"I went to see Dr. Blendstrup because I wanted to learn more about daily business practices in the US. We worked on my management styles, recognizing different ways of managing people or a team, changing my vocabulary reflecting a German approach to one suited for the US business climate. She also helped me organize and formulate my thoughts for a business presentation, which was grammatically correct and had sound ideas. Best of all, I enjoyed our sessions and I recommend her for other individuals looking to brush up their business communication skills."

Stephan Osterburg, DreamWorks/PDI, TD, October 9, 2000

[return to publication index]

Do you speak American?

Who really does, in a country that keeps attracting people from all parts of the world? But don’t be fooled, people do listen to the way you speak, and, according to a radio commercial, they also judge you by the way you sound.

Foreign-born speakers are often misunderstood, their message gets lost, or at best, it is not taken seriously. Here are some things you can watch out for to help listeners understand you better.

Speak Slowly

This is the easiest and fastest [sic] way to make sure people can follow what you are saying. It gives them time to focus on your accent and to become comfortable with the way you speak. And, it improves your communication by about 90% withouth you changing much else.

Avoid Idioms and Slang

If you think "a dog-eat-dog world" or a "cat-call" refers to animals, stick to plain English, (i.e., stay away from expressions you don’t really know). Sloppy diction, i.e., saying "goin" rather than "going" or "ged oudda he" unfortunately sounds uneducated; also, watch out where you live - speech patterns that are linked to geographical areas - "cah" for "car" sound great in Boston and in the Kennedy household, but maybe not in California - and especially not if it comes from someone with English as a second Language (ESL).

Speak Clearly

Enunciate e-v-e-r-y consonant, in the middle and at the end of a word; you will be amazed at the difference this will make for your listeners. So, "pielie" becomes "pipeline."

British or American?

Decide if you want to use a British accent or use an American version of the word. It is confusing to follow someone saying half a sentence in one accent, and the rest in another.

Check your Germanese or Frenchese

Even though you might have learned different sounds, for German or French speakers especially, watch out because:

Village isn't "willage"
Yosemite isn't "Josemight"
Lake Tahoe is not Lake Tahoo
Germany is not pronounced Chermany
Los Angeles has a short /a/ as in /cat/ not as in /angels/
It isn't "how you do that?" but "how did you do that?"
And avoid "he didn’t came" (he didn't come)
It is devElop, not DEvelop, and anAlysis, not analYSES
“shi deed ire mi” is in fact "she did hire me”
And, "cool" is cool only for high school and college students.

Except in Silicon Valley, of course.