1. Slow Down Your Speaking Speed
You might be an eloquent speaker when it comes to your mother tongue, but expecting the same standards from yourself when speaking in a foreign language may not be very realistic.
Especially, if you’re at the early stages of learning. Learners are often told not to worry about the mistakes they’re making, however, it is easy to understand why you would like to make a good impression on your audience. To overcome this difficulty, you may try slowing down your speaking speed.
Nobody will hold it against you if you speak more slowly and clearly. Great speakers do the same to get their message across. Selecting your words carefully may also be seen as a sign of respect towards your audience. It shows that you want to give them the best possible answer.
2. Give Yourself Time to Think
You may be worried that the people you’re talking to are impatient and would like you to say what you want as quickly as possible.
It may not be true – people often prefer a well-thought-out answer to a rushed one.
这可能不是真的 – 与一个草率的回答相比，人们更愿意你经过周详的思考后再做回答。
Another practical thing you can do is equipping yourself with fixed sentence patterns you can use when remaining silent doesn’t seem to be an option.
Here’s an example:
Why is there so much violence on TV? That’s a good question. Let me think for a moment, I haven’t really thought about it before. Well, I suppose…
Here the speaker gains considerable amount of time to reflect just by repeating the question and adding a few sentences. If you do the same, you’ll sound more fluent and won’t feel the pressure of having to say something before you’re ready.
3. Learn Sentences, Not Only Words
In a way, this will take the pressure off too. When you learn a new word, try to memorize a couple of sentences that contain it.
There might come a time when you can use one particular sentence with little, or no alteration at all. Unfortunately, many people learn words by heart, but have no idea how to use them in a sentence.
4. Learn to Listen
When speaking in a foreign language, you might be so focused on what you are saying ， that you forget to listen to what others are saying.
This is a big mistake as they might be using the exact words or grammar you’ll be needing later on. So pay attention to what’s being said around you, it’s your most important resource at the time of speaking to someone.
5. Practice Your Interrogatives
We also need to keep in mind the fact that communication is a two-way process. Not only does it make you seem uninterested – even rude – if you don’t ask questions, you might also end up being the one who has to do all the talking. So, when you’ve run out of ideas about what to say next, remember: others might have something to add.
我们应该记住这个事实：交流是一个双向的过程。如果你不问问题，这不仅仅会使你显得冷漠 – 甚至粗鲁 ，你也可能不会再是那个主导话语权的人。因此当你不知道接下来该说点什么的时候，请记住：或许可以让其他人进行补充。