For years, the conversation around first-language bias has focused – rightly – on the harm it causes teachers and learners who use English as an additional language. It sidelines qualified professionals, devalues hard-won expertise, and sends learners the damaging message that an accent or a passport is a proxy for…
When I began my English training journey, I thought the goal was fluency. Not just competence – real fluency. The kind where you don’t pause, don’t search, don’t feel the gap between the thought in your mind and the words coming out of your mouth. I chased it. A lot…
I’ve noticed something over the years. When people hear “English trainer”, they assume certain things: I don’t. And I think it’s time I shared, clearly, what I actually do. What I don’t do I don’t… Because… Correct every error Errors are often just transfers from other languages. They don’t need…
I notice something with almost every client I work with. They rush. Not because they’re in a hurry. Because silence feels dangerous. A two-second pause while searching for a word. A breath before responding. A moment of thinking before speaking. For the person listening, it’s nothing. Less than nothing. For…
A confession – for years, I thought my job as an English trainer was to correct. To spot the error. To explain the rule. To help someone sound more correct. I was good at it. But something felt off. Because the professionals I worked with didn’t come to me for…
If you have ever taught English – or learned it – you may have felt the weight of certain words: These terms arrive with good intentions. But they also carry invisible baggage. They create a ladder where “native” sits at the top and everyone else climbs toward it. They turn…
For the internationally mobile executive – whether navigating a joint venture in Singapore, leading a multilateral negotiation for a development bank in Addis Ababa, or presenting quarterly results to a global board in London – a profound realisation eventually dawns: fluency in English is merely your boarding pass. It grants…
In boardrooms around the world, among the executives of the world’s most prestigious institutions, a quiet realisation is dawning. The global business arena no longer rewards mere English proficiency – it demands something far more sophisticated. I have worked as an English coach predominantly in France since 2018. And this…
