How To Improve English Speaking Skills: 5 Astonishing Ways To Become Fluent

Hi! Are you one of those who is desperate to improve English speaking skills, but, can’t find a way? If your answer is, “Yes!”, you have come to the right place!
Just like any other skill, English speaking skills can be improved with regular practice over time by using methods that will be helpful for a long period of time. I have met many people who have mastered English grammar, but get stuck, while having conversations.
When we start to speak a non-native language, we make mistakes, get nervous and are afraid to be made fun of. But, with regular practice and using the methods listed below, everyone of us can become fluent English speakers!
Continue reading for my top 5 tips for improving English speaking skills.

(1) Listen to English audio

• An important activity for learning English, in fact, any language, is listening! Let’s go back to your childhood! Do you remember how you learnt your mother tongue? By listening! Your parents repeatedly spoke with you in your mother tongue which got cemented in your brain and you were able to speak it!
• Similarly, if you want to improve your English speaking skills, listening or watching content in English will help as you will constantly listen to the language which will get registered in your brain, it’ll process and you will be able to speak it.
• Now, you might ask, “Which audio shall I listen to or which video shall I watch?” The simple answer to it is – depends on you! Listen to content that you enjoy! It could be one or more from the following:
  • Cartoons
  • Movies
  • Web series
  • Podcasts
  • News
• I found this really influential article by FluentU about how listening helps in improving English speaking skills. Do check it out.

(2) Speak in English

• Now, let’s get to the most important activity – Speaking!
• If your goal is to improve spoken English, then, it is a must for you to speak in English with those friends who have the same goal and are inspired to learn or with someone you are comfortable with and you know, for a fact, that this person will never mock or make fun of your poor English and encourages you to improve.
• Speak for at least 30 minutes and as long as you want.
• A few topics that I recommend you to get started are:
  • Your hobby
  • Your favorite movie
  • Any recent incident at school, college, work, etc.
  • A tourist spot
  • Tell about how your day had been until that point

(3) Read

• Now, you will ask, “How will reading improve my speaking?” Well, my dear friend, the answer is simple – to become a better speaker you must have a treasure trove of words!
• Pick up a book, newspaper or a magazine that you enjoy reading and note down or remember 3-5 words everyday that are new to you. Look up their meanings in a dictionary. In addition to it, learn how to use them in sentences. To know usage of a word in a sentence, open your browser, type “Usage of <<word>> in a sentence”. You will get abundant examples of their usage in sentences. This will help you to know how to use words as per context.
• Also, learn phrases and idioms. An idiom is a phrase, saying or a group of words that has a metaphorical (not literal) meaning, which has become accepted in common usage. With the knowledge of only one idiom, you can create hundreds of sentences. It is, therefore, essential to have idioms in your repertoire. A useful list of idioms you can use on a daily basis can be found here.
• Along with idioms, learn a few phrases. Phrases are a sequence of two or more words arranged in a grammatical construction and acting as a unit in a sentence. They are an essential tool for improving your English and sounding more like a native. Commonly used phrases can be found here.
• The collection or words, phrases and idioms will greatly help you to improve quicker and build confidence while speaking.
• This exciting post gives an insight about how reading helps in improving your fluency.

(4) Practice

• And as the cliché says, “Practice makes perfect!” Building any skill takes time, effort and regular practice.
• For instance, if you want to learn playing a guitar or ukulele, you have to pick up the instrument and practice daily until you reach your desired level. This takes a lot of hard work, patience and a great deal of effort! If your goal is to get good at playing in 6 months, you have to break it down into weekly or monthly goals. Regular practice of 30 minutes everyday will gradually make you a better guitarist. 
• Similarly, if your goal is to become fluent in English, practice speaking, be consistent and learn everyday. Please keep in mind that this will not happen overnight and consistency is key.
• Practice whenever you can and with whoever you can. Attaining fluency in the English language is possible and anyone with hard work and regular practice can do it!

(5) Enjoy!

• Along with working hard, it is important that you enjoy the process. If your process is right, then the result will, definitely, be in your favor! Sometimes, we focus on the end result so much that we forget to enjoy the process. Enjoy the process, the journey of becoming fluent in this foreign language.
• If you do everything right, that is, you learn 3-5 words, 3-5 phrases, 3-5 idioms and practice speaking everyday, after 6 months or, to be more specific, 180 days, you will have learnt 540-900 words, phrases and idioms. This will immensely help you in becoming a better English speaker.
• I won’t deny the fact that you will have days when you won’t be able to speak what you want to, the words just won’t come out of your mouth. You will have a wonderful content with you, but, while speaking you could only speak one or two sentences. Sounds irritating, right! This will happen, you will get frustrated, irritated and might want to quit! But, before quitting, ask yourself – “Why did I start?” This only question is enough to fill you with enthusiasm and passion to go harder.
• English is a foreign language and we are non-native speakers. You will face challenges, you might get stuck, you may lose hope, but keep going! A small effort put in everyday, will take you a long way!
• It is imperative that you believe in yourself! If a person speaks fluent English, you can speak fluently, as well. If they have done it, you can do it, too! Fluency is a journey and it will take time. With regular practice, efforts and discipline, you will eventually get there!

Check out this fascincating video to know how learning English can be fun!

Conclusion

My top 5 tips for improving spoken English are:

1. Listen to English audio: Listen or watch your favorite TV shows, web series, movies, podcasts, etc.
2. Speak in English: Speak with your friends or close individuals. Speak everyday for at least 30 minutes.
3. Read: Read any content that you enjoy reading and learn 3-5 new words everyday and use them.
4. Practice: Practice is important to improve any skill. Practice speaking English everyday and use the new words, phrases and idioms.
5. Enjoy: Enjoy the process of learning and focus on the process than the end result.

Hey, did you notice that I have used the word ‘repertoire’ in point no. 3. Do you know the meaning of it? If no, congratulations! You have come across a new word! Look up its meaning, its usage in sentences and use it! Happy learning!