How to Switch From Writing Mode to Speaking Mode

A big thank you to Robby Kukurs from English Harmony for this week?s posts on spoken English fluency and how to approach grammar, which I hope you?ve all enjoyed.? Today ? how to switch from writing in English to speaking in English. Here?s Robby:

? ?

The writing mode

One problem many of us encounter in trying to speak English fluently is that we?re used to working with grammar concepts and constructing sentences in our mind?s eye.

When writing, such an approach works just fine, so the problem may remain undetected for years simply because most English classes require you to take notes and work with a pen and paper.

Eventually your mind gets so used to creating English sentences within a certain set of rules that it goes into a permanent state: this is what I like to call?the writing mode.

Basically this means you feel comfortable reading English literature, filling blanks in textbooks and writing in English but when it comes to speaking in English, you often feel like a fish out of water.

How come? When you speak, you have to improvise and produce instant verbal content and there?s little time to make a conscious effort and think of certain grammar rules (though please don?t get me wrong ? I?m not suggesting you have to start viewing English grammar as something evil by nature).

In a nutshell

The message I want to get across to you, my fellow foreigners, is that you have to make an effort to imprint all that natural English grammar into your mind WITHIN CONTEXT so that you can speak without much thinking.

It will take some time, but I guarantee that if you start focusing on speaking English instead of just studying advanced English grammar, you?ll feel much more comfortable when communicating with real people in real life!

How I do it

My approach is the following:

• When I speak, I say whatever comes to mind and I just spit it out in order to avoid over-analysing
• I don?t worry about my mistakes and I accept them as a normal part of my fluency development
• When I write, I write as if I were speaking and I only think of grammar when proofreading what I wrote!

I?m not claiming it?s super-easy, and I definitely don?t suggest it can be achieved overnight.

The transition to speaking mode, however, is the only way a foreign English speaker can stop consciously applying English grammar rules while speaking and stop analysing his or her speech.

Just think about how you speak in your native language. Despite having studied your own native language grammar at school, you never give a conscious thought to WHY certain things are said in a certain way, am I not right?

You don?t conjugate verbs or think of the right grammar tenses as you speak, so why would it be any different when speaking in English?

Here?s a 4-point plan for switching your mind over to speaking mode

1. Only in English

• Stop referring to your native language during your English improving routine if you?ve been doing so (eg only use English ? English dictionaries!)

2. Get some collocations ? grammar included!

• Focus on learning English collocations, phrases, idiomatic expressions and other naturally occurring speech patterns which already contain all the natural English Grammar in them

3. Accept where you are

• Accept the fact that you won?t be able to speak as fluently as you write and ignore imperfections of your own speech. Note them, make sure you learn the correct way of saying the respective things the next time, but don?t beat yourself over them!

4. Get out there and interact!

• Engage in heavy spoken English practice on a regular basis with others and with yourself. Speak about topics that you?re interested in ? fluency doesn?t mean you have to be able to conduct intellectual discussions about any given topic at a near-native level!

It will take some time, but I guarantee that if you start focusing on speaking English instead of just studying advanced English grammar, you?ll feel much more comfortable when communicating with real people in real life!

- Robby Kukurs

Over to you ? what do you think?

What?s your story on how you made the switch from ?writing mode? to ?speaking mode?? If you?d like to add your own tips on what worked well for you, please leave a comment below!

Also check out

Acquire natural speech patterns
You Don?t Have to Be Well-Versed in English Grammar Terms

Photo credits

Image: Mahalie Stackpole
Licence (CC by 2.0)

About Robby Kukurs

This is a guest post from English fluency expert Robby Kukurs. Robby writes about improving spoken English on his blog EnglishHarmony.com. He also regularly posts videos about improving English fluency on his YouTube channel.

David Sweetnam

English Teacher and Trainer

Engage s.r.o.

david [at] GetIntoEnglish [dot] com

Connect with me on Facebook or LinkedIn

fbi most wanted list stuttering james van der beek dyngus day indonesia quake stephen strasburg shabazz