Dedicated to More than 50 crores Indians who despite having Decent Enough Knowhow of English, can’t speak English!
How big is the issue?
- There are crores of people in India who understand English well, but are not able to speak it confidently.
- “English Phobia Will Ruin India’s Economic Prospects” says a famous news article by the Freedom Gazette. It’s rightly said!
- Not only does the English Phobia affect the employability, but it often causes serious mental health problems like low self esteem, depression, and inferiority complex in young Indians!
- India is perhaps the only country in the world where people remain thirsty on flights, but do not ask for water from air hostesses so that they do not get insulted if they speak poor English!
- This problem prevalent in India is actually an undiagnosed anxiety disorder according to many communication experts and psychiatrists.
- The Worst Part: There was no scientifically proven psychological method that could resolve this extremely serious problem, unless us!
What’s exactly the ‘English Speaking’ Anxiety Problem and What are its Consequences?
In India, a very unique anxiety problem exists. Millions of people can understand, read, and write in English, but when it comes to speaking in English, they feel anxious. People commonly avoid talking to flight attendants while on a flight because they fear being judged for their English-speaking abilities. Similarly, individuals feel anxious at places like hotel receptions where staff communicate in English, feeling compelled and anxious to respond in English due to fear of judgment. These are just a few examples of experiences encountered regularly by people.
Western Psychology took many years to accept Social Anxiety as a serious disorder. We believe that Anxiety while speaking English should also be regarded as a serious disorder and included in the next revisions of the ‘Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.’ However, many researchers worldwide have widely accepted it as an anxiety disorder.
Fear of speaking in English and experiencing anxiety and increased self-consciousness may indicate an English Speaking Anxiety Problem. The consequences include difficulty expressing oneself clearly in professional settings, rejection in interviews, low self-esteem, anxiety, and even depression for some individuals. Hence, this is a serious mental health issue that requires attention.
Do traditional “Spoken English” programmes fail in helping students overcome the fear of Speaking in English?
If you can recall the famous scene from the movie ‘MSD-The Untold Story’ where MS Dhoni (Played by Late Sushant Singh Rajput) says “Pata hai, hum match kaha haare?” He explains to his friends that they did not lose the match on ground but they lost because of the low morale of the players after seeing the confidence and charisma of Yuvaraj Singh. It’s a very important message there. The thing that MS Dhoni wanted to say was that it was not their skills in Cricket which made them lose the match, rather it was the anxiety and low morale, which could not be improved by further practising more and sharpening their skills. It could only be improved by dealing the the mindset and emotional regulation better.
Same goes here, a majority of Englsh Spoken Institutes are trying to make their Fluent and Fearless English Speakers just by teaching them topics of English, and not addressing the psychological aspect of the problem, which is the major reason why people are finding it difficult to speak in English Fluently and confidently. A huge majority of students can actually read, write and understand English well. They are just hesitant to speak and they experience anxiety and fear while speaking in English. Infact, most of the times they knowingly or unknowingly make the students more self critical of their English Speaking skills by teaching them topics like western accent training. There are no such organisation in India who are working with psychologists along with language trainers to help people deal with the fear of speaking in English, except us.
So, what are the reasons why people who can read and understand English well, are not able to speak confidently?
The core reason for the problem actually lies in the British Rule in India, spanning almost two centuries. In 1835, the British introduced the ‘Macaulian Education Policy’ in India, establishing English as a crucial language of communication in educational institutions. This policy systematically elevated English above the regional languages of India. Furthermore, the British Rule instilled a sense of inferiority among the Indian populace, a sentiment that persists to this day.
So, we internalized everything associated with the British as superior—whether it’s their fair skin complexion or their English language. This resulted in us equating the English language with social status, a perception that endures today. Those who can speak English fluently are often perceived as having high social status. Consequently, when speaking English, our focus shifts to speaking it well rather than effectively conveying our message. This heightened self-awareness about speaking English leads to anxiety.
How can people, who can read and understand English well but feel anxiety while speaking English become free from their Fear/Anxiety of Speaking English?
- Identification & Replacement of NATs (Negative Automatic Thoughts):
NATs are negative thoughts that come up automatically while speaking English. Examples are:
A. “If I am not able to speak fluently, I will be considered a person of low stature”.
B. “What if I make a mistake while speaking? OMG I will be considered a low – value person”.
C. “My English is extremely bad. I should not speak at all.”
2. Attention Training:
When people speak in English, all of their focus remains on trying to speak English Fluently, and perfectly. They need to train themselves to shift their attention from observing their English to conveying their message effectively.
So, changing the way people look at English, and shifting their attention are two of the most effective ways of getting rid of the fear of Speaking in English.
The previously described methods represent the sole means of eliminating the phobia of speaking in English. However, accomplishing this independently poses an immense challenge. A systematic approach employing techniques like CBT and Neuro Linguistic Programming is necessary to alter one’s beliefs, thoughts, and behavior. The Speakers’ Club steps in to offer assistance. At The Speakers’ Club, we provide the World’s First FearlessEnglish Method™, developed in collaboration with experienced Clinical Psychologists, researchers, and Communication Skills Trainers. It required over a year of dedicated effort to successfully develop and validate the method.
This method has enabled thousands of individuals to conquer their fear of speaking in English by addressing their thoughts and behavior, thereby altering core beliefs such as “People will consider me of low status if I can’t speak English fluently” or “If my pronunciation is not okay, then people will judge me,” among others. The FearlessEnglish Method™ also trains individuals to shift their focus from scrutinizing their English proficiency to effectively conveying their message. Ultimately, with effective utilization of our method, individuals can permanently overcome their fear of speaking in English within a month.
