That’s not always true, but 80% of the times it kind of is, a new voice is a new life. The idea here is not for you to go to your nearest hospital and start shopping for a new throat with new vocal chords, we’re talking about speaking another language, a second or third language. We’re talking about being a true bilingual or trilingual with that almost superhuman ability to shift from one language to another quicker than the click of a mouse. That is true power. How could it not be when your brain has acquired that unique ability to access the history, philosophy, logic, minds and hearts of two cultures that speak in two or three different tongues? When you are equally fluent in two languages, your life is not and cannot be the same, especially if one of those languages happen to be English, the de-facto global language of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
There is nothing that bugs me more than seeing people who most certainly know that fact, yet, they lack the will and drive to go after what they want. They most importantly lack the imagination as opposed to the knowledge. You may learn and know about how important English is for you and your career, but how well are you able to imagine yourself speaking it like someone who’s born with it? How clear and vivid is that image in your head? How sharp and realistic is it in your brain? Imagine. Imagine hearing yourself speak with a new voice, a voice that you’ve never heard before. The better you imagine it, the more likely it is that it’s going to become real.
Imagination is the ability to create an alternate and fictitious reality that we so desperately want to believe in that we turn it into a reality for us and others too. Imagination is daring to tell yourself a lie and then work incredibly hard to make yourself believe it. Here’s a lie for you. You can speak English like a native speaker! Now what are you going to do about it? I dare you, make yourself believe it. Trust me, it’s worth it. Speaking two languages with native-like fluency is almost like living two separate lives in one, it’s a gift and a blessing.
I have taught the pronunciation course for over 8 years and on the first day of every round of the course, I always know who will walk out of it as winners or losers. I often have 60-70% of the students attending the course finishing up the course as winners and the rest of them as losers. To walk out of it as a winner, you would have to show a clear progress in your speaking and listening skills. It’s simple. You would have to demonstrate that you can hear your own mistakes and correct them, speak smoother, faster and more natural.
The interesting thing is that 50% of the 60 or 70% always happen to be converts to winning. They join as losers, in a sense that they are not seriously committed or doubt their own ability etc, but once I stir their imagination and help them to visualize the achievement, their whole attitude changes and they all of a sudden get obsessed with it. How do I know? They get addicted to hearing my voice, not because I have a charming voice, though some might believe so, but I digress, it’s rather because they can now visualize success. Period. You give someone hope, a true hope and you’ll get them to follow you wherever you want to go.
My job as a coach has always been to make those students’ dreams which seem very far-fetched look within reach. For you to succeed in anything you do, it’s imperative that you put yourself in the right state of mind. Unfortunately, most English learners begin learning English while they are still in an “unready” state of mind. Most of them start an English course hoping that things will just happen for them, and guess what! They never do. They think that by sitting in the classroom for 5 hours listening to someone speak the language and by doing worksheets and other types of activities, somehow they will miraculously master the language. Okay, so let me save you some time, it will never happen for you. There are no shortcuts. You will never get fluent unless you work hard for it. Here’s what a “ready” state of mind sounds like: “I know that is going to be so tough but I know I can do this, and I will because I want it and I need it very much.” Here’s a formula with 4 essential components, maybe that is easier to remember: I know, but I can, and I will because I want. Each one of those 4 components represents a key attitude to scoring a win. Shall we go over them one by one? Let’s do that.
1-Realization or the “I know”: When you know, you realize, you understand the reality and nature of an object, process or a problem. In the context of language learning, or more specifically English learning, you understand the complexity and challenges of learning a new language. You need to realize how much time and hard work it’s going to require. Be realistic. If you don’t know, do research and get knowledgeable.
2-Confidence or the “I can”: If you take on a challenge, any challenge, which you think you can’t and won’t be able to complete or overcome, well the outcome’s already been decided. You’ve got to say to yourself “I can do this” and you’ve got to really believe you can, approach each challenge with a can-do attitude. You don’t walk into a boxing match and expect yourself to win when you are already imagining yourself walking out of the ring knocked out.
3-Commitment or the “I will”: Confidence and a can-do attitude are great and indeed essential but won’t get you anywhere without utter devotion and commitment to what you’re trying to achieve. By making that “I will” statement, you are promising yourself that you will never abandon your goal or that you will stay with it right through till the end.
4-Motivation or the “I need”: Without this last component, the first 3 are useless. Why would you need to understanding a process, believe that you can overcome a challenge and invest so much time, energy and money in it if you simply think you do not NEED it? Well you won’t and you shouldn’t. Sometimes though, that doesn’t come naturally to us. We have got to motivate ourselves, and oftentimes, that is the biggest challenge for most of us. How do we keep this energy flowing? That’s a skill that very few people possess probably because it’s very tough to learn or teach.
So that’s it. Before you start learning English, think about those 4 components, do you have them all? Say this to yourself: “I KNOW that’s going to be very difficult but you know what! I CAN do it, and I WILL, because I NEED to.” Make sure you remind yourself of that every day.