How to get an American Accent – 5 Innovative Tips
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A question that comes to us very often is – How to get an American Accent? Getting an American accent and speaking English in a way that Americans understand is important for different groups of people.
Firstly there are international students seeking internship and job opportunities in the US. For most opportunities, there will be an initial phone interview with HR, where English communication skills will be looked at more than technical skills. If your accent is too “foreign” for the HR person, they might be reluctant to give you an interview with the hiring manager.
Secondly, there are companies who do business with American clients. You might have a great product or service but if you can’t communicate it’s value in a clear, confident manner, you will not be making any sales. And realistically, a big part of speaking clearly in a way American English speakers understand is speaking in an accent that is as similar to as what they use.
How to get an American Accent – 5 Innovative Tips
Speak slower than usual
This might sounds like an untraditional tip but try it and you will see the difference!
Most languages like Hindi, Chinese, Tamil, Spanish and Russian are spoken at a faster rate than English. If you speak English at the same speed you speak these languages, it becomes extremely hard for native speakers to understand.
So slow down your English speaking just a little bit. Give your self a little more time between words. This will do magic to the way you pronounce words and make you sound a lot more clearer.
Practice English with native speakers from the US
This is our main recommendation to anyone who asks – how to get an American accent.
The only fully learn an American Accent is to practice English continuously with American speakers. This is why people who migrate to the US improve their accents so quickly.
Most English teachers waste student’s time by teaching boring grammar lessons when they should really be having more real conversations with students. More conversations means more opportunities for student to fine-tune their accent.
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Increase the amount of American Accents you listen to
If you listen to a lot of American Accents, your brain will become more used to the tempo and rhythm. One cool way to do this is to listen to audiobooks while you drive. This would be a very productive way to use time that you will otherwise be wasting on the road.
And you don’t have to limit your self to audiobooks – whether it is TED Talks to Talkshows, maximize the time you spend listening to American Accents.
Absorb Accents like a child, not an adult
Have you ever noticed that children absorb Accents faster when they move to an English speaking country and start interacting with native English speaking children. This is because they don’t over-analyse and over think the learning process.
So if you want to get an American accent fast, forget about memorizing rules and just start speaking English more. Learning an Accent is like learning dancing or biking. You have to learn intuitively, not by memorizing.
How to get an American accent – bonus tip
Record your voice speaking English naturally. The compare how you speak with American English speakers. Compare things like the rhythm, the tempo, how you pause between sentences, where you stress sounds etc.
If you want to change your accent to an American accent, you have to practice that deliberately. It is not impossible but a lot of repetition is needed.