Thursday, March 15, 2012

Mini Mission # 4 - Say no to English

image via Rick Steve
If you're anything like me, being constantly surrounded by a foreign language can be both intimidating and exhausting. I know I used to feel trapped knowing that wherever I went, I would have to struggle to speak or ask a question.

I was often so relieved when I was presented with the opportunity to use English - with a kind store owner, while asking directions, or even the option to change an electronic ticketing machine to English.

But after awhile I realized that I was missing so many opportunities to practice speaking by choosing to revert to English when possible.

Your challenge for this mission is to say no to English, when it's available, at least once. This means answering back in the foreign language, even if the person you are speaking with is clearly an excellent English speaker - or simply resisting the temptation to switch the ATM to English. If you make this a habit, you will find your foreign language confidence sooner than you think.

Share your "say no" experiences in the comments!

2 comments:

  1. Ooh, and better yet - switch your phone from English to your new language! (That's a trick you taught me :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. that's a great idea, I forgot about that!

    ReplyDelete

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