Speak English with Confidence | More Than Words

Have you ever stayed quiet in English because you felt you’d never sound as good as a native speaker? I know that feeling, only for me it was podcasting. I recorded this conversation with English teacher Alba Guerrero González in 2024 and sat on the footage for over two and a half years. I was comparing myself to slick, bilingual podcasters with polished intros and telling myself that my podcast w...

Do you treat every conversation in English as if one mistake could ruin everything? In this episode, I’m joined by Alberto Rodríguez, a corporate aviation captain who has flown in more than 140 countries, to talk about fluency, accuracy and knowing which one really matters when you speak English at work. When he’s talking to air traffic control, one wrong number could mean a disaster, so pilots re...

Have you ever told yourself it’s too late to learn a language properly, that you should have done it as a child and now the moment’s gone? In this conversation, I’m joined by Quang Dang Tran , a professional writer whose Substack, ‘Late Learning Vietnamese’ , follows his own journey back into his family’s language as an adult, to talk about the years he spent trying to fit in and the moment everyt...

Do you ever wish you could switch off your accent before you open your mouth in English? In this short clip, I talk with English teacher Verónica Vitale, founder of Vital English , about why your accent is something to embrace and how it can help you speak English with confidence. I share the moment I went back to England, heard myself speaking English in a shop and realised I’d lost my superpower...

Do you get nervous before you speak English in a meeting, worrying about every word before it leaves your mouth? Today I’m joined by author, speaker and former HR executive Ben Eden. I ask him how he’d help a senior professional who leads with confidence in their own language but freezes when they have to run a meeting in English. Ben admits he still gets nervous before big talks himself, and shar...

Have you ever been the most senior person in the room and the quietest one in English? In today’s clip, I talk about why so many successful professionals freeze when speaking English at work, even when their English is better than that of the people around them. Your experience and authority don’t disappear when you switch languages, but it often feels that way. I look at where perfectionism and t...

Have you ever told someone your English isn't very good, in perfectly good English? Today I'm joined by Ángel Gabaldón Ortega, Relationship Manager for Large Corporates at Bankinter, to talk about imposter syndrome, self-doubt and the fear of making mistakes in English. Ángel calls his English "pichí pichá", though by any honest measure it's excellent, and he speaks it confidently at work every da...

Do you wish you could get rid of your accent when you speak English? Today, I'm joined by Stefy Vaclavikova, an ICF-accredited coach who has helped thousands of teachers build their own businesses, to talk about her non-native English accent and the school director who wouldn't let her appear in promotional videos because of it. Stefy explains how she let go of trying to sound like a native speake...

Do you ever feel like a smaller version of yourself when you speak English? In this seven-minute extract from a longer conversation (which you can watch HERE on YouTube ), I'm joined by English coach Daniele Ponzo , originally from Italy, to talk about language identity and the thirteen years he spent in Ireland learning to speak English confidently at work. From the fear of making mistakes in Eng...

Have you ever stopped yourself halfway through a sentence in a meeting because you weren't sure the grammar was right? In this short clip from a longer conversation, I'm joined by Lauren Martin , a language expert and copywriter who runs Simply Copy and helps language teachers, coaches and schools with their marketing, to talk about why so many capable professionals freeze when speaking English at...

Most people who have studied English for years still measure themselves against the colleague who lived in California, or against native speakers, and come away feeling they will never be good enough. Add the "fluent in six weeks" promises all over social media, and speaking English confidently starts to feel like a race you can't win. In this short clip, I talk with English teacher Verónica Vital...

You already know English. So why does something stop you the moment it matters? In this six-minute conversation, I'm joined by master coach Peter Freeth to talk about what's actually happening when you freeze - the inner critic, the fear of embarrassment, the perfectionism that feels like it's protecting you. Because it is. That's the problem. This is More Than Words, previously 'From Lost to the...

You've studied English for years. You know the grammar. So why does speaking it at work still feel so hard? In this four-minute conversation, finance manager Nines López talks about what English learning got wrong - too much grammar, not enough real conversation - and what actually helps professionals stop freezing and start speaking with confidence. Note: this episode is conducted in Spanish. Thi...

You understand more than you speak. You freeze in meetings. You know the grammar but can't get the words out in the moment. In this seven-minute conversation, language coach Nacho Fernández - who works with CEOs and senior professionals on exactly this - talks about what actually unlocks speaking confidence. The shift from grammar to communication. The fear of judgement. Why correction and critici...

Many Spanish professionals have the certificates — B1, B2, even C1 — but still struggle to speak English confidently in real conversations. Why? Because the system teaches you to pass exams, not to communicate. In this episode of More Than Words 'From Lost To The River', English teacher Alba Guerrero González returns to unpack the difference between Exam English and Real English. We explore how 't...

Many people speak English well, yet still panic when someone says, “Sorry, could you repeat that?” In this short episode of More Than Words 'From Lost To The River', I explain why these moments often have nothing to do with your English level. You’ll learn the hidden variables in communication that affect understanding: background noise, distractions in the listener’s mind, technical issues on vid...

You're mid-sentence and someone's face changes. Suddenly everything you know disappears. In this seven-minute conversation, language coach, author and podcast host Daniele Ponzo talks about exactly that moment -- and what it taught him about confidence, imperfection, and what communication is actually for. His story of being sent to fix a client problem in Barcelona, in his third language, is wort...

  Most people who freeze when speaking English have already done everything they were supposed to do. The classes, the grammar, the certification. And it still wasn't enough. In this three-minute clip, language coach and author Daniele Ponzo talks about the moment he realised perfectionism was the problem, not the solution - and what actually shifted when he stopped trying to sound perfect and sta...

Visit my website for more info: procoachenglish.com. If you’re a driven Spanish professional who freezes in English or fears being judged, this episode is for you. Daniele Ponzo, former IT manager turned language coach and author, explains how to swap perfectionism for presence so you can speak naturally, be heard in meetings, and lead with confidence. Daniele and I explore the emotional side of l...

Visit my website for more info: procoachenglish.com: I used to stress over every word, constantly worrying that my Spanish wasn’t “good enough.” In this episode, I explore how to reframe that fear and build confidence by focusing on what you can already do. When language is used as a tool to communicate (rather than to prove yourself) everything starts to flow more naturally. We look at why perfec...

Visit my website for more info: procoachenglish.com: Hoy, me acompaña Nacho Fernández, coach de español. Hablamos sobre bloqueos mentales como el miedo y el perfeccionismo, y exploramos cómo el coaching, la escucha pasiva y hablar desde el primer día pueden ayudarte a ganar verdadera confianza, rápidamente. I speak Spanish on this one too! If you're ready for personalised support then you can reac...

Visit my website for more info: procoachenglish.com. I’ll never forget the day the Amazon delivery guy asked, “¿Quieres ver mi carne?” 😮 Fresh in Spain and still learning Spanish, I thought he wanted to see… my meat! What followed was a hilarious mix-up that taught me a big lesson: mistakes aren’t just inevitable, they’re essential for growth. In this episode, I share how embracing language mista...

Visit my website for more info: procoachenglish.com. Here is a funny story from my early days in Spain when my basic Spanish skills led to a hilarious mix-up at the butcher's! It’s a lighthearted reminder that making mistakes is a natural part of learning and often leads to the best memories. Watch it with subtitles here on YouTube What You’ll Learn in This Episode: I share how everyday language m...

Most Spanish professionals already know English — but speaking it confidently is another story. Perfectionism, fear of mistakes, and the pressure to “sound correct” can make even simple conversations feel stressful. In this short episode of More Than Words 'From Lost To The River', I talk with English teacher Alba Guerrero González about why fluency matters more than perfection and how to overcome...

Visit my website for more info: procoachenglish.com. In this deeply personal ‘off-camera’ conversation with Sarah Smit, I share how the pandemic forced me to rethink my path. How my frustrations with Spain brought out a darker, more negative side of my personality. And how transforming this negativity has shaped me, allowing me to ultimately find my purpose: helping others break free from their fe...