Real VS Accurate Pronunciation.

I've been teaching English over the past 8 years in Japan, private and group lessons,

beginner and advanced, experience have told me that to became a real bilingual, you have to start by mimic native speakers, is not important what they say but how the sound. The first step to acquire a real English pronunciation is by imitation.

  Notice that I say "Real" and not "accurate" because accurate pronunciation is different from real, "accurate pronunciation" is easier and anyone can easily learn it, because is more phonetic such as Spanish, Italian, Rumanian, French and JAPANESE among others unlike English which is based on consonants, and for that, Japanese Students and their peers in similar phonetic languages make a great effort to acquire those new sounds for them.

  So, to learn English with accurate pronunciation you do not even need a native English speaker, but a good English Teacher (and there are many Japanese who are good teaching English, their grammar is excellent and their pronunciation is accurate, though in most of cases they are not fluent), same happens with electronic dictionaries or e-pencils with voice (like the one implemented by the "Kumon") , but again those won't make you fluent either. to be fluent you need to have a "real" pronunciation, not and accurate pronunciation. Let's face it, native speakers, (most of them) do not speak accurately on regular basis conversation, in any language, and that's why students do not always understand what they say out of the classroom. So to be fluent you need a "real" English pronunciation, how do you do that?

The following are some possible things you can do;

1-living overseas for a while. (in two or three years you'll find the real sounds)

2-having a English teacher, native or not but who has lived overseas and UNDERSTAND the differences between "Accurate" and "Real" pronunciation. And who can teach you both (like me!)

3-Watching a lot Hollywood movies, listening a lot of pop American music and using like crazy the Internet sites where English is Spoken.

And the last and most difficult option is.. 

4-to find a boyfriend or girlfriend who do not speak in Japanese with you.

  I hope this writing can be of some help for you, keep on trying and enjoy English, remember Learning English most be Fun and Interactive! 

Good Luck!

Work-related.

  Don't forget,small talk does not always have to be unrelated to work topics. It may be semiwork-related as well. Questions about what kind of work projects the other person has been involved in or their professional specialization are always interesting conversation fodder. The key thing about small talk is to be genuine, and react in a natural manner. Ask questions about the things the other person mentions that are genuinely of interest to you rather than the things you think you are "supposed" to ask about.

  Show interest and enthusiasm. Don't be afraid to digress on seemingly unrelated topics. The aim is to discover common interests and enjoy the interaction. If you and the other person discover that you both are fans of the Isle of Hawaii as a vacation destination, for example, that's a start and surely you will find other things in common too. And above all, avoid being overly earnest be a real person. Be relaxed, smile and be a pleasant person to be spending time talking with. In The American-style socializing the following are some pointers for business lunches and after-work socializing.
Avoid drinking alcohol at lunch (the "three-martini lunch" of past decades has long been out of style!).

Avoid drinking too much alcohol at after work functions. Although in Japan drinking is de rigueur, in an Ameri- can-style social situation, it's better to avoid alcohol, so that you can keep your wits sharp and be a good conversationalist. Probably better to save the drinking for when you are kicking back with personal friends.




The host should pay for the meal as well as other charges such as a tip for the hatcheck. In the U.S., the preferred seat for the guest is the one with the more desirable view. "Ladies first" rules in the U.S. are less strict nowadays than many Japanese have been led to believe but are good to follow to the extent possible, for example, holding doors for women, holding chairs for women, helping women on with their coats, and allowing women to enter and exit elevators first.
  Mingling, there's an art to circulating at a cocktail party-type function. Strike a balance between talking to people long enough to make a connection, but not "glomming onto them" and monopolizing their time.

 The goal at a cocktail party is to meet several people and make connections that can be followed up on later if there appears to be mutual interest. This means that sensing when to end the conversation and move on to the next person is important. The key question to ask yourself is: Is this a meaningful conversation or does it reek of a sense of duty? If you are feeling bored or the other person looks as if they are feeling bored, it's time to say
"if you'll excuse me I must go and mingle" and gracefully break off the conversation and move on to talk to someone else. By following the above suggestions, you are sure to forge many useful business relationship.

Charm and communication skills.

Making a good first impression. The first key to a good impression is good grooming. Clean, neatly pressed clothes appropriate for the occasion are a must, as is good oral hygiene. Be sure to stand up straight, use a firm handshake and look the other person in the eye. And don't forget to smile!

As for your introduction, keep it simple,such as "Roswalle, nice to meet you." More elaborate explanations about yourself or your background can wait until later in the conversation. Don't be afraid to get the ball rolling with a question to the other person. Something as simple as "what brought you here?" "do you often attend these events?" or "what did you think of the presentation?" are sufficient as a conversation starter. Rather than yes/no questions, ask open-ended questions. Pick something relevant to the event you are at, instead of something random or seemingly unrelated.

Small talk is a good way to get to know someone, especially if your venue is a business lunch or dinner, or you are just chatting before or after a meeting. In addition to displaying your overall charm and communication skills, small talk helps you get to know a person better, and discover things that you have in common, which helps build the business relationship. When making small talk, steer clear of personal or sensitive topics such as religion, finances, politics, race, etc. Don't ask someone's age or marital status. For Japanese, it's best to stay away from stereotypical questions like "do you like Japanese food?" or "can you use chopsticks?" Good conversation topics for small talk include the following: Sports. Americans love to talk about sports, particularly baseball, football and basketball. Asking about the local team is sure to get some kind of reaction.
 For example, ask any Chicagoan if they are a Cubs fan or a Sox fan, and you are sure to have plenty to talk about. Hobbies. Find out what the person likes to do in their spare time. This might be a participant sport, such as golfing, tennis, fishing or running. Or it might be some other activity. If you happen to find out that they share an interest with you, that's the perfect bonding opportunity. Note, however, that native English speakers seldom use the word "hobby" in conversation. It's more natural to ask "What do you like to do in your spare time?"
 Local highlights. If you are visiting somewhere, ask about local sightseeing destinations. "What should I be sure to see while I'm here?" or "What restaurants do you recommend around here?" are good gambits. Children. If the other person has mentioned that they have children, this can be a good topic. Ask about their ages and what activities they are involved in. If you have children, you can share about yours.

A Funny Function devise in Washlets (ウォシュレット Woshuretto?)

 About some time ago I had a student who was the president of a small company manufacturing women’s underwear. Many female workers were working in his company. One day we had a conversation in which he said he had invented some device associated with the toilet. I went to his company to look at the device. The device was an attachment to the women’s toilet to save water.

 His invention appeared to be funny but he was very serious. . In those days his headache was the tremendous water bills sent by the water works department of the City Hall. His company had many female workers. There for the amount of water wastefully used in the toilet was a large quantity and sure this large quantity was reflected in the monthly bills. The women workers were thoughtless in using the toilet water. They were too scatterbrain to recognize that each drop of water was priced, meaning it was not free of charge. Therefore, my student tried to invent a device for preventing the wasting of water. He called the device “water saving device,” and wanted to patent it and sell it all over Japan.. If possible, he wanted to obtain patents overseas. The “water saving device" was a good title, sounding very serious.

 His invention was designed to prevent double flushing by women who were too concern about the residual looks after doing their thing. I visited his company and inspect how the invention worked. He said that he had tested the devise on his wife without letting her know about it. He proposed to demonstrate in my presence how the device worked. He entered to the toilet, and switched on the device. An artificial big sound of water flushing was heard. The sound was so big and long that it was easy to believe that his pissing was perfectly drowned out.. He shouted in a large voice from inside the toilet, can you distinguish? I answered in a loud voice, "Perfectly!".
 A few days later he filed a patent application with the Patent Office, but eventually he abandoned the application. His company went into bankruptcy, and he could not afford to invest on his invention. I don't know whether his invention was successful in reducing the sums of the monthly water bills.. But I'm pretty sure that his invention help others to develop a new function device in the already sophisticated washlet (ウォシュレット　Woshuretto?), and which artificial big sound of water flushing is not precisely for saving water but to save the embarrassment of women who doesn't want to be caught when expelling odds sounds from their bowels. See you!