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Want better French? Take the pressure off (#505)

7 September 2012 by OffQc

If you struggle to find the courage to speak to native speakers, you know how risky it feels to jump into a conversation or to initiate one yourself.

When we feel anxiety, it’s easy to tell ourselves that we must not be ready to speak yet. And so we wait.

We study some more, hoping that the right moment will come along.

But the longer we wait, the more we risk letting anxiety build up. We may never take action.

There is no right moment.

Take more speaking risks, and early on, before the anxiety builds up. Your French will be messy, and that’s normal.

If you believe that you must get it right every single time, you’ll be too tense to allow yourself to explore. Progress will be a battle.

Take the pressure off.

Give yourself permission to make all the mistakes you want.

When you see that nothing bad happens, your anxiety will go down. You’ll begin to take risks more willingly. Learning will speed up.

Language learning involves a lot of relearning. Let the mistakes come out — you’ll fix what needs fixing along the way.

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Posted in Entries #501-550 | 7 Comments

7 Responses

  1. on 7 September 2012 at 18:42 Anonymous

    Very sound advice. I find it both exhilarating and humiliating to just “jump into the deep end” with my nascent french. And I usually learn something.


    • on 8 September 2012 at 14:53 OffQc

      Good for you for taking the jump. It’s not easy when you’re just starting out, but learning how to do it now will be a big advantage for you as you continue.


  2. on 7 September 2012 at 18:59 Angela Korra'ti

    Thank you for posting this! I tried to practice a little when I visited Quebec several weeks ago, and I was VERY nervous. *^_^*;;


    • on 8 September 2012 at 14:43 OffQc

      The more often you do that, the less of a big deal it will seem. Keep seeking out more situations like those, and they won’t make you nervous anymore.


  3. on 18 September 2012 at 09:46 Barbara

    Sometimes it helps to remember that when we speak with someone who is not fluent in English or who is learning the language, we are usually just happy that they are speaking our language and that we are able to communicate with them. People don’t expect you to be perfect and mistakes can make the conversation more interesting!


    • on 18 September 2012 at 19:04 OffQc

      This is very true, Barbara. We usually don’t pay much attention to others’ mistakes, just the meaning of what’s being said.


  4. on 25 May 2013 at 17:12 Anise

    I live in Quebec and mostly the Francophones are happy to hear someone trying to speak French, and many will even switch to English for you if you are really struggling, or they help you with your pronunciation.

    But sometimes, as has happened to me several times, you will get yelled at for daring to attempt speaking imperfect French.

    My step-father’s workplace once had a very angry message on their voice mail from a Francophone complaining about the receptionist still having a English accent when she spoke French and therefore was an insult to all Quebecers who deserve to hear and read only perfect French everywhere at all times.

    Sad, but there are always language extremists sucking the fun out of everything. The Marois government has only re-instilled notions to the “pur laines” that the English are trying to destroy the French language and cannot be trusted. It has quickly become one of the biggest mistakes this province has made.



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