Shred The Usual Excuses and Believe In Your Language Learning Journey
You feel the drive but struggle to make progress?
Requiring consistency and dedication, it is easy to provide excuses for the struggle we face in reaching our language proficiency goals. We’ve all been through it!
Well, rather than listing the typical excuses we’re all aware of, we’d like to remind you why it can be easier for you to achieve your proficiency goals as an adult learner. Continue reading below to find out why you should not give up on the ‘struggle’. Keep believing in your language learning journey.
Have your end-goal in mind
Remember the reason why you started learning the new language. Keep yourself aware of what made you start and focus on the end-result, whether it is building a competitive edge, your personal profile or satisfying your key interests. Remaining focused helps maintaining your drive and determination to work harder to develop your language skills. Track your progress and set goals for yourself. Each little step will boost your confidence that the end-goal is getting closer and closer.
Self-discipline facilitates your learning journey
Having a clear idea of your own schedule helps you manage your time better and more efficiently. With a structured approach, you are likely to make the most out of your learning time. Seek constant feedback-loops in your learning and practicing; find out both your strengths and weaknesses. Use these to understand your learning-curve better and re-direct your efforts towards filling the gaps. Self-awareness and self-discipline, with a degree of structure, will make your learning a lot more effective.
Learn the language your way
As you grow and develop your learning experience, you tend to understand better the learning methods which suit you the most. Invest some time in structuring your learning approach so that it becomes easier for you to make progress and achieve quicker results. Even if you haven’t figured out your ideal learning approach, simply investing time early on to review your performance can help to find your way.
A high level proficiency in a second language is (really) achievable
Despite the phonetic root of your native language, reaching a ‘native-like’ second language pronunciation is possible with the right mindset and resources. There are thousands of successful cases of adults acquiring a second language with very high levels of proficiency. Training and practice in phonetics and pronunciation are said to be the key to achieving native-like language. Study-abroad experiences can make the difference. You could learn how to give a full speech in a new language, as long as you put in effort!
Take advantage of your native language
Sometimes, our first-language may share similar grammar rules and pronunciations with the foreign language of interest. When learning, we may actually progress faster than we would expect. Through positive language transfer, your first language knowledge can be utilized to pick-up details of the foreign language, which you don’t have to learn from scratch. For instance, French and Spanish share common vocabularies. Spanish native speakers would generally find it easier to pick up French. While we may be worried about learning everything from square one, we could in fact already hold some indirect knowledge!
Complementary tools for learning a new language
Today’s technology allows you to access a diverse pool of online learning resources, from wherever you are. Learning a language is no longer restricted to a traditional classroom setting, since you can replicate that experience online, on demand. You also have readily available content at your fingertips, relevant to your particular interest or focus. Fluentup is a useful tool to easily discover and choose online language courses from top languages schools all over the world, according to your needs. While the degree of information available may be overwhelming, a more organised approach structured by experienced providers makes it a lot easier to coordinate appropriate content delivery and learning time, with busy schedules. Create a flexible, yet regular slot and try squeeze in learning something new every day.
As cliché as it might sound, if you are determined to learn a language, nothing should stop you!
Never stop learning.