In Quebec workplaces, non-fluent second- or third-language French speakers sometimes put more pressure on themselves to speak perfectly, second-guessing themselves at the cost of professional confidence.
In Concordia Continuing Education’s French Communication Essentials program, instructor Sarah Brisebois-Kirk helps learners recognize that the self-imposed pressure to be perfect actually prevents them from improving at their own pace.
In addition to teaching, Brisebois-Kirk has developed educational content and worked on initiatives to promote the French language at Concordia University.
And yet, as she points out, even her own French will never be perfect.
“I’m Québécoise and sometimes, even I’m like, ‘What does that mean?’” she admits. “My colleagues teach me new expressions almost every day.”
Striving for perfection, Brisebois-Kirk believes, can erode learner confidence. In her experience, curiosity, perseverance and willingness achieve sustainable results.
“When it comes to speaking French in a professional setting in Quebec,” she says, “a little effort can go a long way.”
Whether or not someone thinks a leader has a responsibility to speak French fluently, second-language speakers can generally identify with that pressure.
Sarah Brisebois-Kirk, French instructor
“I’ve had learners tell me, ‘If I had to give a presentation in French, I’d never be able to do it,’” Brisebois-Kirk says.
At work, struggling to express an idea in French can make a skilled professional sound less confident. A few vocabulary mistakes won’t affect someone's credibility, Brisebois-Kirk notes, but giving up might.
“When it’s difficult to find the right words, find another way to say it and keep going and say it the way it comes out,” she suggests. “That’s what effort looks like.”
While every professional environment calls for a certain level of formality, that doesn’t mean that you need to drop social habits like using humour.
“There isn’t always the formal register that you might expect from a professional context,” Brisebois-Kirk observes.
For a second-language speaker, going from small talk before a meeting straight into business can feel like a lot to keep up with.
“The workplace doesn’t have to be a place that feels so stressful when you’re a French learner, which actually makes it a good place to practice,” Brisebois-Kirk explains. “It’s not a test.”
She cautions that well-meaning colleagues may step in when someone struggles for a word, offering to finish their thought or even switching to English. For someone already second-guessing their French, that can feel like a sign their efforts aren’t enough.
“Even if you quit on your sentence and finish it in English, come back. Do the next part in French,” she suggests.
Accents don’t have to get in the way
Brisebois-Kirk’s learners often say they struggle to understand French as it’s spoken in Quebec.
“Sometimes I tell them, ‘I’m Québécoise and you understand me well,’” she laughs.
She underscores the value of learning alongside other second-language speakers and hearing different accents and speaking styles to become more comfortable with how the language can vary.
“You might struggle understanding me when I’m mad, for example, or if I’m speaking with my family,” she offers. “And it’s probably the same with your coworkers.”
It can be easy to recognize a grammatical structure or verb tense in writing but harder to understand when it's used in conversation.
When reviewing grammar, Brisebois-Kirk gets learners to practice through conversation exercises. She asks them to formulate questions or make statements that contrast when and how different forms work.
“These aren't grammar classes; they’re communication classes,” she says.
In one assignment, learners read a French-language article or watch a video and later present the topic for class discussion.
“It creates such debate and rich conversation in class because they’ve had the opportunity to develop their thinking outside the room,” Brisebois-Kirk explains. “It’s really amazing when people bring emotion into the conversation. It takes away the pressure while encouraging people to speak their minds in real-time.”
It also creates new opportunities to learn by making mistakes.
“My mission is to generate that spark of auto-correction as often as I can,” Brisebois-Kirk says.
When learners can understand their mistakes, Brisebois-Kirk stops correcting them and instead asks whether they heard what they just said, which helps build their reflex to self-correct on the spot.
Confidence, she believes, comes from making progress and sticking with it — not holding back hoping for perfection. She cautions against treating fluency like a finish line that can be reached in a sprint.
Although stress can make speaking French more difficult on some days, Brisebois-Kirk reminds learners that improvement is an ongoing pursuit.
“It’s never day one,” she notes. “You can be rusty; you can make mistakes. But you’ll always have the knowledge you’ve invested yourself in.”
