HAVE YOU EVER had this experience: You’re trying to think of the name of, say, a character in a book. You’re thinking, “He’s a main character, and they made movies about the book…good grief…it’s so popular. I can’t believe I can’t remember this…” You think about it actively for about ten minutes, and then, frustrated, you give up, thinking, “Oh, well. It’ll come to me.”
And then, it DOES come to you, quite a bit later. At an odd time, OUT OF THE BLUE, like at 2 o’clock in the morning, or the next day while you’re having a lively conversation with someone about, say, politics. And you shout, “HARRY POTTER! That’s it! Harry Potter! Oh yay!” And you know, quite profoundly, that YOUR BRAIN NEVER GAVE UP ON THE PROCESS OF FIGURING IT OUT FOR YOU.
That’s how accent modification works. The brain KEEPS working at the issue even when you’re not doing it actively. Once the brain knows what it needs to work it, it does it. It works between lessons. It works nights and weekends. It works while you are thinking about other things. The brain likes to makes things clear, so when you have decided to work on your accent, and we assess and go towards new sounds, the brain TAKES UP THE CAUSE.
It’s a wonderful thing, really. And it’s based on good, ongoing, repeated assessing of your speech, along with focused, clear, creative teaching, and an interactive learning process. Working together, all three of us: You, me, and your magnificent, active, lively brain.
I look forward to helping your brain take up your cause: being understood all the time!