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I stood at a birthday party in Spain, surrounded by conversation, understanding every word... and said nothing. Not because I couldn't speak Spanish. I'd been living in Spain for three years by that point. I'd studied, practiced, knew my verb conjugations well enough to pass a test. I could follow the rapid-fire conversations around the table, the jokes, the stories, the arguments about whether tortilla is better with or without onion. But when it was my turn to speak, I froze. The problem wasn't vocabulary. It was trust. I didn't trust myself to sound imperfect. Something inside me had decided that if I couldn't say it perfectly, I shouldn't say it at all. So I stayed quiet. I smiled. I nodded. I pretended I had nothing to add. And inside, I felt like a shadow of myself. I'd experienced a personality transplant. Once the life and soul of the party, funny enough to have spent years doing stand-up comedy in London, I'd been reduced to the quiet, timid guy in the corner who didn't have a word to say about anything. The loneliness and frustration were constant. And the worst part? I knew I had things to say but I just couldn't get the words out. If you've ever felt smaller in English than you are in your native language, you know exactly what I mean. |
You don't have a language problem.
You have a confidence problem.
And the thing about confidence problems is that grammar lessons won't solve them.
Neither will memorising verb tables or conjugations in isolation.
Because the real issue isn't what you know.
It's what you believe about yourself when you speak.
Let me guess:
You understand meetings. You follow presentations. You can read reports and documents without any problem. But when you have to speak, especially when it matters, you hesitate. You translate in your head before speaking. You practice sentences silently. You stay quieter than you want to be. All of it makes you sound less like yourself. And afterwards, you revisit the conversation in your mind, analysing everything you said wrong. Sound familiar? |
You already know enough English.
What you don't have yet is the permission to sound like yourself when you speak it.
The voice in your head is running the show
After years of coaching Spanish-speaking professionals, I've seen the same thing happening again and again. Yes, vocabulary and grammar matter, they're the foundation, the structure of the language itself. A structure you've been studying for many years already, and one you've largely mastered.
But here's what I've learnt: the biggest barrier to speaking English confidently isn't knowing more words or rules.
It's the voice in your head telling you that you're not good enough to use what you already know.
That voice has a lot to say:
❝ Wait until you're sure it's correct.
❝ Don't embarrass yourself.
❝ They'll think you're stupid if you make a mistake.
❝ You should be better at this by now.
That voice kept me silent for years in Spain. It convinced me that if I couldn't say something perfectly, I shouldn't say it at all.
Until I realised something:
The voice wasn't protecting me. It was a prison.
What I do (and why it works)
I work with executives who already speak English but go silent when it matters most.
People who know the words but can't get them out. People who practice sentences in their heads and feel smaller in English than they are in their native language.
Yes, we work on pronunciation. Yes, we refine grammar and expand vocabulary. But only once we've addressed what's actually blocking you, the critical voice telling you you're not good enough.
Because you already have the technical foundation. What's holding you back is trusting yourself enough to use it.
My approach combines:
This isn't about sounding native. It's about sounding like yourself.
Why this works
I'm Richard Marshall, founder of Pro Coach English, host of the From Lost to the River podcast, and a licensed NLP Practitioner with a CIPD Diploma in Learning & Development.
I spent years staying silent in Spain, trapped by the same perfectionism and self-doubt that keeps my clients stuck. That experience, combined with a background in stand-up comedy, taught me how language confidence actually works.
It's not about memorising more rules.
It's about understanding how your brain processes language under pressure, how perfectionism blocks your ability to speak, and how to build psychological safety with yourself so you can finally use what you already know.
Who this is for
You are a senior executive, manager, or leader.
In your native language, you're well spoken. You lead rooms. You're respected in your field.
In English, you feel like a reduced version of yourself.
You're tired of overthinking every sentence, comparing yourself to native speakers, and staying quiet when you have something valuable to say.
You're ready to stop hiding behind perfectionism and start owning your voice.
This work is not for beginners.
It's for professionals who won't wait for perfection any longer.
Your next step
If this resonates, start here.
Before we schedule a call, I'd like to understand your situation.
Already know you want to talk?
Ready to explore my coaching programmes?
