How to Overcome Fear of Speaking English and Sound Natural

How to Overcome Fear of Speaking English and Sound Natural

“I just forget everything I want to say…”
“What if they judge my English?”
“My hands start shaking the moment I open my mouth.”

If you’ve ever felt this way before a conversation — whether it’s a job interview, a team meeting, or even just introducing yourself in English — you’re not alone.

Most of us were taught how to read and write English in school. But no one really showed us how to overcome fear of speaking or how to own our voice in a room full of people. No one taught us how to feel comfortable in our skin while speaking.

So let’s change that.

This blog isn’t about grammar rules or perfect pronunciation. It’s about what you can do — practically, mentally, emotionally — to overcome fear of speaking and go from feeling nervous to sounding natural in any conversation.

1. Flip the Fear: “They’re Not Better Than Me”

Let’s start with a mindset shift.

Most nervousness comes from one thought:

“They speak better than me. What if I mess up?”

But here’s the truth: People aren’t focused on your mistakes. They’re focused on themselves.
They’re thinking about what to say next, how they sound, or how they look.

So instead of thinking “I hope I don’t mess up,” tell yourself:

“I’m here to connect, not to impress.”

You’re not on stage. You’re in a conversation. That shift alone takes off so much pressure and helps you slowly overcome fear of speaking by focusing on connection instead of performance.

2. Learn the Power of Pauses

You don’t have to speak fast to sound fluent.

When you’re nervous, you tend to rush. Words tumble out, you lose your train of thought, and then… panic.

Here’s what confident speakers do differently:

  • They pause.

  • They breathe.

  • They give their brain a second to catch up.

Try this:
Before you respond to someone, take a 1-second pause.
It feels long in your head. But to others? It looks confident and thoughtful.

This simple trick gives your brain space and trains you to stay calm — a powerful way to overcome fear of speaking in the moment.

3. Practice with Real People, Not Just Books

You don’t learn to swim by reading about it.
You get in the water.

Speaking English is the same. You’ll never feel “ready enough” by just watching videos or reading blogs (even this one!).

The real breakthrough comes when you:

  • Speak out loud every day — even to yourself.

  • Talk to someone who listens, corrects you, and supports you.

  • Repeat real conversations until your mouth stops feeling stiff.

That’s exactly why thousands of learners use EngVarta — where you can speak to English experts on phone calls every day. No pressure, no awkward silences. Just real improvement.

It’s not about perfect grammar — it’s about practicing consistently until you overcome the fear of speaking and replace it with real confidence.

4. Use the Mirror Trick

One of the fastest ways to feel natural in conversations?

Talk to your mirror every morning.
Yes, seriously.

Look yourself in the eye and speak for 2 minutes on any topic — your day, your goals, or even what you ate for breakfast.

Why it works:

  • It desensitizes you to the fear of speaking.

  • You become more aware of your tone and expressions.

  • You stop sounding robotic and start sounding real.

Do this daily, and you’ll notice your brain doesn’t freeze up in conversations anymore.

And if public speaking makes your hands sweat and your voice tremble, you’re not alone. The fear is real — but it can be overcome.

To go deeper into how to overcome fear of speaking in front of an audience and build lasting confidence, check out this detailed guide:
👉 Public Speaking: Overcoming Fear and Building Confidence

Combine those strategies with daily mirror practice, and you’ll start noticing how natural you begin to sound — not just in front of the mirror, but in real conversations too.

5. Prepare Phrases, Not Paragraphs

Most people try to memorize long responses for situations, but real conversations are never that predictable.

Instead, prepare flexible, everyday phrases that you can use in different contexts. Like:

  • “That’s a great question. Let me think…”

  • “I’ve never tried that before, but it sounds interesting.”

  • “Can you repeat that a little slower, please?”

These phrases become your safety net — they buy you time and make you sound fluent, even when you’re thinking. And with time, you’ll naturally overcome fear of speaking by being better prepared for real-world situations.


Final Thoughts: Confidence Comes From Reps, Not Perfection

There’s no shortcut.
The only way to stop feeling nervous is to walk through it, one sentence at a time.

But the more you speak, the less scared you feel. The more you show up — even imperfectly — the more natural it becomes.

Start small. Start today.

Because every confident English speaker you admire?
They were once nervous too.


🚀 Want to Practice Speaking Daily with English Experts?

If you’re serious about transforming your spoken English, try EngVarta — the app where you can talk to live English experts on calls, practice real conversations, and build confidence from day one.

📱 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/engvarta.app
👍 Like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/EngVarta
📺 Watch helpful videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@EngVarta

🔗For Regular English Practice with an Expert: Download the app now

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Top 5 Steps that has Helped me to Improve my English

 

Top 5 Steps that has helped me to improve my English
Top 5 Steps that has helped me to improve my English

Just by the thought of speaking in English, I get numb. 

Do you feel relatable?

So the question is how can you overcome this fear & speak in English like a pro?

Firstly, let me tell you that:

 It is not just ‘Your problem’ – but a problem shared by almost every English learner. 

And there are two reasons behind it –

  1. First, you never had an environment where you could learn & speak in English. Your medium of education was not in English. And also, you don’t have people around you to speak in English.
  2. You had people around you & studied in an English medium school. But that traditional method of teaching never helped you to speak English. You fear from making mistakes and being judged. 

If you find yourself struggling with any of these situations – It is totally okay & not to be something embarrassed about. 

Speaking in English is not a measure of your intelligence or success. 

It is just a medium through  which you can broaden your horizons. Whether you are in a corporate world, own a business, a home maker or a student, it can help you to drive towards success & become more confident in life.

English is just like any other skill you acquire. Some may take time to acquire the skill & some may learn it fast. It all depends upon how easy peasy & stress free you make the whole journey of learning for yourself.

If I talk about me – I don’t have an infinite jargon of words. I have a limited vocabulary but this doesn’t stop me from speaking in English. My thinking language has always been English & also I have clarity in my thoughts which makes me confident.

I will share with you today all the best steps that I have up my sleeves.

Step 1 : Start making English your ‘thinking language’. 

If someone is still suggesting you start by ‘learning grammar rules’ and ‘reading newspapers’ – You need to stop doing that right now. 

The biggest mistake that you are making  is ‘You’re still thinking in your native language’. You know when you think in English – it becomes really easy to put down your words into expressions. Language becomes faster & easier when speaking it out loud.  

In no time, Speaking in mind becomes speaking with mouth. By thinking in English you internalize the language. That means the language is part of your life. You don’t have to remember any rules or read bulky textbooks. All comes from within you.

I want to really stress on this step because it is what has helped me in speaking in English. 

Step 2 : Speak chunks of sentences

If you’re a beginner or you are unable to speak in English without gaps, you must start speaking in chunks. A word makes a sentence and sentences makes a paragraph. If you know the right word, you are good to go.

 So, start using English words more frequently while speaking even in your native tongue. Instead of calling out things in your native language, try to Speak it out in English. This step is highly recommended to those who don’t speak in English at all or have just started to speak in English.

Because if you are a learner, I assume that you have already started listening to a lot of English content and also reading them. There is a lot of intake happening and now you need to focus on input & output. Listening & reading is the process of intaking the language whereas writing & speaking is the output. 

After you start gaining confidence in speaking in chunks, you can finally start speaking in English.

Step 3 : Observation of English language. ( Acquire Instead of Learning )

 Whether you want to improve your Public speaking skills, spoken English or writing skills – Observation is the best tool to master it.

You are not ‘learning’ the language but acquiring it. And there is a major difference between both. You may deliver a speech by memorizing but you cannot start a conversation until you have words  to express your thoughts . The best way to acquire a language is – Observe the language from outside. 

Don’t worry I am not suggesting you watch tedious English lessons but you can watch anyone or anything who speaks in English. You may watch vlogs, food channels, music, travel videos or anything that grabs your attention. 

Listening to English speakers will help you acquire their style of speaking. We have the power to mirror anyone we follow if you observe them closely.

Also, repeated exposure to English speakers will help you to know the right way to structure sentences. 

In my experience, I also realized that extensive listening helps to understand grammar rules implicitly. And the best part about this step is – You’ll definitely enjoy it !

EngVarta follows the same philosophy. You learned your native language by listening to people around you. In the same way, listening & talking to English Experts can also help to learn English. EngVarta Experts push English learners out of their comfort zone and help them speak English by correcting their mistakes. 

The less mistakes you start making, the more you get confident.

This is how it works. 

Step 4 : Clarity in thoughts

Getting lost in thoughts can be frustrating!

When your thoughts are grounded  & you are clear about what you want to say, speaking English becomes really easy.  When you speak a language, you need to have words on what you are speaking about and your target is to sound as easy as possible for the listener. 

Now, there are two ways in which you can easily speak with clarity –

  • Speak slowly and clearly.

My biggest flaw while speaking in English was I used to speak fast. Speaking fast did blunders and hampered my speaking skills so much. While I kept on speaking, I lost in my thoughts & skipped words. 

  • Use simple English words

We think we sound cooler when we use fancy words. The truth is we hardly use them in our daily conversations. People love to listen to someone who speaks easy to understand English. In short, use words that are easier to sound. 

Step 5 :  Confidence is the key 

My fifth point is not about practicing. Because this is where a major portion of the English learners face difficulty.  You may be surprised to hear that a lot of people amongst you make great speakers. But just because of lack of confidence, you never dare to speak in English. 

Embracing mistakes is a crucial part of learning any skill. Until you keep on saying, “ What will people think about me if I make a mistake”, you’re not going to improve. Because even if you become ‘A Perfectionist’, People are gonna judge you for that too.

Confidence is actually a ‘catalyst’ to the whole process. And somewhere someone had truly said that ‘ Confidence doesn’t come from you always being right, but fearing from being wrong.’