| It's so common to doubt ourselves, isn't it, Jill?
But why do we do that when it comes to our second language?
Let's have a look in this week's educational email.
1. We don't classify ourselves as being as qualified as our peers because we have a different first language
I don't know about you, but I consider myself to have a disadvantage when I speak with native Portuguese speakers simply because it's not my first language.
And not just when it comes to work.
I feel unqualified to even speak sometimes! Wow!
That means I throw my years of travel, work, and life experiences down the drain and focus on one thing only--the fact that I speak Portuguese as a non-native.
Just think of what I leave behind.
➔ My educational achievements
➔ My cultural background
➔And, my intuition, to name just three things.
The fact that I let my insecurity and doubt about speaking Portuguese carry that much weight reduces the number of opportunities I can meet and speak with interesting people.
Do you let your hesitancies in English stop you?
Ask yourself when, and stop that right now.
2. We fear we'll draw too much attention to ourselves
I really have to be in the mood for people to look at me and listen to my broken Portuguese when I speak.
If I'm just a little weary or fearful that too many eyes are on me, I choose not to speak up.
What a disservice, right?
The question is, who am I really disservicing?
Myself!
I lose the chance to try out new vocabulary and talk about subjects I haven't tackled yet.
And I choose to stay quiet because there's a sense that if my accent or my verb tenses are off, everyone in the room will stop what they're doing to look at me to see if I am sweating or nervous or if I'm going to get through the sentence at all.
😅
Nervewrecking.
Do you ever do that? Get so caught up in your imperfection and doubt that you sometimes opt out of the conversation altogether?
We have to have more courage than that. After all, we took the time, money, and energy to develop our foreign language skills, so why not show them off (not everyone has done that, you know!)
3. Others might not agree with my perspective
Generally speaking, this is less of a concern of mine, but I have noticed that sometimes I find myself closing down what I have to say when others disagree strongly.
I immediately assume that I won't be able to defend my position, and I fear they may come on too strongly with theirs.
So, I find a way to change the topic.
It's hard to debate in a second language, don't you think?
It's one thing if the person we're speaking with appears to have compassion for a good debate, but if it is someone who seems to be cool or detached, it's hard to trust that the vocabulary and ideas will come.
Have you ever found yourself in the middle of a tough conversation and thought that it was too hard to do in English?
Here's the thing, we may not be perfect in our second languages, but we know what's true for us.
➔ We know what we think and feel.
➔ We know how much we've helped others in similar scenarios in our native tongues.
➔ And, we know how to have intelligent conversations.
So, that means we have to start listening to the voice inside of ourselves that got us to speak a second language in the first place.
Use that spark to drive our intention to speak more often, even with our imperfect skills. |
