Why You Freeze When Speaking English at Work

If you're an entrepreneur, a freelancer, or have simply big ideas you want to share with the world, I've got 4 conversation workouts perfect for professionals who need to be fluent in English but have zero time to practice. First of all, why do I call them conversation workouts? Because my friend, most professionals don't fail at English because of bad grammar. If you're here, if you understand me speaking English right now, your English is good. And so the problem is not in your level, the problem is in the way you train your English. When professionals like you and me ask me to train their English fluency, I don't make them study more, I create speaking workouts much like the ones I'm about to show you. And this is why they're called this way. Now, to train them properly, I use Episodden. Episodden is an online platform that connects English learners with real people from all over the world and they are there to speak. No teachers, no lessons, just humans and real conversations. And since they only last for 7 minutes, they're great if you don't have time. This platform is free and you can join it too. There's a link down here and by using that link, you get also extra daily conversations. Anyway, back to us. In the first workout, I want to show you the exact moment where most professionals fail and the one enemy that causes it, overthinking. And it's basically when you think too much. It's the biggest trap for every busy professional. Because my friend, I know how it is. We've all got very busy lives. In the morning we say, ah, tonight I'll try using Episodden. And in the evening we say, ah, I'm too tired now, I'll do it tomorrow. And of course, we already know that tomorrow never comes, right? So if you find yourself in this situation, the best thing is to put yourself in a place where having a conversation workout is inevitable. One of my first jobs in the States was waiting on tables, simply because it was the easiest to find. And at that time, my English was extremely poor. Really, I couldn't say anything, let alone understand when they were speaking with me. And so I avoided speaking as much as possible. I made up excuses, turned down tables, offers, anything really. But there was one thing I didn't know. Waiters in the States make money only with tips. Minimum wage is ridiculous. And funny thing is, the better waiters are at talking, the better their tips. And so I let you imagine how much money I was making. To get out of that situation, I started acting before my brain started even thinking about it. And so, here's a rule for you. When the moment to open Episodin comes, distract your brain. Think of the weather, of your plans for tomorrow. Think of whatever you want, but don't think of what you're about to do. Then, as you think about your plans for tomorrow, what your boss told you today, open Episodin, click join now, set your webcam straight, and keep thinking about something else. I mean it. The trick is simply this. A conversation lasts only 7 minutes. By the time your brain realizes it, that conversation is already over. And that's exactly the point. Fluent speakers don't speak better English. They speak before doubt comes in. This very simple workout retrains your brain to start practicing automatically, literally without thinking, and literally without having your brain interfering. When you finally start training your English, there's a second fluency killer, even deadlier, translating in your head. This happens to smart people all the time. You start a conversation, but talking is slow, heavy. You don't think about what you're saying. You're thinking about the words you're using, word by word. This is stressing and tiring, and of course, it takes you back into translation mode, right? Back when I was waiting tables in the States, I had exactly the same problem. When someone was speaking to me, 5 seconds to translate what they said into my language, another 5 seconds to translate back from Italian what I wanted to say. And if I didn't have exactly the right word, the word I wanted to use, that was another 15 seconds pretty much, until I found a nice replacement. That was torture. And so I started to play a little game. When I was listening to a word or an expression I liked, I repeated it straight away, essentially mirroring what the person said. And so the rule here is very simple. When in an English conversation, repeat back what the person says. That's it. Do it fast, as often as you can. What matters here is staying in the moment, so your brain doesn't have time to think and translate. Stay in the conversation and don't let it go. What do you do for a living? Well, I work in a frozen fish company. You work for a frozen fish company. And do you fish for a living? Can you see what just happened? When I mirrored what she said, she felt immediately understood. And since I just used her same words, I had no choice but to add a question of mine. And do you fish for a living? And this turned a usually boring and normal question into a potentially very interesting conversation about fishing. And the thing is, after five minutes mirroring the other person, you no longer translate from your native language. And this is the exact structure I use today for training professionals. Now, the next workout looks simple. Almost everyone underestimates it. And that's why they stay stuck. Fluency doesn't come from saying new things, changing words constantly. Fluency comes from clarity. And the more you say something out loud, the clearer your message gets. If you're a professional, a content creator, or a freelancer, this is when you shine. You tell the story of what you do, and you repeat the same exact thing to three different people. Same content, different reactions. Now, don't improvise, all right? Just refine slightly at every conversation. What do you do for a living? I help professionals become fluent in English. I do it through many things. Usually I train them. I help professionals become fluent in English through coaching, pronunciation training, intonation. I help professionals become fluent in English. I do it in many ways. My goal is to help them take their career to their next level. This, my friend, is particularly useful if you have to prepare for a presentation or if you are preparing a sales pitch. Because the more you repeat the same lines, the more you can feel yourself. And that's when confidence naturally rises. Not with more words, but with a more relaxed tone. If you can explain it simply. You don't panic. You don't search. You don't overthink. You speak. And speaking of explaining, you know when you can't remember that particular word and you freeze and blame your bad memory for it? The next workout fixes exactly that. Now, think about it. Have you ever forgotten a word in your native language? It happens all the time to me. And I bet that when it happens to you, you don't freeze. You don't stay stuck. You simply explain the missing word with other words. And so, this workout is called the speaking challenge. You choose a word and you must explain it in English until the other person guesses it. That's it. Well, they have something. You know when, let's say, you're at work and you have to give your work exactly at that particular date and you can't go over that date. How do you call it? If you pass that moment, usually there are consequences. Deadline. That's it. Yes, a deadline. That's fluency. Not perfection. Not fancy vocabulary. Control over what you say. This workout forces real thinking in English, eliminates the fear of missing words, and builds authority when you speak.