Stop apologising for your English (and what you can do instead)
The English Training Company – become an advanced business English speaker.
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Stop apologising for your English and what you can do instead.
Why you should stop apologising for your English (and what you can do instead).
It’s normal and we have all done it at some point – apologise for our English in a conference call, giving a presentation, making small talk over coffee with colleagues or when writing an email.
And it’s OK to use it once, but after that stop apologising for your English, because it is stopping you from becoming an advanced business English speaker.
So, why doesn’t it help us? (Problem)
- it makes you feel less confident.
- it makes you look less confident (when projecting a professional image).
- it becomes annoying (if you keep repeating it to the other person).
- it puts the focus (and pressure) on your English mistakes.
- we are not focusing on our real good which is communication.
And why do we do it?
- we do it because we feel self conscious.
- we want empathy and the other person to understand it’s hard to speak in another language.
- we hope our apology will mean the other person will accept us and approve of us.
What we can do? (Solution)
- stop apologising, it’s stopping you from becoming an advanced business English speaker.
- realise that nobody has perfect English. Making mistakes helps us learn and to make less mistakes in the future.
- focus on your real goal of communicating.
- CSC communication – clear, simple and concise communication.
- think about the other person and what can help them to understand your key messages.
- make your communication easy to follow.
- structure your ideas.
- check their understanding (use active listening).
The English Training Company – we help companies and professionals to become advanced business English speakers.
