and when time permits look it up on the dictionary. Read whatever you can get your hands on. Speak what you know and how you know and don't be afraid of making mistakes…………….. u learn from those mistakes you made!!!
Cheers,
Ashra

Hi Radha,

Do not worry, learning the English language is not difficult. Even people coming from a Tamil medium speak English well.

You can try out a few steps:

1. For an HR presentation, skills are very important. So, you can learn from "Young World" (THE HINDU) "Opportunities" where HR tips are well presented in sentences. While reading the sentences, pay attention to whether they are presented in the past tense or present tense, singular or plural. This is very important. By concentrating on this, you will be able to frame sentences and paragraphs easily.

2. While you watch CNN, IBM, BBC, focus on the accent but not exactly the way they speak because they are news readers. Concentrate more on novels and movies. By doing so, you will clearly understand the accent and the way they speak.

3. Learn a story in Tamil and its English translation (try to purchase a book with both versions). Understand the Tamil story and try to frame a sentence in English, then compare.

4. Daily, look up words in the dictionary for their meanings. While you listen to the television and read books, mark those words or write them on paper to revise daily and improve your verbal skills.

These are easy ways for you to improve your verbal communication and writing skills in a short period.

I have attached the communication handbook for you to review.

If any of your friends speak English well, ask them to speak with you so that you can improve.

Good luck, Radha!

Regards,

Kanchana

1. Understand that conveying a message is more important than the English language.
2. Read aloud one paragraph of any good newspaper.
3. Observe the lip movements of English news readers on TV.
4. Find friends who, like you, want to improve English and then talk to them in English.
5. Read good books and magazines.

I have not spoken well in English because I have some struggles to speak. I can overcome my problem, but I cannot do it. Can anyone tell me how to rectify my problem?