How to Learn English if You Are Anywhere in the World

Yes, I did it, so you can do it too. I learned English so well that now I teach others how commnicate in English in business setting
http://www.SucceedinAmerica

However, the best way to learn a language is immersing yourself into it - it includes being able to be among the people who speak it as a native language. But this lens is not about this situation. It is about learning a language of your choice (in our case, English) when you have no opportunity to immerse yourself into live language. It is not an easy task but it is possible. Nowadays, it much easier because of technology: Internet (You Tube, pod casts, blogs, and the like), radio, TV.

A little about English language. Maybe some day a common language will connect the world, but until then English language is the lingua franca. It is the language of business, commerce, science, aviation, Internet. It is just about the most influential language in the world. Very often it is the language chosen by international executives to communicate in global business. If you are planning to live and work in an English speaking country (the United States or Australia, for example), it is absolutely a language of success and advancement. Coupled with a fluency in another language (your native language, for example), it will give you an edge (it will make you more competitive) in the global workplace.

Generally speaking, there are many ways to learn English. Here are some easy to follow strategies. So, let me list those tips in the order of accessibility and cost.

- Read, read in English as much as you can. If your goal to speak modern American English, pick modern American writers and pay especial attention to dialogue - in most cases the vocabulary and grammar will be very close to real conversational language. Buy or borrow from a local library an audio version of the same book. Listen to the audio while following the text. Stop the recording from time to time, read aloud and try taping yourself. Listen how you sound and modify your pronunciation and intonation and correct yourself as you go.

- Use www.m-w.com, a website featuring Merriam-Webster Dictionary to check a word pronunciation. Keep in mind that this particular website provides standard American (US) pronunciation.

- Listen. Listen to radio, TV programs in English.

-Retell short stories or news you hear on TV or read on the Internet or in newspapers. As you do it, do not worry about grammar or pronunciation too much. Do your best, tape and listen to yourself, practice, and polish it as you go. In other words, JUST DO IT!

- Repeat and try to emulate native speakers. When you repeat words you are committing them to your memory. You probably will be uncomfortable with your own voice at first. But as you practice, you will sound better and clearer and little by little as your vocal organs start getting used to form sounds in English, you will start liking your voice in English. Just do not give up and have patience!

- Tape yourself. You must practice as much as possible. Practice makes perfect!

- Find a friend (a buddy) who has the same goal to learn spoken English, practice together and correct each other to the best of your ability. Something is much better than nothing.

- And most importantly, HAVE A PLAN, and stick to it!

The more you do it, the better you are at it.

To quote Mario Andretti, "Prepare yourself in every way you can by increasing your knowledge and adding to your experience so that you can make the most of opportunity when it occurs."

Follow this formula - read-listen-tape-retell-repeat and all over again.

Enough for now. Until next time