the reluctant polyglot

My first language is Polish. English is a close second (It’s always been with me - I was born in Ottawa, Canada, went to secondary school in London, UK, got an MA in English studies and I spent the next 15+ years teaching the language).

I’m also an avid language learner - I have a Master’s degree in Spanish studies, and, over the years, I’ve studied Portuguese, Catalan, Italian… and now French.

How comfortable do I feel actually speaking any of these languages?

Let’s just say that if asked “Do you speak [insert: a foreign language I spent years studying]?” my most honest, knee-jerk answer would probably be:

“Not if I can help it!”

but, like at at the post office the other day, I usually take a deep breath and answer: “Si/Sim/Oui”.

I’m definitely not one of those people who will jump at any opportunity to practise their languages.

I’m not an extrovert. I won’t strike up a conversation with a stranger just to give my linguistic muscles a workout. I don’t like making mistakes. I don’t like just getting by in a foreign language.

But don’t get me wrong.

I love languages… for giving us access to worlds which would otherwise be inaccessible to us, for the relationships that they help forge, the opportunities that they create.

The three lessons I learned

as a teacher

I worked as an English teacher for over 15 years. I’d like to share with you three things I’ve learnt about language learning in that time.

Lesson no.1

There’s no cookie-cutter, one-size-fits-all, silver-bullet, speak-fluently-in-a-week method.

We’d all like there to be one. But there really isn’t.

We’re all individuals. Each person is different. What works for you might not work for somebody else. Teachers don’t “know best” .

And that’s good news!

Lesson no. 2

The ‘level of linguistic proficiency’ (intermediate or advanced, B1 or C2…) has very little to do with how a person feels about their skills, how confident they are about using the language and, consequently, how fluently they speak it.

I have worked with hundreds of “high performers”- CEOs, government ministers, ambassadors and scientists who all felt their English wasn’t good enough.

Some people don’t mind making grammatical mistakes or having limited vocabulary as long as they can communicate with their interlocutors.

Others have certificates proving their near-native-like proficiency, and yet, feel they “need to learn more”.

Your mindset is everything.

Which brings me to the reason why I no longer call myself “an English teacher”.

Lesson no. 3

Most people don’t need a teacher at all.

We don’t particularly want one either. We know where to find the information. We know what works for us.

…which is why I am NOT going to be your “next English teacher”.

I can, however, be

YOUR COACH

who will help you reach your language-learning objectives.