How to learn languages

It's not just what you learn, but how you approach it. Deciding how much to study, when and where, and how you feel about your progress, has a lot more to do with your mindset than it does with the actual content. That's why we start here, first, to get our mind prepared for our new learning journey.

Having a strong reason you are learning your language will be your guiding light when things get stormy in your study practice. Here we'll discover what the purpose of your learning will be. Having this in mind will make it easier to get back to your studies when things feel hard.

While there is a lot of science behind SMART goals and other specific types of goal setting, here we will try something different. We will ask ourselves how we want to feel at the end of our learning period. Heard? Proud? Disciplined? Connected? This goal will likely relate to the why you have for learning. Don't worry! We will get into more tangible targets later in the course.

Don't let perfectionism be the excuse for why you don't start plugging away at learning your language. Learning a language is messy, challenging, and you might not be great at it right away. This is hard to deal with, especially for high achievers. Remind yourself that to learn a language you have to try things before you're ready, make mistakes, and be vulnerable. You will be richly rewarded for your efforts!

We get overwhelmed when things pile up. This mindset shift is called the "blank slate" because it asks you to wipe clean any lingering tasks, expectations, or hours of study you missed in the past. Carrying them around as a debt will only make you feel more and more behind. Starting fresh on the day or week you are in, from zero, will allow you to bounce back more quickly from the things that inevitably knock us off track.

Ever heard of the concept of feeling "rusty" in languages before? Often when a lot of time has gone by, we feel slow, out of sync, and like we have "forgotten everything". But take heart! The knowledge you had is lying in wait, for you to dust yourself off and get going again. If it's been a long time since you last practiced the language, dial down the expectations and set a really easy target for yourself, something you can knock out the same day you realize how rusty you are. Taking that first step gets you to the next, and the next...

Can you really "fail" at learning a language? Only if you give up. Whether you're choosing a podcast or practicing a conversation with someone or answering questions in a workbook, some things might not work out, and you will make mistakes. Treat trying new things with curiosity, and launch many small low-stakes "experiments" so you can see what works for you.

Here we learn about the concept of the Four Pillars of any language: Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking. While it may not feel like you're ready yet, you'll want to incorporate each of the four into your study practice from the start, so you can be a more well-rounded learner moving forward.

Here we will assess our current level of interest and skill in each of the Four Pillars. If you are new to learning languages, you can use your native language as a starting point. You can use the resources in this lecture to get inspiration for what you can work on in each pillar.

There are so many tools and ideas out there for how to learn a language, sometimes it can be overwhelming! We will go through different types of tools to help you decide which you might like to incorporate into your study.

Let's approach the topic of cost head-on. Nothing will sap your energy for your language more than spending more than you'd hoped, without finding value in it. We will discuss the importance of budgeting for this skill and how to determine the amount of your investment.

As a tutor myself, I will share some things you should look for in a tutor, to help you decide if tutoring is right for you, and if so, what type of tutor you should pursue and at what cost.

Note: I will mention a few websites in the video, which are preply.com, italki.com, and thumbtack.com

Your phone is a powerful tool - both for learning and distraction. We will discuss the benefits and potential risks of learning on your phone.

The most well-known learning App in the world, DuoLingo, does some things well and others not so much (as with any tool!). We will discuss whether or not DuoLingo should have a place in your study routine.

AI is the future of learning a language, but it can't do the job for you. If you want to dip your toe into using AI for your language learning process, we will discuss some options in this video.

Note: I refer to companies such as Anki, LanguaTalk, and Lingopie in this video, although there are many more!

While we all know about the library, when was the last time you went and explored what yours has to offer? This video will re-acquaint you with what your local library has to offer, online and in person.

Tried and true, people have been learning languages using pen and paper for centuries. We'll discuss how to make use of these analog tools to supercharge your learning, and to make it creative, colorful, and fun!

A bit of low-tech, an inexpensive voice recorder is a great way to track your speaking progress and to get the bit of stress of feeling on the spot, or on stage. See what you think about this small investment to boost your learning practice.

There are pros and cons to a paper versus a digital book when learning a language. We will discuss both formats and whether or not you should buy a book in this video.

Aside from the physical format of the book, we have to decide what level of book to read when learning a language. We'll discuss how to decide on a book to challenge you, but that won't be too daunting of a task as you build momentum in reading your new language.

Podcasts are an excellent way to learn a language. We will discuss the types of podcasts out there, and how to moderate their speed to find the right fit for every stage in your journey. Once you're done with this video, try the Assignment in the resources, where you'll choose tools to experiment with.

Vocabulary is crucial to learning a language - you have to have words to speak, hear, read and write! We'll talk about strategies you can use to create flashcards, vocabulary lists, and to experiment with learning new words.

It's time for rubber to meet the road, to apply all our our ideas to a study plan, how exciting! I will walk you through a template you can use to outline your first three months of study, step by step.

Now is a chance to step back and look at the masterpiece that is our study plan. We will ask ourselves whether or not we think the aims we have for our first month are reasonable. Once we review our plan in this section, we will be able to feel fully committed to the outcome, with no reservations.

Some days we are ready to go with learning, other days its the last thing we want to do. We will talk about the difference between growth and coast learning, and how to choose tasks that are flexible to the ups and downs of life. Once you're done with this video, try the assignment where you'll edit your study plan.

In case you're curious what inspired the study plan, and how it worked for me in my first go at it, follow along as I show you my study plan for French.

Being busy is a part of the human condition these days. Let's discuss in this section how we will carve out the time and make fitting study into your schedule feel effortless.

Nesting isn't just for birds. Creating an environment for study success sets the stage for sustainable study and solid routines. Once you've watched this video, try the assignment for scheduling your study time.

You have habits in your life now, whether you think of them that way or not. We'll discuss the power of habit stacking, where you use one habit as the foundation for others. Then, you can try building a habit stack for yourself in the assignment in this lecture.

A routine is a sequence of actions regularly followed. We'll discuss ways you can create a routines for studying your language that you'll stick with in the long-term.

More important than hours studied or the difficulty of the material you use is momentum - the forward motion that keeps driving you toward your goal. No matter how slow your progress might feel, if you leverage momentum, you're always on your way.

If you're going to track your study time, you'll want to know how long you spend on each task. But there is more we can learn from the use of a stopwatch or timer, such as the flow we feel when working on certain tasks. Try the assignment after this video to see for yourself!

On a macro level, learning a language takes a long time, and can be a lifelong journey that brings you a lot of satisfaction. On a micro level, language is acquired in small bursts of concentrated study, with short breaks in between. We'll discuss navigating the long and short games of language learning.

Whether you want to track to the minute or generally get an idea of how much time you're spending on learning your language, this section will give you ideas for how to keep yourself on track, create milestones, and celebrate along the way.

Whether you write your study time on a piece of paper or use an app, there are pros and cons to paper and digital methods. Let's use this video and assignment find the one that you want to try first.

Out of sight, out of mind. We'll talk about ways to make your study materials and tracking hard to ignore, because the last thing you want after this much planning is to forget where you put that notebook you were using.

If you've made it this far, learning a language is important to you. How are you going to make sure you stay the course? What will you do when things are tough in your personal life? We will discuss strategies for when life inevitably gets in the way of your study plan. Use the assignment for a simple way to be more accountable in your language study: talking about it!

Along the way, it's important to acknowledge how your hard work is paying off. If you wait until fluency, you'll be waiting a long time. There will be times where you will notice you're making progress, but to be sure that you see how well you're doing, we will discuss some milestones you can keep an eye out for, and how to celebrate. Then, you'll put your own milestones and celebrations down in the assignment.

Using what we've learned in this course, you have the tools to build a language learning plan that is flexible, fun, and ever-changing, same as your life will be! Life is long, and you'll have lots of opportunities to learn new things. If you approach them with a learning mindset, solid habits, and an adaptable plan, you'll always feel up for the next challenge.

Just like a book you re-read, and find different meaning from, my hope is that you can return to the learnings in this course and find new inspiration, a way to get back on track, or a mindset shift when you need it, for languages and beyond! I'd love to hear how you progress in your language learning journey.

Thank you for committing to yourself and finishing this course, and for trusting me as your guide. See you soon!