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5 steps to praising team members
Compliments are expected in American business communication. However, some second language speakers of English may find giving praise challenging. Each culture has different traditions for giving compliments. Does you culture give compliments? Leaders use praise to encourage colleagues and to build relationships. Compliments may be skill to add when new to leadership. Specific compliments demonstrate…
Read MoreDo you start sentences with the same words?
Often, this is a frustration of my clients! My clients work on accent modification, business communication and presentation skills. Frequently, people start most of their sentences with “so” and “and.” Consequently, their message is less effective. Incredibly, our attention span has dropped to that of a goldfish! Hence, speakers need to constantly reengage listeners. One…
Read MoreSnow Idioms Can Be Used All Year!
Idioms can be challenging to master for second language users. My clients working on accent modification or accent reduction are always interested in learning how to use idioms more effectively. Idioms can be mastered! Idioms work as shortcut to communicating a specific thought and they add interest to your communication. Try these snow-related idioms that…
Read MoreYikes! An avalanche of words!
Many of my clients working on business communication say they talk in circles before getting to their point. Some of my accent modification or accent reduction clients state they don’t have enough words to get to the point. The image that comes to my mind is snow rolling down a mountain and burying a person.…
Read MoreImproving Any Skill Takes Three Steps
Improving any skill takes the same three steps. Step 1-Clearly determine what you want to improve and commit to the process of improvement. Step 2: Enhance your current skills. Step 3: Add new skills. The essential ingredient to improvement is having a coach or a partner to keep you focused and on track. December 1, 2020,…
Read MoreIncrease Meeting Participation
Directors and Managers, are you frustrated that some team members do not speak up in meetings? Often, introverts or those who speak with a foreign accent are hesitant to speak up in meetings. They have ideas and hold back because they lack confidence and are worried others may not understand them. Some high achievers may…
Read MoreSpice up your Speaking!
Did you know our attention span is now equal to or less than a goldfish!? That means our attention span is about 9 seconds. For speakers, it means we need to be engaging to keep our audience attending. Check out this video for some helpful tips to be more interesting!
Read MoreHow do you say these words?
Listen and find out. Syllables are omitted in these words. As a non-native English speaker, I am sure you have practiced hard articulating every syllable in a word. But, there are actually many words in which a middle syllable is omitted. There are over 25 commonly used words that are pronounced in this way. Are…
Read MoreNew season-New idioms.
Idioms are a great way to add interest to your communication. They often serve as a “short cut” to communicating an idea. There are many idioms in English that relate to seasons. Here are four, fall season idioms to add to your speech. The best way to add them to your speech is to make…
Read MoreAre they the same word? Nope!
Advice is a noun and advise is a verb. The difference is seen and heard in the final consonants in the words. The final sound in the advice is pronounced as the voiceless S. While the final sound in advise is pronounced as the voiced Z sound. There are additional words that follow this pattern
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