128. What is the importance of communication skills for an IT engineer?

The communication of an IT specialist does not differ from other professions. The only thing I would add is that IT specialists need to adapt their language for their customers and managers and simplify the technical terms for people whose IT knowledge is not as sophisticated as theirs. This is not easy and it takes time and effort to develop this skill.

Many tech people make a common mistake: their speeches sound too technical. As a result, when they start speaking their audience could find it convoluted and boring.

Below are a few essential tips to communicate technical concepts to non-technical clients:

1. Talk about the benefits to the clients, and make your speech clients oriented. Avoid too many technical details that are not that important for a client’s benefit. You, as a technical expert, might love talking about all these little details, but the client just wants to know what it will do for them.

2. Use short sentences and short punchy words as opposed to long sentences and long words which are used when writing an article. This technique will help your audience to understand your speech and enjoy listening to it, otherwise, they might not get your point and lose interest quickly.

3. If you use abbreviations and technical vocabulary, make sure you explain them first so that your listeners can follow what you are saying.

4. When we write an article, our language contains much more details, whereas speeches tend to have the main ideas presented in a powerful way.

5. It is useful to get rid of unimportant words in your speech because the main idea might be drowned in a sea of unnecessary words.

6. Download the apps Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause and Fluent English Speech to master sentence stress and intonation and use of pauses.
   
   IT specialists who take our elocution lessons told us that due to poor communication skills they are stuck in front of their PC and even are not invited to meetings, they fail to attract clients and as a result, the business suffers. After our elocution lessons and courses, they are promoted to managerial positions, their salaries increase and their clients enjoy working with them.
   
   More on www.batcsglobal.com

127. How can we communicate with each other effectively?

Use this formula:

1. When you speak to people always smile.

2. Try to develop a genuine interest in the people you communicate with.

3. Try to understand people by finding out information about their aspirations, interests, hobbies, jobs, types of character, etc.

4. Make the conversation interesting to the other person

I will explain this formula now. People are very different. We are all individuals.

In order to communicate effectively we need to understand each other: sex, age, education, values, culture, aspirations, and many other things.

Very often women complain that their husbands do not understand them and vice versa. Why? Because the difference in sex leads to differences in many other areas.

Old people often do not understand the young because of the generation gap leading to differences in aspirations.

The rich do not understand the poor. I could continue the list.

What can help us to overcome communication barriers? In my opinion, good listening skills is the number one tool of successful communication. This skill is hard to master for many people. Often, when we talk to others, we do not have the patience to listen. We hear a few words and very quickly we start anticipating what the other person will say. We even try to finish their sentences which is not very helpful, particularly for the person who is talking.

What would be more effective? When listening to others pay attention to who you are speaking to. What do their vocabulary, intonation, and voice tell you about them?

Rather than commenting, judging or advising on what you are listening to, try to establish a rapport with the person by adjusting to their way. Try to find a common ground and avoid frictions and arguments that can lead to miscommunication and quarrels.

It is also very important to communicate your ideas and responses clearly. The app ‎Get Rid of your Accent UK1 will help you with speech clarity and articulation.

The next step to becoming a successful communicator is to stress key messages and avoid speaking in a monotonous way. You can master it with the app ‎Fluent English Speech.

Finally, if you would like to reach a high level in public speaking and influence your audience work on your voice modulation and use of pauses with the app ‎Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause.

More on www.batcsglobal.com

126. Forget about the fear of public speaking!

By Olga Smith

Many of our students who take our elocution lessons and courses ask us how they can overcome anxiety when speaking in public, chairing a meeting or leading a group discussion. 

People feel they are on display they start thinking that others judge them and that they are not as good as their colleagues who appear very confident. This negative state of mind may be worsened by failures from the past and a lack of preparation. 

What can you do to overcome this fear if you do not have much time before your next presentation? 

First of all, people have their unique way of presenting and this is the beauty. As they say: variety is the spice of life. Do not compare yourself to others and do not think that you are better or worse, you are just different and interesting in your own way, and it is a gift for others to listen to the real you.  

Having said that, there are techniques to present your ideas clearly and effectively to engage your audience and even impress them. I will share with you the tips that worked for me. 

 Preparation
1. Write down your presentation and read it 3 times out loud. 

2. Underline the keywords and stress them when presenting by saying them louder. 

3. Record yourself on audio or video recording and note things you need to improve in your speech and body language. 

When presenting
1. At the very beginning, make sure you greet your audience. You can say, for example: Good morning, everybody, it is my pleasure to talk about...today. I will start with... 

2. At the end of your talk, you can say a famous quote and finish by inspiring your audience to think about your topic, and finally thank them for their attention. 

3. Make pauses after each idea, do not say all ideas in one breath.  

4. Stay straight, do not slouch and avoid touching your hair and clothes. 

5. Project your voice and articulate words clearly.

 There is a wonderful elocution course that can help you to become a competent presenter.  

If your presentation is very important and you need urgent help, then you can book a couple of elocution lessons. 

More on www.batcsglobal.com

125. When is the right time to speak and when it is not?

The ability to say the right thing at the right time is a mark of a true master. I recommend working on listening skills and the conciseness of your speech if you want to develop this ability.

1. Successful communicators are paying attention to how people perceive their messages, understand who they are speaking to, and establish a rapport. It is important to pay attention to intonation and voice.
   Often, when we talk to others, we do not have the patience to listen. We hear a few words and very quickly we start anticipating what the other person will say. We even try to finish their sentences which are not very helpful, particularly for the person who is talking. Do not do that!

In order t say the right thing at the right time we should listen, pause, think and reply. This will allow us to create a better response and modulate our voice accordingly.

2. It is better to speak less and answer only those questions that are being asked of you. Make your answers clear and stress the key messages. You can learn about it with the apps Get Rid of your Accent and Fluent English Speech.

I have noticed, that some people try to talk a lot, and make silly jokes in order to feel comfortable. When people try to prove themselves they often speak fast and try to say all they know in a short period of time. In my opinion, it is better to not say much, instead, listen and smile more.

It would be wise to avoid negative and sensitive topics, such as politics, religion and money to avert conflicts and offending others.

Jacqueline Kennedy once said: "I sometimes have regretted what I said, but I have never regretted my silence."

124. What is the value of clear English in organisation communication?

By Olga Smith

Good English is important in organisation communication influences:

1. Clarity of communication within the organisation such as meetings, presentations and task assignments.

2. The reputation of the organisation when communicating with customers, clients and partners.

3. The professional success of the people

There are apps, books and video courses based on elocution lessons that help professionals to master this essential skill.

When you do not speak clearly in English that leads to a number of disadvantages.

Let me present a few examples given to us by our students:

"I work as an IT consultant, but because I speak with a strong Spanish accent and not all what I say is being understood, I am not invited to meetings. I know if I don't start to speak more clearly, I will be staring at the PC screen and have the same salary for many years to come..."

"After your accent reduction course I got promoted to an area manager, and now I want to master my speech even more as it became absolutely clear to me that communication is power."

"I am a dietician in Chelsea and all my clients have a posh accent (RP). In order to be trusted by my clients, I need to improve my accent".

Our Turkish student working as a Stock Exchange trader in London told us what her manager said to her: "If you don't lose your accent you lose your job". On the trading floor, people are so stressed and have no time to understand thick foreign accents.

My business partner from Silicon Valley told me that many Chinese and Indian IT specialists working there earn peanuts because it's difficult to understand their English. He further specified: they are making $100k now, but if they changed their accent they would make $400.

We have recently conducted research. We contacted native English people who work with non-native English speakers. We asked them what they thought about colleagues with a foreign accent that is difficult to understand.

These were their replies:
· Frustration
· Anxiety;
· Doubt if they are being understood;
· Accent distracting them from what is being said.

123. A very tricky English sound /ʌ/ as in "duck"

By Olga Smith

Almost all of the non-native English students who are taking our elocution lessons and courses make a pronunciation mistake with the sound /ʌ/ as in “duck”. Why this sound is so tricky? There are two main reasons:

1. This sound does not exist in many languages. Students tend to open their mouth too much and pronounce it with the sound /a/ as in “pasta”.

2. It is spelt with “o, ou, u” and students make a mistake by pronouncing it with /ɒ/ as in “box” because in many languages the pronunciation is the same as the spelling. In English, spelling and pronunciation are not the same because English inherited many words from other languages such as Latin, French and German and they left the spelling the same but anglicised the pronunciation. Below are the words where most students make a mistake:

   “company, country, front, stomach, oven, London, tongue, mother, love, money, other, monkey”

We recommend that you check your speech organ position for this sound in our video course Get Rid of your Accent Part One and then practise the sound with the apps Elocution Lessons, Get Rid of your Accent and Business English Speech. Lesson 9 in all apps and the video course.

If you fail to pronounce this sound correctly, your speech might be difficult to understand. You will see from the comparisons below that if you do not make this sound correctly the meaning of the word will change:

dark - duck, last -lust, branch - brunch, stark - stuck, hot-hut

Very often our students ask us how can they know where to use a particular sound. We recommend paying attention to the spelling and then practising with all our apps. The more you practise the quicker you will see the pattern.

122. How to speak in a business meeting

By Olga Smith

Speaking in a business meeting requires certain skills.  There are principles and techniques to follow for a meeting to be effective, successful, and pleasant. 

I have been to a number of the most boring and time-wasting meetings. Nothing was achieved or finalized. People just talked purposelessly for ages, trying to show off, interrupting each other, filling a short silence with empty words and silly jokes. 

How can you add value to a meeting? What can you say and how could you say it to be heard? How can you stop others from deviating from the meeting agenda? 

First, let's discuss the principles upon which speaking in any meeting depends. 

1. Time is money
To keep to a meeting time, have an agenda and write down your key ideas prior to the meeting. If others deviate from the meeting agenda, point out gently that you need to stick to this particular agenda. 

2. It is not personal it's business
Based on that, business meetings need to be about business and not about emotions.
The intonation should be neutral. 

3. Two brains are better than one
Be a good listener and make notes of other people's ideas if you want to build on them. There is a saying: when you speak you do not learn anything, but when you listen, you do.  

4. Clarity and conciseness
When you speak in a meeting, make sure your speech is clear. Bear in mind that people might struggle to hear you if you speak with a strong accent.  
Stress keywords. It will make it easier for others to get your ideas.
Speak with pauses, do not say all your ideas in one breath. When people listen to us, often their listening speed is slower than our speaking speed particularly if you speak too fast, it is quite hard to listen to someone to speaks in paragraphs without any pauses. Say less with more pauses, rather than too much, and very quickly. 

Our elocution courses will help you master the necessary speech skills to be successful in any meeting. 

121. Book your speech analysis and a tester session

We start elocution lessons with an individual speech analysis combined with a tester session which will enable us to develop a course tailored to your needs. The speech analysis lasts 45 minutes and costs £80. You can pay by PayPal or bank transfer. Email olga.smith.batcs@gmail.com to book your speech analysis. WhatsApp: +447971246806. Simply tell us the times and dates that suit you best and give us your Skype name. You will receive a written report and lesson plan.

Prices:
60-minute accent reduction lesson, £95;
*5% discount if you pay for a pack of 5 lessons, £450;
*10% discount if you pay for a pack of 10 lessons, £850.

60 minutes hybrid accent reduction/elocution/public speaking lesson £120;
*5% discount if you pay for a pack of 5 lessons, £570;
*10% discount if you pay for a pack of 10 lessons, £1080.

90-minute lesson in public speaking, £250;
*5% discount if you pay for a pack of 5 lessons, £1180;
*10% discount if you pay for a pack of 10 lessons, £2250.

You can pay by PayPal or bank transfer. Email oriana_r@hotmail.com if you have any questions regarding the payment. Lesson fees are non-refundable.

120. History behind Get Rid of your Accent brand

By Olga Smith, the co-author of the books in the series Get Rid of your Accent and the founder fo the brand

Speech workshop by Olga Smith

I joined the oldest public speaking club in London in 2004. People in my club were seasoned public speakers with very sophisticated English. I, on the other hand, had a very quiet voice, a strong foreign accent and monotonous speech. I felt I would definitely benefit if I improve my pronunciation and someone in the club recommended that I take elocution lessons. The elements of elocution are voice control, articulation and good pronunciation. Exactly what I needed to become a good public speaker. I started my elocution lessons with a top London speech tutor Linda James in 2004 and fell in love with her method. I found it practical, very useful and enjoyable. I have decided to make Linda's method available to a much wider audience. In 2006, together with Linda, we co-authored our first Speech Training Manual with audiotracks Get Rid of your Accent. Later we produced books and courses for different levels of English, Public Speaking and Business English. Then we converted our books into apps. In order to make our courses complete and offer a total solution to speech mastery, we finally created amazing video courses to accompany our apps and books.  

In 2006, I set up a company BaTCS, Business and Technical Communication Services specialising in products and services for people who want to have a high level of English speech and become competent public speakers.

We started doing workshops in corporations and banks in the city of London, in English language schools (EFL) and in colleges in London. Our books and apps are used in the famous School of Speech and Drama in London. EFL teachers use them with their students.

We offer individual lessons and courses for top-level professionals in London and on Skype worldwide.

118. Elocution Courses

Our history: I joined the oldest public speaking club in London in 2004. People in my club were seasoned public speakers with very sophisticated English. I, on the other hand, had a very quiet voice, a strong foreign accent and monotonous speech. I felt I would definitely benefit if I improve my pronunciation and someone in the club recommended that I take elocution lessons. The elements of elocution are voice control, articulation and good pronunciation. Exactly what I needed to become a good public speaker. I started my elocution lessons with a top London speech tutor Linda James in 2004 and fell in love with her method. I found it practical, very useful and enjoyable. I have decided to make Linda's method available to a much wider audience. In 2006, together with Linda, we co-authored our first Speech Training Manual with audio- tracks Get Rid of your Accent. Later we produced books and courses for different levels of English, Public Speaking and Business English. Then we converted our books into apps. In order to make our courses complete and offer a total solution to speech mastery, we finally created amazing video courses to accompany our apps and books.  

Our method: make sure you have the correct placement of your tongue, lips and jaw for each English sound with the help of our video course. Then practice the sound in words, phrases and verses. Practise on your own with the app and/or books. Read and listen to the model pronunciation, record yourself, and compare your recording with the model.  Below is the list of our courses with their short descriptions

Elocution Course # 1: Get Rid of your Accent # Our bestseller!
This course is ideal if you want to get rid of a regional or foreign accent and speak Standard English or RP (Received Pronunciation). It has 42 lessons; it contains effective practical exercises to make your English clear and easy to understand. The course consists of:
1. The book Get Rid of your Accent Part One, ISBN 9780955330001
2. The app Get Rid of your Accent (iOS) or  Get Rid of your Accent (Android)
3. The video course Get Rid of your Accent Part One

Elocution Course # 2: Fluent English Speech
This course is a follow-up to our first course Get Rid of your Accent.  It is ideal if you want to sound more like a native English speaker. It contains the most difficult speech patterns in English and connected speech patterns for good English fluency. The course consists of:
1. The book Get Rid of your Accent Part Two, Advanced Level,  ISBN 9780955330018
2. The app Fluent English Speech (iOS ) or Fluent English Speech (Android)
3. The video course Get Rid of your Accent Part Two 

Elocution Course # 3: Presenting and Public Speaking
This course is ideal if your want to become a successful presenter and public speaker. It contains practical exercises for voice modulation and the use of pauses. The course consists of:
1. The app 4Ps, Power,Pitch,Pace,Pause (iOS) or 4Ps, Power,Pitch,Pace,Pause: (Android)
2. The video course Get Rid of your Accent Part Two

Elocution Course # 4: Business English Speech
This app was designed for top-level professionals, diplomats and lawyers. It is the only course on the market that has both English pronunciation and business vocabulary training. It contains 43 lessons with material gathered from interviews with CEOs, CFOs and MDs of global companies and helps to develop proficiency in English. The course consists of:
1. The book Get Rid of your Accent for Business, Part Three, ISBN  9780955330025
2. The The app Business English Speech  (iOS) or Business English Speech (Android)
3. The video course Get Rid of your Accent Part One

Elocution Course # 5: Elocution Lessons
This course is ideal for different groups: children, people who just started learning English and all who what to pronounce essential everyday English vocabulary correctly. It contains 48 lessons. You will practice short, commonly used phrases, sentences and verses which are easy to repeat and it also has useful tips for teachers of English.  The course consists of:
1. The book Get Rid of your Accent for Beginners, ISBN 9780955330063
2. The app Elocution Lessons  (iOS) or Elocution Lessons  (Android)
3. The video course Get Rid of your Accent Part One

Elocution Course # 6: American English Accent and Fluency Training
This course is ideal if you want get rid of a foreign or regional accent and master Standard American accent, develop fluency in American English and sound more like an American  English speaker. The course consists of:
1. The book Get Rid of your Accent Part One and Two, General American Accent Training Manual, ISBN 9780955330087
2. The app American Accent App (iOS) or American Accent App (Android)
3. The app Fluent American Speech (iOS) or  Fluent American Speech (Android)

Elocution Course # 7: Get Rid of Chinese Accent
This course is ideal for Chinese speakers of English who want to get rid of their Chinese accent. The course contains 42 lessons Chinese translations. The course consists of:
1. The app Get rid of Chinese Accent  (iOS) or Get Rid of Chinese Accent (Android)
2. The video course Get Rod of Chinese Accent

Elocution Course # 8: Get Rid of Russian Accent
This course is ideal for Russian speakers of English who want to get rid of their Russian accent. The course contains 42 lessons with Russian translations. The course consists of:
1. The app Get Rid of Russian Accent  (iOS)or Get Rid of Russian Accent (Android)
2. The video course Get Rid of your Accent Part One

117. "You need an upper class English accent to succeed in London banking"

by Rajendra Shree 18 July 2022

“I am an Indian by birth. I left India over a decade ago and have worked around the world in the finance industry before coming to London. Now that I am here, I feel that my progress is blocked. And it has nothing to do with my expertise. 

In London, it's the people who speak English with an upper-class accent that get all the jobs. Time and again I have seen that the people who get promoted here are not the people with the best knowledge or the best expertise, but the best accents.

If like me, you have excellent domain knowledge, but you speak English with an accent from Hyderabad or Bangalore, you reach a ceiling. The expectation is that you will be a domain expert, but that you will stand behind the big boys - who all have the correct kind of articulation.

It's not like this elsewhere. In America, I see Indians from all kinds of backgrounds and with their original accents thriving - just look at the leaders of Alphabet or Microsoft. The recognition you get is completely different. In London, you are penalized. I have been told that I do the job of two or three people, but I also find my voice is absolutely suppressed. 

As a natural introvert, this is difficult to deal with. There are actions I could take to improve my situation: I have no doubt that if I went to elocution classes, it would make a difference. But I also think it's London's loss: there are plenty of talented immigrants in the City; they need to be given a chance”.

Rajendra Shree is a pseudonym. Source www.efinancialcarrers.com

P.S. by Olga Smith
In the USA the situation is not better, my ex-husband works in Silicon Valley and he told me that Indian guys get only $100k instead of $500k because of their unintelligible accents. He says he cannot understand them. I doubt City will lose as there are plenty of highly skilled people with good English speech. In my opinion, good speech is an essential tool of economic participation.

116. What habits should I develop to be more energetic?

My list of habits is based on my personal experience and I cannot guarantee it works for everyone, but it works for me. In order to feel energetic I do the following:

1. Go to bed before 11.30 pm and ensure a good night's sleep of 7-9 hours. I perform Sundo belly button tapping and healing, stretching and toe-tapping

2. A slow run or a walk in fresh air, a fast run takes my energy away and makes me tired, but a slow run or a walk improves my blood circulation and I feel great

3. Set up daily goals and ticking boxes once I achieved them

4. Communicate with people who I love and love me and make me laugh

5. Eat delicious fresh food: mainly fresh seafood, salads and fruits

6. Attend classical music concerts

7. Swimming in the sea and pools

8. Having short naps during the day

9. Do things at a well-measured pace without rushing

10. Planning activities well

It is equally important to remove certain activities from our lives in order to not waste or lose energy. I avoid:

1. Alcohol

2. Watching TV

3. Shopping

4. Talking too much and doing little

5. Rushing, hustle and bustle

More on Get Rid of your Accent | Elocution Lessons

115. A very English sound /a:/ as in "car"

By Olga Smith

All people who take our elocution lessons start their speech training with this sound, it is the long [ɑː] vowel sound as in "father, car, clerk, calm". As you can see it has different spelling variations. In English, it is typical to have many spelling variations for a sound because English inherited many foreign words, they anglicised the pronunciation but left the original foreign spelling.

This exact English sound does not exist in many other languages and that is why it is absolutely essential to master it if you want to adopt RP (Received Pronunciation) or Standard British model of pronunciation.

There is a sound that is similar to the long [ɑː] sound and it exists in many languages, it is a cardinal vowel [ɑ] as in the French word "grave". Both sounds have an open jaw position. The placement of the tongue for the English sound is a slightly different, it is flat at the back of the mouth, but not quite so far back.

Foreign students often suffer from Americanisms because they learned English from American films and sitcoms. We recommend getting rid of them if you want to master RP.

Here is a list of words that are pronounced with a long [ɑː] sound in British English and with  short [æ] as in "cat" in American English:

"fast, example, demand, chancellor, dance, pass, past, can't, chance, answer, last, laugh, path"

This sound often has the letter /r/ in spelling and in British English you should not pronounce it, below are a few examples:
"bar, mark, party, garden, pardon, park, dark, art, star, hard, start, chart, heart, heart, smart". In General American /r/ is pronounced.

We have a wonderful video course where we make it absolutely clear how to produce this sound and all sounds of Received Pronunciation in the mouth. Once you know the exact placement of this sound, you can practise it with the apps ‎Get Rid of your Accent UK1, Business English Speech and Elocution Lessons.                    

107. What speech tells us about a person?

In our elocution lessons we help to master various elements of speech:

• vocabulary

• pronunciation

• accent

• dialect

• articulation

• intonation and inflection

• power, pitch and pace of one’s voice

Let’s see what these speech elements tell us about a person.

Vocabulary can be broad or basic, professional or colloquial. “In England, accent and vocabulary can stamp a person’s identity like a brand”. People with broad vocabulary are perceived as well-read and well-educated. People who speak with standard English or RP (Received Pronunciation) are often associated with exclusive private schools and Universities and a superior class, whilst a strong Cockney accent with a working class. In the UK, accents and dialects can tell us where a person originates from North or South, Wales or Scotland.

Below are a few common traits in one’s speech that may infer a person's character or behaviour. This is not absolute and of course, there are exceptions to these generalisations.

For example, when people feel nervous they tend to rush their speech. Such speakers lack power and gravitas and a person might appear as one who trying hard to prove something to others. In order to build your confidence, it would be better to speak less.

Our voice power and confidence level often work together. When we speak loud enough we feel more confident, and when we feel confident we speak loud enough. Vice versa, when we lack confidence, our voice often automatically gets quieter.

Different patterns of intonation show different emotions. To name a few: aggression, excitement, indifference, anger, sadness, happiness and many others. Read our blog about the power of intonation.

Power, pitch and pace of one’s voice tell us about temperament, intellect and character. People who are calm and quiet often have measured pace.

Highly intelligent people often speak very fast as their mind is bubbling with ideas.

People who have a low pitched voice sound grounded, whilst people with high pitched voice may appear lighthearted and childish.

There are apps, books and video courses that help you to master your speech to become the best version of yourself:Get Rid of your Accent:, American Accent App, Fluent English Speech:, 4Ps, Power,Pitch,Pace,Pause.

Video Courses to master English speech:
Get Rid of your Accent Part One and Get Rid of your Accent Part Two

More on www.batcsglobal.com

104. Get Rid of Spanish Accent

We have been running elocution lessons since 2006 and taught many students from Spanish-speaking countries. Their accent is quite strong and it takes time and effort to make their English clear.

We have identified four areas of English speech which are particularly difficult for them:

1. English spelling and pronunciation are not identical. English inherited a lot of foreign words, including Latin and they kept the original spelling but anglicised the pronunciation. Some English sounds do not exist in Spanish. For example, the sound / ʌ/ as in "come" does not exist in Spanish and it is spelt with the letter "o". Spanish speakers would pronounce it with the /o/ sound.

Another example is the use of schwa. Schwa does not exist in Spanish, whilst in English schwa is the most important sound. It is used in unstressed syllables and it is very important to master fluency in English because it is used in unstressed words.
2. There are long and short vowels in English, in Spanish, all vowels have the same length.
3. English consonants are crisp and well-articulated, whilst in Spanish consonants are softened. Spanish speakers of English often do not make a distinction between /b/ and /v/, /n/ and /m/, particularly at the end of the word. We suggest that you practise particularly these consonants because they do not exist in Spanish:
/h/ is in “hat”, /j/ as in “yes”, /dʒ/ as in “juice”, /v/ as in “victory” and /z/ as in “zoo”.
4. In good English speech, pronouncing/t/ and /d/ endings is important. Spanish often do not pronounce them at all.

What can we recommend to overcome the difficulties mentioned above?

1. When learning English words, practice them with the correct pronunciation. Most online dictionaries and Google Translate offer the sound version of a word. A more advanced step would be to memorise the phonetic symbols of English sounds.
2. Practise pure English long and short vowels.
3. Do articulation exercises every day for 2-5 minutes. It takes time and effort to build your speech organs muscles for English consonants.
We suggest that you practise English vowels and consonants with the apps Elocution Lessons and Get Rid of your Accent and the book Get Rid of your Accent Part One.
4. Learn and practise word endings with the app Fluent English Speech and the book Get Rid of your Accent Part Two, Advance Level

To get the best results we recommend that you book a few elocution lessons

More on Get Rid of your Accent | Elocution Lessons

86. Prevention is better than cure

By Olga Smith

Many people who take our elocution lessons often tell us the same: I wish I had come to you five, ten, twenty years ago. When they started speaking English no one taught them English RP (Received Pronunciation) and they spoke with poor pronunciation for a long time thus developing bad habits. 

As you know, it is harder to get rid of a habit than to learn something new because old bad habits become second nature and we repeat them on auto-pilot almost unconsciously. 

A very important part of elocution lessons is working on breathing and good posture. In my previous blog, I talked about the main features of bad posture. I have been taking notes of the bad posture habits which people develop. For example, the following everyday actions create tension in the neck area: 

1. When people feel cold, they often lift their shoulders

2. When people use iPhone or iPad they tend to bend their head down thus creating neck pain

3. When they sit with uneven shoulders height

All the above-mentioned habits may lead to: 

1. Change in shape in their upper back and a tendency for slouching

2. Blocking the energy flow

3. Incorrect breathing

4. Imbalance in their entire body

5. Feeling tension in their face and jaw

6. Tension when presenting in public

People might feel that it is easier to speak with poor pronunciation and slouch instead of keeping a straight back. But if you think about the unfortunate consequences of letting things drift uncontrollably, you might regret it in future.

It is very easy to fall into bad habits. It takes time and effort to fix them. Therefore, I recommend that you pay attention to the way you speak and to your posture all the time. By that, I mean regular daily posture and speech exercises.  Elocution apps will be very helpful for it. The more you practise, the sooner good posture and good speech become second nature.

Good posture will help you to look professional, feel relaxed and confident which is particularly important when presenting in public.

Good speech will help you in job interviews, in fact in any form of communication be it professional or social.

84. Think and speak with power and persuasion

By Olga Smith

Our speech is the reflection of our thinking. It tells a lot about us. To be successful we must learn how to form our thoughts and speak with clarity, power and persuasion.

This article is particularly useful for public speakers who present in a court of law, Parliament, or Senate, on TV, Radio and YouTube. The material for this article comes from years of experience of our elocution tutors who worked with actors, diplomats, politicians and top-level professionals on their speech mastery.

Thinking process:

1. Always start with a powerful and engaging beginning. You have 5 seconds to impress and engage your audience.

2. Get to the point. Avoid beating about the bush.

3. Create messages that are of benefit and interest to your audience. The human brain has a tendency to listen to something that is entertaining, vital, or helpful for their life. Make sure that your audience is engaged throughout your entire speech.

4. Avoid parasite words, swear words, and fillers like “so, you know, basically, like, em, ah”. People use these words when they are thinking and speaking at the same time. Simply substitute these unnecessary words with pauses.

5. Think before you speak, formulate your thoughts first in your head, and use pauses before phrases and sentences which allow you to create a really good phrase or sentence and prepare a beautiful delivery.

6. Do not jump from one topic to another, use logic and finish one thought at a time.

7. Avoid repetitions, use synonyms and antonyms.

8. Speak directly and categorically, and avoid words like “might, maybe, perhaps, it seems, would”, etc.

9. Speak about profound things using simple language. Avoid speaking about shallow /primitive things using sophisticated words; it is useless and a waste of time for your listeners.

10. Delete unnecessary words and sentences, and deliver the quintessence of your thoughts with clarity, emotion and high energy.

Speech delivery:

1. Make sure that you have good articulation and clear speech.

2. Stress key messages and “throwaway” unimportant words saying them with lass power, quicker and liaising words.

3. Use pauses.

4. Pay attention to your intonation/inflection.

5. Use your own emotions to connect to your audience’s emotions.

6. Do not copy TV newsreaders who read prepared scripts and just present the facts in an emotional way. It is boring and sounds almost subhuman.

7. Make sure that your hand gestures, posture and eye contact add to your message and empower it.

8. Use 4Ps, power, pitch, pace and pause and avoid monotonous speech.

9. Project your voice, avoid speaking too quietly.

10. Avoid shouting, use intensity of your voice instead

11. Avoid high pitched voice; it sounds childish and can be perceived as a weakness.

12. Make sure your voice is strong and comes free from the stomach. Straight posture and correct breathing help with it.

13. Avoid speaking too slowly or too quickly. Develop a good natural pace.

    You can master your speech delivery and voice modulation with apps and books in the series get rid of your accent and by taking elocution lessons based on RP.
    

    More on https://www.batcsglobal.com/elocution-lessons

80. Sources of strength

By Olga Smith

What makes us strong? Obvious things like good sleep, good food, sun, vitamins, etc. Yet, there are people who seem to have a great lifestyle but nevertheless look empty. What makes people look empty? There can be a number of reasons: lack of purpose in life, lack of self-confidence and low self-esteem. But what can be the cause of all these problems?

Let’s think about what we consist of. We are children of our parents. Our parents are only humans, they have their strengths and weaknesses. As their children, we inherit both, their strengths and their weaknesses.

As we grow up once we have recognized our parents’ weaknesses, we often criticize and reject them. So-called experts in psychology tell us that we should honour our feelings and respect our boundaries and if we do not love or respect our parents we have the right to do so.

Indeed, our parents might have hurt us, and we can feel pain as a result. But does the rejection of our parents and focusing on their weaknesses benefit our life today?

I came to the conclusion, that it is more productive to see our parents as humans and focus on their strengths. If we focus on their strengths it can become a tremendous source of strength for us.

50. The most important sound in English: [ə] - schwa, as in "the"

By Olga Smith

The schwa is the most used sound in English. It is important to sound fluent and natural. In our experience, almost all students of English make many mistakes with the schwa. Let’s have a look at this sound and sort it out once and for all! The schwa is highlighted in all examples below.

5 most important characteristics of the schwa [ə] are:

1. It is the shortest sound in English.

2. The schwa is always unstressed. It is pronounced in unstressed syllables and in a multi-syllable word there can be more than one schwa as in “conclusion, announcement, effortless”.

3. It is a very neutral sound; when pronouncing the schwa, remember that your speech organs should be relaxed and neutral

4. The schwa is used to make the speech more fluent because many unstressed syllables and even unimportant words are pronounced with the schwa.

5. It is used in contracting unimportant words for the meaning of the sentence or phrases.

   5 main classes of words that have the neutral vowel shwa [ə]:

   1. Endings of names: Linda, Michael, Olga, Richard, Spencer.

   2. Auxiliary verbs in unstressed position will often have the schwa: have, has, had, were, was, are, am.

   3. Articles, prepositions and particles in unstressed position will often have the schwa: a, the, to, of, as, for, from.

   4. UK counties ending in “shire”: as in Oxfordshire, Berkshire

   5. Names of places ending in “ford” as in Stamford, Stratford.

Below are the most common mistakes people make when they do not know how and when using the schwa:

1. They pronounce the words the way they are spelt. Many Latin words ending with “tion”,”sion” as in “emotion, confusion” are pronounced with the schwa at the end, but people whose native language is based on Latin, like Spanish for example, do not use the schwa and pronounce words the way they are spelt. English spelling and pronunciation are not the same. English pronounce unstressed ending “tion” , “sion” with the schwa. Prefix “con”, “ob” as in “conclusion”, “oblivious” are also pronounced with the schwa. But many wrongly pronounce [ɒ] as in “box”, instead.

2. They make the schwa too long. Remember that the schwa is so short, it is almost not there.
   When you make the schwa too long it is not good English and even the stress in a word can change to the wrong one.

3. Sometimes they pronounce [i:] as in “please” in the article “the”, they say thi: table. It is important to use the schwa. The only time you can pronounce “the” with a short sound [ɪ] as in “big” is when the next word starts with the vowel, for example, “thɪ illness.”

4. They pronounce the article “a” as diphthong [eɪ] as in “pay”. The article “a” is always unstressed and should be pronounced with the schwa.

5. They pronounce prepositions “of” and “from” with the sound [ɒ] as in “box”, these prepositions should be pronounced with the schwa.

6. Quite often, they pronounce “r” which is in spelling in words with the schwa as in “doctor, sponsor, wondered”.

   We teach the schwa in all our books and apps. Practice lessons 6 with the following apps:
   Elocution Lessons, Get Rid of your Accent UK1, Business English Speech; practice the schwa in lessons 5 and 6 with the app Fluent English Speech.

   Olga Smith

   www.batcsglobal.com

48. How do I get rid of my native accent and get an American accent?

By Olga Smith

In order to get rid of your accent you need to:
1. Learn and practice how to pronounce sounds of General American pronunciation
2. Do articulation exercises to make your consonants clear and crisp.
This process has several stages:

The first stage is to make sure that you put your lips, tongue and jaw in the right position for the learned sound. If you fail to do so, the sound will not be precise and may be different altogether. Follow the instructions on the speech organ position given at the beginning of each lesson. Pronounce the sound several times, looking in the mirror to make sure you do it correctly.

When you have just started working on a sound your speech organs are not trained; therefore, they might not go automatically for correct placement. When you use the mirror, you can see yourself and adjust lips and jaw positions. When it comes to the tongue position, you need to think about its position and adjust it. When you feel that your sound is correct, start pronouncing the words, sentences and verses in the lesson.

The second stage is aimed at helping you learn a sound by repeating and imitating after the teacher. This exercise will help you to make the sound as correctly as possible and train your speech organs for the particular sound. The more you repeat, the better your pronunciation becomes.

The third stage gives you an opportunity to practice the sound on your own American accent app. You will be hearing yourself and mastering the sound. This stage is essential before recording yourself. We recommend that you practice each sound for about 20-40 minutes a day, with little breaks in between.

The fourth stage involves recording yourself and listening to the recording. It helps you to see whether you have progressed in mastering the pronunciation and to identify where you still make mistakes.

The fifth stage focuses on eliminating mistakes. Correctly repeating the words where you made a mistake will help you avoid repeating the same mistakes in the future.

The sixth stage has the purpose of helping you incorporate the learned sound in your everyday speech. It’s about paying attention when you speak. We say: think before you speak and slow down for the period of mastering your speech.

If you speak fast, you are likely to speak in your autopilot mode, with your accent. After the lessons, you will be able to correct yourself. This stage is also trying to find the learned sound in the newspapers, on the radio, on TV and when people are speaking English.

The next step in eliminating your accent is to develop fluency, by speaking in phrases rather than in separate words, while knowing how to correctly link words together. You can practice this with the app Fluent American Speech.
Finally, learn the patterns of American/English intonation and vocal techniques so that your speech is more close to native speakers.

More on www.batcsglobal.com