Hi all,
I have a peculiar problem. I am experiencing a lot of fear and inferiority complexity, which is making it difficult for me to talk and give presentations in my office. Essentially, I come from a Telugu medium background.
Please suggest ways for me to improve my English and overcome this fear.
Thanks and regards,
Sekhar
From India, Bangalore
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1I have a peculiar problem. I am experiencing a lot of fear and inferiority complexity, which is making it difficult for me to talk and give presentations in my office. Essentially, I come from a Telugu medium background.
Please suggest ways for me to improve my English and overcome this fear.
Thanks and regards,
Sekhar
From India, Bangalore
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Hi,
Getting over the fear of speaking in public is not very difficult. You have mentioned office presentations where you get tongue-tied. I'll suggest a few things: Firstly, since you are talking about your work, you stand a lesser chance of being judged about your English. Master the topic on which you are speaking, emphasize more on facts and figures, style your presentation in an informative and interesting way so that minor flaws in the language (if they exist) are overlooked. Secondly, practice each presentation in front of a mirror several times over. Thirdly, you would feel less nervous if you don't get distracted by looking at the eyes of the members sitting in the room. You can just try to casually gaze around while talking instead of fixing your eyes on the bosses.
Friend, take every opportunity to talk in public. Trust me, after a couple of presentations, you would be so much at ease that you'd never imagined.
Good luck!
From India, Pune
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Getting over the fear of speaking in public is not very difficult. You have mentioned office presentations where you get tongue-tied. I'll suggest a few things: Firstly, since you are talking about your work, you stand a lesser chance of being judged about your English. Master the topic on which you are speaking, emphasize more on facts and figures, style your presentation in an informative and interesting way so that minor flaws in the language (if they exist) are overlooked. Secondly, practice each presentation in front of a mirror several times over. Thirdly, you would feel less nervous if you don't get distracted by looking at the eyes of the members sitting in the room. You can just try to casually gaze around while talking instead of fixing your eyes on the bosses.
Friend, take every opportunity to talk in public. Trust me, after a couple of presentations, you would be so much at ease that you'd never imagined.
Good luck!
From India, Pune
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Hi Sekhar,
Relax! No worries, need not fear, it's just another language like your mother tongue. Imagine how you learned to speak Telugu because it was done right from your birth, and the people around you spoke the same language, right? Exactly, now this is what should be done - make it a point that you'll converse only in English with most of the people around you (it's okay even if you go wrong, but just keep practicing as practice makes perfect and you can learn). Speak slowly. If there are kids at your place, speak with them in English, it will be easy. Another way is to watch English channels, listen to English songs, try to repeat a word after them. Record your own voice and listen for pronunciation mistakes. Use a walkman for this, and you can play it on the way to your office, etc. Try this, it really works. Then slowly try to avoid the influence of your mother tongue in English. And be patient, you can do it.
And for the presentations, adding onto Zeal's (mirror really works) suggestions, keep in mind that YOU CAN DO IT, YOU WILL DO IT, and be happy that you are chosen to do the presentation while others are not able to do it. So you are the ruler there, boost yourself. In the beginning, you can have a small piece of paper with short points written on it about what you have to present, which you can look into when needed.
Never feel inferior, friend. In fact, be happy that you have the guts to come out and speak. It's YOU. Just keep that in mind. The rest will happen, just enjoy everything, relax, and don't forget to wear a little smile!
"We are not completely dressed until we wear a smile." 😊
From India, Mumbai
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Relax! No worries, need not fear, it's just another language like your mother tongue. Imagine how you learned to speak Telugu because it was done right from your birth, and the people around you spoke the same language, right? Exactly, now this is what should be done - make it a point that you'll converse only in English with most of the people around you (it's okay even if you go wrong, but just keep practicing as practice makes perfect and you can learn). Speak slowly. If there are kids at your place, speak with them in English, it will be easy. Another way is to watch English channels, listen to English songs, try to repeat a word after them. Record your own voice and listen for pronunciation mistakes. Use a walkman for this, and you can play it on the way to your office, etc. Try this, it really works. Then slowly try to avoid the influence of your mother tongue in English. And be patient, you can do it.
And for the presentations, adding onto Zeal's (mirror really works) suggestions, keep in mind that YOU CAN DO IT, YOU WILL DO IT, and be happy that you are chosen to do the presentation while others are not able to do it. So you are the ruler there, boost yourself. In the beginning, you can have a small piece of paper with short points written on it about what you have to present, which you can look into when needed.
Never feel inferior, friend. In fact, be happy that you have the guts to come out and speak. It's YOU. Just keep that in mind. The rest will happen, just enjoy everything, relax, and don't forget to wear a little smile!
"We are not completely dressed until we wear a smile." 😊
From India, Mumbai
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Dear GVN Sekar,
I fully read your question. This language problem is not only with you but exists with all Telugu-speaking people. I have quite a few of them in my office, and I corrected them to some extent through training and language labs.
The general flaws that they make are much applicable to you also:
1. Don't use SMS English while writing a letter or text. This wrong spelling becomes a strong habit.
2. Concentrate on grammar, tense, singular/plural, clauses, and sentence formation.
3. The main error committed is using the wrong past and past participle in a sentence.
4. If it is written English, learn to apply punctuation, and this would naturally be reflected in oral communication as well. Even a blind man should be able to punctuate a sentence when you speak; i.e., the spoken version should reflect the presence of punctuation.
5. Keep learning and writing as a regular habit. Have a dictionary when you do this.
6. Have someone who is strong in your circle to rectify when you speak. Engage in group discussions regularly. Ask him to monitor the dialogues.
7. Ensure that your English phonetics shouldn't sound like Telugu phonetics. For example, often pronounced as 'syllabus-su', 'book-su'. Avoid mother tongue influence.
8. Concentrate on the phonetics of 'z', 'sh', 'pa', 'pah', 'pe', 'pey', 'pay', etc. Telugu friends pronounce 'Paper' as 'Pah-per', 'xerox' as 'gerox', 'zero' as 'gero', etc.
9. They create new plurals like 'People-s', 'Police-s', etc. There is no plural form for this.
10. Avoid watching Telugu films, books, and change your vision to readable English books. Try crosswords, sudoku, scrabble, etc. You can try school non-detailed books, storybooks to understand sentence formation.
11. Owing to these, you tend to have a fear of expressing thoughts into words.
Meeru nenu cheppinatuga thappakonda follow chestey English lo matladi, chadivi, raasethaniki osthuntaiya. Idhi okattiyum brahma viddha kaadhu. Nenu writer, poet, author ga unnaanu. English kurinchi advice chestenum, meevariki Telugulo oka maata cheptheyne naaku thrupthi.
At college, teachers would have taught you English through Telugu, and the whole purpose is not served. When I visited some of the colleges there, I noted this.
Keep learning.
Regards,
Chandru
From India, Madras
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I fully read your question. This language problem is not only with you but exists with all Telugu-speaking people. I have quite a few of them in my office, and I corrected them to some extent through training and language labs.
The general flaws that they make are much applicable to you also:
1. Don't use SMS English while writing a letter or text. This wrong spelling becomes a strong habit.
2. Concentrate on grammar, tense, singular/plural, clauses, and sentence formation.
3. The main error committed is using the wrong past and past participle in a sentence.
4. If it is written English, learn to apply punctuation, and this would naturally be reflected in oral communication as well. Even a blind man should be able to punctuate a sentence when you speak; i.e., the spoken version should reflect the presence of punctuation.
5. Keep learning and writing as a regular habit. Have a dictionary when you do this.
6. Have someone who is strong in your circle to rectify when you speak. Engage in group discussions regularly. Ask him to monitor the dialogues.
7. Ensure that your English phonetics shouldn't sound like Telugu phonetics. For example, often pronounced as 'syllabus-su', 'book-su'. Avoid mother tongue influence.
8. Concentrate on the phonetics of 'z', 'sh', 'pa', 'pah', 'pe', 'pey', 'pay', etc. Telugu friends pronounce 'Paper' as 'Pah-per', 'xerox' as 'gerox', 'zero' as 'gero', etc.
9. They create new plurals like 'People-s', 'Police-s', etc. There is no plural form for this.
10. Avoid watching Telugu films, books, and change your vision to readable English books. Try crosswords, sudoku, scrabble, etc. You can try school non-detailed books, storybooks to understand sentence formation.
11. Owing to these, you tend to have a fear of expressing thoughts into words.
Meeru nenu cheppinatuga thappakonda follow chestey English lo matladi, chadivi, raasethaniki osthuntaiya. Idhi okattiyum brahma viddha kaadhu. Nenu writer, poet, author ga unnaanu. English kurinchi advice chestenum, meevariki Telugulo oka maata cheptheyne naaku thrupthi.
At college, teachers would have taught you English through Telugu, and the whole purpose is not served. When I visited some of the colleges there, I noted this.
Keep learning.
Regards,
Chandru
From India, Madras
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Dear Sekhar,
Your problem is very common, and so is the solution. You should subscribe to a good English newspaper. Read the editorial aloud and record the same on a tape recorder. Then replay it. You will notice the defects in your pronunciation, voice modulation, etc. This can be repeated for a few days. Day by day, your performance will improve, including the quality. Since you are doing this in isolation, there is no one to discourage you. After gaining confidence, you can enter into simple conversations with your sympathetic colleagues in English. You should also practice writing an editorial each day. This way, you will come across new words, and your written English will also improve.
From India, Pune
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Your problem is very common, and so is the solution. You should subscribe to a good English newspaper. Read the editorial aloud and record the same on a tape recorder. Then replay it. You will notice the defects in your pronunciation, voice modulation, etc. This can be repeated for a few days. Day by day, your performance will improve, including the quality. Since you are doing this in isolation, there is no one to discourage you. After gaining confidence, you can enter into simple conversations with your sympathetic colleagues in English. You should also practice writing an editorial each day. This way, you will come across new words, and your written English will also improve.
From India, Pune
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Ability to communicate in English is an essential skill. Its absence can create a sense of inferiority. It should be obvious that there are no short-term solutions. If such a short-term solution existed, everybody would have mastered English communication by now! There are many websites and self-help aids available for improving English. However, the only sure way is to keep practicing. You should also enroll yourself in some English language courses. Any money you spend on improving your communication skill is not an expenditure but an investment. Best of Luck!
From India, Madurai
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From India, Madurai
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Dear Sekhar,
It's a very common problem and needs continuous practice. You can search for English improvement courses available online. You can even try BBC English learning classes as audio and visual lessons are available there. Just try this site and enjoy your learning!
Best of luck! :-P
Thanks,
Shikha Kaushik
From India, Udaipur
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It's a very common problem and needs continuous practice. You can search for English improvement courses available online. You can even try BBC English learning classes as audio and visual lessons are available there. Just try this site and enjoy your learning!
Best of luck! :-P
Thanks,
Shikha Kaushik
From India, Udaipur
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Shekhar,
It's not poor communication skills that are creating a problem in your life, but it's your fear of getting embarrassed among your colleagues because of poor communication skills. The moment you overcome your fear, you will be seen as a confident person. Be confident while addressing the crowd.
I had a classmate in MBA who had quite poor communication skills, but one thing he had was his confidence. He used to be very confident while speaking. As an audience, we always used to be very attentive to his speech and ignored his grammatical mistakes. It's not like if I don't have good communication skills, it means I cannot generate good ideas... High thinking always matters irrespective of any language.
As far as improving your English is concerned, read English newspapers loudly; it will improve your pronunciation and confidence level. Try speaking to your friends and family in English. Watch English news channels, etc.
We are Indians; we have to learn this language as it is not our mother tongue, and believe me, once you consciously and firmly decide to improve your English speaking skills, you can do it in a very short period of time. It is not difficult.
GOOD LUCK!
From India, Mumbai
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It's not poor communication skills that are creating a problem in your life, but it's your fear of getting embarrassed among your colleagues because of poor communication skills. The moment you overcome your fear, you will be seen as a confident person. Be confident while addressing the crowd.
I had a classmate in MBA who had quite poor communication skills, but one thing he had was his confidence. He used to be very confident while speaking. As an audience, we always used to be very attentive to his speech and ignored his grammatical mistakes. It's not like if I don't have good communication skills, it means I cannot generate good ideas... High thinking always matters irrespective of any language.
As far as improving your English is concerned, read English newspapers loudly; it will improve your pronunciation and confidence level. Try speaking to your friends and family in English. Watch English news channels, etc.
We are Indians; we have to learn this language as it is not our mother tongue, and believe me, once you consciously and firmly decide to improve your English speaking skills, you can do it in a very short period of time. It is not difficult.
GOOD LUCK!
From India, Mumbai
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Dear Friend,
All the above suggestions are very good; they will really help you.
1. Try to read an English newspaper. Read aloud.
2. Try to get some English conversation audio. Listen 2-3 times, then try to speak in the same way.
And all...
My wishes and prayers...
From India, Mumbai
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All the above suggestions are very good; they will really help you.
1. Try to read an English newspaper. Read aloud.
2. Try to get some English conversation audio. Listen 2-3 times, then try to speak in the same way.
And all...
My wishes and prayers...
From India, Mumbai
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Sekhar, Hope you are already improving your English. Please keep in mind that it is not necessary to get educated in English medium for speaking & writing good English. There are many great Indian scholars who studied in their “Mother Tongue” & faced the World with vigor without even giving anyone a chance to question which medium they were studied in...
It is really not important what medium you have studied in to be a good speaker. You need to be confident about the fact that you know your business. Using simple English you can explain what you need to say. One very important thing that often cause inferiority complex in us is the fear of others, how others will think about me if I make a mistake & how they will react...and we keep on losing our confidence thinking about those useless - WHAT & HOW!!!
My friend you need to think how you can improve your situation and not how others will think if you commit a mistake ~ because that thought will make you weak! So, start now to think what you want from yourself & not let others rule your thoughts any longer.
All the Best & Good Luck my friend!
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
It is really not important what medium you have studied in to be a good speaker. You need to be confident about the fact that you know your business. Using simple English you can explain what you need to say. One very important thing that often cause inferiority complex in us is the fear of others, how others will think about me if I make a mistake & how they will react...and we keep on losing our confidence thinking about those useless - WHAT & HOW!!!
My friend you need to think how you can improve your situation and not how others will think if you commit a mistake ~ because that thought will make you weak! So, start now to think what you want from yourself & not let others rule your thoughts any longer.
All the Best & Good Luck my friend!
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