I Think - How to Sound More Confident in Your Writing

Welcome to our session on improving your writing. Today, we focus on a very common phrase, "I think". While it's perfectly fine in casual conversation, in more formal or academic writing, we can do much better. We will explore powerful alternatives to make your writing stronger, more persuasive, and more professional.

Hello everyone, and welcome. Today, we're going to transform your writing by tackling one simple, but overused phrase, "I think". Let's get started.

Our first strategy is to use more formal alternatives. Instead of the simple "I think", we can use expressions that sound more academic and persuasive.

Let's look at an example. The original sentence is, "I think people should recycle more."

A much better version is, "In my opinion, recycling should be encouraged."

The keyword here is encouraged. Let's get familiar with it. Encouraged, encouraged, encouraged. It means to give support or confidence to something.

So, let's hear the full sentence, "In my opinion, recycling should be encouraged."

Listen to that one more time, "In my opinion, recycling should be encouraged."

Here is another one. Instead of, "I think the internet is useful for students," try this. "From my perspective, the internet plays a vital role in education."

Our key word here is perspective. It means a particular way of thinking about something. Let's practice it. Perspective, perspective, perspective.

Now for the complete thought, "From my perspective, the internet plays a vital role in education."

Let's hear that again, "From my perspective, the internet plays a vital role in education."

Alright, let's move on to our next tip. This one is simple but very powerful. Sometimes, you just need to remove "I think" completely. This makes your sentence more direct and assertive.

What does assertive mean? It means confident and forceful. Let's say that word a few times to get used to it. Assertive, assertive, assertive. You want your writing to sound assertive.

For instance, instead of saying, "I think social media affects mental health," just say it directly. "Social media affects mental health."

Can you hear how much more confident that sounds? Let me repeat the stronger version. "Social media affects mental health."

Here is another example. The original is, "I think the government should take action."

Now, let's make it more assertive. "The government should take action."

It's clear, it's direct, and it's strong. Let me say it again. "The government should take action."

This is a fantastic tip, especially for exams or formal essays where you need to sound confident in your ideas.

Now for our third method. We can change the sentence structure to avoid using "I" at all. This involves using a stronger verb.

Let's take this sentence, "I think technology helps communication."

We can make this better by saying, "Technology enhances communication."

The verb here is enhances. It's a great word, meaning to improve the quality or value of something. Let's practice it. Enhances, enhances, enhances, enhances.

Now, hear the full sentence. "Technology enhances communication."

Listen once more to the flow of that sentence. "Technology enhances communication."

Let's try another one. Instead of, "I think this is a problem," we can say, "This poses a serious problem."

Our new verb is poses. It means to present or constitute a problem or danger. Let's get that word into our memory. Poses, poses, poses.

The full sentence is, "This poses a serious problem."

Let me phrase that slightly differently for you to hear it again. The situation, "poses a serious problem."

Excellent. Let's move to our final point for today. Vary your sentence starters. This adds variety and sophistication to your writing.

Instead of always starting with "I think," you can use a range of other phrases.

Here's a great one, "There is no doubt that".

For example, "There is no doubt that climate change is a global threat."

Let's repeat that powerful statement. "There is no doubt that climate change is a global threat."

Here is another starter for your toolkit, "A key point is that".

You could write, "A key point is that students need more practical skills."

Let that sink in one more time. "A key point is that students need more practical skills."

And one last one for today. This is very useful for academic contexts. "Recent studies suggest that".

An example would be, "Recent studies suggest that remote work increases productivity."

Pay close attention to this one. "Recent studies suggest that remote work increases productivity."

So, there you have it. Four excellent ways to improve your writing by moving beyond "I think". Try to use these in your next piece of writing, and you will see a real difference. Thank you for joining me today.

@bob