It's true about any practice, if you've stuck with it for long enough

“I believe that we learn by practice. Whether it means to learn to dance by practicing dancing or to learn to live by practicing living, the principles are the same. In each, it is the performance of a dedicated precise set of acts, physical or intellectual, from which comes shape of achievement, a sense of one's being, a satisfaction of spirit. One becomes, in some area, an athlete of God. Practice means to perform, over and over again in the face of all obstacles, some act of vision, of faith, of desire. Practice is a means of inviting the perfection desired.”
― Martha Graham

Some thoughts on Socrate's method and how to use it if your goal is native-like fluency https://nataliatokar.me/blog/tpost/ltcm2ui3f1-the-socratic-method-of-learning-redefine

New exercise in the Community of Practice. Can you spot the mistake?

https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/exercises/exercise-73-focus-grammar-can-you-spot-these-mistakes-c1a2e14b-8281-46c8-92d7-93a0e268cde0

You can download this presentation in the Community of Practice. https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/webinars/download-the-not-to-do-list-if-you-are-after-quality-communication-in-english

NEW webinar available in the Community of Practice. Watch a step-by-step turorial to learn to self-edit your writing in English. https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/webinars/demonstration-how-you-can-apply-self-editing-resources-to-edit-your-own-texts

Here is a good reminder from James Clear


"In the beginning, your skills are raw, your knowledge is sparse, and you lack experience. At best, you will be able to produce work that is "just okay." And even then, you'll only manage to reach "just okay" by giving your best effort.

Nobody wants to produce something that is "just okay." You'll feel like it's beneath your standards. You'll worry about what others think of you. You'll wonder whether you would be better off taking a different path. But it is impossible to reach that stage unless you are willing to work through your current stage.

And so, one of the main obstacles between who you are and who you could be is courage. The courage to keep trying even if you're not yet as good as you hope. The courage to keep trying despite your fears of what others may think. The courage to keep trying without knowing how the future will unfold.

Your great work is on the other side of your early work. The only way to be exceptional later on is to have the courage to be "just okay" right now. This is how it is for everyone."

What is correct: Overwhelmed WITH or Overwhelmed BY?

I did this exercise today.
it doesn't mattter how much you still don't know. What matters is how fast you can find the answer. In order to be able to find the correct answers, you need to continuoulsy practice two skills: 1) Asking yourself the right questions 2) Looking in the right places.

This exercise was about finding the answer in order to transform "lack of confidence" into "confidence".
It took me 5 minutes to gain confidence. It took me about 10 more min to explain it in writing as I created the Community post.
Instead of searching for random things each time, I look for the answers in credible sources.

Everyone can learn to use the same strategies and self-correct a lot faster. But most people prefer playing the guessing game.... They use the word that they feel is correct. You start feeling the language only after you have taken the time to learn how it works. You start feeling it only if you choose to practice it daily.




Can you explain the difference between the two in your own words? How long did it take you to find the answer?


https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/dailydose/overwhelmed-with-of-overwhelmed-by-0f91e04a-2ced-4e73-a005-71a4d8e4038f

Highly recommend this talk to anyone who wants to write better in English

Conclusion:
➡️ Avoid Zombie nouns in your writing. Use active verbs instead to communicate your ideas with clarity
➡️ Passive voice is not always evil. You need to learn to feel and understand when the passive voice does a better job than the active voice

To learn to apply these rules and practice your writing skills, join the Community of Practice. You can choose to download the best books on writing, do the writing exercises together with a group of conscious and advanced learners, and join a Creative Writing SPRINT! to hone your skills of expressing your ideas in a foreign language with clarity and confidence.



https://youtu.be/sS-Txm3R3v8

"Some people will always stay small, limited and imprisoned by their need to feel like they can see themselves as the good and the right person, and imprisoned by their need for other people to see them as the good person or the right one"

10 blogs that I read on a regular basis and that I use EVERY TIME I edit my own texts. https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/dailydose/my-10-writing-blogs

🎤Gauge Your Public Speaking Skills
A FREE workshop on August 19.
8 p.m. MSK

Please RSVP in the Community of Practice to get an email notification and to add the event to your calendar.

Everyone is welcome. Please listen to my voice message is come prepared to turn your mic and your camera on.

The event is free and private. Any recordings taken during the event will never be shared with the public (but will be available for participants).

https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/calendar/gauge-your-public-speaking-skills

From my Youtube Video "Strategies to Introduce Variety Into Your English Practice Routine (Part 4 of 4)"
Brene Brown says that to be fluent in the language of feeling and emotion means to be able to name at least 30 emotions. How many can you name?

In your first language?
And in English?

Today I posted my 10 favorite blogs which offer excellent writing advice (style, grammar, self-editing tools, exercises, etc) in the Community of Practice.

The last two blogs have thesaurus entries to help people write about color, shapes, experiences, emotions, etc. Swipe left to see examples of emotions from one of those blogs. The list is long... and I understand why.

If you can't name the emotion, it doesn't exist in your world. "The limits of my language mean the limits of my world" - this quote makes more sense to me now than ever.

Native-Like Fluency means becoming fluent in the language of feeling and emotion in the target language. Why? Because human relationships and human emotions are inseparable. My goal is to master relationships in English. My goal has never been to learn English for the sake of English.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/tiTB-95Aok4

Summarising is a skill

https://youtube.com/shorts/6RwMbn0-MNk?feature=share

A new exercise and some food for thought in the Community of practice
The post is public. You are welcome to join the conversation.

https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/updates/how-to-find-the-main-idea-of-a-text-demonstration