Struggling to sound natural when you speak English? Here’s what actually works…
By Tom Crvenkovic | ACE Founder
Over 7 years, many of my students have asked, “Tom, what’s the number one way to learn English every day?”
The truth is, there isn’t one answer. BUT, after teaching English learners from all over the world, I know these 5 daily habits do make a big difference, for any level. In this blog, I’ll share the most powerful ones you can start using today!
Want to hear these tips straight from me?
Here’s a short video where I explain the 5 simple habits that have helped hundreds of my students speak more confidently.
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“Tom is an incredible and passionate teacher. I learned many languages before: Dutch, Spanish and now improve my English with Tom. Tom is not only fitting the classes to my needs (becoming a personal trainer), but he made my start in Australia incredibly easy. I’m so thankful as he helped me to settle, get to know Australian culture and showed me the beautiful town of Melbourne with a lot of travel tips for the surroundings. Tom makes the real difference, not only being a teacher, but also the best guide when moving to a new country and culture. Thank you Tom, best decision to learn and grow with you!”
1. Speak English Every Day
(Yes, Even If You're Alone)
One of the biggest mistakes learners make is waiting until they have someone to talk to. But the best speakers and students don’t wait! They create opportunities. Here’s how you can do that to speak English fluently in Australia:
✅ Talk to yourself
Describe what you're doing out loud and literally say it: “I’m making coffee. It smells amazing. I’m walking to the door”. I do this myself learning Croatian!
I’ve asked many teachers, AND THIS IS THEIR NUMBER ONE PIECE OF ADVICE. Keep this habit up and of course, go to cafes, Woolies, shops, pharmacies and practice questions and simple sentences, this is like ‘free English’. Every day you can really perfect how to order coffee, or ask for milk etc then onto the next one!
✅ Record yourself
Then listen back to spot mistakes in pronunciation and fluency. Use the Voice memos app and you can even transcribe what you’re saying to review! You can contact me to ask how to do this I’d be happy to show you :)
✅ Use shadowing
Listen to a native speaker (try our podcast, Netflix movies, or ACE videos) and repeat after them, copying their tone and speed.
Watch our Japanese student Hota learn useful English sentences and try copying us!
2. Improve Listening with Real English
Ok, Aussies can be so difficult to understand! Believe me, even some of my mates can be hard to understand! But if you struggle to understand fast native speakers, it’s not just about learning words, it’s about training your ears. This is how you can improving your listening every day:
👂 Listen to English every day:
Listen to your favourite Podcasts, YouTube videos, audiobooks, or even background conversations on TV. I recommend Gold 104.3’s Christian O’Connells podcast. He’s an English guy and speaks with two Aussies on a morning radio show, and you can listen to the podcast of it afterwards with no songs or ads and it even has text to read as they speak!
👂 Start slow, then increase speed.
Try apps like TED Talks, or YouTube videos to 1.25x speed. Write down words you didn’t understand and then learn the meaning.
👂 Use subtitles wisely.
Listen to something without subtitles. Then, watch it again with subtitles to check what you missed.
✍️ Watch Hota improve her listening with a dictation!
Try yourself! Write & compare!
3. Want to Learn More Vocabulary?
Do It This Way!
So, if you want to learn more words, you need to learn what Aussie actually say! We here in Australia LOVE slang. It’s a huge part of our culture. So start learning Aussie slang words, we don’t say “G’day” or “Put a shrimp on the barbie” as often as you think! But we do say things like “Whereabouts” instead of “Where” and “What are you up to this weekend?” instead of “What are you doing this weekend"?”. Knowing these local phrases, sayings, and slang words is crucial trust me. We use them all the time informally and formally. That means we use it all the time, even at work!
WATCH THIS to learn the best Aussie phrases locals use!
Want to learn real Aussie slang and sound natural?
4. Focus on Areas You Struggle With Most (Even the Embarrassing Ones)
I understand that learning English can be hard. It can make you feel frustrated or shy when you don’t know how to say something clearly. It’s also tough to understand fast talkers. Grammar can be so difficult to understand. Confidence is the big one. You can feel shy, not good enough and embarrassed. Nearly every student mentions this. I get it. But guess what? That’s normal!
Every student has challenges, you are not alone!
The key is to face this weak directly and practise the right way :)
Watch our student Amanda improve her pronunciation!
This is exactly the kind of focused, practical speaking work we do together at ACE.
If you want to fix your weak spots and feel more confident speaking English—you can!
Book your free trial lesson with me and let’s get started with Callan Method English speaking classes.
5.让英语成为生活的一部分
The most successful learners don’t just study English, they live it. Get amongst Australian culture, learn what’s going on in your city!
🎬 Watch movies & TV in English
📖 Read something daily like the news, blogs, books, even social media posts
I highly recommend ABC News it’s a great level, not too difficult to read and even just read the headlines to start and make a list of words you don’t know and learn them. By the way, they include so many Aussie slang words!
最后的提示：坚持不懈，享受乐趣
The biggest mistake? Stopping. Even if you only have 10 minutes a day, keep going. English fluency isn’t about being perfect, it’s about daily progress.
I fully believe in you as all my other students.
You CAN do this! Trust yourself, do these things every day and we are always here for support along the way :)
✅ Quick Checklist of What To Do Every Day to Learn English
☑️ Speak out loud every day – Even simple sentences help build fluency
☑️ Record yourself – Listen for pronunciation and grammar mistakes
☑️ Try shadowing – Copy how native speakers sound and speak
☑️ Improve your listening – Use real English like podcasts, YouTube, and dictation
☑️ Learn vocabulary the smart way – Use flashcards, repeat new words, and connect them to real situations
Want to improve your English to speak confidently? You can with me at ACE!
✨ We're the only school in Australia teaching the Callan Method
🌟 We're one of the highest reviewed English schools in the country
🎯 Perfect for general English, work communication, IELTS/PTE prep
📍 Join us online or face-to-face, for the best Private English classes and Group English classes in Australia
Our students improve their fluency, fix their pronunciation and speak confidently.. and you can too!
