How to speak fluent English (it's not about the accent)

Most people like to focus on the accent (as important as it is), but there’s much more to that. In this video, I’ll explain the process of sharpening English skills from fluency to native, including the best practices that worked wonders for me.
Connect with me: / siming_lan
Twitter: / siminglan
Drop me an email if you like: [e-mail]
- Chapters -
[0:00] Intro
[1:40] My story
[3:50] Winning mindset
[5:27] 4 best practices
[5:39] One: Adopt cultural traits
[8:53] Two: Cultivate relationships
[10:27] Three: Immersion
[10:43] 1st technique
[13:02] 2nd technique
[13:16] 3rd technique
[14:40] 4th technique
[15:21] 5th technique
[15:42] 6th technique
[16:30] 7th technique
[16:50] Four: Hone your accent
[17:09] My old American accent lol 😂
👀 Read my thoughts
siminglan.home.blog/
(where you can find my other forms of creative expression)
#speakenglishlikenatives #speakenglishlikeanative #advancedenglish #languagelearning
//Resources mentioned🌟
Hellotalk: www.hellotalk.com/?lang=en
Italki - get a $10 USD italki credits using this link: www.italki.com/affshare?ref=a...
Italki community: www.italki.com/community/for-you
Language reactor: www.languagereactor.com/
Language Exchange Website: language.exchange/
Books 📚
» Make it easy:
Flipped: amzn.to/3ytOV0p
The Notebook: amzn.to/3IrGR4Q
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: amzn.to/3ao8Ndv
Charlotte's Web (recommended): amzn.to/3AEJ8If
» Make it interesting
China and the West: amzn.to/3IuqmF2
Red Flags: Why Xi's China Is in Jeopardy: amzn.to/3Oa6h8B
Factory Girls: Voices from the Heart of Modern China: amzn.to/3O0JXhf
Empress Dowager Cixi: The Concubine Who Launched Modern China: amzn.to/3PcLzWk
» Feel free to check out my book reviews! 📝
Goodreads: / on-the-road
Book thoughts from my blog: siminglan.home.blog/fun-stuff/
//My gear 📷
Camera: amzn.to/3ySZLON
Podcast microphone: amzn.to/3PdU8jI
Lav microphone: amzn.to/3RpK0X6
//Where I get my music 🎶
share.epidemicsound.com/qb66uh
Note: some of the links in this descriptions are affiliate links to support this channel at no extra cost to you :)

[@SimingLan]

Hello friends, thanks for dropping by. If you find this video helpful, please give this video a like - it would help more people see this content :)

[@kierano5496]

You have a Chinese-British accent, but the main thing is you can express yourself very well!

[@paulchung780]

I'm Chinese and a native English speaker. I'm absolutely amazed at your accent. Your observations about English people are very entertaining too. 😊

[@maxberan3897]

What helps Siming Lan is that she speaks quite posh - very Oxbridge. That voice of quiet authority focuses a listener on what is said rather than the manner of its delivery. This plus the native cadence adds up to great fluency deflecting attention from the (very) occasional lapse.

[@rozyue1177]

It’s important to speak fluent standard , grammatically correct English , whatever the accent . Sometimes it’s superficial to try to imitate an particular accent , every ethnic group has its own particular accent .

[@DeepZenMind]

If I came across with you in Canada, I would think you grew up in the UK. Very valuable and encouraging demonstration of a great success in English learning!

[@RJ-or8bw]

I can confirm, you sound British to me mostly (an American) with occasional moments of a slight Chinese accent. But it sounds very nice and in my opinion better than a normal British one.

[@carolthedabbler2105]

I agree! I'm an American too, so British is a bit of a "foreign language" to me, but I find you easy to understand, and your overall accent reminds me of Hermione Granger.

[@mavsworld1733]

@@carolthedabbler2105 She uses a lot of British turns of phrase, and her rhythm, etc, is very British, but to a Brit she sounds foreign, though really really close, like uncanny valley close.

[@jameskirchner]

Your accent is very identifiable as Chinese, but unlike many Chinese speakers, you speak English completely intelligibly. The key is that you have learned the prosody. If your prosody is good, you can pronounce the sounds wrong and people still understand you fine.

[@carolthedabbler2105]

Thanks for the new word @jameskirchner ! Prosody seems to mean "rhythm and intonation," and you're quite right about its importance. It's the main reason I have difficulty understanding many people from India -- their lyrics are familiar, but the melody is very different.

[@seenonyt2210]

@@carolthedabbler2105 nice analogy of lyrics and melody 😳

[@klburroughsnz]

Also I would add typical missing consonants at the end of words is a give away

[@philipdavis7521]

Probably the most powerful method for learning prosody is shadowing and (in particular) chorusing. Many use it as a 'refining' technique, but there is plenty of evidence that it works best at the start of learning, even before you understand much.

[@RedZambala]

@Dr-Jonathan-Sarfati-FM Yes, I saw her on another video and my first thought was - probably she has grown up in Britain.

[@mavsworld1733]

It's amazing how much you understand about our culture. I'm really impressed with how much effort you've put into understanding us. It makes me really happy to feel so understood by someone from a completely different country.

[@trekpac2]

You are such a gem, Siming. I really appreciate your insights. I love your English accent!

[@matavisual_]

You gotta immerse yourself in the native society from which that particular language is spoken...and that the new environment eventually shapes your personality... so, without actual overseas experience it is kinda difficult to acquire a new language

[@SimingLan]

yes exactly!

[@econdude3811]

Studying the textbooks for half an hour and do the fun stuff the rest of the day - listen, try to talk, read simple stuff, watch videos, listen to the radio, etc.

[@jamescolyn5960]

Another excellent vid. As a (former) English teacher, I am impressed not only by your level of English proficiency, but also by all the invaluable advice you have to give.

[@davidrichards1741]

Your videos and insights are on another level. But here you said @18:36 "If you can improve 1% per day, by the end of the year you will be 37% better". Actually, it'd be 365% better or 4.7 times better🤓

[@bobjacobson858]

What an excellent, well-thought-out video! What you have presented, and the way you've presented it, is most impressive. I am an American whose mother was a high-school English teacher (back in the days when the American educational system was good) and I tend to be somewhat of an English nerd" myself--and I mean it sincerely when I say your command of the language is excellent.

[@denisbessette7219]

Wow, Siming Lan, you sure work hard. No wonder you have achieved so much. I (American) thought you moved to GB around age 10 to acquire fluency in English grammar, plus you have mastered the accent. Even in America, the British accent commands respect! Impressive!

[@ev-yt2064]

Thanks for mentioning Language Reactor. I had not heard of it before your video. I can see how helpful it can be for me. I have studied Portuguese for the last three years (I'm a 79-year old American) and would like to visit Brazil for an extended period of time once I feel I am ready. I enjoy your videos about China, very interesting.

[@econdude3811]

I actually listen to accents and try to guess where people are from. Yes, I believe you learned to speak English in UK but you sound like someone who speaks Chinese as the native tongue speaking British English. Language is most often about what is meant and thus idiomatic. I will say, you come across as quite charming and intelligent.

[@guitarista666]

She's quite convincing most of the time, only occasionally making a small mistake that might signal that English might not be her native language.

[@Ken.-]

@@guitarista666 I would never have thought that English was her native tongue. The accent sounds closer to Australian to me when she says some words like "so".

[@LucasFernandez-fk8se]

That is so racist. She literally sounds british. Just cause she’s asianx you can’t assume she’s Chinese 🙄

[@guitarista666]

@@LucasFernandez-fk8se She says she is in the about section of her channel. No need to assume anything.

[@emzy888]

@@guitarista666 Yes, exactly. Most of the time the accent is pretty on point. And an another commenter said, her prosody is great. The word "question" is a tell in the first 15 seconds though. Mastering an accent is tough. Mastering a foreign accent is even tougher. Great job Siming, 加油！

[@jamshidkp7233]

Really impressed the way you improved from mandarin speaker to UK accent speaker .. trying the to improve my UK accent .. your tips are useful .. thanks

[@EstrellaViajeViajero]

Neat! I like how you went into cultural understanding and not just vocabulary and grammar.

[@jt5590]

Hello Siming, I really love your British accent. Having watched some of your other programs too, the depth of your knowledge and your upbeat pleasant personality are also very evident. Cheers! I'd like to share my journey of learning English in my early years. My family and I moved to Canada when I had 1 and 1/2 years left in high school in Hong Kong. I had always aspired to be a physician ever since I was young. When arrived to Canada, I knew I had a tremendous academic challenge to face, but first and foremost, I had to get my English up to speed. Some English letters are inharantly difficult or unnatural for Chinese to articulate. I had a good English teacher in elementary school who taught us how to pronounce "th" with the tip of the tongue between the upper and lower front teeth, so that "feather" would not sound like "feader", and "this" not "dis". Letter "v" has some subtlety as well, pronounced with the upper front teeth on top of the lower lip, so that "victory" would not sound like "wictory" --- just a couple of examples. I had a good grammar teacher as well and he was very clear and methodic with the lessons. I also made myself memorize and recite sentences or short paragraphs when I felt they were particularly well written. All these had given me a good basis of English to start in Canada. In the 1.5 years of high school and 2 years of pre-med, I progressed rapidly from having to make sentences in my head when I wanted to speak in the first few months, to start thinking and then dreaming (if there is such a thing or just a feeling?) in English. When I deal with my patient's emotional issues, be it depression, grief of a lost one, or stress of job loss or divorce, I often need to interject with some words or ask a question at the right moment with the right tone of voice etc. to be sensitive in dealing into someone's deep personal psyche. My patients are usually surprised to learn that I was not born or raised in Canada. Right now I'm working on improving my mandarin and It's coming along "pretty good". Looking forward to more of your videos. John.

[@fly2rain]

Sounds like the one I'm looking for. Really a nice video!

[@matavisual_]

Speaking a new language is developing a new character that is a new you.. a different personality.... imagine being able to speak more than 4/5 languages..

[@fetB]

what happens when you speak 4/5 languages

[@LucasFernandez-fk8se]

@@fetBou probably forget words in all the languages while speaking 🤷‍♂️

[@salbkbatlitec6584]

Thanks for the info, so informative.

[@SimingLan]

anytime!

[@Expatriate_1972]

You have done well with your language proficiency

[@lowkl3552]

I am impressed with your enthusiasm in speaking English with British accent ! We Malaysian Chinese who have been living and networking in years with Kedahan Malay and Kelantanese Malay communities can speak Malay Language some like Kedahan accent and some like Kelantanese access ! You search on internet to know what I text about. 😊

[@brianborse3555]

Very inspiring. Thanks for the tips!

[@alextang6988]

That's more applicable to new learners to take the first-step approach and valuable path in any field. Hopefully, this will encourage the young generation to understand this era's unique social and environmental.

[@thomasj4370]

As some non native english speaker I love to have English subs on English media streams especially for some American accents. Although I did not have to use them on your clip. All the best for your future. In my eyes we need much more cultural exchange with China here in Europe. Therefor there is pleasure to me in recognising your existence. I like sharing this world with you. Is’s great that you are alive at this time on earth, we need you. The best wishes upon a life filled with luck, peace, and love for you-and all the fellow humans you care about.

[@timlu3071]

有很挑剔的提建议的，哈哈他的本意应该很好，希望你不要在意；支持你，加油

[@JY-rx2ue]

😮wow, you speak with more fluency than me growing up in Canada😅

[@VSP4591]

This story is somehow similar with the Pygmalion play, written by Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw in 1912. The old story is so modern. In our story Eliza Doolittle is from China and does not need prof. Higgins to learn English. How cool is that???

[@peersfinder]

I love your video. Speaking good English, I have no accent. Accent is a colloquial, when one pronounced the word correctly, it becomes the Queen's language

[@LionCity7]

Doing very well with English speaking...kudos...

[@atamo4323]

Determination, discipline and perseverance. 10000 hour rule has some merits.

[@carlodurian3730]

You could be the bridge the world sorely needs for better understanding... You present a softer face of China

[@petermuller5088]

Your gestures gave you away. Joke aside, great video and great advice!

[@mottahead6464]

In my case , what I do the most , both in English and in Spanish (both not my native language) is listening to podcasts, reading a lot... and shadowing. And also writing and editing my own texts.

[@kitefan1]

This is excellent, thank you. As a native speaker of American the thing that threw me most about my Londoner friend and his wedding best men was Cheers and things like Biro. Cheers is often used as thanks would be in the US. So I'm handing out things for the hostess and one of the people say Cheers. Also they use brand names as slang even more often than US. Biro is almost universal for a ballpoint pen. If I ask for a pen they understand but its not what they say.

[@chrisamies2141]

And for example "Hoover" for a vacuum cleaner. I don't hear 'biro' so much these days, though certainly used to a few years ago.

[@paddy4478]

Siming, I really appreciated your video about your English-learning journey. I have a quick question if you don’t mind to answer it: how would you correct wrong pronunciations while you don’t realise what you speak is different to the native speakers. I know sometimes it could be very subtle.

[@louischen2109]

Speaking any languages only requires time and practices. In the long run, you will be OK with it. To be very good is another issue, usually it is gifted not acquired.

[@jaewok5G]

this is unintentionally hilarious because it's too accurate that a society is self stereotyping

[@steveknight878]

Certainly your use of English is excellent, and you could be a native English speaker. Your accent does give it away - not that it is very strong, but it is there. I have never learned Chinese, but I do know that it is a tonal language when spoken. Did you find it difficult to learn the cadences and tones of speaking English (which you do perfectly)?

[@alanscott2422]

Hi, reviewing based on getting my kids started in Mandarin and looking for tips for online tutors to / tv/websites / KZbin as there is a lot out there ( reverse engineering your video above) As in UK English there are many dialects some of which would be very challenging to the ear. Is there a dialect of Mandarin / Tudor that should look for?

[@johnlay3040]

It's not easy, unless you are very talented. Every native speaker grows up with their larynx trained to speak their native tongue. It is physically formed to cater for the sound of that language. It is not easy to alter that, especially if you learn the language a bit late in your life. Many good foreign speakers sometimes lose control, their original accents show up, especially when they have to speak fast. That's only the accent issue, but there are more serious issues, such as the structure of sentence, different grammars, prepositions, your expression, etc. You really have to live with the people for quite some time to get it almost right.

[@zetristan4525]

18: 36 Fun intriguing intro of mathematics there. 37% = 1/e, close approx. So I'm try to find more accurate words that match to that calculation - Seemed to strongly suggest a relation to (1 - 1/n) ^n for large values of n, which approx = 1/e, just as (1 + 1/n) ^n yields e. But unfortunately, n = 365 won't fit for what you said... Strictly matching your words here it would be 1.01^365 = 37 or 38 *times* better (ie 3778%)! ok, I think I get a meaning for your inadvertent brainteaser🤗Always enjoying your originality and diversely-flowing spirit. This reminds me of asking a 19-year-old Chinese friend if he could prove Pythagoras' Theorem in 2 different ways: He replied that it was discussed in school classes in China, and he knew at least 8 :)

[@kc10man]

I'm guessing from your accent you are from Wuxi, east side of the lake. No Rs in your accent, Tempted to say Chongqing but probably not. Your English is very good and your knowledge about China is greatly appreciated! Also couldn't help but notice the room you are in and the dead plant behind you. Probably somewhere in North New Jersey. Harry Potter book on the end table. I'm guessing two kids, three next year. You own a couple spas (can tell from the lighting even though that is probably at home.) and the lotus plant behind you has been dead for a few years (IKEA?). Like the minimalist look but not the necklace. Take it off, no need to wear an ex-boyfriends diamond around your neck. Thank's Siming, maybe we will bump into each other at Yale or Fudan later.

[@studydharma3941]

can you make a video about your trip to Tibet please?

[@baselv8680]

I always separate culture from language, a Spanish speaker can understand a Mexican joke, but will not laugh if he doesn’t know the Mexican culture. But you made a better point 😅

[@billhohmann2653]

Would you like a little help with the few English words where you speak the singular of a word when the plural is proper?

[@littlefire3388]

赞👍

[@levigrandt]

There is nothing wrong with an accent. The important thing is that you are very well understood, despite having an identifiably Chinese accent, along with a mixed-in British accent.

[@jovannitorreon5206]

You may also search for Kai Man Wong speaking Brit on his photography reviews

[@MementoInferis]

You speak very well, though I would not go so far as to say that you have no accent.

[@SimingLan]

cheers:)

[@MilaShwarz-kw1yo]

I can hear Chinese and British accent in your speech at the same time.

[@ingridj.4661]

Your English is very good and I applaud all your efforts. However, I wouldn't say that you are a native speaker - you are making small mistakes (11:30 - ON the notebook???) and you have a Chinese accent/intonation - "0:12 - dat is the question", "1:25 - "native speakAH", "1:29 - most impAckt" and etc. I remember I read somewhere that a child can learn to speak like a native if he (or she) was brought to the country until the age of 9-10 and when he is older it's already too late. However, I think there's nothing wrong with having an accent - I have it as well and it can be a part of your charm :)

[@carolthedabbler2105]

Actually, "speakah" is normal British pronunciation (and I'm not sure what you mean about "impact"). But you're right -- everybody has an accent!

[@ingridj.4661]

@@carolthedabbler2105 Re "impact" - she is putting the stress (accent) in the wrong place. If she would use this word as a verb, she would be right - "to impAckt". However, she is using this word here as a noun "to make the most IMpact" , so, the stress should be at the beginning of the word "most IMpact". Re "speakah" - let me agree to disagree. I have been living in London UK for more than 15 years, so, I think I know a little bit how the native speakers would say this word. Please don't get me wrong - her pronunciation is very good, but it looks like she is putting so much effort to sound "British", that it doesn't sound natural anymore. TBH, I admire her very much - I can't even imagine how much effort she put into her English.

[@carolthedabbler2105]

@@ingridj.4661 -- Ah, now I see what you meant. Might have been a bit clearer if you'd capitalized the whole syllable: "imPACT." As for "speakah," it depends on who's listening. British folks can hear fine distinctions that go right over my American head (same as I can distinguish between American accents, I guess).

[@LucasFernandez-fk8se]

@@ingridj.4661ur wrong on this. IMpact is American. ImpAckt is British annunciation. 🤷‍♂️

[@carolthedabbler2105]

@@LucasFernandez-fk8se -- I'm an American, so can't speak for British pronunciation. I mostly say IM-pact, but that may be because I mostly use the noun. Maybe the verb form is more common in the UK? There are a number of other noun/verb word pairs where I do place the stress on different syllables.

[@FairyCRat]

It's funny that you consider the British accent more subtle than the American one, granted there are a lot of accents in both countries so that might be a factor. Here in Europe, especially France, we generally learn British English due to proximity, but the General American accent will still sound a bit more "neutral" and as having less "thick" features, though a lot of us still find it easier to understand someone from London than from California. There's also this joke about how British singers tend to sound American, because the slow delivery of singing erases their British features, and that lack of strong accent is often interpreted as American-sounding.

[@Philip-lk5db]

Your English sounds better than mine as I have a London accent 😂 sound like a naive but might not be for everyone to hear 👂

[@jt2465]

What email or platform to reach you?

[@davidrichards1741]

With your mastery of English, I wonder what language you "think" or dream in?🤔

[@Mr.Nichan]

Maybe I should take that "adopt cultural traits" attitude with my own culture so I won't be so awkward, lol.

[@louischen2109]

Would you find it interesting if I tell you I speak four different levels of English to four different people. Speaking well or fluent is not the main point but does your listener understand what you say.

[@blutey]

_To possess another language is to possess another soul._ - Charles V (Charlemagne)

[@jt5590]

Misspelled a word on paragraph 3 line 1, should bew"inherently". Was distracted.

[@terryjones9784]

Is someone going to tell her...

[@user-zd5oo8yj2u]

You are very articulate. You seem to be very intelligent. At the same time, you do not sound like a "native" English speaker. You sound like a person who learned Mandarin as your native tongue (first language) (dialect?) in China who has worked hard to articulate English words like a "Brit" (not like an American). I think you should go back to England and get a PhD in political science so you can better discuss the differences between the general governance system of PRC vs USA or UK. Then you will be able to write a number of books and do more podcasts which discuss the differences in life in PRC vs USA and UK. And you can go around the world giving lectures to people, especially young kids, explaining to them what your China is all about, which will help promote world peace. Be well, and good luck in your work. (You also have a very nice, friendly smile!)

[@pearsonfrank]

I'm a Scouser .... the idiom is the key. It took me many years and a university education to become fluent in Oxford English .... then found most people in company board meetings thought I was mid Atlantic.!!! Suggest people read Roget's Thesaurus so to switch words .... oh and listen Susie Dent, a broadcaster and blogger.

[@hughkelly9073]

I figure that you listen carefully. It is singers or theatre people who usually speak other languages without strong accents. I had thought that you might have been influenced by the Australian accent but no.

[@ThomasBarsegian-co3du]

Your so intelligent and cute(beautiful)❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@deancordova2982]

SEASON S GREETINGS

[@terrystanton8914]

The secret ,is no secret ,you just need to learn the accent ,as well as the language .....hope that helps.

[@freeneasy5906]

Just speak naturally,,cool,, don't need to slang like pseudo Anglo,, after all just another language in an ordinary world,, Italian,,Hindi, Siam, mandarin cool

[@carolthedabbler2105]

As an American, I agree to some extent. If you're wanting to communicate primarily with British people, you're doing fine. If you'd like to be more international, casual terms are fine, but you might want to avoid slang terms (e.g., "skint"), which tend to be more dialect-specific.

[@user-xk9nf1cd4p]

Outside is white, inside is yellow. A milk gland.

[@williamwilliam]

The easiest way to learn to speak a language like a native is to socialize with them more instead of sticking to your own race. That's especially so if you are studying, working, and living overseas.

[@aucourant9998]

You can tell you were born outside of Britain. But your English is very, very good (fully fluent) and you have an English accent (an interesting mix of Received Pronunciation and Cockney). If you pronounced' the 'th' in 'that' instead of 'dat', and changed the end of words like 'remember' from 'remembawh' to 'remembeh' you would sound even more native (more fully Received Pronunciation, rather than a mix).

[@GlobalDrifter1000]

Add your English is the Chinese accent

[@freedloh9049]

You speak good English but do not ape the English. Just be natural and who you are and comfortable speaking.

[@freedloh9049]

So you studied Political Science. It is no wonder you are sharp in geo-politics..

[@danialykhokhar5572]

Aaja mein America aur China aur Bharat aur bartania

[@hintoninstruments2369]

If you get 1% better every day for a year you will be 37 times better, not 37% (1.01^365 = 37.7) so you are a lot better than you think you are. Your English is very good, but there is no such thing as one "British accent". There are many British accents and they change every 30 miles, native accents are not like the BBC. To speak like a native, first choose whereabouts the native was born. The "Turing test" would then be to convince that native that you come from the same area.

[@gcvrsa]

You English accent is partly British and partly Australian and partly Chinese, to my ear.

[@louischen2109]

Try to imitate others is like a second class citizen when you can be a first class citizen of your own.

[@carpballet]

Your English pronunciation is Chinese with a bit of British.

[@user-qg8rj4tf3e]

Your British English is very good and fluent, but the intonation betrays you.

[@m389nkfpe03]

You don't sound like a native. You still make some small mistakes that natives wouldn't make.

[@iwanaja934]

No..u are totally wrong... Today people in the world do not need learning english anymore..it isnt become priority anymore in people life

[@haroldcampbell3337]

Words of wisdom!!!!!!

[@Ken.-]

Then why are you using it?

[@VereenigdeOostindischCompanie]

Is Google translate killing language learning? 😀

[@mauriceportiche2386]

Chère demoiselle, on en n’a rien à foutre de parler l’anglais et encore moins de le parler avec l’accent des natifs. Votre propagande pour la culture US est insupportable.

[@paulreeves8251]

I'm not sure that you even watched the video, let alone understood it.

[@mxsb1153]

Oh golly gee whiz: I think I've fallen in love with you, Siming. But seriously: I understand you well enough but, geez, speak a little slower, please. At times your speech speed is like a HSR/CHSR. In terms of your accent, you have a smattering of the British English but there's still quite a bit of Chinese accent intermingled. Example: At times I hear the ; letter pronounced as the r letter and vice-versa. Beyond these, your videos are very informative and a good way for me to be re-informed about Chinese history, politics, "society" and "culture". I don't know what the latter two mean, definitionally or otherwise but most people throw it around unproblematically, although I struggle to know what it means. Having read Marx, et cetera, and explored its meaning from various contending perspectives, I agree with Margaret "Iron lady" Thatcher who said "there's no such thing as 'society'. Was she then admitting the Marxian. argument that social class and class ideologies predominate? I know the latter do. On "culture", like the term "Asian values", these are used by its proponents defensively when criticised or scrutinised for their shortcomings. There is no such thing as Asian culture, per se, any more than there is a homogeneity or uniformity of "Asian values" across the vast region. I've lived in Australia for a very long time and although some of my Aussie friends tell me I have an Aussie accent, I don't believe them. Others have told me I have a mix of British and American accents and I don't believe them. I am what you'd call non-descript in terms of accent. Point? I'd rather be -- and stay -- individualistic, which is my "national identity" (another contested notion) than be "assimilated" to be "of the same crowd", as it were. Thanks for your excellent videos.