To sound more “natural” in writing, the multilingual speaker may think that the answer lies in technology, which formally supports correct speech. When numerous minor errors in word usage, style, formalism, or other elements of language accumulate, the writing may seem foreign to the speaker. Multilingual speakers who rely heavily on technology find themselves in this uncanny valley of communication and therefore may sound less convincing. My personal approach to sounding more natural is to find that balance: using technology to help me learn, while at the same time making my own thoughts known so I don’t get lost in the process. Multilingual speakers should use tools that promote effective writing and help them learn. However, these tools can also cause writing to become too formal a language that turns the writer into a robot. As a startup founder, I had to write messages in English that sounded convincing enough to sell our product to existing – and sometimes quite traditional – organizations. Services like Google Translate can help speakers of different languages quickly identify foreign words and phrases and find synonyms. My hope is that my journey can inspire other non-native speakers to find the right tools to achieve their business goals. As a non-native speaker and co-founder of a company, I have used technology to create authentic communication and have learned a lot along the way. Research the specific areas of writing mechanics you face – based on your native or primary language – and seek help in those areas. With AI, users have access to data that assesses language, vocabulary, tone, accuracy and overall clarity as they express their unique thoughts, intentions and style without losing their own voice. When I first started in business, I needed to sound more “natural” in my written communications to build stronger business relationships. When a multilingual speaker’s writing improves dramatically, but still contains hard-to-define characteristics that sound unnatural, the effectiveness and authenticity of the message is compromised. Even though I am technically fluent in the language, problems prevent me from soundingnatural. “Many English words have a different meaning than their closest equivalents in other languages.” View your path to fluency as an opportunity to deepen your understanding of writing, not as a problem to be solved for a particular message or e-mail.