Bath City Language Coaching

01/07/2024

How to go from sitting at home WhatsApping after your work shift to making new friends face-to-face.

I was in hospital after an operation a couple of years ago, and I asked the Nigerian nurse what she was going to do after her shift finished.
"Nothing," she replied. "I'll go home and speak to my friends in Nigeria on WhatsApp."
"Do you ever go out with your colleagues to unwind and talk about your day?" I wanted to know.
"Never," she said with a tinge of sadness. She told me she'd been working in England for two years and had never been out with her fellow nurses or staff on her ward, even though they had invited her out many times.

"Have you made many friends here in the UK?" I inquired hopefully.
"No. I don't meet people outside work. I'm too embarrassed by my English; I don't know what to say" she said as she squirted some liquid morphine into my mouth.

When I woke up, I got to thinking about the nurse with no social life and how lonely she must be: miles away from family and friends; no real friends inside or outside of work; never getting a taste of the real England; spending all her free time eating meals-for-one and on WhatsApp; but someone whose English was really very good.

After being discharged, I went home and spent the next few months researching and building my How To Speak With Anyone course. The best way to make new friends is to get out there and talk to strangers, but it's not that easy. I know this from my time teaching in many overseas countries.

That's what my HTSWA online course is all about. It will give you tips on what to do and not do; advice on who to approach, and how; guidance on making a great first impression so that people will want to listen, and talk, to you; and lots of practice on your active listening skills. Even if your grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation is perfect.

I wish someone had built a course like this for when I was working in Croatia, Hungary, and Germany. Instead, I just had to bite the bullet and force myself to meet as many people as possible.

If you're interested in finding out more about my HTSWA course, which can be done at your pace, when you have the time to practice, comment HTSWA in the comments and I'll send you details.

07/01/2024

Please help!
I'm starting an app to help you communicate with English-speakers.
What ONE desire about English do you have?

03/01/2024

Do you like going for walks on a sunny winter's day? Love feeling the slight warmth of the sun on your face?

There's a word for that: APRICITY (noun) [ap-PRIS-it-ee]

"Morning apricity gives me the hope to begin a new day."

“The apricity covered his hair, his arms, his whole body. And there he stood, dazed, under the winter sky.”

28/12/2023

"When submitting papers for publication, non-native speakers are about 2.5 times more likely to have their work rejected for linguistic reasons – and they are 12.5 times more likely to have to make language-related revisions. So, even with equal or greater technical competence, they may have fewer career opportunities."

(The Guardian, 27th December 2023)

This new research shows that even if you consider your English to be of a high or advanced level, the chances are you will need help from a qualified English language coach at some point.

This is where I can help. Over 30 years of teaching, I have worked with everyone from Chinese children and Austrian teens to Swiss CEOs and German linguists. If you're interested in how I can help you, write "SIMON" in the comments.

Full link to article in Comments.

23/12/2023

Say "hello" to someone new.

18/12/2023

Christmas is a time for giving.
And I'm giving you a present.

Click the link and get a FREE introduction to my How to Tell An Anecdote course.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

This Freebie will give you an introduction to the basics of telling a personal anecdote in English in any social situation.

05/10/2023

Give your brain a bit of exercise.

Try this Connections game from the New York Times.
16 words.
4 groups of 4 words.
How are the words in each group connected?

This is my attempt today. Got it in the final go.



Connections
Puzzle #116
🟨🟨🟨🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟪🟪🟦🟪
🟪🟦🟪🟪
🟪🟦🟪🟦
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟪🟪🟪🟪

02/10/2023

How did you spend the weekend?
Did you meet any new people?
as you when I was teaching English in various countries abroad: "I'm lonely after work. I don't know anyone here. How do I make new friends?"
Watch the video and, hopefully, you'll get motivated enough to leave your WhatsApp and FaceTime alone, and get out and meet new people.
Good luck!

By the way, at the end of the month I'll be hosting a FREE live Webinar on communicating with British people. It will change your life. If you're interested, just comment WEB below and I'll send you details.

https://youtu.be/xSOtw8VwwRU

How did you spend the weekend?Did you meet any new people?Below, I give a few tips for non-British workers living in the UK on how to meet and make new frien...

07/08/2023

https://elevate-your-english.ck.page/c00d6037d4

Even the most confident English-speaker needs a bit of help sometimes.

Click the link to grab a FREE tutorial on the Foundations of Anecdote-telling.

Find out what does and doesn't engage your audience when speaking.

Learn the tricks that make you a person people want to listen to.

05/04/2023