English is a language that everyone needs to learn at least a little bit of, to survive in any industry. To get there, some take classes while others watch English movies. But for Manish Gupta, author of Let’s Talk in English, writing a book seemed like a good method to conquer the language. It was a bolt from the blue, when in college, he realised that he was handicapped without error-free English. Let’s Talk in English is a book that captures all his personal insights, embarrassing moments and first-hand learning experiences with techniques like mnemonics and trivia.
Twenty years after his first book was published, Manish Gupta’s latest is about complicated English words. “ The book introduces the reader to a set of over 750 difficult English words through interesting stories, anecdotes, jokes, etymology, and trivia. These words have been selected from conversations on varied topics like food and drink, fashion, etc,” he says. A leadership consultant, facilitator, and trainer, this ex-banker says that there’s no harm in admitting to not knowing a particular word, “If I find a word I don’t know the meaning of, I readily ask without any shame,” he smiles. From a tongue-tied small town guy to an author of two books on English, this is how he mastered the language.
The hitchhiker’s guide to english
1 Love Thy Neighbour
He took a room next to a student from Zimbabwe. For a simple reason that after college hours, he wanted someone to talk to in English. “After one year of regular discussions on random topics with him, I gained confidence for my interviews,” admits Manish.
2 A Brain Equals a Hard Disk
Manish believes that to begin with the process of learning English, one needs to form a passive set of vocabulary in mind. That set will then automatically and gradually become active in the person’s writing and speaking.
3 Peer Group Pressure
Manish followed a simple social experiment of telling everyone that he was up to something big. By telling everyone that he is learning English, he had a constant pressure of learning the language. “That kept me going,” he says.
4 Play the Common Sense Card
The common sense approach is his expanded view on the scope of mnemonics— that consist of techniques to learn the language—with a strong emphasis on vocabulary. With interesting references accompanied with an unknown English word, it makes it easier for the brain to retain it for the future.
5 Finally, Write a Book
At the age of 22, Manish came up with a book. It didn’t pan out to be the best seller but served its purpose. It helped Manish learn the language that he never thought he could. “When you write a book you have to become detail oriented and develop a sense of responsibility. These two factors will always keep you from being lethargic while learning a new language,” he said.
Complicated words with learning
techniques TeetotalerTea is a drink.
Thus, to be a teetotaler, one should have never tasted any drink
Acrimonious
Split it into two. Acre and Money. Wherever there is land and money involved, there is an “acrimonious” brawl
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