It’s said that America is a melting pot of the nations, and the diversity that the cultures of the world bring here is what makes it unique. I love that professionals from all over the world can work here together. And I want to tell you – the beauty of America is that you don’t need to be born here to impact your co-workers, your friends, your cities, your field of work or study, and beyond. America needs voices and insight from cultures around the globe… that means you!

Probably the most common way to celebrate July 4th is with outdoor barbecues spent with family and friends… and everyone’s favorite, fireworks! But underneath the holiday festivities, Americans are truly proud of the freedoms we enjoy – freedom of speech being one of the most cherished, and certainly very close to my heart. So today on Independence Day, I want to share about your freedom of speech in America, how we need your intelligence and ideas, and how...

We’ve been getting a lot of rain lately where I live in the South, and although it makes for some dreary days, the payoff is outstanding: amazing flowers are blooming and filling our yards and parks!

Americans have a rhyming phrase that helps us get through the wet months:

“April showers bring May flowers.”

This phrase reminds us that all this rain has a purpose! I bring it up because it’s also a timely way of getting you to open your mouth wide for a number of vowel sounds as you practice to reduce your accent.

“April showers bring May flowers” also has the “ing” sound… which you can read more about in this post.

This phrase also has a joke that goes along with it, which leads me to ask you:

Do you know the difference? And how can that little space between “May” and “flower” make any difference? Hear the difference between them, and how...

People who love gardening often spend all winter planning what they'll grow in the spring. They pore over seed catalogs and websites, plot out their flower or vegetable beds on paper, and put aside money for new plants, mulch, and all the other necessary materials to make their garden beautiful and prosperous.

Have you ever thought about tending to your speech the way you'd tend to a garden?

Well, I'm issuing you a challenge!

For Better Hearing and Speech month, we're talking about how your communication takes care... the kind of care that would go into the planning and maintenance of a lush and healthy garden.

What does it look like to “grow a speech garden” with care?

Any gardener knows that weeds will take over your garden in no time if left to grow! They become harder to uproot as they get bigger. The same is true for your speech: an unhelpful sound left unchecked will make you harder to understand,...

April is Stress Awareness Month, and we’re continuing this month with ways to improve your accent by bringing down your body’s stress level. In last week’s article, I asked you to loosen up the muscles that control your speech with exercises for your shoulders, neck, and jaw. If you haven’t tried those, take a minute to look back at my previous article and stretch out those muscles.

Now that you’ve familiarized yourself with some helpful stretches, let’s move on to an important part of your speech you’ve probably overlooked: your breathing.

I’m sure you don’t notice your breathing until you get into a stressful situation: a presentation at work, a tense moment of disagreement with a co­worker, or an important meeting. You probably become aware of the quicker, more shallow breaths as your heart rate and stress level rise.

Let’s explore what causes this, and work to...

This weekend, Americans are once again celebrating another springtime holiday: Easter. For many, Easter is an important holiday in their Christian faith. For others, it’s a welcoming of the spring season and new life.

You’re probably seeing Easter candy in the aisles at all the stores, and hearing friends and co-workers talk about their plans for this weekend. Perhaps they’re having a big family meal after their church service, or attending an Easter egg hunt with their children at a public park.

In this video, I’ll take you through the Easter story and many American Easter traditions, both religious and secular. I’ll also help you with several vowel sounds and how to pronounce the “R” sound, while we explore Easter phrases you should know to be able to talk about the holiday with the Americans in your life.

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Improving your speech or reducing your accent takes a lot of self-awareness… it requires listening to yourself and regular practice in order to improve. But today I’m going to ask you to be aware of something other than the sound of your voice.  I’d like you to be aware of your body’s stress.

Since April is Stress Awareness Month, I’d like you to take time this month to notice where you hold stress and tension in your body, as this greatly affects the muscles that control your speech and pronunciation. Let’s take a look at a few exercises that will help you relieve speech muscle tension.

Shoulders and Neck

Controlling your speech begins further down than your tongue and cheek muscles. It starts in the shoulders and neck, a place where many of us carry stress and tension.

Cheek and Jaw

Many of us clench our teeth or tighten our cheek muscles when stressed. Try to be aware of this, and try the following exercise when you...

April is National Pecan Month, and it’s only natural for Americans to love pecans: The pecan is the only nut tree native to North America. It’s been growing wild and in cultivation from the northeastern United States all the way down to the river valleys of Mexico… so naturally, all these regions from north to south have developed a different way of pronouncing “pecan.”