Conversation Skills: DON'T BE SHY!

Video Description

If you are shy, you NEED to watch this! Shy people have a hard time talking in social situations. I used to be shy too, but look at me now! In today's lesson, I'll teach you to overcome your shyness! First, I will help you understand the reasons that you are shy. Then, I'll give you lots of tips on how to start a conversation. Click on today's lesson -- don't be shy! http://www.engvid.com/conversation-skills-dont-be-shy/ TRANSCRIPT Hi, there. My name is Ronnie. Today, I'm going to teach you something very fun and exciting and important. It's how to improve your speaking. Whether you're speaking English or whether you're doing public speaking in front of people or whether you're just speaking to a neighbor, someone on the bus, someone in a store, or a taxi driver, you might be shy. What does "shy" mean? "Shy" means you don't like -- or you're nervous -- to speak to strangers or to speak to other people. So if you are naturally a shy person, I'm sure you've heard people over and over again say, "Don't be shy! Come on. Don't be shy!" Easier said than done, isn't it, shy people? So I want to give you some tips or some pointers maybe to help you to be less shy. It's impossible to be 100 percent outgoing if you are naturally a shy person. So today's lesson is how you improve your speaking. Don't be shy! The first thing that you have to do is think about why. "Why am I shy?" There may be many different reasons. I'm just going to go through a couple of them. The number one reason, probably, if you're watching these videos, is because you are trying to speak a new language. Maybe it is English. And you are shy to make a mistake. You don't want to say something bad, funny, rude, embarrassing. You don't want your face to go red and they'll go, "Ha ha! You said a funny word!" Okay. That will happen. And you know what? Who cares? It happens all the time. I say funny things a lot, too. Another reason why you may be shy is because you "talk funny". Lots of people have different problems with their mouths. Some people have a speech impediment. Some people have a lisp, so they don't pronounce words probably like me. Maybe you have a very strange or different accent than the other people around you. People often ask me, "Ronnie, where are you from?" And I say, "Canada." And they say, "No, you're not." "Yes, I am." "But you have an accent." "Yes. I have an accent. I talk funny. Who cares? I'm from Canada. Nice to meet you." So even if you do talk funny or you do have an accent, rock with it. Yeah. You speak differently. Good. Don't be like other people. Other people are boring. This is a problem. Maybe you just don't like to talk. Okay? Maybe you are quiet. Maybe you don't want to talk to anyone ever, at all. That's cool. If you don't like people and you don't like to talk, don't force yourself to talk. Maybe you could write something. Maybe you could text message or email someone. But that's not going to improve your speaking. If you do not like to talk to people, that's your choice. But I'm trying to help you overcome your shyness. So let's go through a couple ways to actually do this. Don't be shy! Just say, "Hi!" So if you're standing at a bus stop or the subway station or anywhere, and there's another human being beside you -- let's say that you're at a bar, and there's a beautiful girl or a very handsome boy. The quickest, the easiest, and the best way to speak to someone is just to say, "Hi! My name is Ronnie." Don't use "Ronnie", though. That's my name. You have to use your name. So just say "hi" to people. If they want to speak to you, they will start the conversation. They will say, "Oh, hi. My name is --. Nice to meet you." "Oh, nice to meet you, too." Uh-oh! And then, your shyness sets in because -- "What do I say? Shoes. I have shoes. Do you have shoes? Oh, God. I'm such an idiot. I can't even speak." Maybe the other person will have asked you a person. You can always ask people basic questions, like, "Where are you from? Why do you talk funny? Why are you shy?" All those fun questions. When you're actually speaking to someone, it's really important that you choose a topic that you like. So if I were to meet someone -- "Hi. My name is Ronnie." "Hi." "Cool. So -- oh, I like music. Do you like the Sex Pistols?" "Yeah." "Me, too. Oh, my God. No way! What other kind of music to you like?" So I like to talk to people about music. The only problem is not a lot of people like the same music I do. So you have to choose a topic that you like to talk about. If you're lucky, the other person will also like the topic. The next one: Get a job. Now, this might be very strange for you to even comprehend, but I -- right here -- am shy.