By the end of the video, you’ll know how to go from just studying Spanish to speaking it confidently.
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The Gap Between Spanish Knowledge and Confidence 

Before diving into the five steps, it’s important to understand why there is often a gap between your Spanish knowledge and speaking it confidently. These are actually two different things!

When studying alone, you can give your full focus to grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. All your mental capacity is available to make sure that you express yourself correctly and understand the Spanish that you read and hear. There are no distractions, so processing Spanish is more manageable. Feels great, right?

However, in face-to-face conversations, your mind has to handle much more than just the language. This is when social dynamics come into play. You might start thinking about making a good impression, reading the other person’s emotions, or maintaining appropriate facial expressions and body language.

Juggling all of this alongside speaking a second language can feel overwhelming. This is why many learners freeze up in conversations — despite having solid understanding of how Spanish works (in theory).

With that in mind, let’s explore the five steps to bridging this gap.
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The 5 Steps to Spanish Confidence

This structured, step-by-step approach will gradually guide you from practicing alone with confidence to speaking fluently and naturally in real conversations.
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Step 1: Study Solo, But Speak Out Loud

The first step is studying solo but making sure that you’re speaking out loud.

One of the reasons you might lack confidence when speaking face-to-face is that you’re not getting enough practice of actually speaking out loud when studying on your own.

For example, when you see a Spanish sentence written out, go beyond just nodding and thinking, “Oh, I understand that.” You should also say it out loud.

This is an essential first step, because Spanish isn’t just a matter of knowledge — it’s a muscle skill that you need to exercise, physically, with your mouth! Developing real spoken fluency begins with actively speaking while you study.
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Step 2: Speak Out Loud Without Looking

The second step is speaking out loud while studying—but without looking at the text.

This is super important because in real conversations, you can’t rely on seeing Spanish text in front of you.

For example, if you read a Spanish sentence, Step 1 was to make sure you don’t just read it silently but actually say it out loud. Then, for Step 2, you should cover it up, look away, and try to say the Spanish sentence from memory.

This puts you one step closer to speaking Spanish out loud spontaneously in a conversation.

You can even make this step more fun. Try looking at a picture of someone you want to speak Spanish with and say the sentence to the picture. Or you can just stare off into the horizon, look in a mirror, or focus on something other than the Spanish text. The key is to build the confidence to say a sentence you just read — without currently reading it.
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Step 3: Speak Variations Out Loud

Step 3 is a little harder. You’re going to do the same thing as in Step 2, but now, you’ll create variations on the sentence.

For example, if the sentence was ¿Qué estás haciendo? you might look away and say, ¿Qué estamos haciendo?

It’s essentially the same sentence, but now you’re coming up with something new while not looking at the text. This gets you one step closer to creating Spanish sentences spontaneously in a face-to-face situation.

To take this even further, think about a conversation topic you might discuss in the near future. Maybe it’s a conversation you’ll have with a colleague at work or a loved one over the phone.

Now, modify the sentence to fit that conversation topic. If you make a habit of creating variations on sentences while not looking at the text (and saying them out loud!), you’ll be much closer to forming your own Spanish sentences naturally when speaking with someone.
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Step 4: Speak Face-to-Face, But in a Controlled Environment

Step 4 is tricky—it’s time to have an actual conversation, but in a controlled environment. Think of this as a rehearsal conversation.

If you’ve reached this step, you’ve already successfully practiced Spanish on your own. You’ve also successfully created your own variations on Spanish sentences without looking at the text. Now it’s time to do this with another Spanish speaker.

Remember, this is just Step 4, so the goal isn’t to have a perfectly fluent conversation. You’re practicing with someone who understands that this is just for practice. This keeps the conversation low-pressure.

We use this method with our coaching students, but if you don’t have a Spanish coach, you can also find a friend or someone you trust to help you with your Spanish in a controlled setting. Let them know that you’re preparing for a real Spanish conversation in the near future, and you want to do a rehearsal with them first.

In this controlled conversation, it’s okay if you get stuck or have to look up words. The point is to bridge the gap between studying alone and speaking spontaneously in the real world.

Note: Many students think Step 4 is the most important—they believe they just need more controlled environments to practice speaking face-to-face. But we’ve found that Steps 1, 2, and 3 are just as important as Step 4. Your rehearsal conversations with a coach, tutor, or practice partner will be so much more effective if you’ve gone through Steps 1-3 first!
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Step 5: Speak Face-to-Face “In The Wild”

The final step is to have a real, face-to-face conversation with someone who isn’t your coach or tutor. Without the structure of a practice session, every interaction becomes unpredictable—pushing you to think and respond spontaneously in Spanish!

Yes, this is scary, but it’s a lot less scary than if you hadn’t worked through all five steps. By taking everything you’ve practiced and building up gradually, you’ll be able to speak Spanish naturally, face-to-face, with confidence.

Following these five steps will train you to speak Spanish intuitively, without overthinking. If you keep doing this every single week, you’ll soon be speaking Spanish effortlessly.
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How to Think in Spanish with Confidence

If your ultimate goal is to know Spanish so well that you can think in Spanish, you should sign up for our next Spanish in One Month Challenge. By the end of the challenge, you’ll have conquered 50% of the language by following our structured lesson plan. The Challenge includes support from our expert native-Spanish-speaking coaches, personalized quizzing on complex grammar, and much more!