​"I have lived in the US for over 20 years with a Ph.D. from a US University. I spoke decent English and was never too afraid of giving presentations. But deep inside, I lacked the confidence in leadership and public speaking because English was not my native language. Though I never stopped learning English by listening to tapes and radios, imitating actors and reciting dialogues, repeating certain words and phrases repeatedly, nothing seemed to work satisfactorily. I was frustrated. Then I met Mariam in a workshop when she was giving a demonstration. With doubts, I decided to give her class a try. At the beginning, I was not sure if it would work for me, because she started by teaching us the very basics, like the phonetics and even how to breathe, while I wanted a quick fix. I was looking for a shortcut, a magic. But soon, I was pleased that I started to see my progress. What she teaches is the fundamentals, the building blocks. Once I learned the fundamentals, I can apply them everywhere, like building skyscrapers using the same building blocks. After one course, I had been convinced that the seemingly slow approach is a fast, effective, and long-lasting way to learn. I continued and took a couple of more advanced courses. Now, I see my English is improving steadily and so is my confidence. I have won several public speech contests, which would have been beyond my imagination if I had not taken the classes. The progress I made in one year with Mariam surpasses what I made in 10 years. Taking the class from Mariam was the best decision I ever made in learning English. Thank you, Mariam and Performance English.”