10 Years of Learning English and Still Can't Speak? That's Because You've Been Learning to Swim on Dry Land.

Have you ever had one of those utterly frustrating moments: you’ve worn out your vocabulary books, mastered every grammar rule, binged hundreds of American TV shows, but the moment you need to speak English, your mind just goes completely blank?

We often assume that people who speak English well either have an innate talent or an outgoing personality. But what if I told you it has little to do with either talent or personality?

The truth is: learning English is just like learning to swim.

You can master every swimming theory, from the buoyancy of water to the angle of your arm strokes, knowing it all crystal clear. But as long as you don't jump into the water, you'll forever remain a "swimming theorist" and not a person who can actually swim.

Most of our English learning happens on the shore, practising swimming. We try very hard, put in a lot of effort, but just never get into the water.

Stop Being a "Swimming Theorist," Jump into the Water

Think about those fluent English speakers around you; they aren't "smarter," they've just "immersed themselves in the water" earlier and for longer:

• They work and live in environments where speaking English is essential.
• They have foreign friends and communicate daily "in the water."
• They aren't afraid to choke on water, daring to flail through mistakes.

See, the key isn't "personality," it's "environment." Changing your personality is hard, but creating an environment for "getting into the water" is something we can do right now.

Step One: Find Your "Other Shore" (A Clear Goal)

Why do you want to learn to swim? Is it for fun, or to swim to the other shore to meet someone important?

If it's just for fun, you might splash around a bit and then get out. But if there's a compelling reason on the other shore that you must reach – like a coveted job opportunity, a culture you wish to delve into, or a friend you want to connect deeply with – you'll stop at nothing, desperately swimming forward.

This "must-go" reason is your strongest motivation. It will make you proactively analyse: How far am I from the other shore? What kind of "swimming stroke" do I need? How should I conserve and allocate my energy?

Action: Stop saying, "I want to learn English well." Turn it into a concrete goal: "I want to be able to have a 10-minute daily conversation with foreign clients in three months," or "I want to be able to order food and ask for directions independently when travelling abroad."

Step Two: The Goal Is "Not Drowning," Not an Olympic Gold Medal (Treat English as a Tool)

What's the goal for a beginner swimmer? Is it to perfect the butterfly stroke? No, it's to first ensure you don't sink, that you can breathe, and that you can move forward.

English is the same. It is, first and foremost, a tool for communication, not a science where you need to score 100%. You don't need to understand every single grammatical detail, just like when we speak our native language, we may not be able to explain the precise usage of every grammatical nuance, but it doesn't hinder our communication.

Stop getting hung up on questions like, "Is my pronunciation standard?" or "Is the grammar of this sentence perfect?" As long as the other person understands your meaning, you are successful. You've "swum across!"

Remember: If you can't even discuss a topic in your native language, don't expect to eloquently converse about it in English. Communication ability is more important than perfect grammar.

Step Three: Don't Be Afraid to Choke on Water; It's a Necessary Path (Embrace Mistakes)

No one is born knowing how to swim. Everyone starts by choking on their first mouthful of water.

It is indeed embarrassing to make mistakes in front of others, but these are your moments of fastest progress. Every time you choke on water, you instinctively adjust your breathing and posture. Every time you make a linguistic mistake, it's an opportunity to remember the correct usage.

Those fluent English speakers don't not make mistakes; rather, they've made more mistakes than you've probably even practised. They've long grown used to the feeling of "choking on water" and know that as long as they keep flailing, they'll always resurface.

How to "Get into the Water"? Start by Creating Your Own "Swimming Pool"

Alright, we understand the principles, but how do we "get into the water"?

1. Switch Your Life to "English Mode"

This isn't about "finding time to learn English"; it's about "living in English."

• Change your phone and computer system language to English.
• Listen to your favourite English songs, but this time, try to look up what the lyrics mean.
• Watch your beloved American TV shows, but try changing the subtitles to English, or even turning them off.
• Follow foreign bloggers in your areas of interest, whether it's fitness, beauty, or gaming.

The key is to use English to do things you already enjoy. Let English stop being a "learning task" and become "a part of your life."

2. Start Flailing in the "Shallow End"

No one expects you to challenge the deep end on day one. Start small, and build your confidence.

• This week's goal: Order a coffee in English.
• Next week's goal: Comment on your favourite blogger on social media, in English.
• The week after: Find a language partner and have a simple 5-minute conversation.

Speaking of finding a language partner, this might be the most effective yet most daunting step. What if you're worried about speaking poorly, being embarrassed, or the other person losing patience?

This is where a tool like Intent can be a great help. It's like your private "swimming coach" and "lifebuoy." On it, you can find language partners from all over the world who want to learn Chinese; everyone is a learner, so the mindset is more understanding. The best part is its built-in AI real-time translation. When you get stuck and can't find the words, the translation feature acts like a lifebuoy, immediately giving you a hand, allowing you to comfortably continue to "swim" forward instead of retreating to the shore after a single embarrassing moment.

On Intent, you can confidently start in the "shallow end," gradually building your confidence until one day you realise you can effortlessly swim into the "deep end."

Stop standing on the shore, envying those who swim freely in the water.

The best time to learn English is always now. Forget those boring rules and the demands for perfection; like a child learning to swim, just jump in, play, and splash around.

You'll soon discover that "speaking English" really isn't that difficult after all.