Hey there! This is TOP episode 321. Stop Promising, Start Speaking: A Smarter English Goal for the New Year
You read English. You understand English. You’ve been learning for years, but when it’s time to speak your mind just freezes, and the words don’t come out. If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. My name’s Ola, and this is Teacher Ola Podcast. I’m here to help you finally speak out loud. This isn’t about perfect grammar or fancy vocabulary. This is about your voice. Your words. Your real English.
Before we get into today’s topic, let me start with a quick invitation, because the timing actually matters today. It’s New Year’s Eve. This moment when people are already thinking about what they’ll change, what they’ll finally do differently, what they’ll start on January first.
And if English speaking is somewhere on that list for you, I’d really like to invite you to a live meeting called Mocny Start. It happens tomorrow, on the 1st of January, at 8 p.m. You can join by going to teacherola.com/start.
Okay. Now let’s talk.
A lot of people end the year saying things like:
“This year I’ll finally learn English.”
“This year I’ll work on my grammar.”
“This year I’ll really focus on English.”
And I want to be honest with you — these are not bad intentions.
But they are very bad goals if your real dream is to speak.
Because most English resolutions fail for one simple reason:
They are too big, too vague, and too focused on the future version of you. They sound nice, but they don’t tell you what to actually do on a random Tuesday in January or May when you’re tired and busy.
Very often, learners confuse learning English with using English. And those are not the same thing. You can learn English for years. You can understand podcasts, videos, posts, grammar explanations. And still freeze when you need to say something out loud. Speaking is not knowledge. Speaking is a skill. And skills only improve when you practise them. Of course at the beginning you suck, you are terrible at it, but that’s only natural. You have to accept this because it’s a fact.
One of the biggest traps I see is waiting. Waiting until you feel ready. Waiting until your grammar is better. Waiting until you know more words. Waiting until you feel confident. But confidence doesn’t come before speaking. Confidence comes from speaking.
A smarter New Year goal is not about levels. Not about B2, C1, or “fluency”. A smarter goal is behaviour-based. Instead of saying: “I want to speak English fluently,” you ask: “What will I do regularly that forces me to speak?” For example: Speaking for five minutes a day, even if it’s just to yourself. Recording voice notes instead of writing notes. Taking one sentence you already know and using it in three different situations. Saying something out loud even when you’re not sure it’s perfect.
These goals don’t sound impressive. But they work. Consistency beats motivation every single time.
Especially after the first two weeks of January, when motivation disappears. And let me say something important: Missing a day does not mean you failed. Real failure is quitting. So the strategy for you is this: if you miss a day, get back to your habit as fast as possible, which is the nxt day. If you miss one day it’s ok, but try not to because if you miss two days. That’s where the real problem, starts. Usually it’s the beginning of the end. So if you miss a day, get back on the next one. And don’t you dare beat yourself up! You need to love yourself because you are the only person that can male your goals happen.
If you understand something in English but never say it, you don’t really own it. Understanding is passive. Speaking is active. So if you’re thinking about a New Year resolution today, I’d encourage you to make it smaller, simpler, and much more practical.
And before I finish, one more invitation, because if you’re listening to this on New Year’s Eve, the timing is perfect. Tomorrow, on the 1st of January at 8 p.m., I’m hosting a live meeting called Mocny Start. It’s designed to help you start the year with a realistic, speaking-focused plan instead of another broken resolution. You can join us by going to teacherola.com/start. And since this episode goes out at the very end of the year, I want to say this as well: I wish you a New Year that’s less about pressure and more about real progress, especially in how you speak English.
Time to practice! Listen and repeat out loud:
Speaking is not knowledge — it’s a skill.
Confidence doesn’t come before speaking; it comes from speaking.
Understanding English is not the same as using it.
If you never say it out loud, you don’t really own it.
Waiting until you feel ready is the biggest trap.
Small, simple goals work better than big promises.
Consistency beats motivation every time.
Missing one day is okay; quitting is the real problem.
You don’t need perfect English to start speaking.
Real progress comes from using English, not planning it.
That’s all from me now. Don’t forget to head to teacherola.com/321 and grab your free worksheet. It’ll help you repeat the key phrases from this lesson.
Join my Voice Loop program, new groups are being formed. Go to teacherola.com/grupy and sign up! Teacherola.com/grupy. Above all: join my New Year’s event! Go to teacherola.com/start and see how to finally fulfill your language dreams. Come and see how to make 2026 your year, a year of a person who speaks English, feels the language and loves it. Teacherola.com/start.
Thank you so much for listening. Stay fearless, take care, and say it out loud! I’m your teacher, Teacher Ola, and you’ve been listening to Teacher Ola Podcast. Bye for now! Happy New Year!