Completely personal anecdote. I lived in China for a couple of years and worked really hard to learn Mandarin. The turning point for me was in the shape of my

Completely personal anecdote. I lived in China for a couple of years and worked really hard to learn Mandarin. The turning point for me was in the shape of my mouth. When speaking Mandarin, I had to close/tighten my mouth more than if I was speaking English. I think a lot of the tonal languages require you to close your mouth down, whereas English is spoken more with an open mouth. That can be tough and weird for people to do. So my advice honestly is to try talking like a Texan. Talk with a big voice, amplify your voice, and open your mouth up.