※英文の下に日本語訳がございます。

5 Steps to introduce yourself with confidence in English

Hi, Hanna from KEC here! Maybe in your first lesson you learnt to say, “My name is ____. What’s your name?” And this may be good enough for beginners, but how about in the real world? For many people it is difficult to talk to someone new.

Here are 5 easy steps to introduce yourself to others confidently:

1. Break the Ice

“Break the ice” means to become comfortable with people. There are many ways to introduce yourself, I suggest you pick 2 or 3 and memorize them.

For example: Hi, I’m Hanna. Nice to meet you. *offer hand to be shaken*

2. Ask Follow Up Questions.

In native classes I always tell people to ask follow-up questions. Why? Because being able to ask a follow up question is a very good skill to keep conversations going!

Memorize 3 or 4 questions, here are some suggestions:

How are you?

What brings you here?

Are you enjoying yourself?

 

3. Listen and Ask More Questions

Listening can be easier than talking, so it’s ok just to listen and ask questions. People like talking about themselves so it will be easy.

Here is a sample conversation:

                Meg: How are you?

                John: A little tired.

                Meg: Why is that?

                John: I didn’t sleep well last night.

                Meg: I’m sorry to hear that. What went wrong?

                John: I’m a bit jet-lagged from my flight.

                Meg: Wow, yeah. Where did you fly from?

                John: I came from New York last night.

                Meg: That’s far! How long was it?

                John: Just a few hours. But I had a long layover in Amsterdam.

Meg keeps the conversation going by asking for more information, and she also learns about him.

4. Prepare Basic Answers

At some point, someone will ask you questions. It is best to memorize the answers to some general questions. Here are some examples:

                What do you do?

                What are you doing here?

                How was your trip?

                Are you having a good time?

                What do you think of the weather?           

You can say something general to specific questions even. Then add detail, detail keeps the conversation going. Then you can add a question.

General Answer → Detailed Comment → Follow up question

This is basically how to keep a conversation going!

5. Making an Exit

So if your conversation isn’t going well, or you needs to leave, here are some polite ways to part ways:

                Excuse me, I need to (find my friend/go to a meeting)

                Well, it’s been lovely talking to you.

                Best of luck.

                Nice to meet you, Brian.

                I hate to run off, but I need to go.

                Enjoy your time here!

But most importantly I would say is to smile and be confident (standing straight with your shoulders back), people will remember your confidence more than any small mistakes. People are generally happy to have someone talk to them, so even if you make a mistake, keep talking!

Best of Luck!

皆さんこんにちは！ＫＥＣ外語学院のハナです。皆さん、英会話を習いたての頃に“My name is ___. What’s your name?”という表現は必ず習ったことと思います。最初はそれで十分かも知れませんが、中級、上級とレベルアップしてもそんな表現ばかり使っていても良いのでしょうか？

初対面の人と会話する時って緊張しますよね。そんな時に適した５つのステップを今回はご紹介します。

1.Break the Ice (緊張をほぐす)

Break the iceとは「場をなごませる」という意味です。

自己紹介には多くの表現がありますが、２つか３つの表現を憶え、活用すると良いでしょう。

例：　Hi, I’m Hanna, nice to meet you. （握手）

2.質問をさらに続けましょう。

KEC外語学院の実践クラスでは、講師は常に質問を続けるように言いますよね。なぜでしょう？

Follow up質問を聞くことは会話を続ける際に役に立つスキルです。

3つまたは4つの質問を憶えましょう。たとえば：

How are you?

What brings you here?

Are you enjoying yourself

3.よく聞き、さらに質問を続けましょう！

話すことより、聞くことの方がより簡単ですので、しっかりと相手の話を聞いて質問しましょう！自分のことを話すのが好きな人もたくさんいらっしゃいますので、問題ないです！

サンプル会話を見てみましょう：

                Meg: How are you?

                John: A little tired.

                Meg: Why is that?

                John: I didn’t sleep well last night.

                Meg: I’m sorry to hear that. What went wrong?

                John: I’m a bit jet-lagged from my flight.

                Meg: Wow, yeah. Where did you fly from?

                John: I came from New York last night.

                Meg: That’s far! How long was it?

                John: Just a few hours. But I had a long layover in Amsterdam.

この会話で、メグさんはジョンさんに質問を投げかける方法で会話を続けていますね。そして、質問することによってジョンさんについて知ろうとしていますね。

4.基本的な答えを準備しましょう

こちらが質問を続けていると、相手から質問されることもありますよね。一般的な質問に対する答えをいくつか憶えておくと良いでしょう。

たとえば：

What do you do?

                What are you doing here?

                How was your trip?

                Are you having a good time?

                What do you think of the weather?

具体的な質問が来ても何か一般的な表現で答えることができます。そして、詳細な情報を付け加えてください。詳細な情報は会話を弾ませます。また自分の質問を付け加えることができます。

一般な答え　→　詳細なコメント　→　フォローアップ質問

これは、会話を続ける上での基本的な方法です。

5.会話の結び

もし、会話がうまくいっていない場合は、ここで丁寧な挨拶を使えます。

                Excuse me, I need to (find my friend/go to a meeting)

                Well, it’s been lovely talking to you.

                Best of luck.

                Nice to meet you, Brian.

                I hate to run off, but I need to go.

                Enjoy your time here!

でも、会話で一番大事なことは笑顔（しかもまっすぐ姿勢を正して）と自信を持つことだと思います。そうすればたとえ小さな間違いを幾つかしてしまっても、自信をもっているという印象を相手に与えることができるでしょう。人は誰かに話をしてもらって満足するので、たとえ間違いをしたとしても、話し続けてください！

がんばってください！