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  • Hi. Bob the Canadian here.

  • Welcome to this English lesson

  • where I'm going to give you some tips,

  • 10 tips actually on how to be less nervous,

  • how to have less anxiety and how to be less afraid

  • when you know you are going to have an English conversation.

  • I know that when you learn another language,

  • it can be really easy to read in that language.

  • It can be really easy to listen to things in that language.

  • Writings a little more difficult.

  • But speaking, having an actual conversation

  • can be a little intimidating.

  • It can cause some fear.

  • I know this because I learned to speak French

  • during my lifetime.

  • And I do remember still my very first French conversation.

  • My friends and I were in the city of Quebec.

  • We were in Quebec City.

  • I was about 17-years old.

  • We were on a school trip.

  • And we went out at night and one of my friends said,

  • "you take French classes, ask that person if

  • there's a store close to here."

  • I had never had a conversation with a native speaker before

  • and I still remember walking up to this gentleman

  • and saying (speaks French).

  • And he told me exactly how to get to the closest store.

  • So but I do remember I was a little scared.

  • I was a little bit intimidated.

  • I was a little bit worried

  • that he wouldn't understand me

  • and so I do understand what it's like for you

  • as you continue to learn English.

  • That for some of you it can a little worrisome,

  • you can have some anxiety and a little bit

  • of fear when you know you're going

  • to have an English conversation.

  • Well in this video I hope that the 10 tips

  • that I give you will help you a lot.

  • (soft, upbeat music)

  • Well hey, welcome to this English lesson where

  • I'm going to give you some tips on how to prepare

  • for English conversations.

  • Before we get started though,

  • if this is your first time here

  • don't forget to click that red subscribe button below

  • and if at some point during this video

  • you find this video is helping you learn English,

  • please give me a thumbs up.

  • So the very first thing that I recommend

  • to everyone who is preparing for an English conversation,

  • is to be prepared.

  • It is important that you don't think

  • of an English conversation as something casual.

  • Especially if you are a beginner or intermediate learner.

  • You need to take it seriously.

  • Let's say that you have a conversation once a week

  • with an English tutor, with a native English speaker,

  • you need to prepare for that conversation.

  • I highly recommend that you review all of your greetings.

  • I did a great video on that,

  • I think it was a great video, earlier in this month.

  • You should review how to do small talk.

  • You should review how to talk a little bit

  • about what you did yesterday or last week.

  • What you did today and what you are going to do tomorrow

  • so you can practice the past, present and future tenses.

  • So the very first thing that I highly recommend

  • that you do is that you prepare for the conversation.

  • The second thing that I recommend that you do

  • is to think about how you are going to use recently

  • learned words and phrases in the upcoming conversation.

  • Hopefully as you learn English you are reading

  • and writing and listening and along the way,

  • you hopefully are learning new vocabulary

  • and you are learning new phrases.

  • When you know you are going to have an English conversation,

  • it can be exciting to think about how are you going

  • to use that vocabulary that you've just learned

  • and how are you going to use those phrases

  • you have just learned in the upcoming conversation.

  • So number two is a little bit like number one,

  • but it's very specific.

  • Get ready to use new vocabulary and new phrases

  • in the conversation that you know you're going to be having.

  • Tip number three, use your imagination

  • to practice the conversation in advance.

  • So what I'm recommending here is that you,

  • in your mind, imagine what the conversation might be like.

  • Imagine what you think the person might ask you.

  • Imagine how you might respond.

  • Try to have a pretend conversation in your head

  • a number of times so that when you are

  • in the actual conversation, it should go a little smoother.

  • Oftentimes if you imagine something,

  • if you act it out in your mind it can really help prepare

  • you for the real thing.

  • So, use your brain.

  • Use your imagination.

  • Tip number three, try to imagine what the conversation

  • will be like.

  • It might look a little bit like you talking to yourself,

  • but that's okay.

  • So imagine what you think the conversation might be like.

  • Tip number four, when you are in an English conversation,

  • try to take control of the conversation.

  • This can be really hard to do,

  • but when you are having a conversation with a native

  • English speaker, if you let the other person take most

  • of the control of the conversation,

  • you might end up talking about things where you don't

  • know the right words or phrases to be able to talk about it.

  • So as much as you can when you are having a conversation,

  • ask questions.

  • Ask questions so that the native English speaker,

  • or the person you are talking to in English

  • kind of stays on the topic that you are choosing.

  • If you want to talk about animals,

  • ask if they have a pet.

  • If you want to talk about vacations,

  • ask about the last vacation that they went on.

  • So it sounds a little bit,

  • how would I describe it, a little bit controlling,

  • but try to control the conversation as much as you can.

  • As you get better at having English conversations though,

  • you can let them flow a little more naturally.

  • But, tip number four, try to control the conversation

  • just a little bit.

  • Tip number five, know a little bit about your conversation

  • partner in advance, if possible.

  • If you meet with someone once a week to practice your

  • English, as you get to know them,

  • make sure that you try to remember what they like

  • to do for fun.

  • Try to remember what their hobbies are.

  • Try to remember who is in their immediate family.

  • Try to know a little bit about the person

  • because that just makes it easier in general

  • to start a conversation.

  • If you know you're going to be talking to maybe

  • your wife's relatives or your husband's relatives,

  • who recently immigrated to the United States

  • or Canada, make sure you know a little bit

  • about where they now live.

  • Knowing a little bit about your conversation partner

  • can really be helpful when

  • you're having an English conversation.

  • If you meet with an English native speaker once a week

  • to practice your English, start to get to know them.

  • Make sure that you know enough about them

  • so that you can have a pleasant conversation

  • without struggling for words.

  • This works even if you're just having a normal conversation

  • in your own language.

  • But knowing a little bit about the person who you are going

  • to be talking to can help a lot.

  • Number six, take notes

  • after every single English conversation

  • that you have.

  • Especially if you are a beginner

  • or intermediate English speaker.

  • If you have a conversation, immediately after

  • that conversation, as soon as you have a chance,

  • write down a few things that you talked about

  • during the conversation.

  • Write down one or two words that maybe you learned

  • during the conversation

  • or maybe that you didn't understand.

  • Just try to write down as many things as you can

  • so that later that day you can kind of go over in your mind

  • and you can read over your notes and think about

  • that conversation again.

  • Repetition is very important when

  • you are learning a language.

  • It's hard to repeat a conversation,

  • but you can always just review your notes later in the day.

  • So take some notes as soon as you can

  • after every English conversation that you have.

  • Tip number seven, know what to say to control the speed

  • of the conversation in a polite way.

  • I think I've mentioned this in a couple of other videos.

  • It's important that you know how to say things

  • like I'm sorry, I didn't quite understand

  • what you just said.

  • Could you repeat that please?

  • It's important to be able to say things like,

  • could you please speak a little more slowly,

  • I'm still learning English?

  • It's good just to be honest with the person

  • who you are taking to.

  • And if you can help control the speed of the conversation,

  • it will help you understand a lot more

  • and it will help you get a lot more out

  • of the English conversation.

  • Tip number eight,

  • repetition is your friend.

  • I know this is somewhat simple advice,

  • but it's very true.

  • Human beings get better at things the more they do it.

  • If you are little nervous

  • about having an English conversation,

  • the more English conversations you have,

  • even bad English conversations,

  • the easier it will be and the less nervous you will be.

  • You will be less afraid.

  • Because it will become routine for you.

  • If you think about some of the things that you need

  • to do in life that you didn't like doing,

  • the more you do it, the easier it gets to do it.

  • I know when I first started teaching I was very nervous

  • to go in front of the classroom.

  • But after a few months and years, after a few years

  • it became a lot easier and now I really do enjoy it

  • and I have very little anxiety and very little fear.

  • So repetition is your friend.

  • Have as many English conversations as you can.

  • If you can do it every day that is awesome.

  • If not, try to have at least one per week

  • and that will help a lot.

  • Tip number nine, have a lot of small English conversations

  • before you have to have important English conversation.

  • Sometimes people are nervous to speak English

  • because they know they have to speak English

  • in a job interview or they have to speak English

  • during the speaking portion of an English test.

  • The best way to be less nervous for those situations

  • is to make sure you're having a lot of small unimportant

  • English conversations before you have an important one.

  • When I was preparing to do a French test

  • I decided that I needed to speak French

  • with people everyday for at least 15 minutes

  • for the whole month before I went to write

  • my French test or to take my French test.

  • I think the same applies here.

  • Sometimes nervousness and fear happens because

  • you have not practiced enough

  • for something really important.

  • So tip number nine, have as many small, unimportant

  • English conversations as you can before you have

  • to have an important English conversation.

  • Tip number 10, practice as much as you can

  • with another English learner.

  • I know sometimes people think that you only want

  • to have conversations with native English speakers

  • and that is not true.

  • You can have a lot of conversations with classmates

  • in a class where you are learning English.

  • Even though your English isn't perfect

  • and their English isn't perfect,

  • it's a very low-key way, a very low-risk way

  • to have an English conversation.

  • You will not be very judgemental of each other.

  • So, tip number 10, have as many conversations

  • as you can with other people who are learning English.

  • It can really help a lot.

  • Well hey, thanks for watching this English lesson.

  • I hope some of the tips that I gave during the lesson

  • will help you be a little more relaxed and calm

  • when you know you are going to have an English conversation.

  • Let me just remind you, if you are new here,

  • please click that red subscribe button over there

  • and give me a thumbs up if this video helped you learn

  • just a little bit more English.

  • And if you have the time why don't you stick around

  • and watch another video.

  • (soft, upbeat music)

Hi. Bob the Canadian here.

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