Many clients tell me they need to improve their pronunciation to get hired and to communicate well at work. Often they are experts in their professions but this is only recognized when hiring managers and workplace colleagues understand them.
Here is my method for connecting pronunciation lessons to career goals:
My free consultation asks a learner about their career plans and challenges.
Lesson one starts with a pronunciation assessment that uses phrases related to a learner’s career and discovers the sounds and speaking patterns that interfere with clear communication.
Lesson two begins with the basics. In the second lesson, I demonstrate how to train the muscles to make a specific sound (usually a consonant). Muscle training exercises are only part of the lesson. I make it more interesting by having the learner read a custom-made dialogue with me that uses the sound and has phrases related to a learner’s career. I attach a recording of the correctly pronounced dialogue for the learner to practice as homework.
I keep initial lessons manageable to avoid overwhelming the learner. We spend as much time as needed on producing English consonants and vowels before moving on to the other parts of clear speech such as stress and intonation. We gradually work towards the learner being able to have realistic workplace conversations and confidently participate in job interviews.
Setting a solid foundation with a step-by-step approach saves time. The learners experience success, avoid practicing errors, and are motivated by dialogues that relate to their careers. This is the “kill two birds with one stone” approach. If you want to experience this method yourself, please contact me.
