tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76669194163852480842024-03-19T18:36:16.297+08:00Speak like a Star!Daily tips on speaking clearly, correctly, and confidentlyHeatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.comBlogger79125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-4214244778651051352012-02-07T13:37:00.002+08:002012-02-07T13:41:13.882+08:00Language Comebacks for Co-workers, Know-it-alls and Language Snobs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRyJRMSaaHT4CBM5vMiqQhrO-TWV6bNz4DyoGbwopeYLc22z6Mpwz4HRWIl4F1q3apCM1L0yduVBA1XSoDH1hqysNUgYMLmfZoLgcpYMvxzWIUUSDalL55yUl2-CRK1-QuhpbKPfgbv62O/s1600/laughing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRyJRMSaaHT4CBM5vMiqQhrO-TWV6bNz4DyoGbwopeYLc22z6Mpwz4HRWIl4F1q3apCM1L0yduVBA1XSoDH1hqysNUgYMLmfZoLgcpYMvxzWIUUSDalL55yUl2-CRK1-QuhpbKPfgbv62O/s200/laughing.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Laughter really is the best medicine, and I've always said that if you can laugh at yourself and your speech mistakes, you'll be able to improve much faster. But there is a big difference between laughing at yourself, laughing with others, and having others laugh at you.<br />
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I can remember clearly, living in Denmark and working very hard to learn Danish. I had reached that point where I could understand almost everything, but still didn't have a lot of courage to speak. It wasn't until I was thrown into a new job and HAD to speak, that I finally started using the language.<br />
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There were a number of reactions. Some people heard my accent and immediately switched to English. Others spoke slowly and loudly as though I wasn't only learning a new language, but also had a mental disability. And the last group of people laughed.<br />
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I'm not sure which group I hated the most, and I'm sure you've also met these people, haven't you?<br />
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This is why I could really empathize with one of my clients when she told me during our last session that she's getting a bit tired of people laughing at her. A fun and bubbly lady to begin with, and always the first to laugh at herself, I could tell she had lost a bit of her spark. <br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">The laughter starts with people laughing WITH you. It could even be that you invite the laughter by laughing at yourself and drawing attention to your faults as an alternative to being embarrassed about them. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">At some point though, there comes a line, and you can't really blame your co-workers for not knowing when they've crossed it. When you get tired of the laughter, or want to point out that you're not in the mood, here are some of the comebacks I use with co-workers, know-it-alls and general language snobs to put them in their place and keep charging ahead despite the sneers.</div><br />
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<b>1. Laugh it off sarcastically </b><br />
"Ha, ha, ha. Yeah, I know, I couldn't pronounce an R correctly if someone had a gun to my head. I get it."<br />
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This not-so-subtle hint tells the other person that you're tired of hearing the same comments over and over again, and really, it just isn't funny anymore.<br />
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<b>2. Ask for help</b><br />
"Could you show me how to say it correctly instead of laughing? That would be much more helpful."<br />
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The response is normally an immediate apology followed by a very good explanation, or, if the person speaks worse than you, they'll drop it and never laugh again.<br />
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<b>3. Offer to speak in your native language</b><br />
"I'd be happy to speak in ______ with you, if that's easier." (Chinese, French, Italian, Thai, Vietnamese, etc.)<br />
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Said in a strong, but polite tone, I've found this shuts people up right away and they get the message that their laughter is inappropriate. The usual response I get is a flustered, "Oh, no, that's okay. Sorry. You speak really well!"<br />
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People don't mean to be hurting your feelings. By drawing attention to their laughter in a subtle (or not so subtle way), they usually realize that their actions have crossed the line from funny to hurtful.<br />
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How do you manage hurtful laughter? Let me know in the comments.Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-837005669292230022012-01-18T13:23:00.002+08:002012-01-18T15:31:11.887+08:00Express Yourself Clearly - 3 Speech Secrets to Help You Land Your Dream Job<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNSJJGIygVRvAnk5pFVRkBqCvbiW6756pMlKvB2q0myI_um-wqcqVqlz3JwH7bzfkUi_y733bHAygwexwATtU8AaAdFvD4q8aOo-Q_ywN0oIYr986H-__yFaPgvLckBxy89nffwQ83H7m3/s1600/ST%2527s+article+18.01.12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNSJJGIygVRvAnk5pFVRkBqCvbiW6756pMlKvB2q0myI_um-wqcqVqlz3JwH7bzfkUi_y733bHAygwexwATtU8AaAdFvD4q8aOo-Q_ywN0oIYr986H-__yFaPgvLckBxy89nffwQ83H7m3/s200/ST%2527s+article+18.01.12.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The Straits Times, Singapore's leading English newspaper, published one of my articles today. Here is the full text if you missed it.<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">If you want to land that dream job, work on the way that you speak. Interviews are formal settings where you will be judged in many areas, and if you can’t express yourself clearly and confidently, you can kiss that job goodbye. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">When you attend an interview, everything you do and say is being noticed, recorded and judged. From your clothes and shoes to your body language and speech, you must be polished. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">When you answer questions and share your talents with your interviewer, keep these three speech secrets in mind to ensure that you make a long-lasting impression that sets you apart from the rest.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Finish your words</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">If you do not take the time and effort to articulate your words fully, what might be expected of the way you tackle projects? Do you work as sloppily as you speak?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Word endings that are often dropped are EDs, INGs and Ss. “I’m going to” is always better than “I’m gonna” in formal situations such as an interview. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">When you talk about the past, be sure that you articulate the ED ending so you do not sound like you are making grammatical mistakes. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The letter S is another sound you will not want to forget, especially on verbs describing the actions of other people or situations: “She works…” “He goes…” “It takes…”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">You will find that when you remember your word endings, your interviewer will be better able to understand you and your message will make a greater impact. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><b>Articulate Consonant Sounds</b><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">If people often misunderstand what you are saying, it could be because you are not pronouncing consonant sounds correctly, or are confusing similar sounds. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Some commonly confused sounds are ones where the only difference in their pronunciation is whether or not you use your voice. For example, B and P are voiced and unvoiced sounds, respectively.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">This means that your articulators (tongue, teeth, jaw and lips) are all in the same position to make the two sounds. The only difference is that you should not use your voice to make a P sound, but you should use your voice to make the B sound.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">If you confuse these sounds, you will have a problem saying the word ‘problem’!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Other voiced and unvoiced pairs to watch out for are: D and T, Z and S, G and K, and V and F. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">There are, of course, other challenging consonants depending on your linguistic background. Chinese speakers often have trouble with R and L, whereas Indian speakers commonly confuse V and W, for example.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">It is important for you to be aware of sounds that could be holding you back and make a conscious effort to articulate them clearly. Polishing your speech in this way will make you easier to understand and show that you work towards perfection in every detail.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><b>Slow Down</b><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I am sure you would agree that interviews are nerve-wracking situations. When we get nervous and anxious, it is quite common that our speech quickens. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">When this happens, there are two negative results: our speech suffers and we come across as lacking self-confidence. These are two things that absolutely can’t happen during an interview!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Manage your speed by focusing on articulating all the sounds in a word. This will naturally force you to speak at a slightly slower pace. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Pause between key points and when you want to grab the interviewers attention. Pauses also give your interviewer a chance to think about what you have just said and take any notes they feel are important.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">You can also control your nerves by thinking about your breathing. Take long, deep breaths during pauses so that you don’t feel out of breath when you’re speaking. Sit up straight to enhance voice projection and sound more confident. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">By speaking in a strong tone at a relaxed pace, you will come across as confident and controlled – just the kind of person your interviewer is looking for.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The way that you speak says a lot about the person you are. By enhancing your speech, you show a potential employer that you are well-educated, pay attention to detail and take pride in presenting yourself well. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-40710895145442368952012-01-13T13:28:00.001+08:002012-01-18T13:39:29.092+08:00The Power of a SmileI'm meeting a new client in my office on Monday. We've never met, but connected over LinkedIn and spoke on the phone for the first time last week.<br />
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It's amazing the connection you can feel with a person without actually meeting them. Especially over the phone - to hear a person's voice tells you a lot about them - little details you wouldn't necessarily pick up in a short email.<br />
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This conversation was like that. We seemed to connect, and I felt energized after speaking with him.<br />
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I've been thinking about what exactly it was that made this new client so appealing over the phone, and I've narrowed it down to one thing - his smile.<br />
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No, this wasn't a videoconference, and I couldn't see him, but I could definitely hear that smile.<br />
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From the moment he introduced himself: "Hi Heather! It's Jim!*" (*not his real name, of course) I could hear warmth and friendliness in his voice, and he was immediately engaging.<br />
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To speak to a Managing Director of an international company who has such energy and positivity is like breathing a great, big breath of fresh air in a corporate world that's been stripped of emotion.<br />
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When you smile, a couple things happen. First, your voice becomes more resonant and warm. If you listen carefully to radio and television commercials, you'll probably notice that the voice-over artist smiles, especially on the company or product name. This makes the product sound more appealing. <br />
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Smiling also puts more energy into your voice. You might hear that charming, half-giggle crack in speech which adds personality and fun to the message.<br />
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Just because we're grinding away at work, doesn't mean we have to sound run-down and boring. Try smiling more - on the phone, in meetings and when you deliver presentations. Not only will you sound more friendly and approachable, you'll also be a magnet for other positive people!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-28632873584495061992012-01-03T12:40:00.001+08:002012-01-03T18:00:18.427+08:00Raise Your Game 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="55" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vsQd-ONzvn8/TwKEp-uM6XI/AAAAAAAAAFw/EAGhuBvq_Fg/s400/banner-ryg2012-Hansen_Comm_Lab.jpg" width="400" /></div><br />
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I am very pleased to be speaking at this exciting event organized by Asia Professional Speakers Singapore (of which I am a Professional Member). If you hope to raise your game in 2012 and are looking for specific success secrets to help you do just that, you won't want to miss this fantastic, full-day event.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FNMSus9dAtA/TwKFqDfqfII/AAAAAAAAAF8/isUbAYt3Jj8/s1600/RYGpyramid.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FNMSus9dAtA/TwKFqDfqfII/AAAAAAAAAF8/isUbAYt3Jj8/s400/RYGpyramid.gif" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">With eight keynote speakers and two special panel sessions, delegates attending Raise your Game 2012 will learn many great ideas and techniques to achieve greater success at work and in your daily life.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">For more information and to register visit the <a href="http://www.asiaspeakers.org/raiseyourgame2012/" target="_blank">Raise your Game 2012 website</a>.</div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-86974110205317721682012-01-03T10:55:00.000+08:002012-01-03T10:55:46.980+08:00New Communication Webinar Series!One of my newest projects for 2012 is to start a webinar series on everything communication. This is obviously a HUGE topic, so I'd like to know what you'd like to know!<br />
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If you are interested in communication, which areas are most important to you?<br />
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Here are just a few ideas to get you thinking:<br />
Presentation Skills<br />
Networking Skills<br />
Pronunciation<br />
English Grammar<br />
Communicating Across Cultures<br />
Teleconferencing/Videoconferencing Skills<br />
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???<br />
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Please let me know in the comments which topics you are most interested in learning about. The more specific the better!<br />
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Thanks for your help! I'm really looking forward to creating some great programs for you in 2012!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-41062685096638937022012-01-03T10:36:00.004+08:002012-01-18T13:39:59.984+08:003 Great Ways to Come Out of Your Shell in 2012During the holiday season, we met with lots of friends and I was surprised to find my normally confident 3-year-old hiding behind my legs instead of shaking hands and saying 'hello'. She started whining and telling me that she didn't want to say 'hi' and that she was 'shy'.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">"SHY? I'm sorry, honey, but that's not being shy. That's just being rude."<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I wondered later if I was a bit too harsh with my little girl. She is only three! But then I thought of all the adults I meet on a regular basis who act the same way. They hide behind their best friend/partner/spouse/colleague, instead of stepping out on their own, making their own voices and thoughts heard and being friendly and social with others. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">These are the people that work me to near exhaustion in social settings as I try to make them feel comfortable, ask them questions about themselves and try to pull anything out of them other than one word answers.<o:p></o:p><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal">Then, these same people go home and complain (or complain in my seminars) that no one approaches them, no one is interested in them, people are always cold and they just don’t like events and parties.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">No, this was a lesson that my 3-year-old needed to learn - the earlier, the better! <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I have no doubt my daughter will come out of her shell. But what about the adults in my seminars, members of my family, and maybe even other people like you, dear reader, who still have trouble going to events on their own, introducing themselves with confidence and making friendly small talk? <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Here are my top 3 ways to come out of your shell in 2012. Don’t waste another minute! Make this the year that you approach the world with greater confidence. You’ll be surprised what a difference this will make in your relationships!<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">1. Own the Place!<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Walking into a room full of strangers makes everyone a bit nervous. It’s easy to fall back on adolescent insecurities: “Will they like me? Am I good enough? Cool enough? Will I be accepted?” It’s normal for teenagers to have these thoughts as they try to find their place in the world. As adults, it’s time for us to grow up and have more confidence in ourselves. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">As long as you think you’re not good enough, you’re probably not. That sounds harsh, but until you’re able to accept and love yourself for who you are, how are you going to be able to give to others?<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It’s time to shift your mindset. Shoulders back, chest out, chin up! Own the place! And while you’re at it, own your dress, your hair, and most importantly, your attitude. The minute you feel insecure about anything, change your mindset. Accept whatever shortcoming you think you have, and own it. You are who you are, and you’re awesome in your own special way, usually because of these perceived shortcomings. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">2. Pretend It’s Your Party<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">When you throw a party, how do you act? You probably do your best to make all of your guests feel welcome. You probably check in with different people to be sure they’re having fun. And you probably introduce your guests to each other and help them start new conversations so they all have a nice time. What if you carried this same attitude over to other social situations and networking events? What if you entertained people as if you were the one throwing the party?<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">By thinking of yourself as the host, you take a lot of pressure off of yourself because suddenly you’re thinking about other people and their feelings instead of focusing on your own. There is no better feeling than the one we get when we know we have helped someone else.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">3. Just Go!<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">There are so many social and professional networking opportunities even in the smallest of towns. It’s easy to come up with excuses for why we can’t go – we’re tired, we’re too busy this week, we don’t want to go alone, the dog needs to be walked, etc. The real reason is usually that anxiety and self doubt about meeting new people. If you never go, you’ll never know what you’re missing, and opportunities will continue to pass you by.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">If you’re having trouble committing to attending events, and you find yourself always saying ‘no’, start small. Ask people in your circles where they like to network and hang out and tag along with them. Decide how much time you can dedicate to social and professional events each month and then actually use that time to go meet new people. Maybe it’s just one evening each month, or maybe it’s one evening per week or more. Try to register and pay for events early so it’s harder to back out at the last minute, and make sure to organize your schedule so you don’t have any reason to cancel.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The more events you attend, the more comfortable you will become in these situations. You’ll realize that you really can be social and you no longer need to hide in your shell.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Opportunities are everywhere, but it’s up to you to see them and act on them. Come out of your shell and make the most of this year by developing greater confidence and building new relationships. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-35327341047224188242011-12-20T17:34:00.002+08:002012-01-18T13:41:01.986+08:00Top 3 Most Annoying Christmas Card ErrorsEvery year I look forward to the Christmas cards I receive from family and friends, and every year, there are the same errors in them. I hate to complain about these gorgeous cards, especially the ones where people actually take the time to write something inside (by hand or computer). But still, I end up questioning whether the brilliant light has gone out for my fellow magna cum laude friends when I read what they've put to paper. Here are my top three pet peeves that put a damper on the Christmas cheer.<br />
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<b>1. "The Hansen's"</b><br />
This is a ridiculously common error plastered on Christmas card envelopes throughout the world. The apostrophe + 's' has no business hanging out at the end of a family name.<br />
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Remember, an apostrophe + 's' at the end of a noun shows ownership, not plurality. What people mean to write on the front of my cards is, "The Hansens". Yes, we are a family of four, so we need that 's' on the end, but note that there is no apostrophe.<br />
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<b>2. Confusing words: your/you're, their/there/they're</b><br />
I like to believe that these are just typos, but it is important to remember the difference between these words.<br />
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'Your' shows ownership - your year, your family, your presents<br />
'You're' is the contracted form of 'you are' - you're so special, hope you're great, you're the best<br />
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'Their' shows ownership, just like 'your' - their year, their family, their presents<br />
'There' indicates location - the presents are over there, put the Christmas tree there<br />
'They're' is the contracted form of 'they are' - they're on vacation, they're celebrating Christmas<br />
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<b>3. No proofreading</b><br />
It's rare that I receive a card that is hand-written anymore. The majority are long, detailed reports of the happenings of the last year, and they are typed, printed and sent in bulk to the masses.<br />
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This is why I'm always amazed by the number of glaring errors I find - missing words, misspellings, confused words (see above). I know we're all busy during the holidays, but Christmas cards deserve one extra proof-read just in case.<br />
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Sending a sloppily written card reflects poorly on you, makes you look frazzled and overwhelmed with the task. Of course, this is probably true at Christmas time, but you don't want all your friends to know that, do you?<br />
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What errors have you found on the Christmas cards you've received?Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-74868522471114697522011-03-14T23:27:00.002+08:002012-01-18T13:41:46.168+08:00Is it really "Game off for Asian Accent?"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">On March 6th, The Straits Times, Singapore's leading newspaper, published a story about Ms. Kelly Ong, an online gaming commentator who has been ridiculed for being hard to understand. (I wish I could link to the article for you, but it's protected content.) </span><br />
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</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">In a nutshell, Ms. Ong has been hand-chosen from a number of gamers to be a commentator for one of the Asian Championships for an online game. Now, I know very little about online gaming, but you don't have to listen to her for more than 30 seconds to realize that this girl really knows her stuff!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Regardless, online gamers have been tearing her apart, complaining that she's too hard to understand and that someone with such a "heavy accent" shouldn't be allowed to be a commentator. The Straits Times pointed out that most of these comments were coming from native English speakers.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I wrote into the paper to stand up for Ms. Ong and her accent. They published an edited version of my letter in the Life! Mailbag section (p.E6) on March 12th. Here is my full response explaining why I think we need to redefine a "proper English accent" and "fight the misconception that accent and clarity are linked."</span><br />
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</div><div><div style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>"As a speech trainer specialising in international intelligibility, I read your article, "Game off for Asian Accent" with great interest. Unfortunately, it serves as yet another example of a much wider problem regarding how English is (mis)understood in international settings.</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>It's very unfortunate that Ms. Ong is drawing more attention for how she says things than what she says. She is obviously very knowledgeable about her subject.</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Native English speakers are quick to judge non-native accents as 'wrong' and 'unintelligible' because they view their own accents as the standard (and English teachers throughout the world have reinforced this). With far more non-native English speakers in the world than native ones, it's time to expand our idea of what defines a proper English accent. We also need to fight the misconception that accent and clarity are linked. In fact, they are not. </i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>One UK-based gamer named Cryodine, commented on her video commentary by saying, "I can say safely that her accent is internationally more understandable then some of the locals in the UK." I would have to agree with this from an international perspective.</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>There is quite a big difference between what native English speakers will understand and what the international community (with more non-native speakers that native ones) will understand.</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Native English speakers will most definitely have problems with certain areas of Ms. Ong's speech (which are quite common for Singapore English speakers):</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>- deletion of word endings (D, T, N, and L sounds, for example)</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>- confusion of short and long vowel sounds ('meed-late game push' instead of 'mid-late')</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>- differing word stress (for example, 'COMmand centre' instead of 'comMAND centre')</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>- unclear consonant sounds (TH and L are particularly problematic)</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>- some irregular pauses and speech patterning </i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>From an international perspective, most of these factors will have no influence on intelligibility. For example, word stress, word endings, and the consonant sounds TH and L, would not cause any difficulty. Most non-native speakers would have far fewer problems understanding her. </i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>As far as some of the comments saying she puts on an Australian accent or is trying to code switch, I don't really hear that at all. </i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Ms. Ong could definitely make some improvements to her speech in order to speak more clearly and be better understood by both native and non-native English speakers. I would highly recommend that she look into getting some training in this regard, but that definitely doesn't mean she needs to change her accent or should.</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>I wish Ms. Ong the best of luck in her new role, which sounds really exciting and fun, and hope that the negativity regarding her speech doesn't end up holding her back. </i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Thanks for the interesting article."</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Here are a couple links to Ms. Ong's commentary that were given by The Straits Times. What do you think about the way she speaks?</span></div></div></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qF7mH3TtnVk">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qF7mH3TtnVk</a></span></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04TUgonzwvM">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04TUgonzwvM</a></div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-77607129211531494422010-08-20T13:35:00.004+08:002012-01-18T13:42:11.187+08:00The Power of Words - "Have to" vs. "Choose to"I’m on maternity leave at the moment and am taking care of my two-year-old and two-month-old daughters. While doing so, I’ve realised just how often I say to my two-year-old, “Just one second. I have to...” Every time I say it, I can see the disappointment in her eyes. I started thinking about the power of the words we use, how they can change the way we view our realities, and how they impact the people we speak to.<br />
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Do you “have to” do something or do you actually “choose to” do something? Everything is a choice, isn’t it? I started a little experiment with myself by substituting “have to” with “choose to.” Suddenly, I didn’t have so many things I had to do anymore.<br />
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It was easy to look my 2-year-old in the eyes and say “I have to...” but I couldn’t even stomach saying “I choose to...” meaning I was choosing to do something over spending time with her. Of course, to a two-year-old child, the vocabulary doesn't make a difference. The actions speak for themselves.<br />
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Guess how quickly my priorities changed when I made this shift in my thinking! I haven’t written more than 3 emails in 5 days. And the girls are napping as I sit and write this.<br />
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So I’ve learned a few things this week, especially how easily I have become a slave to my language! Are you in the same situation without knowing it?<br />
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Do you often think, "Ugh... I wish I didn't have to reply to these mails right now." Do you really have to reply right now? Are you sure? Or are you replying to all your mail because you choose to do that instead of what really needs to be done?<br />
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It's easy to trick ourselves with our language. When we "have to" do something we give that task a lot of weight and importance, when in reality many of the things we "have to" do can wait.<br />
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Do you have any words that are holding you back, twisting your reality, creating regret or causing you to be busier than you need to be? Let me know in the comments.<br />
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Gotta run... the 2-year-old just woke up and I <em>choose</em> to go spend some time with her.Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-87118952821176968462009-07-17T21:14:00.003+08:002009-07-17T21:47:38.719+08:00Public Speaking: The Power of Forecasting<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3X1GOq5fg7Va4LiNGd9wrzspIDi-LPoPV4c7fzIYQPNLs6V9fkCI445wu8SfG5_cVreakoU2_r5BE5L0zD-pUHeqqfqJCS21HlRORnmYnZjg73KYHTVYFCB1Ah8Va0zOAKVjgTIDm1jrG/s1600-h/forecasting.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5359418569871946690" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 134px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3X1GOq5fg7Va4LiNGd9wrzspIDi-LPoPV4c7fzIYQPNLs6V9fkCI445wu8SfG5_cVreakoU2_r5BE5L0zD-pUHeqqfqJCS21HlRORnmYnZjg73KYHTVYFCB1Ah8Va0zOAKVjgTIDm1jrG/s200/forecasting.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />You've probably heard this overused pearl of wisdom from every presentation coach you've ever spoken to: "Say what you're going to say, say it, then say what you said." It is a good piece of advice, but do you really know how to apply it? In this article, I'd like to focus specifically on the 'say what you're going to say' part, which is also known as a forecast.<br /><br /><strong>What is a forecast?</strong><br />Just as a weather man or woman tells us what we can expect from our weather, you as a speaker are expected to give us the forecast of your talk. A forecast is as simple as one line outlining the main points of your presentation.<br /><br /><strong>Why is a forecast important?</strong><br />Have you ever listened to a presenter and wondered where in the world he was going? You have no idea what topics he's planning on covering, how long he's planning on speaking or what his main point is. As a result, you usually end up being bored, confused and frustrated that your time is being wasted.<br /><br />If you don't want to do the same thing to your listeners, be sure to use a forecast. It gives your audience a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">road map</span> of where you're going and how you plan on getting there.<br /><br /><strong>When should you use your forecast?</strong><br />The forecast should be clearly stated directly after your introduction and directly before your first point.<br /><br /><strong>What does a forecast sound like?</strong><br />Let's use a presentation scenario to illustrate how a forecast is developed. Your presentation topic is "Getting Organized" and you main points of the talk are:<br />1) organizing your mindset<br />2) organizing your home<br />3) organizing your workspace<br /><br />There are many ways you could choose to forecast this talk, and depending on your ability and confidence level you might use one of the following or a variation.<br /><p><strong>Basic:</strong> </p><p>"There are 3 important areas to look at when we're talking about organization: organizing your mindset, your home and your workspace. Let's start by taking a look at your thoughts..."</p><p><strong>Advanced:</strong> </p><p>"Organization starts with you. Once you understand how to better manage your own mindset, it will then be easier to organize your home and office. I'll show you how to conquer each of these areas this evening."</p><p>There is nothing <em>wrong</em> with the basic forecast. It is clear and concise. Most presenters (if they use a forecast) will use the basic one. The advanced forecast however, gives the same information in a more creative way that flows from your introduction to your first point. </p><p>Don't be afraid to start simple and use the basic forecast until you feel more comfortable. The most important thing is that your structure is clear and concise. When your audience doesn't know where you're going, they might assume that you also don't know, and that's when they'll stop listening.</p>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-33585467763270041082009-02-21T12:59:00.004+08:002009-02-21T13:09:44.548+08:0010 Interesting Language FactsHere’s a quick list of tidbits and resources about the English language (and language in general) which I’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">ve</span> picked up throughout my time as a speech & language trainer in Europe and Asia. I hope you find them as interesting as I do!<br /><br />1. The majority of the world’s languages are believed to stem from a common root: <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Indo</span>-European. For a gorgeous illustration of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Indo</span>-European Family Tree, click here: <a href="http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v449/n7163/fig_tab/449665a_F1.html">http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v449/n7163/fig_tab/449665a_F1.html</a><br /><br />2. Two languages that are not related to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Indo</span>-European, but are related to one another are Hungarian and Finnish. Granted, the two languages went their separate ways around 6,000 years ago, but they are still considered to be siblings in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Finno</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Ugrian</span> family.<br /><br />3. The word “set” has the most definitions out of any word in the English language.<br /><br />4. Countries where English (or other Germanic languages) is spoken account for more than 40 percent of the world GDP, while comprising only about 8 percent of the world's population (as of 2006). <a href="http://www.discovery.org/a/3639">http://www.discovery.org/a/3639</a><br /><br />5. A Singaporean client taught me that in Chinese, the word crisis is a combination of two characters which, on their own, mean risk and opportunity. Now <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">isn</span>’t that an interesting outlook?<br /><br />6. My Danish husband’s favorite English word to say is <em>humongous</em>. The hardest word is <em><span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">refrigerator</span></em>, and the funniest is <em>hippopotamus</em>. I always love to see how other people view our language! The hardest word for me to say in Danish is <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">gulerødsrugbrød</span></em> (carrot rye bread).<br /><br />7. UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, states that out of the world’s 6,000 languages, 2,500 are in danger of becoming extinct or have recently disappeared. How very tragic! <a href="http://tinyurl.com/bkn7uh">http://tinyurl.com/bkn7uh</a><br /><br />8. Every human being is born with the capacity to make every sound of every language in the world perfectly. With time, we filter out the sounds we don’t need for our primary language and focus on the ones we do.<br /><br />9. It should come as no surprise that English has the largest number of non-native speakers. There are actually more non-native speakers of English than native speakers in our world today. This leads to some interesting arguments about how “Standard English” should really be defined.<br /><br />10. The longest word in the English language is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis</span> (45 letters). Sing that, Mary Poppins!<br /><br />Do you have more interesting language points to add? List them in the comments!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-7525324725109157542009-02-16T12:53:00.003+08:002009-02-16T13:34:32.912+08:00Speech Training: Say WHAT? How to pronounce the word "what"Last week a participant in my <em>Speak up Successfully </em>course asked me a very good question: "How do you pronounce the word, 'what'?" He was under the impression that it should be pronounced <em>hwuht </em>with an <em>h </em>in front.<br /><br />As an American in Singapore I can sometimes be too quick to answer pronunciation questions by explaining how I personally pronounce things. This isn't always fair because Singaporeans have been taught British pronunciation which can be quite different.<br /><br />I answered his question by saying, "No. There should not be an <em>h </em>sound before the <em>w </em>in <em>what.</em>" Like a good student, he went home after the course and checked the online dictionaries I listed in the resource section of his workbook. The next morning there was a mail in my inbox:<br /><br />"Remember, i asked you how to pronounce WHAT..<br /><br />dictionary.com says: '/ʰwʌt, ʰwɒt, wʌt, wɒt; unstressed ʰwət, wət/<br />Show Spelled Pronunciation: [hwuht, hwot, wuht, wot; unstressed hwuht, wuht]'<br /><br />hwuht means that there's a 'h' in it?"<br /><br />Hmmm... This is a tricky one.<br /><br />First of all, it is important to note that several pronunciations are acceptable. Depending on where you are in the world, you may hear people pronounce <em>what </em>with or without what looks like an <em>h</em> sound in front.<br /><br />My original answer, that there shouldn't be an <em>h</em> was correct for my own variety of English, but wasn't entirely accurate for all varieties. At the same time, in order to really understand what the spelled pronunciation is calling an <em>h </em>sound, we need to go into slightly deeper phonetics.<br /><br />The superscript <em>h</em> (called a diacritic in the phonetic alphabet) means <em>pre-aspiration</em>. Aspiration refers to your breath, so what that means is that the <em>w</em> sounds slightly ‘breathy’ (for lack of a better non-technical word).<br /><br />When we breathe out, the closest real sound we make is the <em>h</em> sound which is why it is transcribed as <em>hw</em> in the spelled pronunciation (a slight downfall of spelled pronunciations, in my opinion). This sound is very slight in most varieties of English and I would not classify it as a pure <em>h.</em><br /><br />Try putting your hand up in front of your mouth while you make the <em>p </em>sound. You should feel an explosion of air on your hand. This is <em>aspiration.</em> You are not really making the sounds <em>p-h. </em>Rather, your breath accompanies your pronunciation of the <em>p. </em><br /><em></em><br />The same is happening when you make the <em>w </em>sound, but the breath is coming slightly before the <em>w. </em>If you were to look at the visual imagery of a recording of someone saying <em>what</em> you would be able to see slight aspiration at the beginning of the word. I believe this would also be true of the way that I say it. I cannot however agree that the word starts with an <em>h.</em><br /><em></em><br />Does that make any sense? What do you think? How do you say WHAT in your variety of English?Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-46133497225835199552009-02-05T16:55:00.004+08:002009-02-05T21:08:31.563+08:00English Language: Irregardless is NOT a word! Setting the Record Straight...The hot topic in my world this week has been the word (or should I say, non-word) <em>irregardless. </em><br /><br />On Tuesday I had an article that I wrote on word stress published in the Recruit section of The Straits Times newspaper. Usually these articles bring some nice publicity, but this time, the editors made some terrible changes to my original work and made most of the mistakes in their writing (which now looks like MY writing) that I always teach people to avoid! One of those changes was inserting the (non-) word <em>irregardless</em>. I mean really, even a spell check in Word will highlight that error!<br /><br />When I changed my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/profile.php?id=638845713&ref=profile">Facebook</a></span> status to reflect my unhappiness with the vandalism of my work (especially the insertion of <em>irregardless)</em> I was surprised by how many messages I received from friends saying "Thanks for making that clear," "I hear people saying that all the time!" and "You should teach this stuff in America!" I knew that <em>irregardless</em> was a normal word in the Singapore vernacular, but wasn't aware of how wide-spread it is other places.<br /><br /><strong><em>Irregardless</em> in America</strong><br />After a bit of research on the subject, I've actually learned (as stated in Adam Brown's Singapore English in a Nutshell) that the word <em>irregardless</em> is listed as a word in the <em>American Dialect Dictionary</em> and was recorded in western Indiana in 1912. He goes on to explain that the Merriam-Webster dictionary notes that most Americans agree that "it is not a word," but many continue to use it anyway!<br /><br />So let's set the record straight. What is it about this word that gets everybody so confused?<br /><br /><strong>Setting the record straight</strong><br />Let's start with the base word, <em>regard.</em><br /><em>Regard</em> can be used as a verb or noun, but we are going to focus on the noun form here. Dictionary.com has <a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/regard">several definitions</a>, but the most appropriate one for our uses now is:<br />#12. thought; attention; concern.<br /><br />Now, look up <strong><a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/regardless">regardless</a>.</strong> This word is not a noun, but an adjective or adverb:<br />–adjective<br />1.having or showing no regard; heedless; unmindful (often fol. by of).<br />–adverb<br />2. without concern as to advice, warning, hardship, etc.; anyway: I must make the decision regardless.<br /><br />We use the word regardless to describe an action or mindset that does not show thought, attention or concern. It's an action taken without regard. The suffix <strong>-less</strong> negates the noun, <em>regard </em>to show this meaning.<br /><br /><strong>So what's wrong with <em>irregardless</em>?</strong><br />In English, the prefix <strong><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">ir</span>-</strong> is also used to negate the meaning of words, for example <em>revocable</em> and <em>irrevocable</em>. By adding <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">ir</span>- to regardless, we actually form a double negative. It's like saying, "not without regard" or in other words, "regard." Get it?<br /><br /><strong>Where does <em>irregardless</em> come from?</strong><br />The best guess is that people are confusing irrespective and regardless, which are two words with basically identical meanings. Somehow the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">ir</span>- from <em>irrespective</em> gets thrown onto the beginning of <em>regardless</em>, creating the non-word.<br /><br />It is not however due to any tense changes as one astute reader pointed out in his email to me:<br /><em>"I hear people in conversation using this 'irregardless' word, oblivious of the fact that the past tense of 'respective' is 'irrespective.' But the past tense of 'regard' is not 'irregardless' but 'regardless'." </em><br /><br />Although he is correct about the non-word <em>irregardless, </em>his reasoning is not at all correct. Only verbs have tenses and <em>respective </em>is not a verb, but an adjective. <em>Regard </em>can be used as a verb, but in that case, its past tense would not be <em>regardless</em>, but would be <em>regarded. </em>I think that the reader meant to explain that the negative form of <em>respective</em> is <em>irrespective</em>, but the negative form of <em>regard</em> is not <em>irregardless</em>, but <em>regardless</em>.<br /><br /><strong>A solution</strong><br />Seeing how confusing this regard/regardless/irregardless issue can be, why are people using the word <em>regardless </em>at all? It's long and gets even more complicated when we have to add the preposition <em>of. </em>Here's an example of how we can remove the word from our vocabulary and speak more simply.<br /><br /><em>Regardless </em>of what you think of this word, take it out of your vocabulary.<br /><br />Change to:<br /><em>No matter</em> what you think of this word, take it out of your vocabulary.<br /><br /><br />How widespread of a problem do you think this is? Do you hear people use <em>regardless </em>and<em> irregardless </em><span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">interchangeably</span>? Share your stories and opinions in the comments!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-81670642935682467882009-02-03T16:13:00.005+08:002009-02-03T16:21:45.272+08:00Speech Training: Say it Right! Article in The Straits Times Today!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-85YMoFmAh8l6ApPk0WBA3e8CoZvF1ctLiyVzoSuU4E_fyQ5AdQzHsIxlH8AOPbEYN9A3HlnIO8oIFQp0wljxAhcsnHGpn4fjfgIBaKtdtuZbRcUrNwTNC0wFzlQ31cyLnOGnAInpr77Y/s1600-h/word+stress.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298483278878552914" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 181px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-85YMoFmAh8l6ApPk0WBA3e8CoZvF1ctLiyVzoSuU4E_fyQ5AdQzHsIxlH8AOPbEYN9A3HlnIO8oIFQp0wljxAhcsnHGpn4fjfgIBaKtdtuZbRcUrNwTNC0wFzlQ31cyLnOGnAInpr77Y/s200/word+stress.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>If you live in Singapore, pick up a copy of today's The Straits Times and flip to the Recruit section! Here's the original version of the article they published today...</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>When I bring up the topic of word stress to a group of Singaporean professionals, I’m usually met with blank stares. Word stress plays a minimal role in Singapore English, but an enormous role in the intelligibility of your English when speaking with people internationally.<br /><br />Don’t know what I’m talking about? Let’s look at a simple example.<br /><br />The word calendar can be broken down into 3 syllables: cal-en-dar. Of these three syllables, one is stressed more than the others, meaning it is said louder, longer, at a higher pitch, and/or with a purer vowel sound. In this case, the stressed syllable in Standard English is the first one: CAL-en-dar.<br /><br />Over time, and due to other language influences in Singapore, this word stress has shifted to the second syllable. It is very common to hear calendar pronounced as cal-EN-dar.<br /><br />This pronunciation has little resemblance to the standard one that many international visitors to Singapore learned while listening to British English recordings during their English as a Foreign Language class. If people don’t seem to be responding to what you say, it could just be a simple problem of word stress.<br /><br />Two-syllable nouns and adjectives<br /><br />Two-syllable words surprisingly present some difficulties. These words are so short it’s amazing that a simple shift in word stress can make such a huge difference – but it does.<br /><br />Most two-syllablle nouns and adjectives have stress on the first syllable. In Singapore however, this stress is often moved to the second syllable, or both syllables are given equal stress.<br /><br />Some words I often hear in Singapore are collEAGUE (instead of COLLeague) and purCHASE (instead of PURchase). This pattern of word stress is so ingrained in Singaporeans, many will fight me on this point until they are blue in the face (if we don’t find a dictionary before then).<br /><br />And it’s not just Singaporeans! One of my clients, a non-Singaporean and non-native English speaker, told me he had been busy writing up purCHASE orders. When I corrected his pronunciation, he resisted and said that this time I was definitely wrong. I asked him where he heard the word pronounced this way, and when he said, “From my collEAGUES!” I realized we had a larger problem on our hands!<br /><br />Two-syllable verbs<br /><br />As if things weren’t complicated enough, two-syllable nouns, when used as verbs, shift their stress to the second syllable.<br /><br />The majority of nouns that also have a verb form (e.g.: progress, present, object, produce, record) will be stressed on the first syllable when used as a noun, and the second syllable when used as a verb. Take for example the word progress. Watch how the stress changes depending on how the word is used.<br /><br />We are making great PROgress in this field. (noun)<br />New technologies are helping us to proGRESS in this field. (verb)<br /><br />Unfortunately for us, there are many exceptions to this rule. Some words will remain the same (keeping stress on the first syllable), such as answer, picture, travel, visit and several others.<br /><br />Multi-syllabic word stress<br /><br />Words with several syllables can be even trickier than their short, two-syllable friends. We saw stress shifting with these words when they changed from noun to verb form. Mult-syllabic words can shift their stress based on word form as well; there just aren’t any hard and fast rules governing the process.<br /><br />Take the word economy for example. This is a good one for our trying times. Make sure that when you talk about the ecoNOMic crisis, that your pronunciation isn’t in crisis! The stress should be on the third syllable, not the second. Words like PHOTograph and phoTOGraphy are similar.<br /><br />Making word stress less stressful<br /><br />So, how are you supposed to know how to stress a certain word? Luckily for us, online dictionaries usually have a recording you can play so you can hear the proper pronunciation.<br /><br />If there isn’t a recording, or you’re looking up your word in a real dictionary, there will be a short vertical line just before the syllable that takes the stress.<br /><br />If you had never heard about word stress before this article, please don’t get too stressed out! Think of word stress as a tool in your arsenal against misunderstanding. If someone is having trouble understanding you, pay special attention to how you are stressing your words. Sometimes it isn’t what you say, but how you say it that matters!</div><br /><div></div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-44856757970401758782009-01-30T18:56:00.005+08:002009-01-30T22:43:18.811+08:00English Foul-ups and Brush-ups on 93.8LIVE's "The Living Room"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcJ0jZ80SEoIe7NYzNfCK9JOBnqVqyLIABb-qOzRAqL7NLNT9Wt1nTQ5Tk03S46xfulOoZvORJhZFeQrTJOS-2nFvz4vZb6lX_lUmbnkwARat4V8FaE6rNQQ7b0A368FXjznKcCHACh9zs/s1600-h/P1020058.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297090057387246754" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcJ0jZ80SEoIe7NYzNfCK9JOBnqVqyLIABb-qOzRAqL7NLNT9Wt1nTQ5Tk03S46xfulOoZvORJhZFeQrTJOS-2nFvz4vZb6lX_lUmbnkwARat4V8FaE6rNQQ7b0A368FXjznKcCHACh9zs/s320/P1020058.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div>Yesterday I had a wonderful time on air with Stanley Leong and Pamela Ho of 938LIVE's "The Living Room" radio program. We talked about the English used in Singapore and some of the crazy, funny quirks that come out when Singaporeans converse with visitors here. </div><div></div><div> </div><div>Here's the 38 minute recording of the show. I hope you enjoy it. Leave your comments and questions here on the blog. I'd love to hear what you think!</div><div></div><div></div><br /><a href="http://www.box.net/shared/54z00b0r1t">http://www.box.net/shared/54z00b0r1t</a><br /><div></div></div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-37099250439268535482009-01-23T18:43:00.003+08:002009-02-09T22:03:39.573+08:00Top 10 Language Tips for 2009Your language permeates every aspect of who you are. You are judged by what you say and how you present yourself. Make 2009 the year that you commit to the way you speak. Fine-tune the little things that make a big difference with these Top 10 Language Tips for 2009!<br /><br />1. Speak positively<br />Your language influences your thoughts just as much as your thoughts influence your language. When you set your resolutions for the new year did you list, “Stop smoking,” or “Breathe freely?” Make sure that you’re sending yourself positive images with the language you use.<br /><br />2. Practice tongue twisters<br />If you’re concerned about the way you speak or the way you pronounce certain sounds, tongue twisters are a fun and easy way to begin making progress in the right direction. A simple web search will give you lots of ideas. Practice saying the tongue twisters in front of a mirror so you can see how your mouth changes to make different sounds.<br /><br />3. Set language goals<br />Whether you want to speak more clearly, correctly or confidently, set goals for yourself. For example, if you want to improve your vocabulary, set a goal to learn 10 new words per week (or whatever number you think is fair).<br /><br />4. Read... a lot<br />The best way to improve your language skills and become a better speaker and writer is to read... a lot. Choose magazines, books, newspapers and online resources that not only interest you, but also have good English language content. If you’re reading the tabloids, you’re probably not getting the best English input possible, which leads me to number 5:<br /><br />5. Listen to and observe good language models<br />Whether you’re choosing something to read, or choosing who and what you listen to, the most important thing is that the people you emulate need to speak English very well! Remember, practice doesn’t make perfect – perfect practice does!<br /><br />6. Play word games<br />Word games are a great way to keep your mind active, build new vocabulary and increase creativity. Solve a crossword puzzle, do a word search or choose one of the hundreds of different games that you can find on the internet. Take a breather from your work and work out your mind in a different way.<br /><br />7. Be aware of your body language<br />Don’t forget the non-verbal messages you send! Many people think of language and communication as what they say, but what you do is even more important. To show polite interest in what someone is saying sit up straight, lean slightly towards the listener and hold comfortable eye contact.<br /><br />8. Speak considerately<br />Remember all the lessons your mother taught you. Say, “Please,” and, “Thank you.” Slow down in large crowds and say, “Excuse me,” when you bump into people. These may seem like little, unimportant things, but they say a lot about the type of person you are.<br /><br />9. Proof-read your work – every time!<br />Do not write one letter, send one email, or submit one report without checking over your work. Look out for things like your use of commas and apostrophes, typos and spelling errors. Nobody gets everything right the first try. Assume there are errors and find them!<br /><br />10. Don’t use a long word where a short one will do<br />This famous rule is one too many of us forget. Remember that communication is not a vocabulary contest. Successful communication depends on people understanding your meaning. Use common words and phrases instead of over-inflated prose.Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-24239795853507076562009-01-21T09:39:00.004+08:002009-01-21T10:49:08.545+08:00English Language: Grammar Myths"Never split an infinitive!"<br />"Never end a sentence with a preposition!"<br />"Never start a sentence with a conjunction!"<br /><br />Grammar is scary! So many rules, and so few people who really understand them. Don't feel bad if you feel like you can't get to grips with English grammar. I teach the stuff, and I still look to my grammar reference on a regular basis. Who has room in their head for so many rules - especially when they're constantly changing!<br /><br />Many grammar rules, like the commands above, are generally accepted to be outdated. Winston Churchill's famous quote,"This is the kind of nonsense up with which I will not put!" argues the point for terminal prepositions rather well. And if I were to stop starting sentences with conjunctions, it would be very hard to write blog posts in a nice conversational style.<br /><br />All of this said, there are still some grammar rules which are important to know and practice. Here in Singapore, some rules have been dissected and then overgeneralized, resulting in several English grammar myths. Let's expose two of these myths today and set the record straight.<br /><br /><strong>Myth #1:</strong> To make a singular noun plural, just add 's'<br />A day does not pass in Singapore where I don't hear <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">informations</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">paperworks</span>, advices, staffs</em>, <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">baggages</span></em> and/or <em>fruits. </em><br /><em></em><br /><strong>Myth buster:</strong> There are two kinds of nouns that <em><strong>do not</strong> </em>change in the plural: collective nouns and uncountable nouns.<br /><strong></strong><br /><strong>Collective nouns</strong> are nouns that refer to a group of people: <em>staff, management, crew, audience,</em> etc.<br />You cannot say, "My staffs are very hardworking."<br />A correct option would be, "The members of my staff are hardworking." <br /><strong></strong><br /><strong>Uncountable nouns </strong>are exactly what their name implies - nouns that can't be counted. If you can't count something, you can't make it plural and therefore, can't add an 's.' Make sense? Some good examples are <em>paperwork, information, </em>and <em>advice. </em>They are things like abstract ideas (<em>progress</em>)<em>,</em> <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">commodities</span> (<em>oil</em>) and substances (<em>water</em>). So how do we show that these words are plural? We need to add determiners - little words or phrases that give meaning to the number of nouns we are talking about. So, information becomes <em>a lot of </em>information, <em>tons of </em>information or just <em>a piece of </em>information.<br /><br /><strong>Myth #2: </strong>Verbs never take 's'<br />Although here in Singapore everyone likes to add the letter S to nouns, very few people like adding S to verbs. This is a real problem, especially in the third person singular, which, in normal English, means when we talk about <em>he, she </em>or <em>it. </em>I am convinced that this mistake happens not because Singaporeans don't know the rule, but because in conversation it is pretty normal to drop "useless" word endings like 't,' 'd,' and unfortunately, the beloved 's.' That's why we hear people say things like, "He take the bus to work," "She like him," "It make me happy."<br /><strong></strong><br /><strong>Myth buster:</strong> Whenever we talk about <em>he, she</em> or <em>it,</em> we absolutely must, without exception, add an 's' to the verb. It will always be, "He takes the bus to work," "She likes him," and "It makes me happy."<br /><br />What other myths can you think of? Are there any grammar points that get you confused? Leave your comments and I'll try to address them in future posts.<br /><br />If you would rather have me walk you through these points personally, make sure to register for my new workshop, <a href="http://www.shirleytaylortraining.com/heather_hansen_ggg.html">"Get to Grips with Grammar."</a> I know you don't believe me, but I really do make grammar fun! Come join us!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-6110029854289402842009-01-07T20:42:00.004+08:002009-01-07T21:12:06.456+08:00Speech Training: Speak Clearly RevisitedI found an interesting <a href="http://www.betterhearing.org/hearing_solutions/clearspeech.cfm">short article </a>today on the <a href="http://www.betterhearing.org/index.cfm">Better Hearing <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Institute's</span> website</a> that emphasized the importance of speaking clearly when speaking to hearing-impaired individuals, especially if they are lip reading. Their main points should sound familiar if you've been following this blog:<br /><br />a. slow down<br />b. speak up (without yelling)<br />c. articulate (without over-articulating)<br />d. use pauses to emphasise important chunks of information<br /><br />The article caught my attention because while I was traveling for Christmas and New Year's I had the joy of conversing with two stubborn individuals who can't hear a thing, but refuse to get hearing aids. Their common excuse is that everyone mumbles, and sometimes they're right about that. One of them commented on how easy I am to understand (while I was speaking a foreign language, no less).<br /><br />What if we spoke to everyone as if they were reading our lips? Our clarity would improve tremendously!<br /><br />Here's a little test I did on myself. Turn on your TV and flip to a news channel. Mute the TV. Without any training in lip reading at all, I could pick out words the anchorwoman was saying. Put together with visual images, I could get a good idea of what was going on. Now turn to a reality TV program (they aren't hard to find these days). I don't know about you, but it was a lot harder for me to read their lips!<br /><br />This isn't to say we should all start speaking like news readers, but a small step in that direction wouldn't hurt! At least our hearing-impaired relatives will thank us!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-19112637871873070692009-01-06T18:07:00.005+08:002009-01-06T18:47:53.676+08:00English Language: How Social Media Can Actually Help Your WritingHow many social media sites do you actively participate in? Just about everyone I know is on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Facebook</span></a>. And <a href="http://www.twitter.com/">Twitter</a> is becoming more and more popular as well. These types of sites are changing the way we communicate with others, as well as how we write and speak.<br /><br />The status update is an interesting element of these communications. Assuming you don't fall victim to crazy abbreviations like "C U L8er," writing status updates can actually be a great exercise in creative and concise communication. You can't ramble on and on about the latest film you saw. Instead you have to give a quick and concise review in 140 characters or less. That's not easy.<br /><br />A friend of mine recently wrote on his status update: "Still thinking about The Last King of Scotland, which was on TV last night. Great film!" Although "great film" might be a bit broad, the fact that he was still thinking about the film showed that it had effected him in some way. I was suddenly intrigued and wondered what the film was like. Was is sad? Disturbing? Really exciting? Without saying anything specific about the movie, he was still able to communicate his reaction to the movie in an interesting way.<br /><br />Another friend wrote today that she "loves her new bamboo sheets and wishes she could have spent more time in them last night." She could have just written, "I'm tired today and want to go back to bed." But she found an interesting way of expressing that thought.<br /><br />When you write status updates they force you to use a concise vocabulary and really say what you mean. You don't have room for long explanations, so words need to be used appropriately. When your space is limited, you also need to be creative in how you approach what you want to say.<br /><br />Think what our world would be like if we approached all forms of communication in this way! Sometimes we could use a bit more simplicity in our lives!<br /><br />PS. If you'd like to follow this blog in short form, you can follow this site's feed on twitter: <a href="http://www.twitter.com/speakingtips">www.twitter.com/speakingtips</a>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-76129379806561419532009-01-05T16:46:00.005+08:002009-01-05T17:17:26.584+08:00English Language: Positive Language for a Positive YearAs we begin 2009, I'm feeling surprisingly optimistic. I normally feel optimistic when a new year dawns, but the end of 2008 seems to have been cloaked in so much negativity that I wasn't sure if I would be able to rise above it.<br /><br />The messages we read do affect our emotions, moods and general dispositions. I don't know about you, but when I read something negative it seems to breed more negativity inside of me. This isn't to say we should stop watching the news or reading the paper, but we need to re-program our thoughts and change the way we speak to ourselves. Our own internal voices are the most important of all.<br /><br />I am in no way an expert in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">NLP</span> (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Neuro</span> Linguistic Programming) and would never claim to be. As I've been thinking about the new year and changes I would like to make in it, I remembered one concept in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">NLP</span> from a short overview I read months ago. It talked about positive and negative language.<br /><br />The argument is that when we speak in the negative, for example, "I don't want to be late anymore," our minds create a picture of us being late and then we attempt to negate that picture. Unfortunately, the picture is already <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">ingrained</span> in our minds and we continue being late because that's the main message we've been sending ourselves.<br /><br />What if we instead said, "I am going to be on time." What's the first picture that comes to your mind? Relaxing in the waiting room before your appointment with 10 minutes to spare? Arriving at the office before anyone else and having a nice quiet cup of coffee before the day begins? Do you see the difference in this imagery?<br /><br />It was just this morning that I recognized how I've been changing the way I speak to my daughter - she's only 6 months old, but you can never start too early, right? Instead of saying, "Don't drop your toy!" I use the positive, "Hold onto your toy!" At this point, who knows what sense either sentence makes to her, but it's great practice for me!<br /><br />Now that I've started using positive messages, it's getting easier for me to translate negatives to positives and use more positive language in my daily life.<br /><br />When you write your list of resolutions this year (something I highly recommend, by the way) make sure that you're using positive language that reinforces what you <em>do</em> want in life instead of what you <em>don't</em> want. Write "Breathe fresh air freely and easily," instead of "Stop smoking," for example. Then hang your list somewhere you can see it each day. When you read it, think about the images that enter you mind, and notice the emotions you feel.<br /><br />Positive language can make a difference for you in this new year. So get started thinking positively and see what happens! There's nothing to lose but negativity!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-62085724047556404642008-10-29T11:29:00.003+08:002008-10-29T21:24:30.829+08:00Speech Training: How Important is Learning Phonetics?People can be surprised that in a course on pronunciation and speech training I rarely, if ever, refer to the phonetic alphabet. This is because I believe the phonetic alphabet has little relevance in improving pronunciation today.<br /><br />The main reason for learning the phonetic alphabet is so that you can look up words in the dictionary and know their pronunciation by reading the phonetic script. But today, pronouncing dictionaries come with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">CDs</span> with every pronunciation recorded and dictionaries online also have pronunciations you can listen to, usually with both American and British pronunciations.<br /><br />If you are having trouble listening to the pronunciation of a word and are really concerned about it, you can always go back to the phonetic alphabet key at the beginning of the dictionary and figure it out. There's no reason to hog space in your head with the phonetic alphabet chart!<br /><br />It is much more important (and much more fun) to learn pronunciation through fine tuning your listening and production skills. Although it isn't important for you to learn the phonetic alphabet, your trainer should know it like the back of his/her hand so she can make those sounds come to life and let you hear and understand the different nuances of sound. Make sure he/she has a background in either speech and language training or linguistics.<br /><br />If you live in Singapore and are serious about changing your pronunciation and speaking more clearly, be sure to check out my newest program, the Speak Clearly 8-week Intensive. You can get more information and register <a href="http://www.hansenslt.com/SpeakClearly-8weekIntensiveCourse.html">here</a>.Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-56017074156654131282008-10-28T19:28:00.002+08:002008-10-28T20:17:48.051+08:00Communication Etiquette: Invite Yourself to MeetingsEveryone knows that business networking is one of the most important ways to build one's business, stand out from the crowd and maintain beneficial professional relationships.<br /><br />When you are looking to branch out and meet new people, you might consider joining new groups or, at least, attending a meeting or two. But what if the meetings are for members only or are "by invitation."<br /><br />Don't let this deter you! Groups are almost always looking for new members. If you don't know someone in the group who can "invite" you, invite yourself! Now that doesn't mean showing up on the day unannounced. Rather, it means that you should do your homework, find the contact information for the President or Membership Chair of the group and send them an email.<br /><br />No group wants a networking leech - one of those people who suck everything they can from a group (mostly names, phone numbers and email addresses) in order to advance their own businesses. If you have something to offer and aren't just trying to blatantly serve your own interests, most groups will welcome you with open arms.<br /><br />If you really want to be invited to a meeting, include these things in your email to the group's leadership:<br />1. Your name and profession<br />2. How you heard about the group<br />3. Your intentions when visiting the group<br />4. A polite request to attend the group's next function<br />5. An example of how the group could benefit from meeting you<br /><br />Here's an example of how this email could be put together:<br /><br />Dear John<br />(1) My name is Heather Hansen and I am a dog trainer and animal lover. (2) I came across the "Dog's are Great" website today and can see that you're President of the local chapter. (3) I am really interested in meeting other like-minded dog lovers, and the events your group organizes look really exciting. (4) I would love to attend one of your meetings. Could I possibly join you next week at your November get-together? (5) I would love to meet all of you and would also be happy to share my dog training experience with your members if they have any questions.<br />I'm looking forward to hearing from you.<br />All the best<br />Heather<br /><br />Now who could say 'no' to such a considerate request? Not only have you been up-front about who you are and why you are interested in attending their group, you have also offered to help serve them - and you're not even a member yet!<br /><br />Don't be afraid to invite yourself to meetings in this way. The worst thing that could happen is that they say 'no.' And maybe that's not the type of group you'd like to socialize with anyway!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-1008735327255981792008-10-21T19:42:00.000+08:002008-10-22T10:28:43.462+08:00Public Speaking: Using Notes Effectively - Top 7 TipsHaving seen quite a number of speeches, I've seen people use all different kinds of methods for organizing their notes. Some people write the whole speech out on paper and read it, some have key points on pages that they flip through. Some people have <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">note cards</span>, some print out their PowerPoint slides.<br /><br />No matter the method, there is one thing all these people have in common: they usually don't need their notes. When it comes down to it, notes usually serve as nothing more than a distraction for both the audience and the speaker.<br /><br />So before I begin talking about how to use notes effectively, I want to make it clear that not having any notes is always the best option. I can however understand if having notes in front of you makes you feel more confident. So how can you use your notes in a way that makes them less of a distraction? Here are seven easy tips:<br /><br /><strong>1. Never talk about your notes</strong><br />If you say things like: "Let me see here...," "I know I wrote the next part down somewhere," or "Good thing I brought my notes along!" everyone in the audience is suddenly focused on your notes instead of you and your message.<br /><br /><strong>2. Never apologize for referencing your notes</strong><br />If you forget what comes next, calmly pause, check your notes and continue. There's no need for an apology. Like point #1, you just end up taking attention away from you. Having pauses in your speech is a good thing. It gives us time to think about what you just said. Pretend the pause is planned and use that time to regain your footing.<br /><br /><strong>3. Don't read from your notes</strong><br />There is nothing worse than the speaker who writes the entire speech and then stands up and reads it. That is not a speech, and there is no faster way to lose credibility with your audience.<br /><strong></strong><br /><strong>4. Put your notes on the fewest number of pages possible</strong><br />Since people generally don't reference their notes, what normally happens if they do suddenly need them is that they end up paging through everything searching for their place. This takes time and is very distracting to the audience. It also rattles the speaker as he panics searching for the next topic.<br /><br /><strong>5. Write largely</strong><br />Please don't write your notes your small that you need to pick them up and put them in front of your face to read them. You should write your notes large enough that you can read them easily from a distance - at least if they are sitting on the table next to you.<br /><br /><strong>6. Organize your points clearly</strong><br />Write short memory joggers that you can read at a glance, not long convoluted sentences. Highlight your main points so it's easy to find your place. Create a system that is logical to you and that you can remember in the heat of the moment.<br /><br /><strong>7. Keep your cool</strong><br />No matter what, don't panic. If you suddenly blank, take a moment to think about what comes next while your audience soaks up the last thing you said. If you stay calm you will most likely think of the next point without needing your notes. If you panic, you'll draw a blank and make the situation harder on yourself.<br /><br />How do you make your notes work for you? Leave your tips here for others to learn from!Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-62734781061934796472008-10-20T21:18:00.002+08:002008-10-20T21:45:22.452+08:00English Language: Take, Bring, Send, Follow & FetchPop Quiz, Singapore:<br /><br />Fill in the blank:<br /><br />I'm ___________ my friend to the airport this afternoon.<br /><br />a) taking<br />b) bringing<br />c) sending<br />d) following<br />e) all of the above<br /><br /><br />How many of you answered 'e?' Be honest! Here in Singapore all of these words are used almost <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">interchangeably</span>. In Standard English the only correct answer is "a) taking."<br /><br />Here's the difference between these words:<br /><u>Taking</u> = movement away from you. Therefore, you can say, "I'm taking my friend to the airport, the store, home (to his/her house, not yours)"<br /><br /><u>Bringing</u> = movement towards you. You can bring your friend home (to your home) from the airport. You can ask your friends to bring (you) a bottle of wine for dinner too.<br /><br /><u>Sending </u>= movement away from you and you do not go with the thing you're sending. Just like when you send a letter, you don't jump in the mailbox with it, the same is true if you send your friends to the airport - you don't go with them. You send your friends somewhere when you for example, call a taxi for them and the taxi comes and picks them up and you stay home.<br /><br /><u>Following</u> = doing the same thing as someone else, just after them. So in our airport example, your friend is driving to the airport in his car and you are following him in your car. When he changes lanes, you change lanes, when he turns, you turn - all the way to the airport.<br /><br />Another word I like to throw into this mix is "fetch." I often hear people say they are going to "fetch" their friend at the airport. Although this may be correct in the sense that it follows the definition "to begin in one place, travel to another, get something and travel back to the starting place," in practice we usually only use the word "fetch" when <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">referring</span> to a game dogs play. We usually don't "fetch" our kids at school, "fetch" our partners at work, or "fetch" our friends. A better phrase to use instead is "pick up."<br /><br />So, when our 5 guests arrived in Singapore last week, I <em>took</em> my husband with me to the airport to <em>pick them up</em>. Since there were too many people to fit in one car, some of us got in a taxi and <em>followed</em> my husband home. One of their bags was lost so the airport staff had it <em>sent</em> to us the next day. It was a good thing it arrived because it was filled with all the presents they <em>brought</em> for our daughter.Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7666919416385248084.post-89181933054035699192008-10-15T19:15:00.003+08:002008-10-15T19:31:49.732+08:00Speech Training: The Terrible 'TH'Many of us grew up with parents that told us it's rude to stick our tongues out at people. I'm here to tell you that these words of wisdom did not apply to when you need make to make the sound /th/.<br /><br />So many people seem to be scared to open their mouths when they speak or let anything other than a sliver of teeth show when they mumble through their words. Watch yourself in the mirror. When you make the sound /th/ you should be able to see the tip of your tongue pointing out between your teeth. If you can't, you are most likely making a /d/ or /t/ sound which is incorrect according to the most common pronunciation guides.<br /><br />Here are a few sentences you can work on to practice the /th/ sound:<br /><br />I'm thinking of 3,333 things<br />Tim the thin twin tinsmith<br />Lesser leather never weathered, wetter weather better<br />Thank the other three brothers on their father's mother's brother's sideHeatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01376038336894384303noreply@blogger.com0