You apologise before you have even started speaking English. This reflex, very common among French-speaking professionals, is what is really holding back your progress — far more than your actual level.
Stopping saying “Sorry for my English” is one of the most powerful things you can do to improve your business English. Not because politeness is pointless, but because this phrase reveals a false belief: that the people you are talking to expect perfection from you.
An apology you would never make in your own language
Picture the scene: you take the floor in a meeting and begin with “Sorry for my French.” Absurd, isn’t it? Yet in English, this reflex is almost automatic for many French professionals. It takes root in our first school experiences, grows stronger over the years and ends up preceding every time we speak in a foreign language.
This isn’t modesty. It’s an avoidance strategy disguised as politeness.
What the people you talk to really think
The reality on the ground is radically different from what you imagine. In an international business context, the people you talk to — whether native English speakers or not — focus first and foremost on what you say, not how you say it. Several facts confirm this:
- Most conversations in English around the world take place between non-native speakers: English is a lingua franca, not an eloquence contest.
- A French accent, hesitations, searching for a word: all of this is normal, expected and accepted.
- What really annoys the other person is silence, a reluctance to engage, or repeated apologies that slow the conversation down.
Imperfect English spoken with confidence is infinitely more effective than perfect English… that is never spoken.
The real obstacle: imagined judgement, not real judgement
The biggest barrier to progress in English isn’t vocabulary. It isn’t grammar. It’s the fear of being judged — more precisely, the judgement you anticipate and build up yourself, which is often far harsher than that of the people you are actually talking to.
Psychology has a name for this fear: communication apprehension. It affects a large majority of French-speaking professionals as soon as they have to express themselves in another language. It shows up as:
- Pre-emptive apologies (“Sorry for my English”)
- Long silences or refusing to speak up
- A tendency to over-prepare without ever daring to improvise
- Self-censorship that weakens the message far more than the mistakes themselves
The day you stop apologising
ECSplicite learners often describe this moment as a real turning point. Not because their level suddenly changed — but because their attitude did. Speaking without apologising sends a clear signal: “I have something to say, and I’m saying it.” The people you are talking to pick up on it immediately.
In practical terms, here is what changes when you drop this reflex:
- You become more fluent, because you no longer interrupt your own flow
- You remember more, because you are acting rather than anticipating judgement
- You progress faster, because you build up real communication experience
- You inspire confidence, because self-assurance is contagious
How ECSplicite supports this change in attitude
At ECSplicite, a provider of in-company language training since 1991, we know that technique alone is not enough. Learning business English also — and above all — means learning to dare to speak, without fear of judgement.
Our experienced trainers work with you on the two inseparable dimensions of speaking in a foreign language:
- Language skills: professional vocabulary, sentence structures, listening comprehension
- Communication attitude: stress management, techniques for bouncing back when a word escapes you, confidence in imperfection
Our courses are designed around the real context of your job, face-to-face or remotely, one-to-one or in groups. Qualiopi-certified, ECSplicite supports teams who want not only to speak better English, but above all to really speak it.
So, are you ready to speak up without apologising? Contact ECSplicite for a free language assessment and discover the training format that suits your professional reality.