Progressive Speech

01/10/2020

When you are talking on the phone, what can you do if the listener cannot understand an important word that you are saying, even after you repeat it slowly? For example, your name, address, website, or city?

You might spell the word, but the listener may not hear the letters correctly. If I spell my name, “R-O-B-I-N”, the listener can easily confuse the letters.

To make sure important words are understood over the phone, we can use a 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘱𝘩𝘢𝘣𝘦𝘵, or a 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥-𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘭𝘱𝘩𝘢𝘣𝘦𝘵. These are a list of words that represent letters of the alphabet. If I use a 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘱𝘩𝘢𝘣𝘦𝘵 to clarify my name, ROBIN, I could say “That’s ‘R’ as in 𝐑omeo, ‘O’ as in 𝗢scar, ‘B’ as in 𝗕ravo, “I” as in 𝐈ndia, and ‘N’ as in 𝐍ovember.”

The most well-known 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘱𝘩𝘢𝘣𝘦𝘵 is the NATO alphabet. This alphabet is commonly used by airports, military, and sea travel. Many other professionals who exchange important information over the phone also use it.

See the article below and learn the NATO alphabet! It can come in very handy for anyone, whether English is our first or second language.

How would you ‘spell’ your name using the NATO alphabet?

If English is your second language and you are interested in enhancing aspects of your English communication, 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙎𝙥𝙚𝙚𝙘𝙝 at speech3.com provides customized training focused on effective, clear, and confident speech.

https://www.worldometers.info/languages/nato-phonetic-alphabet/

The NATO phonetic alphabet is a Spelling Alphabet, a set of words used instead of letters in oral communication (i.e. over the phone or military radio). Each word ("code word") stands for its initial letter (alphabetical "symbol"). The 26 code words in the NATO phonetic alphabet are assigned to the....

12/30/2019

Should we say “𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫!” or “𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫’𝙨͇!”? 𝐀𝐧𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐫: Always say “Happy New Yea𝐫”, with 𝐧𝐨 “s”!

Many of us 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘭𝘺 say “Happy New Year’𝐬!”, because we hear 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘵 phrases such as: “On New Year’s, I usually spend time with my family”, or “What are you doing for New Year’s?” These phrases are correct because we are implying either New Year’s 𝐃𝐚𝐲 or New Year’s 𝐄𝐯𝐞. We use ‘𝒔 here because we’re referring to a specific day, not the whole year 2020.

The following article from 𝐃𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲.𝐜𝐨𝐦 further explains when to correctly use New Year vs. New Year’s. Many of us use the incorrect phrase, whether English is our first or second language. Check it out!

So, Happy New Yea𝐫! Also, enjoy New Year’𝐬 with your friends and family :-)

If English is your second language and you are interested in enhancing aspects of your English communication, 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙎𝙥𝙚𝙚𝙘𝙝 at speech3.com provides customized training focused on effective, clear, and confident speech.

https://www.dictionary.com/e/new-years/

From appropriate apostrophes to correct capitalization, here’s what you need to know to kick off the year with good grammar.

10/02/2019

Are you comfortable asking people for clarification when you don’t understand them? How about 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 clarification to make sure people understand you?

Some of us may not like to 𝘢𝘴𝘬 for clarification because we don’t want to seem inattentive or disrespectful. We may hesitate to 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳 clarification because we don’t want to be perceived as lacking confidence in our speech or in other cases, patronizing.

However, being completely confident with both of these is useful, and in some cases crucial, for successful communication. This is true whether English is your first language or second language.

This article from 𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝘾𝙤., provides common phrases that you can use to effectively clarify and check information.

When using these phrases, it’s also important to use the right 𝙩𝙤𝙣𝙚. For example, using a polite and professional tone may be appropriate in most of these situations.

Observe how others ask and give clarification. Consider recording and re-recording yourself saying some of the phrases until it conveys the attitude you wish to express.

If English is your second language and you are interested in enhancing aspects of your English communication, 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙎𝙥𝙚𝙚𝙘𝙝 provides customized training focused on effective, clear, and confident speech.

During business meetings, with directions it's important to make sure you've understood everything. Clarify information in English with these phrases.

09/14/2019

This article, from the British Council Voices Magazine, highlights the importance of English 𝙄𝙣𝙩𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 or the ‘music’ of English. Using incorrect intonation can lead to major misunderstanding, even if English is our first language!

If English is your second language 𝙖𝙣𝙙 you feel that your speech sometimes limits your effectiveness, then sharpening your English intonation skills can help minimize the chances of miscommunication.

The article explains two simple ways to begin improving our English intonation: be aware of how others use intonation and examine our own intonation. During the day, notice how others use the music of their speech to express themselves. Also, record and re-record your own voice regularly until it conveys the attitude you wish to express.

If you are interested in more formal training in English intonation, 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙎𝙥𝙚𝙚𝙘𝙝 provides customized lessons to strengthen your intonation for effective, clear, and confident speech.

What is intonation and how can you improve this aspect of your pronunciation? Fazle Muniem, a teacher at the British Council in Bangladesh, explains.

08/28/2019

This article from the Corporate Finance Institute, like many others, emphasizes the real value of having effective communication skills in the workplace. It includes important suggestions that can guide us in improving our communication. These points are equally true for both native and non-native English speakers.

If English is your second language and you are interested in enhancing aspects of your English communication, 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙎𝙥𝙚𝙚𝙘𝙝 provides customized training focused on effective, clear, and confident speech.

Being able to communicate effectively is one of the most important life skills to learn. Communication is defined as transferring information to produce greater understanding. It can be done vocally (through verbal exchanges), through written media (books, websites, and magazines), visually (using g...

08/22/2019

If English is your second language and you feel that your speech sometimes limits your effectiveness, then pronunciation or ‘accent addition’ training may be of interest to you.

Many professionals whose accent is different from standard North American English take specialized training to enhance their understandability, effectiveness, and confidence in various speaking situations.

If you are interested in accent and pronunciation training, please contact Progressive Speech at info@speech3.com or 1.780.233.6125 to schedule a free phone, online, or in-person consultation.

Robin Changarathil
Director, Progressive Speech Communication Training
#200, 6005 Gateway Boulevard
Edmonton, Alberta T6H 2H3
1.780.233.6125

Website: https://speech3.com/