The purpose of this paper is to give an account of communicative strategies that were successful when conveying a message in a second language. Ten students were video-taped, aged 13-15, speaking freely about a specific subject. The students that participated in the investigation all used similar strategies when speaking about their subject but some were more frequently used than others. Pausing/hesitating and fillers were the most common strategies that were used. The videotapes also made it clear that gestures are not necessarily something that helps to convey a message. Fourteen native speakers were shown the video-tapes, primarily to see whether they understood what the students were saying, but also to get their reactions to the students’ usage of communicative strategies. The native speakers that I interviewed all understood more or less what the students were saying. Some reacted to specific strategies but their reactions were generally positive. The results show that there is basically no strategy that is definitely not worth trying when trying to convey a message in a second language. Nyckelord:Communicative strategies, communication, second language learners, convey a message