“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement.

A small habit—when repeated consistently—grows into something significant.”
James Clear in “Atomic Habits”

This is very valuable information, because it reminds us that if we do things consistently, we can achieve big things.

That was exactly the reason why I started writing this blog. I want to remind you to do something on a regular basis in English, even if it means just reading this blog every weekday.

You’ve probably heard the Chinese proverb that says, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

You’ll see an improvement over time. And if you decide to do more, you’ll see even bigger improvements. 

There’s nothing wrong with starting small, is there?

Depending on to whom you’re writing, you’ll use more formal or more informal language. 

But what is the difference between formal and informal writing, you might ask?

We use informal writing when communicating with people we know well. It’s very much like the language we use when speaking. So it’s fairly relaxed and more personal. 

We use:

• personal pronouns (“I”, “you”, “we”)
• the active voice (“I know that …”)
• shorter, simpler words (“extra” or “added”)
• more contractions (“we’re”, “I’m” and “you’re”)
• abbreviated words (“photos” and “TV”)
• colloquial expressions (“No worries. That’s fine!”)
• expressions of emotion and exclamations (“wow!”), and 
• shorter and simpler sentences.

We use formal language when writing to people we don’t know well. It is more official and can seem rather cold at times.

We use:

• impersonal pronouns (“it”, “they”)
• the passive voice (“It is known that …”)
• longer words (“additional”), and often
• longer and more complex sentences (with more than one clause). 

We also avoid abbreviated words and contractions. So we write out the words in full, like “television” and “photographs”, and “we are”, “I am” and “you are”, and so on.

Do you struggle with writing in English? If so, what do you find most difficult?

Of course you do, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this post, would you?

When we were in Scotland many years ago to pick up our daughter after her semester abroad, she introduced us to a young friend from Glasgow.

That was quite an experience! I think I understood most of what the young guy was saying, but my poor husband was completely lost.

For a little bit of fun, you might like to listen to Alan Brown, the MP for Kilmarnock and Loudon, speaking at the House of Commons.

How much of Alan’s speech did you understand?

Of course, it’s okay not to be able to understand other accents. That’s quite normal. You can only improve your understanding by being exposed to that particular accent over a reasonable period of time. 

Just go over to YouTube and enter “accents” if you’d like to hear a few more.

Are there any specific accents you struggle with? If so, you might like tell me in the box below.

We are now confronted with a bewildering variety of “Englishes”, spoken with all kinds of accents.

Even we native speakers don’t always understand each other. So I can imagine just how difficult it must be for many non-native speakers of English amongst us.

This is why I believe it’s important that we should all show respect to our listeners by slowing down and keeping things simple. Especially when presenting to an audience, whether online or in-person.

As speaker and author Lilly Walters said, “The success of your presentation will be judged not by the knowledge you send, but by what the listener receives”.

And remember, some of the most famous speeches in English were delivered using simple words.

So just slow down a little and keep things simple. That should do the trick!

If something rings a bell, it means it’s slightly familiar to you. You know you’ve heard it before, but you don’t remember it fully.

An example:
You mentioned the name Amy Whitstable. The name rings a bell, but I really don’t know why. I feel I’ve heard it before, but I have no idea when or where.

Of course, the opposite is also true. If something doesn’t ring a bell, it means that it’s not familiar to you. It doesn’t remind you of anything at all.

An example:
I’m sorry, the name doesn’t ring a bell at the moment.

Now here’s my question to you:

Does the name Diana Frances Spencer ring a bell with you?

You’d like to get some good and honest feedback from someone on an idea, a draft or a performance? But how would you go about it?

Organisational psychologist Adam Grant asks for a score from 0-10.

He explains:

“No one ever says 10. Then I ask how I can get closer to a 10. 

It motivates them to start coaching me—and motivates me to be coachable. I want to learn how to close the gap.”

So next time you’re looking for feedback, you might like to give this strategy a try. And if you do try it out, try and remember to tell me about it!