Keeping a written record of your life

As much as this is advice for people who are learning a new language, it is also something that is worth doing in your native language. Every day will not be interesting. That is clear. Writing on the dull days will, however make it easier to write on the days when you have something to exciting to discuss. Even if you only do it 4 days per week, the habit will pay dividends quickly.

Your life is more than likely not an epic tale of fighting off monsters and rescuing innocent civilians. If it is, you really have no excuse to skip journaling. Even if it is not, you can write about it in a way that makes it feel more exciting. This may, or may not, end up having real world effects. You will never know unless you try it out for a few weeks, though.

Always start with the most important or exciting things, but you real challenge is to make the mundane feel exciting. If you can’t make it exciting, make it funny or sad or hopeful. Use the time to dream about what life could be versus what it is or reflect on how things have changed over the past 5 years. Personally, when I look back five years, my life is unrecognizable in all of the best ways.

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But if I hadn’t been doing this very exercise throughout that time, it would be easy to overlook the small steps that were taken to reach this point. People say to “enjoy the journey” but the reality is that, in the moment, the journey can really suck. Only upon thoughtful review can much of daily life be appreciated. It’s like when you live close to a beautiful location.

When I lived in Arizona, the grand canyon was close. So close, in fact, that most people never really made it out to see it. Why? Simple. It was always there. When something is ever present, taking it for granted is very easy to do. Once I did finally go, I made it my goal to go with as many people who have never been as possible. What an incredible couple of years that ended up being.

You never know what you are taking for granted unless you give yourself a chance to sit down and think about the things you do and have in your life. If you are truly struggling to write about things, write down 10 things for which you are grateful. Gratitude has a way of inspiring. Who knows, you might start with 10 things and end with 10 pages.

Passing on the things that matter

Personally, one of the main reasons that I spend so much time writing is because I have never thrown away a handwritten letter. If someone took the time to sit down and actually write something to me, then it is something that I deem worth keeping. Since this is true for me, it is likely true for others as well. With that in mind, I like to believe that books filled with my thoughts are something my children deem worth keeping.

Long after I am gone, I want my children and, ideally, their children to have the ability to pick my brain. There are many moments throughout the day in which I find myself wanting for the words of wisdom from family and friends who have passed. You can’t control everything, you often can’t control much of anything, but you can control the legacy that you leave behind.

We all know that our parents walked five miles up hill both ways in the pouring rain to get to school. But imagine if you could actually read the things they were thinking and feeling in that moment, rather than how they think and feel about it now. Imagine reading about your parent’s nascent relationship and how they felt as they planned for their family.

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Of course you do not have to write with the future in mind. Most of the time when you finally have a spare moment to sit down and write, you will not be thinking about the future. If anything, this is the one time when you will be unable to think, or worry, about the future. Getting the days events out of your head and on to paper will, though, have quite the clarifying effect.

Above all, the reason you should be writing is because your ability to think has a ceiling. If you would like to raise that ceiling, you must write. Thinking often happens outside of the mind. Speaking to yourself, bouncing ideas off of someone, or writing. Either way, thinking is incredibly difficult to do when alone. As you write, you give yourself a person with whom you can share and test your ideas.

Growing your language skills

Whatever you do choose to write, one of the important steps that most people skip is review. I understand. In fact, I am one of those people who skips the review more often than I should. The truth is, however, that the first time you do something is rarely going to be the best. Setting aside even 10 minutes once per week to improve your writing will have a measurable impact on your language abilities.

Making mistakes in front of yourself should not be an issue. If it is, that is something you need to work to overcome immediately. Yes, you will always be your own harshest critic, but it will be next to impossible to confidently hold a conversation with a native speaker if you are afraid to make mistakes when no one else is watching or listening.

Improving your second language almost always involves improving your first. Writing is hands down the best way to improve your native language abilities because it is one of the few times in your life when you will have everything you think laid out. It is incredibly easy to breeze past mistakes when you speak. In any language. This is not true of writing. Those mistakes you can see; those mistakes you can correct.

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Conclusion

No one knows your story but you. That means that no one can tell you that you are explaining it incorrectly. No one can correct you on your narrative except for you. That said, no one can write your story for you either. If you want your story to be told, and you should, then it is incumbent upon you to tell it; and if you are going to make the effort to tell your story, you should tell it to the best of your ability.

This is not the first, and it likely won’t be the last, time that I bring up writing. It is still and has always been the one thing that everyone fights me on because it is hard. I understand that it is hard. However, there is simply no replacement. Nothing will pay off quite as much in the short and the long term. It will be difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So go out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

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But I saw the movie

When I was a kid my parents had a strict rule. I could watch the movie, but I had to read the book first. We did this all the way through Harry Potter. To be perfectly honest, that really wasn’t my favorite thing. At least not at the time. As it turns out, reading the books before the watching the movies was one of the most valuable lessons that my parents taught me.

Set aside the fact that the movies are never as good as the books for a moment. The truly incredible part about this exercise is that it made the worlds even more real. I had already spent weeks living in the walls of Hogwarts, following along with characters and growing alongside them. By the time I watched the movie, I really felt like I had a good understanding of the new world.

With regards to language, though, one of the main reasons that you should read the book in its original, much like Le Comte de Monte Cristo in its original French, is because translations are never as good as the original either. In a way, a movie is a translation of a book. Translating from written media to visual media. In theory that gives you more freedom, but in practice it is incredibly limiting.

This is even more true if you are watching a movie in a foreign language. Anyone who is able to read their target language will no doubt notice how often subtitles are mistranslated or, at the very least, poorly translated. Though they are useful, relying on them entirely can be ultimately detrimental to your language acquisition. As with everything, trust but verify.

Translation and interpretation

The reason you need to verify is because, at the end of the day, every single translation you encounter is an interpretation to a certain extent. Of course, some offenders are far worse than others, but even those with the best intention must at some point make the decision to choose between two words that mean almost the same thing.

You can facilitate something or you can make it easier. You can cool something off or you can chill it. You can be hungry or you can be famished. Every translation involves choices. Some translators work harder than others to maintain the author’s original intent. Irrespective of the best intentions in the world, there will always be multiple ways to say the same thing.

That said, one of the things that I always recommend to my adult students is to read something you have already read, just in their target language. As of right now I have students reading Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, A The Picture of Dorian Gray, Atlas Shrugged, Count of Monte Cristo, I Am Pilgrim, The Pillars of Earth. Mostly in Spanish, but a few in French.

Without fail, when I introduce this idea to a new student, they look at me with fear in their eyes. My favorite…but after a month, they are confidently reading and, usually, enjoying the process. Even if they don’t enjoy it, no one disputes that reading in a new language is an incredibly potent sleep aid. Once they are able to read, it is time to shift from consumption to production.

Creating your own narrative

The first assignment I give every student I have is translating their favorite song in their target language into English. They do have the benefit of having me build them a personalized playlist, but often they bring me a song they have liked for a long time. This is a lightweight introduction into the next phase of their language acquisition journey.

It is one thing to translate someone else’s words. It is another thing entirely to translate your own thoughts. For that reason, once we are into week 3 of class and we have worked through everything else, it’s time to start writing their own narratives. In an ideal world, I would make them write a story and build a world of their own. However, 100% of my students have full time jobs.

So, what is the next best thing? Writing about their lives! At the end of the day, the only reason anyone learns a new language is to communicate with more people. Since that is the goal, writing stories about your own life gives you the opportunity to practice the things about which you want to talk before you ever have to face a native speaker.

One of the things we focus on in class discussions is having conversations that may possibly arise in the real world. As a consequence, I end up becoming rather close with many of the people with whom I work. After all, you can’t spend that much time speaking to someone about success and failure and love and dreams and goals and history without becoming friends.

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Conclusion

Original works are powerful tools for your second language acquisition. Whether you are consuming them or creating them, they will serve to improve your vocabulary, enhance your ability to think, and, hopefully, elucidate obscure grammar technicalities. That said, the biggest trap language learners fall into is relying too much on consumption.

Production, speech and writing, is far more difficult. Listening comprehension is mostly a function of time. Reading comprehension as well. Speech and writing are dependent on you speaking and writing. It is difficult, but you can do difficult things and become great. So go and create something incredible. You never know the dividends your efforts will pay in the future. I am rooting for you.

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If you’re working on your Spanish, grab the free Spanish PDFs to supplement what you learned in this post. For the complete system, including targeted vocabulary guides and the language patterns framework, upgrade to a paid subscription.

I also offer a 12-week Conversational Spanish course with optional weekly one-on-one sessions. My students consistently learn more in the first month than in years of traditional study. Read their reviews and get started here.

These specific documents are companion worksheets that can be paired with the guides. The goal of the “Beginner” versions is to provide scaffolding for new vocabulary and concepts to accelerate the consumption portion of language acquisition. The “Advanced” versions are focused on production. Forcing you to use the new things that you are learning from the guides or during your studies.

Several of the worksheets are language agnostic and can be used time and again. For those of you who plan to make use of them, I highly recommend printing them out and creating a small binder. For many of them, a cheap lamination option from Staples or Office Max will make it so you can use them over and over again for as long as you are learning new languages.

If it has been a while since you last checked back, make sure you scroll through all of the guides. New ones are added every other week. Should there be anything you would like me to put into a guide, please don’t hesitate to respond to this or leave a comment. I am happy to help when and where I can. Guides and worksheets won’t be enough to reach fluency, but they sure help along the way.

Much of these materials are developed for individual students with whom I work, but their utility extends beyond our individual classes. They have helped hundreds of people along their way to bilingualism and I hope they will help you along your way as well. Best of luck and please let me know if I can be of service in your language acquisition journey.

Best,

BtOdin

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The critical period myth

Neuroplasticity is real and to ignore it’s impact on learning would be a disservice to anyone reading this. However, it is also incorrect to treat it as the only thing that matters when it comes to education. Especially considering how many advantages adults have over children as the concepts become more complex. The true critical period is any period of time in which you can commit yourself to improvement.

Children have an advantage that, if given to an adult, would be the cheat code to improving faster than anyone could possibly imagine. What is it, you ask? Simple: a lack of responsibility. Children don’t have to pay rent or go to work or go to the gym or make meals or do chores and everything is paid by someone else. If you were in the same situation, I dare say you could accomplish quite a lot in 90 days.

Fortunately, there are ways to build language learning into your life, even as a busy working professional, you just need to temper your expectations to match your availability. For the best ways to build your language studies into your daily life, check out this article:

Children also don’t have the same embarrassment and shame regulation that adults have. While this can cause issues at times, when it comes to language learning it means they don’t really care if they make mistakes or not. A non child specific advantage that adult language learners can take and steal for themselves. Furthermore, they have absolutely no expectations with regards to timelines.

For an adult, especially one to whom most things come easy, the prospect of being bad at something for months or even years is anything but appealing. Some things simply take more time as an adult, but that doesn’t mean those things are not worth doing. If you want to know what a reasonable timeline looks like as an adult, read this:

Cognitive advantages of adult learners

Adults are aware of trends and patterns that children simply do not have the background knowledge to comprehend. The more you know about a variety of topics, the more likely it is that you have hidden ways to remember words based on your life experience. Even without expressly expanding your own horizons, the mere act of aging is enough to provide you with plenty of scaffolding.

Your vocabulary, in theory, is also larger than that of a child. A larger vocabulary in your native language means a larger vocabulary in your target language. There really is no way around this. That is why I am always urging people to improve their native language skills at the same time as they are working on learning a new language. Both work symbiotically to improve your overall cognition.

Context may seem like something you cannot prepare for and you largely cannot. However, the situations in which you can find yourself are limited. If you have had an experience before, speaking about it in a new language will be easier than working from complete scratch. Again, the act of aging is more than enough to provide you with more relevant experiences than a child has.

Finally, you have motivation. If you are reading this, chances are you have decided to take your language acquisition seriously. This is an advantage that you have over children. Most children don’t want to learn anything. Being here right now, reading this, means that you do want to learn. And, now, you are in control of your education which means doing things you actually enjoy.

Adult specific challenges

That is not to say, of course, that adult learners do not face their own specific challenges. The first and most prevalent is limited time. You do, in fact, have to go to work and do chores and cook meals and maybe you even have to chauffeur your kid(s) around. Your time does not look anything like theirs and therefore you have no business trying to approach education the way that a child does.

You also have to unlearn the fear of mistakes that you developed as you aged. It is normal to fear embarrassment. It is equally harmful to your language acquisition success. Courage is a muscle that needs to be worked in order to develop. If you need help developing your delusional confidence, find out how here:

The final and most difficult hurdle you have to overcome is that of maintaining your momentum alongside your responsibilities. Fortunately, that does not mean you need to be perfect. Instead it means that you need to be honest with yourself about what is possible and give yourself grace in the moments when you fall short of your goals.

Life happens. Emergencies, accidents, children, and responsibilities abound. But that is life. Those things are no reason to avoid doing things you want to do. Learning how to prioritize and optimize so that you can accomplish as much as possible takes time, but you, as an adult, are far more capable of accomplishing those things than any child would be.

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Conclusion

Learning a new language is incredibly unique in that once you have done it, it is done. That is to say, it is incredibly difficult to “lose” your language skills once you have them. Try to enjoy the process because, unless you choose to learn another language (and I think you should) then this is a one time thing. Train yourself to enjoy the journey, it is temporary.

You are, right now, in this very moment, the youngest you ever will be. If age has been an excuse you have been using, waiting only makes it worse. That is true of all things for which you use age as an excuse to avoid. It is difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So get out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

Fun quirks of language

Polysemy is one of the things I have discussed in the past and that is the capacity for a word to have multiple meanings. If you missed that article you can read it here:

Using synonyms for your second language studies is helpful because you will not always be able to recall the word you wish to use. When that happens, it is incredibly convenient to have 2 or 3 other words that are similar that you can use instead. It doesn’t always work, but having more options is always advantageous. When in doubt, use the word you can remember.

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Antonyms are similar but more so in that they are perfect for uncovering new vocabulary to throw into the mix. Sometimes you won’t be able to think of the right word, a contrived, backwoods way of doing things (hi, it’s my way) is to run through antonyms and look for possibilities among them. Of course, this is where your curiosity will serve you more than anything else. To master that, read this:

Contranyms, my new favorite linguistic component. In short they are unique words that have two opposite or contradictory meanings depending on the context in which they are used. For English language learners, this can cause some major issues with things like “buckle” that can mean to fasten, like a seatbelt, or collapse, as in buckling under the pressure.

Here is a list of just the words in English:

• Cleave — to cling to / to split apart

• Dust — to sprinkle particles onto / to remove particles from

• Seed — to plant seeds / to remove seeds (as in a watermelon)

• Skin — to cover with skin / to remove the skin

• Trim — to decorate by adding / to neaten by cutting away

• Buckle — to fasten securely / to collapse

• Bolt — to secure in place / to flee suddenly

• Sanction — to permit / to penalize

• Screen — to display / to conceal

• Weather — to endure / to wear away

• Clip — to fasten together / to cut off

• Rent / Lease / Hire — to provide for payment / to obtain for payment

• Garnish — to decorate (food) / to seize (wages)

• Fix — to repair / to render unable to reproduce; also “fix in place”

• Strike — to hit / to miss (in baseball)

• Resign — to quit a position / to sign on again

• Enjoin — to urge / to forbid

• Peruse — to read carefully / to skim (newer secondary sense)

• Scan — to examine closely / to glance over

• Hold up — to support / to delay or rob

• Wind up — to begin (wind up a watch) / to conclude (wind up an event)

• Toss out — to suggest / to discard

• Overlook — to supervise / to fail to notice

• Help — to assist / to prevent (”I couldn’t help but laugh”)

• Apology — an expression of regret / a formal defense (apologetics)

  

(Un)Fortunately, you have the opportunity to explore these and many others in your target language. Since these all hold dual meanings, looking for their translations might not net the expected results. Language is incredibly complex and, in many cases, it is evolving constantly. Be patient with yourself, you are not the only one confused my these sorts of words.

Improving your vocabulary

By understanding these different linguistic components, you have the opportunity to always learn one more word. One of the most frustrating aspects of learning a new language is trying to ensure you are learning things that are relevant to you. However, what may seem relevant now may not be so relevant when you are speaking to a local and they go off on a tangent.

When doing this, my recommendation is to write down the new words and immediately use them in sentences of your own construction. Even if you need to write the sentence out in English first and translate it later, that is still better than looking at the word and hoping it will stick. As nice as that would be, the reality is that you need to be using words if you want consistent access to them.

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Words you might not use are still important because the words you use make up less than half of the words you need to be capable of fluid comprehension. Just because you can’t foresee yourself having a certain conversation does not mean it will not happen. You never know what people are going through and you likely underestimate how much most are willing to share.

Furthermore, you should be seeking to grow your vocabulary in your native language. Recently there has been a trend of students at different schools around the USA having their classmates attempt to read flashcards. See an example here:

You can read more and find the video here.

Since that is the world in which we currently live, it is crucial that you raise your own standards. No one else is going to do it for you. No one else cares if you do or do not. Read above your level, write with the goal of being eloquent, speak in a way that makes you proud. Fortunately, doing so in one language makes it far easier to do in each subsequent language.

Expanding your abilities

As far as improving your vocabulary goes, there is one foolproof method: the thesaurus. However, since this is a language you do not know very well, I would recommend using reverso.com instead (or alongside) so that you can be sure of the translations you are receiving. Reverso allows you to see various synonyms in contextualized sentences so you know you are choosing the best option.

Reading books that you believe are beyond your level is also incredibly helpful. Each one of my students reads a book. Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, Atlas Shrugged, The Count of Monte Cristo, A Portrait of Dorian Gray, and many more. These are people who know little to none of the language when we start, but that does not make their reading any less effective.

The goal is never to understand everything. Especially not at first. In fact, if you were to pick up one of these books, I would be incredibly impressed if you knew the definition of every word within, even in your native language. That’s the point though. You will never know everything, so you might as well get started adding to your repertoire.

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After a few weeks (or months, depending on how seriously they take the assignment) everyone, universally, reports being shocked by the fact that they can, in fact, read rather fluidly. Of course, the goal at the beginning to read 1 page per night out loud. Only after a month am I even beginning to think about having them dedicate time to translating what they read.

Your final hurdle, though, has nothing to do with reading. Done right, you can be adept at reading very quickly. No, unfortunately there is a much greater obstacle to overcome. Even more so than having a conversation with a native speaker. That is, learning how to speak in a group setting. One on one is a challenge, but moving to speaking in a group is like going from junior varsity to the pros.

Practice by listening to podcasts and TV shows. The news is particularly good for this due to the format. It happened to me and it happens to everyone. You finally have an hours long conversation with someone only to find out that you do not, in fact, speak your new language fluently the moment you are flung into a group of 2 or more native speakers.

This is another one of those things that is “the only way out is through” and exposure is your cure. If you want to improve, you have to spend more time listening to multiple orators at once. It is frustrating, and it will be frustrating, until it isn’t. Persevere. When groups are your biggest challenge, you are truly approaching fluency.

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Conclusion

As someone who finds more utility in vocabulary than in grammar, these idiosyncrasies in language are incredible useful. You can use synonyms to learn new ways, often better, to express yourself. Antonyms are perfect for expanding your vocabulary with approximations and exact opposites. Contranyms help with the understanding of polysemy and the multifaceted nature of language.

The best and worst part of learning new languages is that there is no such thing as perfection. All you can do is be better than you were yesterday. Do that for long enough, often less time than you think, and you will inevitably become fluent. This is true of any goal you have. It is difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So get out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

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Theory and practice

In general, I am in favor of diving deep into topics that are well understood already. For people who love to cook, cooking and recipe videos are incredible practice. Gardeners will get a lot from watching gardening videos, especially if they are looking to solve problems already. However, generalized vocabulary is just as, if not more, important than specialized vocabulary.

Sometimes in my classes I can feel my students rolling their eyes at some of the vocabulary we see. After all, when will you really ever use the word “undermine” in Spanish? My answer to that question is a question of my own, “Why can’t you foresee a situation in which you will use more unique vocabulary? As frustrating as it can be to forget basic words, that is no reason to avoid complex vocabulary.

More importantly, you have absolutely no control over the words other people use to communicate with you. Perhaps you never will use the word ameliorate, but what if someone else uses it whilst speaking to you? Then what? Not every word you learn is meant to be a word you use. The advice I give my students is to learn 5 words and use the one or two you can remember for certain. (see fig. 1)

Nothing is quite as brutal as keeping up with someone throughout an entire conversation only to get stopped in your tracks by a new word you never learned because it can’t be found in a top 100 list somewhere. If you are going to put all of this time and effort into learning a new language, you might as well do it to the best of your ability.

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Broadening your horizons

Learning how to do new things is one of the better ways to learn a new language. As much as I think people who love to cook will get a ton out of recipe videos, the truth is that those who are not adept in the kitchen have even more to gain from the very same exercises. But this doesn’t stop at the kitchen. Just about anything you want to learn, you can learn in a new language. Read how here:

There are few reasons to broaden your horizons more profound than learning a new language. If you are planning to share your life with a group of people who don’t share your native language, you are going to be confronted by topics you do not speak about in your native language. Through no fault of your own, of course, different countries have different problems and cultures and histories and you can’t possibly know them all at the beginning.

When I was first interviewed for my exchange program, the interviewers asked me what I knew about Belgium. The truth was, I didn’t really know much at all. I knew it was a country, I knew where it was, and I knew they spoke 3 languages officially. That was my primary reason for choosing that country with Switzerland being my second choice.

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By the time I returned home, however, I understood far more. Part of broadening your horizons that I think is too often overlooked is that you don’t have to be the one to do all of the work. All you need to do is be willing, other people will happily fill your time with stories and explanations if you give them the opportunity. This is also your escape from generalized vocabulary.

Becoming interesting

Once upon a lifetime ago, I was the manager of a sales office. In my training, one of the things I focused on was authenticity because that was always my biggest pet peeve with sales representatives. Learning how to get people interested in a product is very similar to learning how to be interesting as a person. Fortunately, there isn’t really anything you need to do in order to be interesting.

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Like it or not, the most interesting person is an interested person. Being an interested person is in your best interest (ha ha) because it is the easiest, most efficient way to learn new things and meet new people. In short, you can both expand your understanding of the world and grow your circle of influence simultaneously by learning to listen.

Listening is a skill and it is a skill that pays dividends in all things language. Using language, interpreting language, parsing language, crafting language, and much more. That said, it is also one of the things that is most frustrating because no one wants to spend their whole life sitting in silence. The nice thing is that the better you become at listening the less time you will spend sitting in silence.

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Conclusion

Everyone starts somewhere. That means there is utility in the small talk you will go through every morning. You can gain a lot form speaking about very little if you know where to look. Pay attention to the mannerisms of people you speak to while they listen. Imitation is a powerful tool you have at your disposal through speech, listening, translation, and every other aspect of language acquisition.

Depth of conversation can evolve, but it cannot start out deep. The profundity of any conversation is dependent upon both your ability to express yourself and your ability to completely comprehend your interlocuter. If you are not where you want to be yet, start by learning words you can’t see yourself ever using. You never know with whom you will end up conversing.

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Everything in this post is part of a larger system. If you want the full methodology in one place, 3 Months to Conversational is available now on Amazon. It’s the same framework my private students use, designed for independent learners.

If you want that framework customized to your target language, your goals, and your schedule. Check out the private course options.

Why does this happen?

It is normal for comprehension to develop before production. Especially with regards to reading. In fact, reading should be something that can become reasonably fluid in a month or two. What is important to remember is that once reading is fluid it begins to serve you. All of the work you put in to get to that point is merely laying the ground work for the future.

Most apps rely on reading primarily because they expect you to read and answer questions. While apps that focus on listening comprehension do exist, the sad truth is, no amount of listening to hypothetical conversations can beat having your own conversations using your own thoughts and your own language, with all of the limitation that follow.

There is a lot of talk about comprehensible input and it is important, but with all of the focus on input, output often takes a back seat. Speech, however, is exclusively output. For that reason alone, you desperately need to include at least as much output in your language learning strategy as you have input. Watching TV for an hour? Write for an hour. Listening to music? Write down the words you hear.

Production takes more time to become fluid because it relies on you having the most efficient neural pathways possible. At the beginning and throughout the majority of your time learning a new language you are going to struggle specifically because your brain has not had enough time to build efficient pathways. To understand this better, read this:

Cortisol spikes

Real time conversation triggers stress, especially when you are conversing in a language that is not native to you. Stress shuts down the language centers of your brain. It doesn’t matter which language, if you are stress all of your linguistic abilities are going to suffer. This is why there are full college courses for public speaking. Cortisol management is critical for successful language acquisition.

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While having a tutor or a teacher to guide you is helpful, you have to be careful to not fall into the trap of always speaking to only them. After a certain amount of time, you are going to become comfortable and, while that comfort may serve you while you are in class, it is risky to put all of your eggs in one basket.

Diversifying your conversation partners is simultaneously the most difficult and most important part of successful second language acquisition. Training under pressure is a good way to practice even on your own. Set yourself a timer, answer questions, record yourself, and show someone the recording. Ask for tips and ways to improve, then do it again with a new set of questions.

The power of feedback

Writing and speaking alone is great. However, it can be dangerous if you are making mistakes and you do not know it. Training is good, but training wrong can have lasting consequences. Fortunately, since this is language we are talking about, those consequences are neither lethal nor dangerous and they can be remedied with time.

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Still, it would behoove you to ensure that you are not making the same mistakes consistently to avoid this altogether. This step is quite difficult without outside help, unfortunately. You could use AI, but that is limiting in its own way, you can see more on why here:

Ideally you have a native speaker or at least someone who speaks the language you are learning that can offer you some help. Tutors, teachers, professors, those are great (and I would recommend having one), but they are not necessary if you have someone who is willing to help you out with this. If not, there is still one thing you can do.

Start reading more. If you are constantly making the same mistake, especially while writing, then reading will show you very quickly what mistake. Understanding why is another question and that is where a tutor pays off, but at the very least you will have a starting point and can work towards correcting it yourself. Teaching yourself is difficult, but it is not impossible.

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Conclusion

It is incredibly common to find yourself in a place where you can understand a language, but can’t speak it. This may come as a surprise to some because it is just as easy to end up capable of speaking without being able to understand native speakers. True language acquisition is all about balance. My pushing creation this hard is only to bring balance to the amount of consumption most prevalent.

Consumption of content is easy, creation is far more difficult. However, both are equally simple. Make time to write about your day, your life, your hopes, your dreams, your goals, and check back often to see if you are headed in the right direction. Adding another language to your life means learning to be you with new, often more expressive words. It doesn’t change your core. Go create!

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Early signs of success

While there are no guarantees, one of the early signs of success that I have seen in people who do flip this proverbial switch is that they are consistently working every aspect of foreign language acquisition. They are reading and writing and speaking and listening every day. For more on hitting all of the components in your own daily life, read this:

They also take me seriously when I talk about building an immersive environment. Of course it is easier to just live somewhere where you are immersed in your target language, but that is not an option for everyone. For those who do not have such an option, choosing to fill their time and space with their target language is the next best option.

Even if it starts out as only one change, if you make one change every week for a year your life will look unrecognizable to what it was. For help on building yourself an immersive environment at home, check out this article:

The biggest thing, however, that you can do to put yourself in the optimal position is create at least as much as you are consuming. Most people neglect this because they believe speech is something that stands on its own. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Speech depends on a variety of factors not the least of which is the ability to understand the person with whom you are speaking.

Writing is probably the single best way to train speaking abilities aside from attempting to hold actual conversations. The same recall mechanisms are at work with none of the pressure. Do it often enough and you will realize that the words you write consistently are easier to recall during conversation. That one realization should, in turn, convince you of how important writing is.

In the thick of it

Once you are in the thick of it, all of the writing you did early on will come back to pay dividends. Seeing your early work is much more powerful than trying to remember mistakes you may or may not have made during a given conversation. In fact, sometimes when you are struggling to come up with things to write, going back over old conversations is perfect for advancement.

Keeping a record of your progress is something far too few people do. Not only with regards to language acquisition. If you truly want to improve a skill, you need to start by tracking where you are and decide where you want to go from there. For those who are struggling to set realistic language learning goals, be sure to follow these steps:

Avoiding burnout is your next challenge as someone who wants to make it through to the other side. Monotony is dangerous and if you are already bored before you even sit down to begin studying, it is going to be incredibly difficult to continue as time progresses. By having a variety of materials you can work through that cover every interest you have, you give yourself the best chance of making it through to fluency.

A little talked about trick that I use with all of my students is that of a rest week. Just one week where we completely stop talking about the target language. That is not to say that they avoid the language, I work with a great many people who are immersed in their target language. Rather they stop their dedicated study time for one week to allow the material we have covered time to sink in.

Coming out on the other side

Normally, the first blip of success happens on the other side of one of these rest weeks. Which we normally take at the end of week 8 of class, for those who are curious. Today, in fact, I had a student recount to me that he was able to understand directions clearly from a fitness instructor for the first time in 4 months. That’s an incredibly exciting development, but only the first step.

All of these are small wins you need to be looking out for in your own daily life. Are you able to understand a little bit more of the song you love? Is the show you are watching making more sense, even if it’s only one of the actors? Have you found yourself wondering how you might say different things in your target language? These are all wins that you should be checking off of your list as you go.

These precursors lead to eventually going form thinking about objects to thinking about conversations to thinking about ideas all in your target language without any interference from your native language. Slowly, then suddenly, you will go from looking at a window and thinking “ventana” to looking out the window and day dreaming in your target language.

The final indication that you are through to the other side is that you are no longer translating in your head before you speak. This one is the one that sneaks up on you. One day you will wake up and step outside, go up to someone and strike up a conversation, and only hours later will you realize that you didn’t spend any mental bandwidth translating during that conversation.

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Conclusion

Unfortunately, the worst part of all of this is that it is impossible to understand unless you have experienced it before. Sure, you can use the analogous experiences to approximate the feeling, but there is no replacement for experience. I want everyone reading this to understand exactly what I mean and I am fortunate to have had the honor of seeing so many people experience it thus far.

I can’t say it is easy, but it is simple. Do these things every day for 21 days and you will be shocked at just how far you will go. Of course, 3 weeks is nowhere near enough time for you to start speaking a new language, but it certainly long enough for you to make undeniable progress. I look forward to hearing stories of your triumphs. I am rooting for you.

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Gustar

Almost universally, when it comes to the verb gustar in Spanish, people believe, or at least associate, it with the verb to “like” in English. This makes sense if we are translating for meaning. Of course we say “I like x” in English, so why would it be different? Well, because “gustar” means “to please”, not “to like”.

This makes sense when we think about the word “gusto” as in “mucho gusto” or “much pleasure. What many who learned Spanish in the public school system have come to believe means “nice to meet you” and that’s because, well, it does. What it translates to, however, is different. By layering these various meanings over the actual translations the way Spanish is largely taught has caused more problems than not.

Once we know that “gustar” means “to please” it is far easier to understand the conjugation. After all, if it was “like” we would say, “yo gusto” and not “me gusta”. Since we are saying x pleases me, it follows logically that the verb needs to be conjugated for x and not for me. Learning, or worse teaching, that “me gusta” means “I like” may be true, but it is more harmful than taking 5 more minutes to explain why it is not that simple.

By making this small switch in your brain, you will be able to express you wants better because you can immediately employ the polite “me gustaria” knowing that it translates to “it would please me” rather than “I would like” even if the meaning remains the same. Learning to understand meaning over translation is a huge step, but without the foundations it can be tenuous.

Hasta

As with the above, “hasta” is often taught to be understood in conjunction with other terms. This is fine, for a phrasebook. However, when it comes to practical, useful language, thinking of “hasta” as part of “hasta luego”, “hasta pronto”, or “hasta mañana” (see you later, see you soon, and see you tomorrow respectively) is rather detrimental to long term success.

Hasta has nothing to do with the verb ver and the verb ver has nothing to do with the word hasta. Instead, it is well worth it to learn to read the word as “until”. Yes, that makes the “see you” examples slightly different, but this is why I always recommend direct translation during the early stages of language acquisition. You need to know the direct to truly integrate the implicit. For more on that, read here:

The utility of “hasta” reaches beyond the word “until” in English, but understanding it as until will make those other opportunities make more sense as you come across them in the wild. This is one of the most misinterpreted words I come across with new students. It makes sense to teach it that way when passing a test is the goal.

At the end of the day in order to accurately interpret meaning, you have to know the mechanisms leading to linguistic variance. If you don’t understand why something is happening, using it correctly is exponentially more difficult. Yes, with enough time and exposure you can build an incredibly close approximation. Learning the direct translation and sentence formation is just easier, and faster.

Bueno vs bien

This one is pretty simple. Most people associate these with good and it is not because they are taught incorrectly, though they may be. Rather it is because a great many native English speakers are unable to speak English with proper grammar. What is the correct answer to “how are you” assuming you are going to respond with what most people say?

The correct answer, grammatically, is “I am well” not “I am good”. Fortunately, the mechanism is also very simple. Good is an adjective and well is an adverb. All that means, for you, is that you will use “bueno” or variations with an accordance between gender and plurality (buena/buenos/buenas), to describe nouns. So, good for people, places or things.

Bien, on the other hand, will never have to worry about a gender accord because the word bien is only used to describe verbs. Something being done well, for example. Now, in Spanish it is often used as an enhancer as well for “very” but always with a verb. You have to be careful, of course, because that verb could come in the form of a past participle. For more on those, read here:

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Conclusion

I understand the desire to jump straight to understanding the meaning. Especially in those moments when direct translation fails you. But in order to sprint you need to be able to walk with confidence. Walking is direct translation and it is just one step you will need to take on your way to fluency. Unfortunately, for many people that means unlearning bad habits.

The process of unlearning things is more painful than it ought to be, but you only have to do it once. Plus, once you get to the part where translating for meaning is actually effective, you already have a leg up because those same things hurting you now will come back to serve you in the future. It is difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So get out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

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English grammar rules

For as much as people tend to believe grammar is important, the vast majority of native speakers struggle to speak their native language with perfect grammar. This is especially true for English speakers, though native German speakers often mess up their grammar. Of course, German grammar is far more complex, but the point remains. Perfect grammar is largely a fever dream.

A major sticking point for native English speakers learning new languages are prepositions. About, for, on, at, by, to, and dozens of others cause major issues because, well, most English speakers cannot explain why they use them and when it is appropriate. In this instance, let’s take the word “for” as an example.

When you say for, do you mean you are making an exchange? I will give you two of these for one of those.

Do you mean you are in favor of something? I am for the freedom of expression.

Are you trying to explain a reason you did something? I did it for you.

And these are just three examples. Unfortunately, the versatility of the word “for” means that you may need to learn up to 5 words in your target language in order to properly express all of these ideas that only require one word in your native language. Let alone the fact that that is merely one of the dozens of prepositions that carry multiple uses in every language.

This is to say nothing of contractions and the myriad of people who fail to use them correctly in English. Mixing up “they’re”, “there”, and “their” is bad enough in English, but it is horrendous to make this mistake when translating in your head to another language. This is why I am so adamant about understanding one’s native language before learning a new one.

Finally, a problem in English that doesn’t exist in the romance languages is that of having words that, in the romance languages, are actually tenses. Those words are “might”, “may”, “will”, “have”, and “would”. I have a full write up on that you can find here:

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When you can afford to mess up

You can’t! Just kidding. Honestly, depending on the language of course, there are very few things that you cannot afford to mess up. Verb conjugation is one of the things most people get hung up on during the beginning stages, but so long as you get the timing right, you can work towards getting the person right. In fact, even if you get the timing wrong, using the correct word is more important.

Think about this in your daily life. Have you ever been speaking to someone who said, “We go to the store tomorrow”? Obviously “we are going to the store tomorrow” is correct, but you understand the message being conveyed nonetheless. The same is true when you are speaking to just about anyone. Unless they are an unreasonable person, conjugation mistakes are far from the end of the world.

Another very common aspect to languages that far too many people take far too seriously is word order. Yes, word order is important, but it is, again, one of the areas where you can afford to mess up, so long as you are using the correct word. Word order will work itself out with time. After all, you can only encounter so many examples before the correct formation begins to stick permanently.

The same is true of gendered words. In the vast majority of cases, using the wrong article with a word or failing to use the appropriate ending with an adjective is not a problem. Over time you should strive for perfection, but perfection is impossible. Very few people, if any, are actually capable of speaking a language perfectly. Using the right word is far more important.

Foundational structures for fluid speech

Since all of these things can become more fluid with practice, the foundations you need to put in place immediately are, in fact, the same as the areas of speech where you can afford to mess up. Mistakes are incredibly important for foundation building. Knowing what not to do is often more helpful than knowing what to do. The fastest way to learn is to fail early and often.

Word order is one of the first things you will be introduced to and it is something you should have a cursory understanding of from the start. However, that does not mean you should wait until you understand it perfectly to begin using the language. Most language are replete with exceptions and the most expedient way to learn the exceptions is by treating all rules as hard rules.

The same is true of verb tenses. You should learn the past, present, and future. Being able to correctly use each of the three will ensure that, at the very least, the person with whom you are speaking knows WHEN you are talking about, even if the WHO you are talking about is less than clear. This is why we cover 6 tenses in 6 weeks during my classes. Using them is the best way to learn them.

Finally, learning descriptive words is important for a sturdy foundation due to the fact that they will often open up several vocabulary vectors for you. If you know slow then you know slowly and to slow and slower and slowest. Each new vocabulary word you learn gives you the opportunity to build a deeper understanding of the language.

Descriptive language is great because it allows you to be more eloquent in your speech. It also forces you into mistakes with regards to word order and gendered words which is feeding not two, but three birds with one scone. At first you will have to express yourself however you can express yourself, but your goal is, and should be, to express yourself however you want.

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Conclusions

Learning a new language is often less about rules and more about balance. If you focus exclusively on the rules, you are going to paralyze yourself into silence. Striking the perfect balance between progressing towards perfection and speaking with delusional confidence is easier said than done, but that is what makes it the perfect goal.

Do not fall into the trap of seeking perfection, especially not in the first year of your language acquisition. Improvements will come, but only if you are willing to put yourself out there and sound stupid. Otherwise you will hypothetically speak well, which doesn’t mean much to anyone at all. Effort, on the other hand, means the world to people who speak your target language natively. It is difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great, so do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

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What Duolingo does well

My favorite part of Duolingo is also one of the things that it does best: it has an extremely low barrier to entry. It’s free, provided you are okay with spending a fair bit of time watching ads, and it is the perfect start for someone interested in getting back into language learning. The vocabulary may be sporadic, but you cannot walk away without knowing any words. That is certainly something.

Aside from a base level of vocabulary and the way in which it excels at getting people started, Duolingo really is not helpful. I like to think of it as a sort of gateway drug. People will start up with it, some will stop there, others will set out for something more potent once the novelty of gamified education wears off. Of course, it should be said they expertly sell the feeling of learning a new language.

Where it falls short

After the first 30 days, you might start to notice that there is such thing as too much repetition. When you can do the exercises in 1.5 minutes because you have the every vocabulary word they have showed you memorized, it’s time to put the phone down and get to work on the things that will actually move the needle for you. The limitations of Duolingo far outweigh the benefits.

For instance, relying on a robot to understand your speech is dangerous. Not only that, but the opportunities that you do have to converse with your phone are almost entirely devoid of actual, practical context. The vocabulary is generic and directionless meaning it does not adapt to you or the things you actually need to express yourself in your target language.

Personally, I find the most egregious failure of Duolingo is that there is no incentive to write. Writing is incredibly important for complete language acquisition and without that aspect your abilities will always have a ceiling. For more on adding writing to your language learning routine, check out this article:

It is also lacking in effective feedback mechanisms. No one in a real world conversation is going to stop you and tell you that you are wrong because you used “el” instead of “la” while speaking. So even the feedback that is being provided is largely unhelpful in a real world context. At a certain point, there is no replacement for human feedback.

Finally, it is almost too “fun”. That is to say, there is nowhere near enough pressure applied in the lessons. One problem most people run into when they finally escape the silent period is contending with the cortisol spikes inherent in high pressure situations like speaking to native speakers for the first, or hundredth, time. Learning to manage this stress is crucial. You can learn how here:

Duolingo is capable of progressing you towards a low intermediate level. From there you will likely find yourself on a near endless plateau. You could go 100 days in a row or 1000 days in a row and it will not change your ceiling in any real sense. Worst of all, you will find yourself in the ever common “I can understand but I can’t speak” trap.

As I mentioned above, my favorite part about Duolingo is that it gets people rolling. If you are taking your second language acquisition seriously, however, you could begin speaking a new language confidently faster than your friend can reach a 100 day streak on Duolingo. You just need to choose the things you focus on wisely.

What should you do then?

I would be remiss if I didn’t provide options for how you can advance quicker. Do I think you should remove Duolingo entirely? That depends. If it is the only thing keeping you tangentially tied to your target language and associated goals, then you should keep using it as much as possible. However, if you are craving more, here is what you should do.

1. Start writing immediately

   1. 50 sentences per week

      1. Tell as story

      2. Teach someone something

      3. Keep a journal

   2. NO TRANSLATION HELP

      1. Do not use translation help for this. Fight for every word and find ways to say things any way that you can rather than the best way that you can.

   3. Iterate

      1. Everyone gets caught up on repetition. Yes, repetition is crucial for successful language learning. But that is only the first part of the equation. Once you have done your repetition it is necessary to begin iteration. Take the sentences you have written, use reverso.com (or something similar) and learn to speak/write how you want rather than how you must.

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1. Start reading

   1. Read something above your language “level”

   2. Read the news

   3. Read about things you want to learn more about in general

   4. Read out loud to practice fluid speech without needing to come up with your own words

   5. Translate texts to improve your vocabulary and understanding of grammar structures in your target language

2. Speak

   1. Hire a tutor

   2. Call a friend

   3. Record yourself

   4. Review conversations you have had and translate them to your target language

   5. rehearse in the mirror

Doing these three things for 21 days straight will completely change your language learning experience, especially if it has been primarily limited to Duolingo and other language learning apps. Continue to use the apps as supplementation, sure, but if you truly want to see meaningful progress, you have to step outside of your comfort zone. Push beyond the apps.

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Conclusion

If you have hit the Duolingo wall, it’s time to accept apps for what they are: supplementation. Trying to learn a new language with an app is equivalent to trying to get into shape by taking BCAAs and creatine. Those things can help, but they will not do much if you are not working to improve the foundations your are building. Supplements are good, but exercise is better.

I understand the desire to maintain a streak. In fact, Duolingo’s marketing team pretty much relies on the human desire to maintain continuity in order to keep their user base. What if, though, you built your own streak? How many days can you read in a row? How many days will you write? Speak? Challenge yourself to find out and see how far you can take your linguistic skills.

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Engaging classes

I recently found myself in the middle of controversy because I happen to believe kids should be able to use the restroom when they need to use the restroom. Of course there are others who ruin it for everyone else, but that does not seem just to me. Beyond that, if a class is engaging, students will rarely ask to excuse themselves; and when they do, it is usually for good reason.

After teaching for several years now, one of the things I have had to grapple with is the fact that anything longer than an hour is too much time. Without fail, every single one of my students is running out of processing power between minute 45 and minute 60. To me, this is a good thing. If you are actually exerting yourself full beans for an hour, you should feel mentally exhausted by the end.

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Regrettably, the system as it is set up cannot operate in a way that is advantageous to the individual. Even though individualized education is demonstrably more effective, especially with regards to foreign languages. No two students should have the same class, but that is simply not feasible when class sizes have surpassed 30 students to one teacher.

Fortunately for you, your education is in your hands and you can choose the things that are actually interesting to you. For more on how to create your own language learning curriculum, see this article:

The only thing you have to do is start. From there things get much easier. After finding a rabbit hole to follow, your only job is to, well, follow it. Thanks to my students I know more about the olive harvest in Spain than most people ever will, more about the surf conditions of El Salvador than I ever thought I would, and more about horror novels as a whole than I had previously been interested in knowing.

Your only limit is your creativity and imagination. There are tons of materials out there available for you. That said, it could be that material is not what is holding you back. In fact, for many native English speakers, one of the greatest hurdles is understanding grammar constructs within the English language. Without that understanding, applying them to new languages is impossible.

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The subjunctive mood

The reason teachers would bring up the “may” versus “can” thing in school is because there actually is a grammatical mechanism to it. In the romance languages this is called the “subjunctive” tense or mood. All that it does is imply doubt. That’s it. That’s the whole complex mechanism. A “tense” that implies doubt. Fortunately, in English, it is a word and not a tense.

Similar to how “would” and “will” are words instead of tenses in English, “may” is how you use the subjunctive in English. It just turns out that in the year 2026, it is no longer very common. Using these correctly in your target language becomes a lot easier when you are able to understand why and when you might use it in your native language. For more of these, check out this article:

But what if you get it wrong? This is something I think far too many people over think. There are some areas of Belgium and France where the French subjunctive is hardly being taught anymore. As sad as this is, what it means for you as a French learner is that when you are able to employ it correctly you will appear to be a well educated French student, even if you don’t always use it properly.

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Improving your English skills

Very few people who are fluent in English understand the rules of English. As a rule, most native speakers do not understand why they do many of the things that they do. Therefore, by learning just a few mechanism, a couple of grammar terms, and why and how they work in English, you can set yourself apart from the average language learner.

Some things will help more than others, but when it comes to romance languages, here is what you need:

• The difference between and use of indirect and direct objects

• Why and when you use adjectives versus adverbs

  • This is particularly helpful with regards to “good” versus “well” in English as in every romance language.

• Word order

• Possessives

  • This is the age old joke of “their” versus “there” versus “they’re” but is just as important for “who’s” and “whose” and “your” and “you’re” and so on.

Mastering these concepts in your native language will make each subsequent language you learn far easier. As it stands, I have to spend several hours teaching native English speakers the particulars of their native language in order to facilitate the comprehension of mirror concepts in foreign languages. That is why I want you to take the time yourself. It will pay off quickly.

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Conclusion

Personally, I was never the type to ask to use the restroom in school unless I absolutely had to use it. According to the controversy I found myself in last week, this is no longer the case for the majority of students. Hopefully that means the teachers are still using this age old trick to avoid saying yes; and hopefully they are taking the time to explain why they are doing it.

While that may have never happened for me, I always appreciate, and can tell, when a student of mine had a quality English teacher. If you didn’t, and even if you did, reviewing grammar structures and syntax rules in your native language will enhance and accelerate your second language acquisition. It is difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So get out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

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Using your ears proportionally

The first bad habit most people need to break when learning a new language is the habit of formulating responses while someone else is speaking. Irrespective of which language you are learning, this is a bad habit. One mark of a good listener is waiting until someone is finished before attempting to come up with a response. Making this one change will improve your relationships.

That said, sometimes understanding the full context is not the goal. When you are just getting started, focusing on the gist of the sentence is crucial. I tell my students that subjects and verbs come first, the rest is just fluff, for the time being. Of course, you want to get to a point where you are able to understand everything, but that is just not possible when you are getting started.

Aside from high relevance words, learning intonation can save you from a fair amount of embarrassment. Every bilingual I know has been asked a question by a native speaker only to realize five seconds too late that it was, in fact, a question; and I have agreed to many things I may not have agreed to had I been able to recognize the intonation inherent in a question.

Thoughtful silence

Once you develop the skill to differentiate between statements and questions, you challenge is to take both and respond thoughtfully. Take time to think through your whole sentence. In fact, depending on your level, thinking through everything in your native language before trying to express it in your target language may be the best option.

Far too often the impulse is to translate word by word, working through the sentence as though it were made up of independent words rather than pieces of language that depend on context. By taking the time to think all the way through the sentence, you give yourself the opportunity to think about the context requisite for proper formulation in your target language.

At first it will be an exercise in frustration as you are forced to say things how you can rather than how you would like. This is where repetition stops being useful. Once you reach a certain level, repetition stops being the most effective tool you have at your disposal. The next step is iteration. This, of course, requires you to be slightly more committed to your language acquisition.

Practicing iteration is difficult because it requires you to come back to conversations after they have concluded. That, and the best way to implement it is by writing things down. Fortunately, you do not have to do this for every conversation. Once you have a few written down, all you have to do is keep coming back to them to improve wherever possible.

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Think before you speak

One of the things I make sure all of my students are practiced in is using filler words. That is to say, words that can be used to buy time for sentence formation while the internal translation takes place. These are crutches, so the ultimate goal is not to use them indefinitely, however if you do end up using them for months or years, no one is going to notice. Native speakers rely on them, too.

Buying yourself time to think is absolutely crucial for cortisol management when speaking a new language. The best, most natural way to do that is by adopting the mannerisms and linguistic quirks of native speakers. You can say a lot without saying anything and the more you do it the less you will have to do it. For more on crutches, read this article:

An incredibly common issue that language learners run into is that of being trepidations in their speech. Speaking quietly or overly fast is incredibly common and there is nothing to be ashamed of in that. However, you have to fight against that urge and slow yourself down, annunciate, and speak loudly and proudly. It will take time, but once you begin each subsequent time is easier.

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Conclusion

Everyone wants to speak a new language and one of the most difficult aspects of learning a new language is coming to terms with the fact that speaking is not the most difficult part of becoming bilingual. Listening is far more difficult and one of the best ways to improve is by, well, becoming a good listener. This is one of those skills that pays off well beyond bilingualism.

You can make incredible, life long friends by mastering the ability to listen. Do this in foreign countries and bilingualism is all but guaranteed. You may even find that the people you meet are more interested in you as a result of your interest in them. It will be difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So get out and do difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

Not sure where to start? Start Here! This maps out the entire site based on where you are right now.

Want something you can use today? Grab the free vocabulary frameworks and practice exercises: Free PDFs

Time Audit and Opportunity Mapping

A long time ago, I happened across the concept of “stealing time”. This is not different than “making time” but I prefer the framing because at the end of the day you are taking time from one place and reallocating it to another, not making time appear out of thin air. For me, this manifests itself in waking up at 4am. For you, it may be different.

All that matters is that you find hidden pockets of time and begin using them. This “dead time” could be anything. Especially since we are talking about finding time for comprehensible input. Since you do not need to be sitting down with a pen and paper for that, the opportunities are nearly endless.

Doing the dishes, cleaning the bathroom, washing your car, sanitizing the kitchen. Things that every adult has to do, can be made more enjoyable, and productive, by layering in different levels of comprehensible input. Most of my students get their audio comprehension practice in doing cardio at the gym or during their commutes. That is effective time thievery.

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The next step is to take a minute and differentiate between dead time, like the things above, and productive time. That is to say, time you can spend sitting down at a desk or table to actually study. Done right, you only need 20-45 minutes of this dedicated productive time per day; and no, Duolingo on the toilet does not count.

Realistically, 20 minutes is enough if you are doing the right things. In fact, there are several exercises such as dictation, reading out loud, and native to target language translation that I believe 20 minutes is the limit for effective learning. Beyond that 20 minute mark those things often become exercises is managing frustration more than anything else.

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Passive vs. Active Learning Windows

Define your windows. It is crucial that you determine for yourself what windows you will use for passive learning and which windows are perfect for active learning. Commutes are great for passive learning, lunch breaks are perfect for active learning. One of my students who is a doctor in Australia translates conversations he has with patients in his head between visits.

While I am not going to urge everyone to lean into micro study sessions, when there is an opportunity to take real life scenarios and turn them into language learning practice, I suggest you take it. The main reason you need to be differentiating between these times is to ensure you are not wasting the valuable time that you do have.

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Once you have the lines drawn, you need activities. You can find a full guide with passive activities you can begin immediately on the Guides page of the website. For those of you who want to begin with active learning exercises immediately, here are things you can do with 20 spare minutes today:

1. Dictation/Transcription

Find an audio, write down what you hear, check your work and go again. For a full tutorial on this, check out this article:

2. Journaling

Go over conversations in your day to day life and walk through how you would hold them in your target language. Write it all down and reread it to improve what you can. If you don’t have anything off the top, go back and review previous conversations or arguments you have had. Writing memories out is just as beneficial, if not more. Tell your story in every language you know and learn.

3. Read out loud

This might not seem like a high ROI activity on its face, but for someone who is still unable to hold conversations confidently, there is almost nothing better to do. For a full break down on why, read this:

Sprints

While I am a firm believer that consistency beats intensity, there is something to be said for maximizing free time that you do have. Especially if that time is rare, as it is for families. In many cases it is these sprint sessions that will help you move into the next phase of your acquisition. Maximizing your time at home looks different for everyone, but building an immersive environment comes first.

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Fortunately, this is something anyone can do. In fact, the act of building your immersive environment is an exercise in and of itself. Involve everyone in the family and turn it into a challenge. A complete “Home Immersion” guide can be found here:

As you are doing these things, the one thing you need to be careful of is burnout. Yes, it is great that you are taking the time to do some intensive study when time permits, but if all of your free time is taken up with language study you may find yourself less willing to study when that free time comes. Balance is everything. Particularly with regards to education as an adult.

Intensity is great, but consistency is more important. To avoid burnout, make sure you are hitting every aspect of language when you are running your sprints. Do 20 minutes of speaking followed by 30 minutes of audio comprehension followed by 45 minutes of reading, followed by an hour of writing. Cycle through these, in any order that works for you, and play with the times to find a balance.

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Conclusion

Slow progress is still progress. That said, there is no reason that even as a working adult with a family you cannot learn a new language. In fact, learning one with your family may be the perfect opportunity to further bond. The more people working together toward the same goal, the more likely that goal is to be accomplished. Daily effort compounds faster than you can imagine.

If you can commit for 21 days, you will get a glimpse into how much you can accomplish. That, in and of itself, should be enough to inspire you to keep going. Remember that choosing to work on your education as an adult already sets you apart from the rest. Since you are putting in all the work, you might as well get the most out of your time. I hope this helps to that end. I am rooting for you.

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If you work in healthcare, I’ve built Medical Spanish and French Handbooks with dozens of clinical patterns and vocabulary frameworks you won’t find anywhere else. Available to paid subscribers.

I also build custom courses for professionals. Doctors, nurses, engineers, and anyone who needs targeted language skills for their field. Every program is tailored to your specialty, your patient population, and your schedule. Learn more and get started.

The MYTH of the critical period

It is easy to fall into the trap of believing that children have an easier time learning. The truth is that children simply spend more time learning; because they have more time to spend learning. Yes, their brains are able to absorb more, but the disadvantages they have offset the advantages almost completely. Yes, children acquire native accents more easily. That’s about it.

Adults learn grammar faster, can study strategically, and have life experience that makes vocabulary acquisition more meaningful. In fact, most adults understand their native language better, or at least they should, and that alone is a massive edge. People in the medical field as adults can accelerate their acquisition in any romance language far faster than a children thanks to the time and effort they put into medical school.

For most, the barrier they face is not their age, but rather their ego. If you have spent years of your life improving your craft or mastering a skill, the thought of going back to being a complete beginner is not exactly enticing. Let alone the idea of reducing your communication capacity to that of a four year old. The longer you put this off for, however, the more power the emotions have over you.

Most children have no concern for sounding or looking stupid. They have no context for which things do and do not merit embarrassment. This may be their single greatest advantage, even more so than the neuroplasticity inherent in young brains. That said, embarrassment is a language learning tool and one that you should be using irrespective of age.

Past failures do not predict future outcomes

If you “failed” Spanish in high school, that says nothing about your ability. Even if you passed, but feel that you failed because you do not speak Spanish, this has nothing to do with your ability. It is the method that failed you. The method, the goals, the environment, all of these things were fighting against your success rather than working to propel you forward.

Classrooms are designed for compliance and testing, not language acquisition; and the tests they give in foreign language classes tend to test memorization skills rather than linguistic skills. Especially if they are multiple choice tests. At the end of the day there is no “right” way to say anything. If you can’t think of two ways to say the same thing, that is an exercise worth beginning immediately.

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Linguistic flexibility, that is the ability to find ways forward even if they are not technically perfect, is a crucial skill upon which every single bilingual on this planet depends. With strict choice based tests, you are robbed of the freedom, and opportunity, to learn to express yourself in new and creative ways. Any language acquisition focused on multiple choice tests is going to hurt more than help.

Fortunately, you are no longer beholden to these institutions or their methodology. You can choose your on materials. The content library no longer has to be filled with things that the teacher enjoys. If a strategy works for you, you get to choose to go all in and if one does not you can choose to stop it. This is one of your advantages as an adult learner.

The adult language learner advantages

The biggest advantages adults have as language learners is that you get to choose your own content. Forget everything else for a second, if you are trying to learn something and you dread the material you will never learn that thing. Now, imagine another scenario in which you look forward to studying because you are genuinely interested in the material? That is how it should be.

One of my students really loves surfing, so he watches surfing videos in Spanish. Another is a woodworker, he watches and deepens his knowledge of the craft, in Spanish. A third is a devout Catholic, so her speech practice is daily prayers. Children have language built into their lives. Adults get to choose how language is built into their lives.

Furthermore, you get to pace yourself. Counterintuitively, this often means moving at a more rapid pace than you experienced as a child in public schools. Part of the thing that turns adults off of learning a new language is the belief that it is going to take years and years of intensive study; and why would they believe anything different? After all, that is the proposition of high schools and universities nationwide.

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But you get to meet yourself at your level. For example, in my classes we spend the first 6 weeks learning 6 verb tenses. As someone who took Spanish in high school and college for half a decade, I can’t imagine a standardized program accepting this pace, because there is no guarantee that the student would pass a multiple choice exam, even if they can better express themselves verbally.

Finally, your existing knowledge will pay you dividends as you dive into a new language. Do you know what “paprika” is? That’s right! Dried, pulverized red bell pepper. Do you know what the word for pepper in German is? That’s right! Paprika. Ever had lasagna al forno? Guess what! You know how to say “oven” in Italian. And the more life you live the more of these you have at your fingertips.

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Conclusion

I work with adult language learners every single week. None of them are working fewer than 40 hours per week. Most of them have children. That is why I feel so confident in telling you, reader, that you can and should learn a new language this year. It does not have to be as difficult, nor take as long, as you were made to believe through the gross incompetency of the public system.

Now, saying that something is simple, that it is possible, does not mean it is easy. Solo learning is one of the most difficult feats because no one is there to make you do anything. You must rely on your own discipline, your own motivation, your own evaluation in order to succeed. It will be difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So start doing some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for your success.

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If you work in healthcare, I’ve built Medical Spanish and French Handbooks with dozens of clinical patterns and vocabulary frameworks you won’t find anywhere else. Available to paid subscribers.

I also build custom courses for professionals. Doctors, nurses, engineers, and anyone who needs targeted language skills for their field. Every program is tailored to your specialty, your patient population, and your schedule. Learn more and get started.

The problem with “fluency” as a goal

Foreign service institute (FSI) numbers track classroom hours for government employees and these numbers skew the data in a way that can be demotivating for the average language learner. In reality, a motivated, self directed learner will always need less time than someone who is paid to sit in a classroom.

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Fluency is a vague term. In theory, a native English speaker is fluent in English, but if you do not have a medical background and someone begins reading you a long medical history for a patient, how much would you understand? What about a complex physics explanation? Fluency in English is so unreliable that we even have a term for legal language fluency: legalese.

In order to reach the level of fluency you desire, you need more specific goals. Are you trying to travel with ease? What about study at university in a new country? Do you want a pay raise for your technical skills combined with a foreign language? Each path here represents drastically different timelines.

Without defined goals, seeking fluency is going to lead to the perfectionism trap that so many fall into during their education. Waiting until you are perfect to say anything means never being ready to speak. Most people need conversational ability, ask yourself if that’s you, and if it is, read this post:

Here is what the research says

The FSI has different categories of languages that require more or less time to reach conversational levels. Romance languages typically take anywhere between 500 and 1000 hours for native English speakers. German takes between 900 and 1200 hours. Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and the majority of languages with separate writing systems take north of 2000 hours.

These are generalities that are useful for timeline expectation setting, but do not assume it will take you this long if you are able to truly commit time to learning your new language. These numbers do not account for immersion environments, targeted study, 1 on 1 instruction, or your motivation and dedication.

The people with whom I work typically experience something drastically different. That is to say, normally when people are thinking of 500 hours they think of 12 weeks of 40 hours of work. Fortunately, the clock remains running even if you are not actively focused. Passive language exposure is incredibly potent for language learning success.

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Playing the variables

When you are deciding what counts as time spent learning a new language, that is, how do you get to 1000 hours, there are a few variable levers that you can pull. The first of those levers is active versus passive input. I would say every 4 hours of passive input is equivalent to 1 hour of active input. You should include both in your routine for best results.

The next lever you have available to you is input versus output. Here again we have a 4:1 ratio on hours. Every 4 hours of consumption should (ideally must) come with 1 hour of production. Producing is far more effort intensive for a reason and it is ultimately what you are working toward. Every rep you get in practice is confidence you can have when the time to speak comes.

Finally you have a lever that is less in your control, but still a good barometer for progress: your tolerance for mistakes and discomfort. You may not be able to move this lever directly, but you can do things, like make lots and lots of mistakes, to inch it forward until it clicks that no one is expecting perfection except for you. Besides, it’s pretty difficult to forget mistakes you made which is kind of the point when we are talking about language acquisition.

Timelines by goal

Here is a short look at what I would expect from my students looking at a roughly 20 hour per week schedule. Keep in mind, this include 14 hours of passive input every week during commutes, chores, or cardio at the gym.

• Survival basics (ordering food, basic greetings): 2-4 weeks of focused study.

• Conversational (can hold a 15-minute unscripted conversation): 3-6 months.

• Professional working proficiency: 6-12 months.

• Near-native fluency: 2+ years of consistent use.

These are not hard and fast rules. They are actually rather compressed due to methodology and instruction. One of the things I would warn again is doing things that feel like working. That is to say, sometimes trying to optimize your routine and your methodology can cause you to think you are working when in reality you are not actually getting anything done. For more on that, read this:

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Conclusion

Most people have a completely skewed view of what it takes to learn a new language. From the time commitment to the variables that move the needle most, nothing really matters without defined goals. Once you have something to aim at, you can start putting everything you have toward reaching that goal; and “fluency” is an incredibly flawed goal.

You do not need to be fluent to be functional, but you do need to be functional to be fluent. This is why I always tell people to target conversational. Once you can hold conversations, the sky is the limit. Getting to that point is difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So get out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

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The strategies in posts like this one are what I assign to my private students between our sessions. If you’ve been applying them on your own and want to accelerate with personalized instruction and real-time feedback, the private course is the next step.

Know someone who would benefit from Second Language Strategies? The best way to support this publication is to share it. Send them the Start Here page. It’ll walk them through everything.

If you just found this page, you’re probably in one of three situations. You’ve been wanting to learn a new language for years but haven’t started. You started at some point, maybe a class in school, maybe an app on your phone, but it didn’t stick. Or you’ve been grinding away for months and can’t figure out why you still freeze up the moment a native speaker talks to you.

Whichever one it is, you’re in the right place. I’ve spent the last three years and over 250 articles breaking down exactly what works, what doesn’t, and why most people’s experience with language learning has been so unnecessarily painful. This page will walk you through the best of everything I’ve published, in the order that will actually help you, so you don’t have to dig through the archive wondering where to begin.

My name is Odin. I’m a polyglot with 10+ years of experience across 5 languages, and I’ve been teaching private students to go from zero to conversational in as little as 12 weeks for several years. If you want to know more about who I am and why I do this, you can read my full story on the About page. But honestly, the work speaks for itself. Either what you read here helps you, or it doesn’t. No amount of credentials will change that.

Let’s get into it.

Phase 1: Fix Your Foundation

If you’ve tried to learn a language before and it didn’t work, it’s almost certainly not your fault. The way most people are taught, in classrooms, on apps, through textbooks, is fundamentally broken. Before you study a single word, you need to understand why, and what to do instead.

The “Pillars” of Second Language Acquisition This is the most important post on this entire site. There are five pillars: reading, writing, speaking, listening, and translating; and if you’re neglecting any of them, you’re building on a cracked foundation. Most people over index on one or two and wonder why they plateau. Start here.

The 10 Commandments of Second Language Acquisition The rules I give every single one of my students. Speak early. Make mistakes. Set real goals. Stop waiting for the perfect moment. If you internalize these, you will learn faster than 90% of people who attempt a new language.

Understanding the Silent Period At some point early in your journey, you’re going to feel like you understand things but can’t produce anything. You’ll hear a sentence and know what it means, but when you try to respond, nothing comes out. This is the silent period. It’s normal. It’s temporary. And there are specific things you can do to move through it faster. This post explains all of it.

Duolingo Is Wasting Your Time At least once per day I am asked what I think about a given language learning app and if I would recommend it. Is Duolingo enough to learn a new language? Categorically no. This may not surprise you, especially if you have been using it for years. However, if you view the app, or apps, for what they are, supplements, then they can help improve your abilities.

Phase 2: Build the Right Habits

Once you understand the framework, the next question is always: what do I actually do every day? These posts answer that.

Tight on Time? No, ten minutes a day is not enough. But you also don’t need four hours. This post breaks down what’s realistic, what’s optimal, and how to structure your study time so that every minute counts. If you have a job, a family, and a life, this one’s for you.

Homersion: Manufacturing Immersion at Home You don’t need to move to another country to immerse yourself. You need to rebuild your daily environment so that your target language is unavoidable. Swap your weather app. Change your music. Replace your podcasts. This post walks you through how to engineer an immersion environment without leaving your house.

I’m Bored (and Why That’s a Good Thing) This is one of my more unconventional takes, and one of the ones that resonates the most. Boredom drives creativity, and creativity accelerates language acquisition. If you’re constantly stimulated by your phone, you’re robbing your brain of the space it needs to process what you’re learning.

Targeted Vocabulary Stop memorizing random word lists. If you’re a doctor, learn medical vocabulary. If you surf, learn surf vocabulary. If you’re learning Spanish to talk to your partner’s family, learn the words you’ll actually use at the dinner table. This post explains the methodology I use with every private student to make vocabulary acquisition immediately relevant.

Learning a New Language as an Adult It is easy to fall into the trap of believing that children have an easier time learning. The truth is that children simply spend more time learning; because they have more time to spend learning. Yes, their brains are able to absorb more, but the disadvantages they have offset the advantages almost completely. Yes, children acquire native accents more easily. That’s about it.

Phase 3: Level Up Your Output

Passive input, listening, reading, absorbing, will only take you so far. At some point, you have to start producing. This is where most people get stuck, and where real progress begins.

Stop Talking (The Secret to Better Speaking) Counterintuitive, I know. But learning to listen, really listen, including reading body language, is what separates people who can survive a conversation from people who can thrive in one. Active listening is a skill most language learners never train. This post changes that. (Paid subscribers only.)

Under Pressure: Speaking on the Clock When you speak a second language in real life, there’s a timer running. The other person is waiting. Your brain floods with cortisol. And everything you thought you knew disappears. This post covers how to build the coping mechanisms and timed practice habits that prevent this from happening.

Optimization (and Why It Can Be Your Enemy) Too many people spend more time researching the perfect study method than actually studying. There is no perfect method. There is only showing up every single day. Where optimization fails, brute force wins. This is one of the most popular posts on the site for a reason.

How Long Does it Really Take? The direct answer is that most people can reach conversational in their target language anywhere from 3-6 months. Some languages, particularly those which require learning a new alphabet, take longer, but you should be able to converse within a year. Fluency is a longer road, but most people don’t need “fluent”, they need functional.

Phase 4: Use the Tools

I’ve built a library of free and premium resources to support your learning at every stage.

Free PDFs Downloadable guides, vocabulary lists, and practice frameworks — completely free. If you haven’t grabbed these yet, do it now. They’re designed to complement everything you read on the site and give you tangible exercises to work through immediately.

Second Language Logbook Progress you don’t track is progress you can’t see. This logbook gives you a simple, daily structure for documenting your journey, vocabulary, blind spots, wins, and areas to improve. When you feel like you’re stagnating (and you will at some point), this is what you’ll look back on to prove yourself wrong.

3 Months to Conversational: The Book Everything I teach, distilled into one book. If you want the full methodology in a format you can carry with you, this is it. Available now on Amazon.

Phase 5: Go Deeper (Paid Subscribers)

The free content on this site is enough to fundamentally change how you approach language learning. But if you’re serious, if you want the full system, the paid subscription unlocks the entire archive, including the guides that form the backbone of what I teach my private students.

Guides (Paid Subscribers) This is the crown jewel. An integrated system of downloadable guides that covers every stage of the language learning journey, from your first words to lifelong fluency. Built on cognitive science. Updated regularly. This alone is worth the subscription if you’re committed to becoming bilingual.

The guides include:

• The First 30 Days — The neural architecture and daily habits that make continued progress inevitable rather than wishful thinking.

• Medical Spanish & French Handbooks — For healthcare professionals who need to communicate with patients in another language. Dozens of patterns and vocabulary frameworks you won’t find anywhere else.

• Advanced strategy guides — Deep dives on topics like exam preparation, conversation control, translation exercises, and more.

Paid subscribers also get an additional post every week, priority replies, and access to the full backlog of 200+ articles. If you’ve been reading the free posts and thinking “I want more of this,” this is the move.

Start your free trial here.

Phase 6: Work With Me Directly

Everything on this site, the articles, the guides, the book, is designed to help you learn on your own. And it works. But there is no substitute for working with someone who has done this hundreds of times and can customize every single lesson to you.

I offer personalized 4, 8, and 12-week language courses. These aren’t generic curricula. Every program is built around your target language, your goals, your schedule, and your life. If you’re an engineer who needs technical Spanish, we work on technical Spanish. If you’re preparing for a TOEFL exam, we build toward that. If you want to surprise your family by speaking their language at the next reunion, we make that happen.

Optional weekly one-on-one sessions are available, and I strongly recommend at least one per week if your schedule allows. The combination of a personalized curriculum and direct instruction is what gets my students from zero to conversational faster than anything else available.

Don’t take my word for it, read what my students have to say:

Private Client Reviews

One student passed his TOEFL and got accepted to a university in New York. A couple completed the 12-week Spanish course and stunned their Puerto Rican family. Another made more progress in four months than in his entire life trying to learn on his own. These are real people with real results.

If you’re ready, fill out the interest form here. I’ll personally get back to you.

Where to Find Me

I post new content here every week. Paid subscribers get an additional post on top of that.

Beyond the newsletter, you can find me on:

• X (Twitter) — daily takes and quick tips

• Instagram — short-form content and community

• YouTube — long-form lessons and breakdowns

• TikTok — quick language learning clips

For direct questions: odin@secondlanguagestrategies.com

It will be difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So go do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

BtOdin

Why they hurt language progress

Flashcards have been used in education settings for as long as people have been able to write. To a certain extent, they are incredibly beneficial and can help people memorize things. However, learning a language entails far more than memorization. You could, for example, memorize every single word in a language and still live your life unable to speak the language.

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The reason why is deceptively simple: words have more than one meaning. This is especially true when taking into account the myriad of expressions you will inevitably encounter as you progress further into your target language. Let’s look at just a few examples to demonstrate the point:

1. Get

How many different ways can you think of to use the word ‘get’? Did you get enough? I think you will get the promotion. What grades did you get? Don’t get upset! Get away from the road. Get up it’s time to go! So, when you make flashcards, what do you put as the translation for ‘get’?

2. Run

I have to run some errands. Maybe after I will go for a run. I’ll follow the way the river runs. Hopefully we don’t run out of stock. It would be a shame to find a run in my stockings. But perhaps we can run the program when I get home. In the long run it will all work itself out.

3. Set

Where did you get that chess set? Can you set the table before the sun sets? Set aside the preconceived notions you had. Please set that cup down before it spills. Let me know when you have set the parameters for the experiment. Once you have we can set sail. This sets the perfect precedent for future ventures.

Dozens, if not hundreds, of examples in just these 3 words. Let alone the hundreds of others whose definitions change depending on the context of a given sentence. If you only know “run” as the verb for to “move at a speed faster than walking, never having both or all feet on the ground at the same time”, then when someone asks you how the program is running you will freeze.

The fancy word for all of this is polysemy or the ability of a word to have multiple definitions or meanings. Without any other factor, this is reason enough to shy away from flashcards during your language studies. There are, however, niche cases where they can and will serve you. Just remember that there is a point of diminishing returns where you would be better served learning phrases.

Times when they are useful

If you are going to use flashcards, it should be for things that you are truly struggling to grasp even after looking at them for days or weeks. This is especially true for words that you find yourself searching for often. For any word that is part of your active vocabulary, doing whatever it takes to integrate that word into your target language speech or writing is worth the pain.

It may not always feel like it, but most of your memorization is going to come from your own work. In fact, the act of physically writing out flashcards may well be more impactful than reviewing them is. This is something you lose when you take to making digital flashcards which is something I would highly recommend avoiding if possible.

Another use case is for specialty language. If you are a doctor or a lawyer or an engineer or generally in a field where there is certain language you will always be hearing, flash carding those words can be incredibly helpful. Of course, learning them by pattern is far quicker, but nothing bad can come from a little bit of reinforcement to lock down the things you already know.

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Better options

Flashcards are a relic of the information bulimia incentivized by the public education system writ large. They are incredibly potent for memorization, especially if the goal is to access the information quickly for a short period of time. However, that is not what you should be looking to do with your target language.

Memorization is not the goal, integration is. Rather than building single word flashcards, being writing out short phrases. They do not have to be long, only 3-5 words. Seeing the words in context, interacting with other words, in incredibly helpful because you will rarely, if ever, encounter a single word out in the wild.

By contextualizing the word yourself you prepare yourself to see how others may contextualize the same word. Rather than writing one flashcard per word, think about your native language and truly stretch your mind to imagine all the ways in which you could successfully employ that word. From there you can make your phrase flashcards with ease.

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Conclusion

One of the greatest pitfalls that language learners find themselves walking into throughout their journey is that of simplifying language. At a glance, language is deceptively simple. Especially one’s own native language. If nothing else, flashcards are excellent at shattering that faulty belief. Treat your target language, and your native language, with the deference they deserve.

You did not put all of this work in to “memorize” a language. Everything you are working towards is centered around making you a better, smarter, more well rounded person. That starts by moving beyond memorization and into integration. It is difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great, so get out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

If you’re stuck in the gap between understanding and speaking, you’re not alone, and you’re not broken. The Guides library (paid subscribers) includes structured output protocols designed to bridge exactly this gap, day by day.

The fastest way to break through is with someone who can hear you, correct you, and push you in real time. That’s what my private courses are built for. Read what students say about the experience.

That is to say, if you are in the middle of a musical performance and you hit the wrong note, you are the only person who knows you hit the wrong note. So long as you continue playing, no one will notice that you made a mistake. The same is true for the language that you are learning. People will often ignore or even go without noticing a mistake so long as you yourself do not point it out.

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Perseverance

This will come as a shock to exactly no one that one of the key traits of high performers in any industry is perseverance. What may be difficult to wrap one’s head around, on the other hand, is precisely how to become someone capable of persevering. It may or may not surprise you to find out that most people who I work with, that is to say most people I know who are actively learning a new language, are high performers.

Barring the extremes, most of the people who are considered high performers are people who decided to become an expert at something and never gave up. “I have made more mistakes than you have made attempts” is something I tell my students from time to time because part of reaching a point of excellence is failing hundreds, if not thousands, of times along the way.

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In fact, operating at an extremely high level is so difficult and so impressive that when the best athletes in the world make a mistake the people watching have the wherewithal to take a step back and think, “There is even beauty in their imperfect execution.” This is exactly what native speakers will think of anyone who is trying to speak their language with them.

Yes, there are people, just like the people on the couch eating a pint of ice cream while criticizing the best athletes on planet Earth, who will scoff at you for trying. That is never going to go away. Ignoring them is best for both you and them. They will forget your mistakes as quickly as you do, or should.

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Bad short term memory

Another aspect to performing at an Olympic level that many people seem to overlook is the power of a bad short term memory. When you are doing anything that requires multiple steps, the odds of something going wrong increase with each additional step. The best athletes in the world are great at forgetting any and all mistakes that happen during a performance.

Yes, review the game tape (record yourself), strategize around weak points (write to expose your deficiencies), and rehearse (practice conversations) over and over and over again until they become second nature. But when you are in it’s game time, the only thing that matters is the present. There is no past to worry about, there is no future for which to plan, there is only the moment.

Musicians know this all too well. In fact, if you have ever been to a concert the odds that one of the band members played the wrong note once during the set are incredibly high. Did you notice, though? No. Because they kept playing through the mistake and that continuity made the mistake imperceptible to everyone except the most fervent fan, or perhaps someone who plays covers of their music.

The same is true in language. You can make countless mistakes, particularly when it comes to gendered words, and so long as you do not stop, it is highly unlikely that someone stops you to correct you, let alone remembering the mistake after the conversation. You will always be your own harshest critic.

The show must go on

Another sign of greatness is the ability to play through injury. Of course, when it comes to speaking a new language, the risk of physical injury is next to zero. Unless you don’t learn what you need to avoid saying. But that doesn’t mean there is no risk to being emotionally or mentally hurt. In fact, this is one of the primary reasons language education in the US is so horrendous.

I know far too many people who have told me they never want to learn a new language because of how badly their high school teachers made them feel when they failed. There was no safe place for them to be wrong because the education system as it is does not reward failing forward. Instead they were nitpicked over the most innocuous mistakes until they had completely given up.

For as much as I think Lindsay Vonn made a mistake coming back to compete at these Olympics, if I could distill her courage, tenacity, and slight delusion into a serum I would mass produce that serum and give it out for free. If you approach every opportunity to use your target language with that much confidence, even if you are missing vocabulary (she didn’t have an ACL while trying to race on skis) nothing will be able to stand in your way.

Conclusion

I love the winter Olympics. Alpine skiing used to be my event until I had a bad crash, too. While I may have decided at that time that there are better ways to die, I still love stepping into my skis and racing down the hill at 50mph+ whenever I have the opportunity. I can’t say for certain, but it definitely feels like this skill transferred to my language learning where the stakes are much lower.

Having a bad short term memory may be bad in every other case, but when it comes to performances, there are few tools quite as useful. That, combined with the ability and willingness to review your game tape, will make you an absolute powerhouse in anything you do, foreign language acquisition included. It will be difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So get out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you.

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If you have anything you would like covered you can reach out to me on ​X​, ​Instagram​, or at odin@secondlanguagestrategies.com.

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Exams reward a specific kind of preparation that most self-study methods don’t provide. Paid subscribers get access to exam-focused strategies and frameworks in the Guides library designed to complement what you learned in this post.

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What I have noticed through this transition is that most people who are learning a new language are learning it to use it (as they should), and that most of the time they plan on using it is in those specialized situations. So yes, of course it is nice to be able to order food and make small talk, but there is much more to language than just those things; and you should never settle.

Laying a foundation

Foundations are crucial because you can only build as high as your foundation is strong. We spend 6 weeks exclusively on basics and building up the best foundation possible. The targets for my students look like this in their first weeks, in case you want to try your hand at what I put them through:

- 50 new words

- 5 pages read (Lord of the Rings, Don Quixote, the Bible, for example)

- 30 minutes of focused listening (music, podcasts, tv, movies, videogames, etc)

- 7 hours of passive listening exposure

- 1 song translated from target language to native language

- 25 sentences written

This is what the first 3 weeks look like and it only gets more difficult as time goes on, but these things are comprehensively effective and I have seen them work hundreds of times. We also cover 6 verb tenses in the first 6 weeks of class. That is how we lay a foundation sturdy enough to begin layering in more precise, relevant vocabulary for each individual student.

Of course, without understanding basic sentence structure, things can get a little wonky pretty fast. Though, that is one of the reasons why I am always trying to get my students to write more. It becomes pretty difficult to remain inept with sentence structure when you are writing dozens of sentences every single week. Combined with immediate feedback, the best part of having an instructor, these exercises make learning a new language a mission of months rather than years.

Building with intention

One of the main issues with most language education is that it is directionless. There is no rhyme or reason to the things that are focused on outside of frequency of use. That is a good starting point, but the vast majority of the “most common words” can be mastered in just under a month. Then what? That is where targeted language shines.

Normally, I recommend studying words and phrases that are associated with the things you spend most of your time doing. If you like to hunt, learn how to talk about hunting in your target language. If you are in the medical field, learn medical terminology. Even learning sports specific language can be incredibly beneficial, especially if you plan to do something like surf in Costa Rica.

Fortunately for you, reader, I have created dozens of guides that you can download here:

And for those in the medical profession who want to take their careers to the next level, I created these handbooks that will give you access to dozens of patterns that will make your experience with Spanish and French speaking patients much more enjoyable. As of right now I only have those two languages complete, but more are in the works. You can pick your copy up here:

The Nurse’s Handbook: Spanish

The Nurse’s Handbook: French

All of these guides hinge on the patterns that can be found within the various languages. Once you start seeing them it becomes easier to notice new ones and that is where you will begin to notice quantum jumps in your abilities. Of course, the last thing you want to do is box yourself in to speaking a specific way. Being well rounded is crucial for the topical fluidity that conversation demands.

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Expanding your horizons

No matter how much “targeted” language you learn, none of it is can be used if you neglect conjugations. Understanding how verbs work is absolutely crucial and your ceiling of understanding verb conjugations will be your ceiling of ability to speak and comprehend what is being said to you.

Therefore, one of the best exercises you can do every day of your life is using new targeted language in sentences that you can foresee yourself using. My advice to my doctor clients is to run through patient interactions in between visits. This real-time strategy may not provide the perfect words, but what it does do is give you the tools you need to begin constructing perfect sentences.

At the end of the day, you cannot control the conversations you have. You can, however, control the preparation you do for any and all conversations that might come up in your daily life. If you know that you are going to be speaking to people in a hospital setting, you can play out scenarios in your mind so that when you are in a similar situation it won’t be the first time you have had to think about it.

The same goes for sales and hospitality and engineering and every other sector. For more on how to get the most out of this exercise, check out this article:

Learning how to control conversations is the final piece of targeted language upon which you should focus. Properly asking questions, properly directing the conversation, and mastering misdirection are all ways you can control conversations. If nothing else, sometimes the best thing you can be in a conversation is a listener. People love to talk about themselves.

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Conclusion

Sometimes the most important thing you can do as a solo language learner is give yourself constraints. Too much freedom can cause stagnation due to an inability to drill down on a single thing. “Study anything” sounds great until you start looking for input that covers “anything”. Then it suddenly becomes an overwhelming endeavor with far too many options.

The internet is incredible and it can provide just about anything you want. Yet education is suffering in ways it never quite has before. At the end of the day, when there is too much information, triage becomes necessary and finding people you trust is paramount. Making these choices is difficult, but you can do difficult things and be great. So get out and do some difficult things and become great. I am rooting for you. If you need help, fill out the form below:

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If you have anything you would like covered you can reach out to me on ​X​, ​Instagram​, or at odin@secondlanguagestrategies.com.

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If you work in healthcare, I’ve built Medical Spanish and French Handbooks with dozens of clinical patterns and vocabulary frameworks you won’t find anywhere else. Available to paid subscribers.

I also build custom courses for professionals. Doctors, nurses, engineers, lawyers and anyone who needs targeted language skills for their field. Every program is tailored to your specialty, your patient population, and your schedule. Learn more and get started.