Benny Lewis's Blog, page 47

How to Speak Japanese: The Faster Way to Learn Japanese

So you want to learn how to speak Japanese? If you’re an English speaker, you may be intimidated by the “number of hours” it takes to learn Japanese.

You may also want to know how to learn the Japanese language faster.

Can it be done? The short answer is: yes.

Learning Japanese has been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Since learning Japanese, I have a deeper passion and appreciation for Japanese culture. Understanding the language has allowed me to explore the culture in ways I wouldn’t have been able to otherwise.

Now here’s the thing. Japanese is considered one of the most difficult languages to learn. It has a different writing system than English, a completely different grammar structure, and relies heavily on cultural context and understanding.

That said, you can easily learn the Japanese language - including context clues - with the following steps. This is the best way to learn Japanese if you’re serious about speaking Japanese now.

I’ve outlined seven steps so you’ll know how to learn Japanese without all the trial and error many language learners experience. No more “Japanese takes 2,000 hours before you can use it in the real world.”

You can speak Japanese sooner than you imagined.

Here are all the steps for learning Japanese for beginners:
Step 1: Find Your Passion for Learning Japanese
I’m going to be honest with you here. Are you passionate about learning Japanese? Do you have a solid reason “why” you’re learning it?

Without this, when the going gets tough, you won’t know why you should stick with it.

Starting now, set your intention for learning Japanese. Figure out why you’re passionate about Japanese specifically.

Are you learning Japanese because…

...you want to travel to Japan and enjoy the culture on a deeper level?
...you have family who speaks Japanese and you want to have conversations with them?
...you want to make Japanese friends?
...you want to find a job or study abroad in Japan?
...you want to enjoy and appreciate Japanese entertainment, art, and literature in its original language?

Maybe your reason is you love anime and want to stop watching poorly dubbed versions and soak in the original Japanese show. Maybe your dream is to go to Japan and order ramen from all around the country, trying every region’s variety. (That’s seriously my dream.)

Whatever your reason, find your “why” and write it down. Surround yourself in your why. Change your phone and laptop background to a picture of a big bowl of ramen. Add it to your vision board.

Whatever you have to do to see it every single day and remember why you started, do it.
Step 2: Immerse Yourself in Japanese at Home -- Create Your Own Little Tokyo
You don’t need to move to Japan to learn Japanese. You do, however, have to surround yourself in it. The best way to do this for any language is to create a home immersion environment where you can’t help but be exposed to the language at every turn.

While it can be hard to figure out how to do this at first. It gets easier once you know what resources to use and what to do.

Here are some tips:

Make your smartphone work for you. Switch the language settings to Japanese. You can do this on your computer, too. If that’s too hard for you to do at this level now, that’s okay! Download Japanese language apps, games, etc., so you’re exposed to it. Facebook is a great app for the initial switch because it’s still easy to navigate while having bilingual exposure.
Start watching Japanese shows, movies, anime, documentaries, etc. Netflix has tons of Japanese shows now, so it’s a great place to start. My favorite show to start with? Terrace House.
Listen to Japanese podcasts, music, and radio stations. You can listen to Japanese NHK News, for example. Or, try a fantastic language learning podcast like JapanesePod101. Japanese music artists like One Ok Rock and Utada Hikaru can now be streamed on many platforms. YouTube is another great option for finding something to listen to!
Find Japanese speakers where you live -- it’s easier than you think. You may be surprised that, even in relatively small towns, you can find Japanese communities. If you have a Japanese-owned company or factory near you -- like Toyota -- chances are, there are at least a handful of Japanese native speakers you could meet.

Step 3: Find Native Speakers and Speak from Day One
As I mentioned earlier, there may be a community of Japanese speakers in your area that you don’t even know about. You need to find someone who you can talk to in Japanese, and speak from day one. This is the most important, productive language learning step you can take to reach fluency. Without actually speaking Japanese, you won’t get very far in your studies. Trust me -- I know from years of studying yet being too afraid to speak Japanese.

Even if you can’t find a language exchange partner in your area, don’t let that stop you from speaking. There are tons of ways you can find native Japanese speakers to chat with:

italki is a language exchange platform, where you can find Japanese speakers looking to learn English and take turns practicing with each other. They also have reasonably-priced tutors, so you can pay for lessons as well.
HelloTalk is another free platform to look for Japanese speakers for language exchanges.
Meetup.com or CouchSurfing work well if you live in a relatively large city.
Tandem. This is another online, free platform you can use to find language exchanges. When I was looking for a language exchange partner, Tandem initially gave me the best/fastest response from active Japanese users.
Hop on social media! Yes, that’s right. Social media can be a great way to learn a language. There may be Facebook groups for your area, or you can use Japanese hashtags on Instagram to find users in Japan. Read their Japanese captions for practice, and reply back with what you know.

Step 4: Use Language Hacks to Learn Japanese Fast
Benny Lewis, the founder of Fluent in 3 Months, has tons of amazing language hacks. Here are a few that work best for Japanese:

Use a Spaced Repetition System (SRS), like Anki. Anki is hands-down my favorite because you can find pre-made Japanese decks, or create your own with the vocabulary you’re learning. I highly recommend the NihongoShark Kanji Deck and NihongoShark Japanese Core 2000 Master Deck.
Focus on the 80/20 rule. The 80/20 rule says you’ll get 80% of your results from 20% of your efforts. What that means is you need to focus on the 20% of the language (vocab, grammar, etc) that you’ll use the most to yield 80% of your speaking. The best way to do this? Start with the 101 core Japanese words and work from there.
Use mnemonics. Because Japanese is so different in many ways than English, this is crucial. Coming up with associations to remember the words and meanings will help speed up your learning time.
Use the Pomodoro Technique to study in small chunks of time for better focus.
Tell yourself: “Just 15 minutes.” If you’re struggling to motivate yourself to study, tell yourself “I’ll just study for 15 minutes.” This little hack works great. You’re not committing yourself to a ton of time, so you’ll be more likely to push yourself to do it. And once you get started, you’ll usually find a groove and keep working anyway. Even if you don’t… you still studied for 15 minutes! Consistency is key.
Join Add1. If you’re someone who needs community and accountability to stick to your studies -- and let’s face it, most of us need that even if we don’t want to admit it -- then consider joining Add1. It’ll push you to stay committed and reach your Japanese language goals in only 90 days. Don’t believe me? Check out my own story of leveling up my Japanese with Add1 and see how far I’ve come.

Step 5: Use Conversational Connectors and Fillers to Add Fluidity to Your Speech
We use conversational connectors all the time in English. It makes our speech sound more natural and fluid. Yet, they’re an oft-overlooked area in language learning.

Conversational connectors are phrases like “And you?” that deflect the conversation back to the speaker. They’re also phrases like “actually,” “thanks for asking,” “to be honest,” “if I’m being frank,” etc.

Every language has its own unique version of these as well. For instance, in Japanese, one of the most common conversational connectors is その時 (sono toki) which means “At that time.” It’s not really a phrase we use often in English, but it’s used as a connector when telling a story or explaining a situation.

You can also make use of filler words to sound natural and buy you time as you think of how to say something. In English, we say “um,” “well,” etc. In Japanese, you can use あの。。。 (ano..., "um"), なんか。。。(nanka, "what was it..."), and じゃあ (jaa, “well then”). Those are just a few examples. See if you can pick up more when listening to your favorite Japanese dramas!
Step 6: Focus on the Easy Parts of Japanese First
So many people think Japanese is incredibly hard, but the honest truth is, you already know some Japanese.

You probably already know Japanese greetings like konnichiwa and sayonara. You also probably already know tsunami, karaoke, sake, samurai, and more. Think about that: you’ve already been speaking Japanese without trying!

Japanese is actually easy to learn because:

Japanese has no gendered words! Unlike Spanish and other similar languages, Japanese words never have a gender.
Kanji actually help you when you’re stuck. Kanji represent whole words in English. (For example, 水 is the kanji for “water.”) How does that help? Well, even if you don’t know how to read the kanji, because you recognize it’s English meaning you’ll have a contextual clue for understanding the entire word.
Japanese kana is always read exactly the same way. There are no exceptions. Once you learn how to read the kana, they are always pronounced the same.
Japanese contains tons -- and I mean tons -- of loan words. They’re easily spotted because they’ll be written in katakana, the writing system used primarily for foreign words adapted for Japanese. Words like ピンク (pinku, “pink”), ビール (bi-ru, “beer”), and インターネット (inta-netto, “internet”). So you already know even more words than you think you do.
Japanese isn’t tonal. Unlike Chinese, you will rarely use pitch to differentiate a word. It makes it so much easier to pick up proper pronunciation and understand others when listening.
Japanese grammar is relatively straight-forward. Although it’s pretty different from English, it has fewer exceptions to the rules. When you learn how a grammar pattern works, it will most likely always be that way.
Verbs don’t have to agree with the subject and there are only two irregular verbs. That’s right -- once you learn to conjugate, there are only two verbs you have to watch out for. Those are する (suru, “to do”) and 来る (kuru, “to come”). And they’re so often used that you’ll master those irregularities fast.

That’s only touching the surface. So don’t be fooled that Japanese is too hard!
Step 7: Don’t Avoid Kana and Kanji
The last advice I have for you: don’t avoid the writing systems. Yes, there are three (hiragana, katakana, and kanji). Yes, there are 2,000 “essential” kanji and they take time to learn. But hiragana and katakana are easy to pick up -- you could master them in a day. They’re just the Japanese alphabet and each one represents a syllable.

And as for kanji, focus on the language hacks we mentioned! Learn the kanji that go with your 80/20 core vocabulary first. That’s about 100 kanji, considered enough to pass the beginner level of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. Then, use Anki to learn the rest as you go.

I know, I know. I told you to focus on speaking from day one. And you should. But because Japanese has a different writing system, it’s hard to immerse yourself and learn proper pronunciation without at least learning the kana and about 100 kanji. And like I said in the last step, kanji actually help you identify the meaning of words when you get stuck.

Take the time to learn the basics. It’ll help you go further, farther, faster. (Think like Captain Marvel!)
Become Confident in Japanese, Fast
There you have it! The best way to speak Japanese, right now. If you follow these steps, you’ll be having conversations in Japanese in no time. You’ll wow everyone with how fast you’ve picked up the “hardest” language!

Keep a positive, open mindset that Japanese is easy and you can do this, and you will. You got this. ファイト! (Faito, “Fight!” or “Do your best!”)

Finally, if you’re looking for a place to start studying Japanese, check out JapanesePod101. They have courses ranging from absolute beginner to advanced, with lots of fun topics and lessons.



What other tips do you have for learning Japanese fast? Share them in the comments!

The post How to Speak Japanese: The Faster Way to Learn Japanese appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

How to Say “Hello” in Portuguese: “Olá!” (plus 15 More Ways!)

Planning on visiting a Portuguese-speaking country? Got a Portuguese friend, a Brazilian colleague or an Angolan love interest that you'd like to impress? Or do you just want to learn some basic Portuguese for the fun of it? An obvious and essential first step is to learn how to say "hello" in Portuguese.

Like all languages, Portuguese has many different ways to greet people (and say goodbye to them), to introduce yourself and to exchange basic pleasantries. We'll cover all the most important phrases below.
Olá - “Hello” in Portuguese
Olá is the simplest, safest way to say "hello" in Portuguese, both European and Brazilan. It sounds like the Spanish hola, except with hola the first syllable is stressed (OH-la), but with olá you stress the second syllable (oh-LA). In fact, that's why "olá" is written with an accent on the "a" - an acute accent (á) or a circumflex (â) always indicates a stressed syllable in Portuguese.
Oi - “Hi” in Portuguese
Oi is a casual, informal way of saying "hi" in Portuguese. It's especially common in Brazil but is becoming more and more widespread in Portugal as well.

Note that if you say oi with a flat tone, it means "hi". If you say it with a rising tone - oi? - it's like saying "what?"; you're asking the speaker to repeat themselves.

Want to learn Portuguese fast? Then check out our favourite Portuguese course, PortuguesePod101. It includes fun, easy to follow lessons on Portuguese greetings.


Bom dia - “Good morning” in Portuguese
Bom dia literally means "good day" in Portuguese, but you'd only use it to say "good morning". The literal translation of "good morning" in Portuguese would be boa manhã, but this is never used.

Note that Brazilians pronounce dia differently from Portuguese people; the former says "JEE-ah" while the latter says "DEE-ah".
Boa tarde - “Good afternoon” in Portuguese
To say "good afternoon" in Portuguese, use boa tarde. Portuguese doesn't really distinguish between the "afternoon" and the "evening" like we do in English. The distinction between those two words can be kind of blurry in English anyway. Is there a fixed, unambiguous time every day when the afternoon ends and the evening begins?
Boa noite - “Good night” in Portuguese
In Portuguese the rules are clear: the period from midday until 7pm is the tarde, then after 7pm it’s the noite. So in Brazil, where the length of the day hardly changes all year, you might greet someone with boa noite (good night) as early as 7pm, which isn't really considered "night-time" in English.
A Note on Portuguese Greetings
In English, "good morning" and "good afternoon" are only really used as greetings, while "good night" is what you'd say to someone at the end of the day right before they go to bed.

The Portuguese equivalents, however, are much more versatile - bom dia, boa tarde and boa noite can all mean both "hello" and "goodbye" in Portuguese. Just make sure you use the correct phrase for the current time of day!
Alô - “Hello” in Portuguese (On the Phone)
Alô, borrowed from English, means "hello" in Portuguese. However, it's only used in one very specific situation - you say alô? when you're answering the phone.

You can also say alô? mid-phone-conversation on the phone if the line starts cutting out and you're having trouble hearing each other. It's like saying "are you there?" or "can you hear me?"
Tchau and Adeus - “Goodbye” in Portuguese
We've covered how to say "hello" in Brazilian Portuguese, but what about "goodbye"? The most common way to bid someone farewell in Brazil is tchau, pronounced like the Italian ciao (which of course is where it comes from.)

Note that, while ciao in Italian can mean both "hello" and "goodbye", in Portuguese it exclusively means "goodbye". Also note that tchau is sometimes written as xau.

Portuguese people say tchau as well, but they can also say adeus, literally "to God". While Brazilians are familiar with adeus, to them it sounds very formal, and has strong connotations that you're never going to see the person again - so it's rather dramatic! In Brazil, stick with tchau.
Como vai? or Como estás? - “How’s it going?” or “How are you?” in Portuguese
So you've met someone and you've successfully greeted them. Social convention dictates that the next step is to ask them how they are.

There are many ways to accomplish this. Two of the most common are como vai? (lit: "how does it go?") and como estás? (lit: "how are you?"). You can reply to either with a simple estou bem (I'm good) or just bem.

Remember that there are two ways of saying "you" (in the singular) in European Portuguese. Estás is the tu form of the verb estar, and is considered informal, while in formal situations you'd use está (the você form). In Brazil, the tu form of verbs is never used; Brazilians say está in both formal and informal situations.
Tudo bem? and Tudo bom? - “Everything good?” in Portuguese
These two expression both mean "everything good?". Idiomatically, they serve the same purpose as como vai? or como está?. Bem means "well" while bom means "good", but in this context, the two terms are used interchangeably.

So what's the difference? When should you use tudo bem and when should you use tudo bom? The answer: if you're the first person to speak, it doesn't matter. Say tudo bem? or tudo bom?; either is fine.

The part that requires you to think (but not very much) is when you reply. Don't worry, the rule is simple. Just respond with the opposite phrase. So if someone asks you tudo bem?, you reply with a tudo bom. If they say tudo bom?, you say tudo bem. Or, in either situation, you could just reply with a simple tudo - "everything"!
How to Get Someone's Attention in Portuguese
Suppose you haven't said olá yet, because the object of your attention hasn't noticed you, or doesn't realise that you want to talk to them. A safe, polite way to get their attention is to say licença (lee-SAYNG-suh). A cognate of the English word "license" (and it can mean that, too), licença basically means "excuse me?".

Another common way to get someone's attention in Brazil is moço (said to a man) or moça (said to a woman.) This word is hard to translate; it roughly means "young man/woman", or perhaps a less formal version of "sir" or "madam". It's the kind of thing you might say to a waiter, a staff member in a shop, or a stranger on the street, as an alternative to licença.

Another use of licença is if you're pushing through a crowd or someone is otherwise blocking your way, and you'd like to politely ask that they step aside.
Bem-vindo - “Welcome” in Portuguese
Bem, as mentioned above, means "well". Vindo is the present participle of the verb vir, "to come". So put them together and you get... "welcome", of course!

The one thing to be aware of is that you can't say bem-vindo to everybody. The ending needs to change depending on whom you're speaking to. In this respect, it follows the usual rules for Portuguese endings: say bem-vindo to a man, bem-vinda to a woman, bem-vindas to a group of women, and bem-vindos to a group of men or a mixed group.
How to say "my name is" in Portuguese
So you've got someone's attention, said hello, welcomed them, and asked them how they are, but you may be missing an important detail: what's the other person's name?

To ask, say qual é o seu nome - "what's your name?"

How to respond if someone asks you the same question? You can say sou (NAME) ("I'm NAME") or me chamo (NAME) ("My name is NAME", literally "I call myself NAME").

Remember that in Portuguese you usually use the definite article "o" (for males) or "a" (for females) when referring to someone by name. So if your name is Gabriel, you actually say sou o Gabriel ("I'm the Gabriel"), while Fernanda would say sou a Fernanda ("I'm the Fernanda".) It's weird from an English speaker's point of view, but you get used to it.
Prazer - “Nice to meet you” in Portuguese
There's one last pleasantry that you must know. After exchanging introductions with somebody, it's customary to say prazer. This literally translates as "pleasure", and it's the standard way to say "nice to meet you" in Portuguese.

When prazer won't cut it, try saying muito prazer - "very nice to meet you!"
What’s Your Favourite Portuguese Greeting?
Obrigado for your attention. What are your favourite ways to say "hello, how are you?" in Portuguese? Anything I've missed? Any interesting slang terms, regional variations or colloquialisms worth mentioning? Let us know in the comments.

The post How to Say “Hello” in Portuguese: “Olá!” (plus 15 More Ways!) appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

An In-Depth Review of the Staircase Method — Learn a Language through Story

When asked try out The Staircase Method for a review, I was both curious and hesitant.

Why curious?

Partly because The Staircase Method was created by Léa, whose claim-to-fame is teaching internet polyglot Benny Lewis (founder of this website) for three years, getting him to C1 (advanced) level in French.

And partly because The Staircase teaches French through stories. I can’t resist a good story!

Why hesitant?

Part of me wondered if I really needed another language learning app. I’m an intermediate French learner who has tried a lot of different language apps.

And part of me would like to give up language apps altogether. Yes, I’ve used plenty of apps in my language learning. But the truth is, I’m a bookworm.
I Like Big Books and I Cannot Lie.
I love to find a good story that pulls me in. I like to work through books in my target language slowly, letting the language seep in, looking up new words I don’t know. I like stories that grab my attention and keep me excited to find out what happens next.

As I’ve said, I was excited to try The Staircase because of the story-magic mixed in.

But would The Staircase stories hold my attention? And would they really make me a better French learner?

I’ll tell you in a moment! First, let’s take a look at what’s inside The Staircase.
The Staircase Method Review: What is The Staircase?
 

The Staircase is a unique series of online French courses for all levels, where you learn by working through a story. You go through the story step-by-step, and with each step, you climb the Staircase and learn more French.

With each step, you’re pulled deeper into the story. It’s designed to keep you wanting to come back for more, so your French keeps on getting better and better.

There are story-based lessons in The Staircase for beginner, intermediate and advanced students.

The Staircase focuses on six areas of learning:

Picking up new vocabulary
Making that new vocab stick in your memory
Learning new sentence structures
Building sentences yourself
Listening skills
Pronunciation

These six areas are a power combo that together make you ready to start using your new language skills in the real world. At least that’s the theory!

You can work through the course yourself or with the support of a tutor who’ll meet with you online once a week for a face-to-face lesson.
Who’s Behind the Staircase Method?
The Staircase is created by Léa.



Léa is famous for being Benny’s teacher who helped him reach C1 level in French. She’s on Instagram and YouTube.

The story of how she created The Staircase Method is actually pretty interesting.

Léa started out as a language teacher six years ago, giving French lessons on Skype. Since then she’s given 5,000+ one-to-one French lessons.

As she gave more and more French lessons, she started to notice a pattern.

Many of her students loved to learn with story-based courses. Léa’s students especially liked courses that started with easy stories which gradually got more complex. As examples, Assimil and Duolingo Stories both do this.

Léa enjoyed teaching with these stories. But she noticed that while her students started out loving these story-based courses, almost no students finished the courses.

That’s when Léa had a flash of insight: every story in these courses was a new storyline. Each story started with a new set of a characters and a new situation.

There was no overall story pulling readers in. There was no overall plot. There were no cliffhangers that kept students coming back.

That’s where the idea of The Staircase was born. Léa decided to create a course using stories that got gradually more complex. But these would be big stories, broken down into chapters, so students could follow along with the plot, and get invested in the characters.

Her plan was to use the addictive power of soap operas and apply this to language learning.

It sounded to be an intriguing method. Let me tell you what it was like to actually use it.
How I Used the Staircase Method before Writing This Review
For this review, I committed to 15 hours using The Staircase Method during which time I tried all the available features and levels.

I also had three one-on-one lessons with Léa where she incorporated the Staircase course into our sessions.
The Staircase Method Review: My Starting Point
I used The Staircase Method to learn French -- currently the only available language for The Staircase Method. There are plans to release it for more languages.

My French skills are overall at lower intermediate (B1) level. Let’s break it down and look at what this means regarding the four core skills. I once tested at a C2 level (mastery level) for reading when I took a recent online proficiency test. My C2 reading level is due to passive vocabulary. That means I can recognize written words with ease. It’s a product of reading every night in French. Sadly, I’m not able to produce those words when I speak.

But I don’t speak or write at an advanced level. My writing is at lower-intermediate level.

My teachers tell me that my speech is very close to B2 (upper intermediate), which is a nice way of saying I’m high B1 when I stand on my tippy toes.

So how did I find The Staircase Method?
I Loved the Staircase Method!
I was apprehensive about trying The Staircase Method. And I wasn’t sure whether it would work for me.

I wondered: would it just reinforce my passive vocabulary, which is already excellent, rather than help with the skills that I need to develop?

Before I started The Staircase, my French writing skills and speaking were relatively weak.

I wrote and talked about the same stuff every week. I only used simple sentence structures that were comfy to me.

I didn’t even know how to start writing more complicated phrases.

This, for me, is where The Staircase shined.

In The Staircase, you’re required to translate sentences from English to French. So, I could no longer write about the same subjects that I usually write about.

I also couldn't fall back on my makeshift sentences because I needed to use the same structure offered in English.

This is where I felt my French skills grew the most -- in my ability to create sentences. The more I use The Staircase, the more French is making its way from my passive vocabulary and into my active vocabulary.

I’m no longer just reading advanced French. I’m actually using it!

I can’t emphasize enough how powerful this is. Creating sentences is one of the things language learners struggle the most with, and The Staircase is what gave me the breakthrough in this area.

I’d like to share a bit more detail about why I found The Staircase Method so helpful.
The Staircase Method Review: What I Liked
There are six things I particularly liked about The Staircase.
1. The Power of Story (“Comprehensible Input”)
One of my favorite language learning lectures is by Dr. Stephen Krashen. In his presentation, Dr. Krashen explains “comprehensible input”.

In simple terms, this is about learning a language using stuff that interests you and that you can understand some of.

It could be YouTube videos. It could be podcasts. It could be books.

There are lots of options. The trick is finding something that’s interesting, that you’re able to understand, and that stretches your abilities.

Finding “comprehensible input” that fits all these criteria isn’t easy -- you can spend hours searching for the right content for you.

The Staircase Method solves this issue -- because it uses the power of story to keep things interesting, and it gets gradually more difficult, stretching you to learn more.

As I worked through The Staircase, I became emotionally invested in the story of John and Lana. I wanted to know what would happen next. So much so that I learned French grammar without even realizing it.

The story hooked me into forming a French learning habit.
2. The Staircase is a “Full Body Workout” for Your Language Skills
I used the Staircase to improve four areas of my French:

Writing: The Staircase took me out of my writing “safe zone”. The writing exercises pulled passive vocabulary into the active part of the brain. Left to my own devices, I would use the same words over and over again. Which is fine for the beginner stage but would never get me out of intermediate purgatory. This also helped with my spelling.
Grammar: With The Staircase, I found I just absorbed new sentence structures, rather than needing to study grammar. There are clues in the Staircase that explain important key concepts. Most of the grammar is taught while you are engaged in the story.
Pronunciation: The Staircase includes audio of a native speaker saying every sentence in the stories. I found myself playing the audio repeatedly to mimic the native speaker’s pronunciation, tone and melody. I usually dislike the shadowing approach to learning pronunciation. But repeating one sentence doesn’t give me a shadowing headache. I can easily pause in the middle of her phrase to break it into bite-size chunks.
Listening: You can practice dictation by listening to the sentence and writing what you hear.

You could also use the Staircase to improve your reading or speaking skills. It really is an all-around tool for language learning.
3. I Don’t Want to Quit!
I usually change my language learning tools every 12 weeks. It’s my way of preventing burn-out.

That said, there are one or two golden tools that are a permanent part of my routine. These are the tools I go back to for months or even years. They’re always fresh, and they always push me to learn more.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed learning with The Staircase Method. It’s now become one of my golden tools. Each lesson has a different focus and keeps my interest in a new way.

For example, I needed to work on my pronunciation of -é versus -ait. Léa suggested I use the lesson dedicated to those sounds. Within a few hours, I could actually notice a difference between the two.

What’s more, after my review I decided to I use The Staircase as my primary tool during the intensive language course Add1 .
4. Vocab Just Sticks -- No Forced Memorising
I found the vocabulary I learned using The Staircase stuck in my memory easily because I’d learned it in the context of a story.

One of the reasons The Staircase works so well is because there’s a lot of repetition without it feeling like the same boring information again and again.

One exercise will ask me for a word I don’t know. A few exercises later, I’m asked to recall that word again as it relates to the story. I have been known to pump the air with my fists in celebration when I learn, recall and actually write out a newly learned word.

It almost felt like I learned “accidentally” with The Staircase...

Now that is my kind of course!
5. Some of the Best French Tutoring I’ve Ever Had
Personal, one-on-one tutoring is an optional extra with The Staircase. These lessons are with Léa, or one of her team of approved Staircase tutors.

As for the lessons I had with Léa, they were some of the most profound lessons I’ve ever had.

I had never before experienced such an engaging lesson. And that’s pretty heavy considering I’ve had well over 20 teachers in my language journey.

Working with Léa helped me make the most of The Staircase. She immediately picked up on the areas I needed to develop and gave me strategies to work on these.

I’ve already recommended her tutoring services to several learners along with the Staircase. Two students are still emailing me periodically to rave about her. Yup, she’s that good.
6. There’s No Single “Right” Answer
When you’re translating a sentence from English into French with The Staircase, there’s not just one right answer. There are several available.

These various answers to just one question are heaven sent. You have no idea how often I have muttered bitterly to my grammar book, “You think you’re so smart, don’t you? That’s not the ONLY way to say that, tough guy.”

It annoys me in a course when only one answer is given. Translation doesn’t work like that! In all languages, there are numerous ways to convey an idea, so there are numerous possible translations.

Léa has solved that problem by adding a variety of correct answers given by Staircase students. A few of the answers I gave as a Staircase student are now part of The Staircase. That makes me proud!
The Staircase Method Review: What Needs Improvement
Not everything is perfect about the Staircase course. There are a couple of areas where it could be improved.
Downer #1: I Want More!
Even with 395 Staircase lessons in total, I want more!

I’ve not done all of them. However, I like The Staircase so much that I hope Léa will continue to develop it so I can use it for many years to come.
Downer #2: It’s Not Immediately Obvious How to Use It
With Léa’s support, I found the Staircase immensely powerful. But I definitely got more out of the course because she was guiding me through it.

A quick “How To” video would have been helpful. So, I made one:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkHjMKoZMh0
How Do I Rate the Staircase Method?
I give The Staircase Method a solid 5 stars. The course is innovative and highly effective. It kept a delightfully bookish chick engaged and happy.
The Staircase Review: Final Thoughts
I finished my 15-hour commitment of The Staircase, and as I mentioned above it’s now become one of my golden tools that I plan on using for many months, if not years.

I’ve found it shifted my French writing and speaking skills in a way that no other course has been able to do. I’ve seen drastic improvements.

My passive vocabulary is blossoming into active phrases that I can use every day.

Instead of itty-bitty beginner sentences, I’m creating big juicy upper intermediate phrases.

And all this happened without pain-inducing flashcards! I was simply playing an online game to find out what would happen next in the story.

Want to boost your French? Take a free Staircase Method course here. Give it a try today!

The post An In-Depth Review of the Staircase Method — Learn a Language through Story appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

How Learning Spanish Helped Me Write My Book (in English)

I remember the moment the idea hit.

We were about seven hours into a nine-hour-drive back from vacation. My wife and kids were in the backseat watching a movie on the iPad. I couldn’t hear anything, so I put in my earbuds and turned on Radio Ambulante (one of my favorite podcasts; it’s kind of like a Spanish-language This American Life) and started an episode about the ruta negra, the clandestine plastic-surgery route in Medellín. Completely enveloped in the events unfolding before me, I thought, This is a fascinating story. My second thought was, I have a short story collection due soon and I need more stories. I have to write about this.

Let me take a step back, because that makes it sound quick: I had the idea; I wrote it.

In reality, the path was much longer, more winding and difficult – but also more satisfying than I’d ever expected. And since this article is about how learning Spanish helped me write my new collection, Wear Your Home Like a Scar , I figure we’ll do this is three acts.
Act 1: The Set-Up
Like a lot of kids in the States, I had to take a foreign language in school. Also like a lot of kids in the states, my four years of high school Spanish and two years of university Spanish left me at a loss for words. Literally.

I tried to teach myself intermittently – once from a textbook before I went backpacking around Europe, another time with a couple community college classes, then another book. None of them stuck, obviously, and even if I could read, I couldn’t say much of anything.

Still, I felt some pull toward the language, the culture, the history of Spain and Central/South America for reasons I couldn’t explain. Even to this day, I don’t know how to articulate it (though at least I can now explain in Spanish why I can’t explain) and I wanted more than anything to be able to speak the language so I could travel talk to people from those countries and learn more about everyday life there.

But I was continually frustrated. I felt like many aspiring language learners do: when I rehearsed what I wanted to say in my head, it was fine. Then I’d say it and, much to my surprise, it actually came out fine! Then they’d ask me a follow-up question that wasn’t exactly what I’d been expecting and I’d freeze and stammer and eeehhhhh, buenooooo, pueeeessss, and then they’d switch to English to save me the embarrassment or I’d switch to English because I panicked and my chance to finally, finally, finally have a conversation in Spanish would pass.

Then a coworker told me about Duolingo.
Act 2: The Action
I know there are divergent opinions on Duolingo and its efficacy. Is it the best tool for actually learning how to speak? No, probably not. Has it has opened the door for millions of people to learn another language and normalized that goal - which is especially notable here - in a country that is notoriously monolingual? Absolutely.

All that aside, it’s really fun and I love doing it. Even if I’m just dabbling in a language, like I have with Swedish, Catalan, and Norwegian, I enjoy passing the time there instead of scrolling through my Instagram feed for the hundredth time.

Even more important, someone on the Duolingo message board mentioned that Fluent in 3 Months was a great place to look for Spanish learning resources.

I started with the Spanish articles, obviously, then devoured the site. Every image at the bottom of an article lead me farther and farther into my head, letting me explore other countries and cultures during my lunch break. One of those images led me to, among others, Benny recounting his time in Colombia, then learning Spanish through telenovelas and podcasts. Then it led me to Nate Alger’s story (co-creator with his wife Andrea of Españolistos podcasts, one of my favorites) about finding love in Spanish.

But the one that made the most impact was about italki and the importance of conversation practice.

I headed over to italki, perused the community tutors’ profiles, watching their intro videos to see who seemed like they’d be a good personality fit (and whom I could understand), and after a few trial sessions, eventually struck up a great working relationship with Felipe Mena, from Cali, Colombia. He was very supportive and patient from the jump – which was exactly what I needed – but most importantly, he was personable.

Our classes began as just that – classes – but quickly evolved into conversations that flitted between politics, cinema, daily life in Colombia, him telling me terrible Dad jokes in Spanish that I eventually came to understand, and exchanging stories about family life.

At the time, I was busy binge watching El Patron del Mal, a narco-telenovela based on Pablo Escobar. Felipe was understandably a little wary, as many Colombians are, but he saw I wasn’t interested in glorifying the drug lord, but was more attuned to what daily life was like for Colombians living during that time. (Side note: if you’re interested in that time period, Fruit of the Drunken Tree by Ingrid Contreras Rojas is a fantastic novel that uses Escobar’s reign of terror as a backdrop, but focuses instead on quotidian Colombian life.) I’d ask Felipe about various phrases they used, and why every sentence seemed to have the word berraco. He gave me a lot of insight, small details I would’ve never known without actually living there, things that would, in turn, greatly inform my stories.

He also turned me on to Radio Ambulante.
Act 3: The Climax
I’d wager that I’m probably like most language learners. When I start a new language, I dive in head-first and never even consider coming up for air. Newspapers, podcasts, TV series... Everything I consume is in the target language.

The Españolistos podcast was great for this, because the hosts, Andrea and Nate, speak slowly enough to understand but not so slow that it feels patronizing. Andrea, a schoolteacher, explains things in a way that’s easy to understand, and at points I feel like I learn more from Nate’s mistakes than I do from actual lessons. The podcast did wonders for building up my confidence, which was especially important as I dove into Radio Ambulante. I listened to it everywhere. In the car. At the gym. Washing dishes. Mowing the grass. I wanted to listen to each episode multiple times, back-to-back, because this was exactly what I’d been looking for: a window into life in Latin America. Stories about Latin America from the people who lived there. And lucky for me, when I happened on the podcast, they had six seasons’ worth of back catalogue for me to explore. I gravitated toward episodes set in Colombia, because the accents tended to be a little more neutral and easier to understand, but I consumed them all.

And that’s when a funny thing began to happen. The more I listened to them, the more I understood. (It sounds dumb writing it down like this, but I think most people on this site will understand.) Quick sentences that previously sounded like a jumble of words with one I recognized stuck in the middle became tangential asides, inside jokes for locals. A storyline I knew was important because of the emotion in the speaker’s voice became a tableau being painted before me. I felt immersed in the world. And this wasn’t a podcast meant for students. It was made by native speakers, for native speakers, but I could still understand it. Best of all, the podcast inspired me.

I had a story about a home surgeon I’d written a while back that I really liked, but something just wasn’t quite working. Then, on that drive home from vacation with my family, I figured out how to fix it. Why set a weird story about home surgery on the Jersey Shore (actually, why did I ever set it there in the first place?) when I could draw on this rich, complicated chain of clandestine surgeons in Medellín? With some poignant details from Felipe, along with a long conversation about the socioeconomic conditions that help these surgeons thrive (which is a whole different essay), I’d completely rewritten “His Footsteps are Made of Ash.” The story that closes out the collection.

Another episode focused on two men called Eduardo Bechera who came from vastly different backgrounds. It’s a classic set-up for a comedy of errors or mistaken identity, but something about the story as it was reported imbued the situation with a much deeper, more humanistic bent. I started wondering what it would be like if, instead of one of the Eduardos being a visual artist, he was one of Escobar’s sicarios that ruled over Comuna 13 in Medellín. I knew from reading numerous articles and talking to Felipe – not to mention that I lived in Baltimore for many years, a very violent city that is overrun with drugs – that many of the people involved in the drug trade had gotten in not because they wanted to sell drugs, but because there were precious few other options. So I combined the Eduardo setup of “El Otro, El Mismo” with character vignettes from El Patron del Mal, tossed in a little Willie Colón, and came up with “Pedro’s Navaja,” a story about family and coincidence and sicarios set in hospital room during Escobar’s reign.

Several other stories came from situations like this. A second-person La Llorona/La Melinche story; another about love and revenge on the Juárez border. Even when it was just a minor detail, something that the average reader might not recognize, these small bits helped me see the story world in a new way, making it more vibrant than it would have been otherwise.
The Denouement
While I am incredibly proud of both the stories in the collection and being able to make these connections and associations, none of it would've been possible without the study techniques and resources I found on Fluent in 3 Months. Whether it was using Anki decks to increase my vocabulary or developing useful conversation scripts for those first tenuous conversations, the information I found on the site is far and away the most decisive factor in successfully learning Spanish, especially given my previous attempts over the last fifteen years, including the months I spent in Spain and Portugal.

I’m definitely not at a C2 level and am not in danger of being mistaken for a Spaniard, but I can have fun conversations with people around town and understand a lot more of what’s being said than I could even six months ago. In the end, the stories that came from my Spanish learning enrich the collection a gigantic amount, giving it a much bigger scope than the Baltimore streets where most of my stories had been set. It's not only more dynamic, but – I hope – it can help recontextualize Colombia from a narco-country to a beautiful, vibrant country full of deeply interesting, passionate, colorful people.

And as for what’s next? Well, I just started learning French last week. Maybe there’ll be a novel in that.

The post How Learning Spanish Helped Me Write My Book (in English) appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

The Crosstalk Method: How to Start a Language Exchange from Zero

Doing a language exchange is a great way to learn a foreign language. We can get better at the language we are learning, and at the same time we can start getting in contact with the people and the culture of the language. Maybe even making some great lifelong friends, like in Elizabeth’s story.

However, it can be hard to hold a conversation in the language at the beginning, when your level is not yet high enough, and it may leave you feeling like something’s wrong with your brain.

Elizabeth herself experienced this when she attended language exchange events as a beginner. When we just start learning a foreign language we can't really say anything, and even if we can say a little, it can be quite exhausting to sustain a long conversation.

Let me introduce you to your savior: crosstalk! Crosstalk not only solves these problems, but is also probably the single most efficient way to start learning a language from zero… that is... until we find a way of turning ourselves into babies and dropping ourselves off in baskets on the doorsteps of some kind foreign families.
What is Crosstalk?
The basic idea of crosstalk is very simple: you speak your own language (which your partner is learning) and your partner speaks their language (which you are learning). I’ll leave it up to you to decide if you want your partner to be a native speaker of the language. Both partners practice understanding the language they are learning, and they don’t speak it.
Does Crosstalk Really Work?
Crosstalk seems to go against what a language exchange is about, but actually it has a few awesome advantages:

It's easier to do for complete beginners, since you don't even need to know any words in the target language beforehand.
It's more relaxed. You don’t have to stress over how you are going to say things.
Since you don’t have to think about how you say things, you can pay more attention to what your partner is saying and make the most of the input you are receiving, since you are not distracted thinking about your next sentence.
Last, but still really important, is a more efficient use of your time. Since you are not spending 50% of the time in each language like in regular tandems, 100% of the input you get is in your target language, which is especially useful at the beginning when you need to learn plenty of words but you still don't have that much to say.

When used at the beginner level, crosstalk can be paired with drawing on a notebook, gestures, facial expressions and picture sheets. It may seem hard to believe until you try it, but this technique allows any two people to communicate and have a full conversation even if there is no shared language between them.
My Experience with Crosstalk
I started messing around with crosstalk around four years ago. Initially, I used it to keep improving my Thai, which was already at an intermediate level, and to start learning Mandarin.

Very soon I started organizing events to show people how to do it, and to practice it myself in a variety of languages. It was great to meet so many people from so many different backgrounds, and have everyone communicating naturally in the language that they felt most comfortable with, while we were all still understanding one another.

At the time of writing this post, I've done more than 700 hours of crosstalk in different languages. I've done it for languages in which I knew zero, and even with partners who knew nothing about my language. I actually made a point of doing it for languages for which I was a complete beginner, to make sure that I got the beginning nailed down. I've used it with Vietnamese, Korean, Polish, Russian, Slovene and Turkish.

I even turned myself into a guinea pig, demonstrating that crosstalk can be used to learn a language up to a high intermediate level by doing it myself with Thai. I can definitely tell you that crosstalk works very well at every level of the language learning journey.
How to Start Using Crosstalk
As I explained, crosstalk simply refers to doing a language exchange, but each speaker only speaks their native language. In crosstalk, you practice understanding your target language, without practicing speaking it.

Therefore, the only thing you really need to do crosstalk is a speaker of the language that you want to learn, who is also interested in learning a language that you can speak. This is very easy to do nowadays with all the websites and apps that exist for that purpose.

To find a good partner, you can follow this extensive guide.

It’s not even necessary to find a person that lives nearby, since crosstalk is well suited for video chats. However, if you are a beginner in the language, it's much better to meet in person. When you meet somebody in person it becomes much easier to use the techniques I’ll teach you to start learning a language from zero. Also, the language will feel way more real when there’s a real person in front of you talking to you in that language.
How to do Crosstalk from the Very Beginning
Crosstalk is great for when you are a beginner, or even when you start learning a language from zero. Of course, when you start from zero, you won't understand most of the words your partner says. Maybe you won’t even understand any words at all! Here is where the magic of crosstalk resides. Contrary to what you might expect, you can use nonverbal communication to have a whole, complex conversation. You can do that with gestures, noises (yes, you can start practicing your dog barking noises), facial expressions, picture sheets, but most importantly by drawing.

Check out this video where I demonstrate how you can have a conversation even when you don’t know a word of one another’s language:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3qqYyQC9ww

As you can see in the video, you can have a whole conversation using mostly drawings and gestures. It takes a little bit of practice, but soon you'll get good at it.

I recommend printing out sheets to help you communicate different things. In my case, I printed out maps, colors, a sheet with days of the week, times of the day and seasons, fruits and vegetables, and more. You can print out any sheets that will help you talk about the topics that you are interested in, be it inventors and their inventions, types of minerals, or the Disney Princesses (my favorite is Jasmine, of course).

When you start doing crosstalk with a new partner, it’s better to demonstrate it for them by telling them something about yourself first. You can tell your partner a story that happened to you, or talk to them about your childhood. Some topics that people usually love hearing about are the times that you were a bad child: times you stole something, times you got in trouble, or even times you hurt yourself.

Check out this video in which I talk about a time I stole something as a kid, using the communicative strategies that I explained before:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9SHb2VPmKw

As the conversation goes on and you talk about different topics, you will notice that certain topics are harder to communicate in this way than others. Topics that include actions and movement are easier to represent visually with gestures and by drawing. Meanwhile, more abstract topics like philosophy, politics or even work are harder to convey, so it's better to leave them for later on. There are exceptions, but if you work at an office, it’s not going to be easy to represent what you do in a visual way.

If at any point you or your partner fail to make yourselves understood after several attempts, it usually means that what you are trying to explain is too abstract or too complicated. Most times it’s better to change the topic to a more suitable one for your level. Talking about your childhood is often easy. Since most things children do include actions and movement (I would say their lives consist of actions and movement), they’re quite easy to communicate nonverbally.
Crosstalk: Challenges and Troubleshooting
Any kind of language exchange can have some issues, and I also want to talk to you about the three most common ones that I've experienced that are specific to crosstalk, so that you'll know how to deal with them.

The first is having a partner that doesn't stick to speaking your target language. Some partners keep switching back to English, or to a language that you two have in common. The best way to handle that is to gently remind your partner to go back to the language they agreed to speak. Sometimes you may have to ask a few times, but most people get the idea after two or three times. The insistence on each person only speaking the language they are teaching is not because of trying to be a purist, but rather, it's needed to make sure that both partners learn to communicate in a simple manner with drawings and gestures, and don't use the common language as a crutch. Switching back to English or another common language often also ends up in both partners just speaking English for the rest of the session, which is far from ideal.

The second is having a partner that doesn’t speak, period. This is hilarious when it happens. After people realize that they can communicate solely by drawings and gestures, some will get so into it that they’ll forget that you are doing a language exchange. Because they are focusing so much on communicating and on seeing that you understand, some people will stop talking completely. They don’t notice it because their more immediate concern is being addressed: they are communicating. Of course, that totally misses the purpose of doing a language exchange so it needs to be taken care of. Luckily, this is even simpler to solve than the previous issue, and one single reminder will suffice most of the time to make your partner remember the reason you two met that day.

The third is your partner confusing crosstalk with an art class. Sometimes a partner can be unwilling to draw, because they feel self-conscious about their own drawing. Remind them gently that this is not an art class, and maybe draw badly on purpose when you demonstrate crosstalk to them so they realize that it’s okay to not be good at drawing. When I want to draw something badly I draw a dragon. I can’t seem to be able to draw a decent-looking dragon no matter how many times I try. If that doesn't help, you may need to find another partner, but this has only happened to me once.

The more time you spend with the same partner, the more used to doing crosstalk you’ll both get, and the easier it will become.
In Conclusion
This concludes this introduction to crosstalk. With this information you should be able to start or continue learning a language in one of the most fun and engaging ways out there, while relating with the people from the country and learning things about the culture.

You’ll also be able to resolve the main issues that you encounter along the way. I encourage you to go out and meet speakers of the language that you want to learn, and to talk to them about topics that you genuinely care about, even deeply personal things.

Don't be surprised though if you end up becoming closer to some of your partners than you thought you ever would!

The post The Crosstalk Method: How to Start a Language Exchange from Zero appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

Language Mentors #7: Matt Kepnes (New York Times Best-Selling Author, 11 Years of Travel and Counting)

“Stay consistent. Consistency is key when it comes to learning a language.” - Matt Kepnes

Calling all travel lovers! I recently interviewed Matt Kepnes for our new Language Mentors series. In this article, we’ll be discussing more pleasure than duty. You’ll find tips for how to keep your life (and language learning routine) in check while you travel.

Starting out as a shy kid from Boston, Matthew Kepnes has come a long way. He’s been traveling the world since 2006 and has been blogging since 2008. His message is clear. If he can do it, so can you!

Matt is the creator of the award winning budget travel site, Nomadic Matt and author of the New York Times best-seller How to Travel the World on $50 a Day. His brand new travel memoir, Ten Years a Nomad is available now. Matt’s work has been featured in The New York Times, CNN, The Guardian, Lifehacker, Budget Travel, BBC, Time, and countless other outlets.
Language Mentors: Learn a New Language in 90 Days
Language Mentors is our regular feature where we interview polyglots, language teachers, language learners and even folks from outside the field of language learning. We’re getting straight to the point, asking for their top tips on language acquisition, steadfast motivation, and rapid learning.

We want to give you the inside scoop on what it takes to learn a new language, fast (in as little as 90 days).

We’ve actually seen hundreds of people learn a new language to a conversational level in just 90 days. You can do it too by putting what you learn from our Language Mentors into practice.

And if you need extra support, then join us in Add1 -- where you’ll make lots of new friends who share your goal of learning a new language fast (plus you’ll have a 15 minute conversation in your new language after 90 days -- we guarantee it).

Read on to learn some of Matt’s language learning hacks. And get to know some fun facts about a fascinating traveller at the same time.


What Are the Top Three Activities You Would Advise to Have a 15 Minute Conversation in a New Language after 90 Days??
If you’re looking to step up your language skills is a short period of time, here are my top three suggestions to get you on track.

Stay consistent. Consistency is key when it comes to learning a language. I have a terrible memory. The only way to make progress is by being consistent in my studying. Whether that’s 30 minutes a day or three hours a day. As long as you are consistent, you will make progress.
Make it easy on yourself. Download apps to your phone so you never have an excuse not to be studying. If you have time to waste on social media, you have time to study!
Find study buddies. Check out Facebook, Couchsurfing, Meetup, and other platforms. It’s never been easier to connect with other language learners. See if there is a group that meets near you so you have people to practice with. That will help you hone your skills. And give you access to people who can better answer any questions you have about the language.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Memories from Your Time Traveling?
I have a lot of great memories from my time around the world. One of my favorite parts about writing my new book was going down memory lane. I could relive all these crazy adventures. Three experiences stand out.

During my first trip around the world, I lived on an island in Thailand for close to a month. I decide to change my plans on a whim to meet up with another traveler I had met earlier. I ended up meeting a great group of friends and spent a month relaxing on the island of Koh Lipe. A dream experience!
Living in Bangkok was one of my most memorable and formative experiences. I arrived
knowing no one and left with a circle of friends, a job, and a girlfriend. It was one of the best experiences because it taught me that if I could do that, I could do anything.
The tomato throwing festival in La Tomatina, Spain. It was one of the most fun experiences I ever had on the road. It was a giant food fight. While there, I ended up becoming really close with the people in my dorm room. We started traveling together as a little squad. I’m still in touch with them to this day.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Places for Working?

Co-working space are my go-to place since they have reliable Wi-Fi and free tea. Since they are meant for work, they usually have nice comfortable chairs and big desks that make it easy. As a member of We Work I can usually find a location when I travel.
Otherwise, I look for café that isn’t too busy, has nice tables, a good coffee list, power, and Wi-Fi.
If I can’t find one of the first two options, I’ll work from anywhere. Traveling makes you good at working from anywhere because you have to. If you hope to get anything done, you have to get good at working from uncomfortable places.

What Are the Top Three Roadblocks You See People Face When Traveling?
I’ve talked with a lot of travelers over the years. I usually see the same three roadblocks preventing people from traveling. They prevented me from traveling for a long time, too!

Those three roadblocks are money, fear, and having the right mindset.

People think you need to be rich to travel the world. You don’t. By using the sharing economy and learning how to save money on accommodation and flights, you can travel for almost nothing. It won’t be glamorous, but it will still be travel!

Fear is the next most common roadblock for new travelers — especially US travelers.

As long as you do your research and use common sense you can avoid the vast majority of problems and travel scams. The world isn’t nearly as scary as it seems. But you’ll never know unless you get out there and see it for yourself.

You need to have the right mindset. Travel has never been more affordable or Accessible. Yet people think you need to stay in fancy hotels and only go on tours. You don’t. If you want to travel the world, you first need to change your mindset.


What Are Your Top Three Keys for Dealing with Those Roadblocks?
These days, there are a ton of different ways to save money for travel. And travel for cheap.

You can pick up a side hustle before you go. You can volunteer while you’re abroad using websites like Workawayor HelpX. There are lots of ways for you to save tons of cash for your travels. And don’t forget to use the sharing economy! Platforms like Airbnb and Couchsurfing can help you find cheap accommodation. BlaBlaCar is great for rideshares. And EatWith is a cool app for unique dining opportunities.

Embrace the sharing economy and you’ll have a cheaper, more authentic trip.

If fear or anxiety is your primary concern, the best way to overcome your travel fears is to connect with other travelers who have done what you want to do. Join travel groups on Facebook. Attend travel events in your community. Meet other travelers and see for yourself just how possible it is.

And when it comes to changing your mindset, the best way to start is to do research.

There are tons of blogs and books out there that can show you how to embrace the life of a budget traveler. Including my first book, How to Travel the World on $50 a Day. By reading about the lifestyle you’ll begin to see limitless options. No trust fund necessary.
What Are Your Top Three Pearls of Wisdom for People Who Want to Travel More?
The best thing you can do is to take action today. Don’t wait or put your plans on the backburner.

Ask yourself what you can do right now to get yourself closer to your next trip. You can start a travel savings account. Or buy a guide book. Or cut back on your daily spending. Baby steps are all you need. Do something today to get started.

Action begets action. Within no time, you’ll be heading out the door!

To make the process of traveling more affordable, sign up for a travel credit card. This will help you start earning points. And eventually earn yourself a free flight or hotel stay. I’ve saved thousands of dollars over the years and enjoyed dozens of free flights and hotel stays. All because I learned how to travel hack. You can do the same.

Stay inspired! Join a travel community. Learn a new language. Read travel books. Watch travel movies. This will keep you interested and engaged and wanting to make your next trip happen. It will feed the fires as you save money and plan. Keeping the desire alive as you get closer to your next trip.


What Are the Top Three Ways You Keep Motivated During an Intensive Travel Period?
I try to work hard before my travels. So, when I’m on the road I don’t actually need to worry about working while traveling. I find this helps me enjoy my travels more and stay relaxed. Working and traveling can be stressful, and it’s not worth it for me. I’d rather focus on work when I’m at home and then focus on my travels when I’m on the road.

For longer trips that isn’t possible. I make sure to travel slowly. Instead of three to four days in a city, I’ll spend five to eight. That way, I have time to see the sights and get my work done without stressing.
What Top Three Non-nomadic People or Books Have Influenced Your Lifestyle?
I’m always on the lookout for a good book to read. I’ve read a ton of travel books over the years. I also make sure to read a lot of non-travel books that can help me with my business and my personal development. These three books that have had a huge impact on my life and business.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
Quiet by Susan Cain


What Were Some Surprises That You Learned When Living Abroad?
Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to live in Bangkok, Taipei, and Paris. Each experience offered some amazing opportunities. They were very formative experiences. I realized two things.

First, life won’t happen unless you make it happen. Life isn’t going to be non-stop adventure if you sit inside all day. You have to get out there. You have to go to events. You have to talk to people. You have to make an effort. It’s hard. You’ll fail a few times But without getting out there, you’ll never have the exciting expat life you daydream about.

Second, you’re more capable than you think. I came to Bangkok with no friends or support system. I left with a life. I met a person who introduced me to another and then another and then another. Action begets action and, by the end of it, I had a job, friends, and a girlfriend. I made it. I thrived. I met 18 year old kids out of high school with no life experience thriving too. Anyone can do it if they are willing to make it work. If you’re willing to get out there, you can succeed.

I was a shy, introverted kid from Boston with little life experience and I made it work. If I can make it work, so can you!
What about You?
Which of Matt’s tips resonates most with you? We’d love to hear about it in the comments section. And to our Add1 participants, best of luck on your language adventure!

Want to learn a new language in 90 days? Come join us in Add1.

A big thank you to Matt for sharing his travel strategies with us. To learn more about Matt, you can visit his website. His brand new travel memoir, Ten Years a Nomad is available now.

The post Language Mentors #7: Matt Kepnes (New York Times Best-Selling Author, 11 Years of Travel and Counting) appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

Language Mentors #5: Matt Kepnes (New York Times Best-Selling Author, 11 Years of Travel and Counting)

“Stay consistent. Consistency is key when it comes to learning a language.” - Matt Kepnes

Calling all travel lovers! I recently interviewed Matt Kepnes for our new Language Mentors series. In this article, we’ll be discussing more pleasure than duty. You’ll find tips for how to keep your life (and language learning routine) in check while you travel.

Starting out as a shy kid from Boston, Matthew Kepnes has come a long way. He’s been traveling the world since 2006 and has been blogging since 2008. His message is clear. If he can do it, so can you!

Matt is the creator of the award winning budget travel site, Nomadic Matt and author of the New York Times best-seller How to Travel the World on $50 a Day. His brand new travel memoir, Ten Years a Nomad is available now. Matt’s work has been featured in The New York Times, CNN, The Guardian, Lifehacker, Budget Travel, BBC, Time, and countless other outlets.
Language Mentors: Learn a New Language in 90 Days
Language Mentors is our regular feature where we interview polyglots, language teachers, language learners and even folks from outside the field of language learning. We’re getting straight to the point, asking for their top tips on language acquisition, steadfast motivation, and rapid learning.

We want to give you the inside scoop on what it takes to learn a new language, fast (in as little as 90 days).

We’ve actually seen hundreds of people learn a new language to a conversational level in just 90 days. You can do it too by putting what you learn from our Language Mentors into practice.

And if you need extra support, then join us in Add1 -- where you’ll make lots of new friends who share your goal of learning a new language fast (plus you’ll have a 15 minute conversation in your new language after 90 days -- we guarantee it).

Read on to learn some of Matt’s language learning hacks. And get to know some fun facts about a fascinating traveller at the same time.


What Are the Top Three Activities You Would Advise to Have a 15 Minute Conversation in a New Language after 90 Days??
If you’re looking to step up your language skills is a short period of time, here are my top three suggestions to get you on track.

Stay consistent. Consistency is key when it comes to learning a language. I have a terrible memory. The only way to make progress is by being consistent in my studying. Whether that’s 30 minutes a day or three hours a day. As long as you are consistent, you will make progress.
Make it easy on yourself. Download apps to your phone so you never have an excuse not to be studying. If you have time to waste on social media, you have time to study!
Find study buddies. Check out Facebook, Couchsurfing, Meetup, and other platforms. It’s never been easier to connect with other language learners. See if there is a group that meets near you so you have people to practice with. That will help you hone your skills. And give you access to people who can better answer any questions you have about the language.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Memories from Your Time Traveling?
I have a lot of great memories from my time around the world. One of my favorite parts about writing my new book was going down memory lane. I could relive all these crazy adventures. Three experiences stand out.

During my first trip around the world, I lived on an island in Thailand for close to a month. I decide to change my plans on a whim to meet up with another traveler I had met earlier. I ended up meeting a great group of friends and spent a month relaxing on the island of Koh Lipe. A dream experience!
Living in Bangkok was one of my most memorable and formative experiences. I arrived
knowing no one and left with a circle of friends, a job, and a girlfriend. It was one of the best experiences because it taught me that if I could do that, I could do anything.
The tomato throwing festival in La Tomatina, Spain. It was one of the most fun experiences I ever had on the road. It was a giant food fight. While there, I ended up becoming really close with the people in my dorm room. We started traveling together as a little squad. I’m still in touch with them to this day.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Places for Working?

Co-working space are my go-to place since they have reliable Wi-Fi and free tea. Since they are meant for work, they usually have nice comfortable chairs and big desks that make it easy. As a member of We Work I can usually find a location when I travel.
Otherwise, I look for café that isn’t too busy, has nice tables, a good coffee list, power, and Wi-Fi.
If I can’t find one of the first two options, I’ll work from anywhere. Traveling makes you good at working from anywhere because you have to. If you hope to get anything done, you have to get good at working from uncomfortable places.

What Are the Top Three Roadblocks You See People Face When Traveling?
I’ve talked with a lot of travelers over the years. I usually see the same three roadblocks preventing people from traveling. They prevented me from traveling for a long time, too!

Those three roadblocks are money, fear, and having the right mindset.

People think you need to be rich to travel the world. You don’t. By using the sharing economy and learning how to save money on accommodation and flights, you can travel for almost nothing. It won’t be glamorous, but it will still be travel!

Fear is the next most common roadblock for new travelers — especially US travelers.

As long as you do your research and use common sense you can avoid the vast majority of problems and travel scams. The world isn’t nearly as scary as it seems. But you’ll never know unless you get out there and see it for yourself.

You need to have the right mindset. Travel has never been more affordable or Accessible. Yet people think you need to stay in fancy hotels and only go on tours. You don’t. If you want to travel the world, you first need to change your mindset.


What Are Your Top Three Keys for Dealing with Those Roadblocks?
These days, there are a ton of different ways to save money for travel. And travel for cheap.

You can pick up a side hustle before you go. You can volunteer while you’re abroad using websites like Workawayor HelpX. There are lots of ways for you to save tons of cash for your travels. And don’t forget to use the sharing economy! Platforms like Airbnb and Couchsurfing can help you find cheap accommodation. BlaBlaCar is great for rideshares. And EatWith is a cool app for unique dining opportunities.

Embrace the sharing economy and you’ll have a cheaper, more authentic trip.

If fear or anxiety is your primary concern, the best way to overcome your travel fears is to connect with other travelers who have done what you want to do. Join travel groups on Facebook. Attend travel events in your community. Meet other travelers and see for yourself just how possible it is.

And when it comes to changing your mindset, the best way to start is to do research.

There are tons of blogs and books out there that can show you how to embrace the life of a budget traveler. Including my first book, How to Travel the World on $50 a Day. By reading about the lifestyle you’ll begin to see limitless options. No trust fund necessary.
What Are Your Top Three Pearls of Wisdom for People Who Want to Travel More?
The best thing you can do is to take action today. Don’t wait or put your plans on the backburner.

Ask yourself what you can do right now to get yourself closer to your next trip. You can start a travel savings account. Or buy a guide book. Or cut back on your daily spending. Baby steps are all you need. Do something today to get started.

Action begets action. Within no time, you’ll be heading out the door!

To make the process of traveling more affordable, sign up for a travel credit card. This will help you start earning points. And eventually earn yourself a free flight or hotel stay. I’ve saved thousands of dollars over the years and enjoyed dozens of free flights and hotel stays. All because I learned how to travel hack. You can do the same.

Stay inspired! Join a travel community. Learn a new language. Read travel books. Watch travel movies. This will keep you interested and engaged and wanting to make your next trip happen. It will feed the fires as you save money and plan. Keeping the desire alive as you get closer to your next trip.


What Are the Top Three Ways You Keep Motivated During an Intensive Travel Period?
I try to work hard before my travels. So, when I’m on the road I don’t actually need to worry about working while traveling. I find this helps me enjoy my travels more and stay relaxed. Working and traveling can be stressful, and it’s not worth it for me. I’d rather focus on work when I’m at home and then focus on my travels when I’m on the road.

For longer trips that isn’t possible. I make sure to travel slowly. Instead of three to four days in a city, I’ll spend five to eight. That way, I have time to see the sights and get my work done without stressing.
What Top Three Non-nomadic People or Books Have Influenced Your Lifestyle?
I’m always on the lookout for a good book to read. I’ve read a ton of travel books over the years. I also make sure to read a lot of non-travel books that can help me with my business and my personal development. These three books that have had a huge impact on my life and business.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
Quiet by Susan Cain


What Were Some Surprises That You Learned When Living Abroad?
Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to live in Bangkok, Taipei, and Paris. Each experience offered some amazing opportunities. They were very formative experiences. I realized two things.

First, life won’t happen unless you make it happen. Life isn’t going to be non-stop adventure if you sit inside all day. You have to get out there. You have to go to events. You have to talk to people. You have to make an effort. It’s hard. You’ll fail a few times But without getting out there, you’ll never have the exciting expat life you daydream about.

Second, you’re more capable than you think. I came to Bangkok with no friends or support system. I left with a life. I met a person who introduced me to another and then another and then another. Action begets action and, by the end of it, I had a job, friends, and a girlfriend. I made it. I thrived. I met 18 year old kids out of high school with no life experience thriving too. Anyone can do it if they are willing to make it work. If you’re willing to get out there, you can succeed.

I was a shy, introverted kid from Boston with little life experience and I made it work. If I can make it work, so can you!
What about You?
Which of Matt’s tips resonates most with you? We’d love to hear about it in the comments section. And to our Add1 participants, best of luck on your language adventure!

Want to learn a new language in 90 days? Come join us in Add1.

A big thank you to Matt for sharing his travel strategies with us. To learn more about Matt, you can visit his website. His brand new travel memoir, Ten Years a Nomad is available now.

The post Language Mentors #5: Matt Kepnes (New York Times Best-Selling Author, 11 Years of Travel and Counting) appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

Do Multilingual People Earn More Money?

If you’re looking for a better job, a better salary, and international opportunities, learning a new language would be your first step towards success.
Do Multilingual People Earn More Money?
Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, speaks English and Chinese. Michael Bloomberg, billionaire businessman and philanthropist, speaks English and Spanish. Leo Apotheker, of SAP and Hewlett Packard, is fluent in German, Dutch, French, English, and Hebrew. Paul Bulcke, President of Nestle, can communicate in Dutch, French, English, Spanish, Portuguese and German. It’s extremely likely that the most successful people in your industry – whatever it is – speak more than one language.

This is partially due to the opportunities that knowing more than one language opens. For instance, as the leader of a global company present in 86 countries, Bulcke recognizes his multilingual expertise as a clear pro:

“Being multilingual creates a stronger connection with peers, employees, and consumers, which is critical for a business like ours.”

But language learning doesn’t only benefit workers who must establish close relationships with international stakeholders. Workers based in certain monolingual countries might have access to international opportunities, or opportunities from companies with an international presence and better salaries. Others, in multilingual countries, might have better and better-paying opportunities at a local level.

For instance, bilingual Canadians earn more than monolingual Canadians: for every $1,000 a monolingual francophone man earns in Quebec, one who knows but doesn't use English at work makes an additional $70, and one who knows and also uses English earns a further $139. For female workers, the difference is slightly more subtle, but still there.
What Language Should You Learn to Boost Your Earning Potential?
You might be wondering, what are the best languages to learn to be successful?

There isn’t a one-fits-all answer to this question. It varies greatly, depending on one’s industry and location.

For instance, for trade-related reasons, the Confederation of British Industry promotes the learning of French above any other language, especially after Brexit.

On the other hand, Spanish is the language of the fastest growing American market segment. So if you’re an American businessperson, that might be the best option for you.

Let’s take a look at the pros of different options:
English is the Internet’s Lingua Franca
If it’s not your mother tongue, I’d recommend you work to achieve English fluency. Not only is it the second most spoken language on earth, but it’s also the language most commonly used to bridge cross-cultural conversations.

In 1995, while exploring the idea of a constructed universal language (what Esperanto tried to be), Finnish IT specialist Juka Korpela referred to English as “the universal language on the Internet.“

Writing for Omniglot, Carlos Carrión Torres defended the idea of English as a lingua franca:

“English is without a doubt the actual universal language. It is the world's second largest native language, the official language in 70 countries, and English-speaking countries are responsible for about 40% of world's total GNP. English can be at least understood almost everywhere among scholars and educated people, as it is the world media language, and the language of cinema, TV, pop music and the computer world. All over the planet people know many English words, their pronunciation and meaning.”

The international teams I work with use English as their lingua franca. So, in a sense, every member of our company is an example of how learning a second language can open professional doors.
Mandarin Chinese, the Most Spoken Language on Earth
Mandarin Chinese is the most spoken language on earth and the official language of an industrial powerhouse. Learning Mandarin Chinese can translate into opportunities in some of the companies leading the way in tech and manufacturing.

Mandarin Chinese is spoken by approximately one billion people located across China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Brunei, Philippines, and Mongolia. 14% of the world population speaks this language, and it can open doors for you in more places than just China.
Chances Are You Know Someone Who Speaks Spanish
Spanish is the fourth most spoken language on earth, but it’d be second on the list if only native speakers were considered. Spanish is the official language of 20 countries distributed in three continents and has a strong presence even in countries where it’s not the official language. A clear example would be the United States. Marketing a consumer good in the United States without localizing it for Hispanic audiences means losing a demographic of millions of people with a great and growing buying power.

Plus by learning Spanish, you are also making it easier to learn Portuguese, Italian, French or any other Romance language.
Arabic Is Your Golden Ticket to the Middle East
Arabic is the fifth most-spoken language on earth. The Middle East is rich in resources and the UAE is growing at an amazing rate. It’s also worth noting that Arabic is rarely spoken as a second language, which is a clear plus. It’s a highly useful, rare skill, which adds up to its “market value”.

Not only does Arabic facilitate incredible professional opportunities, but it also eases the learning of other languages, since it shares vocabulary with Urdu, Turkish and Farsi. Since Arab is in the same linguistic family as Hebrew, it also makes grasping Hebrew’s grammar far easier.
German: The Most Sought-After Language in Tech & Trade
According to the aforementioned report by the British Council:

“Germany is the world’s third largest contributor to research and development, making German particularly important for scientific research and placing it in second place after English as the most important scientific language.”

Some 45% of trade-related job postings in the UK mention German as, if not a requirement, a clear plus.

Due to its commercial, technological, financial and diplomatic relevance, I don’t hesitate to say that if you’re European and aspire to get far in any of those fields, German is a must.
Be Ahead of the Curve: Learn Hindi
Hindi also holds a place in the list of most spoken languages on earth, with around 336 million speakers. And, according to the India Brand Equity Foundation:

“India has emerged as the fastest growing major economy in the world and is expected to be one of the top three economic powers of the world over the next 10-15 years, backed by its strong democracy and partnerships. India’s GDP is estimated to have increased 7.2 percent in 2017-18 and 7 percent in 2018-19.”

As the home of more than 4,750 tech start-ups, India is full of opportunities. And, especially in Europe and the Americas, Hindi is a rare second language.
Whatever Your Industry, Russian Is a Plus
As the native language of 140-150 million people, the eighth most used language on the internet, and one of the UN’s official languages, Russian is an interesting choice, to say the least.

Russia is a BRIC country: One of the four greatest growing economies in the world. And, with its enormous territory and singular past, it is as rich in culture as it is in natural resources.
Whether you’re a history professor or a petroleum engineer, learning Russian could be the key to the career you’ve always dreamed of.

British journalist Bridget Kendall once said that deciding to learn Russian was probably “the best decision she ever made”:

“Not only did it unlock the door to a wonderful culture (…) it also meant I got the chance to study there for two years and see a side of Russian life which – because of the Cold War – was almost unknown to foreigners. Being able to speak Russian helped launch me into my first job at the BBC and later into a career as a foreign correspondent, reporting first hand on the collapse of the Soviet Union, covering Washington politics, and travelling the globe to report from war zones and diplomatic summits, refugee camps and presidential palaces.”

Join a Diverse and Innovative Economy, Learn Japanese
Japan has the third biggest economy in the world and is the second largest investor in research and technology. As a leader in tech, the automotive sector and entertainment with international cultural and economic influence, it has innumerable opportunities for people of all walks of life.

A clear example, quoted in the British Council’s report on “Languages for the Future”, is retired international soccer player Gary Lineker:

“Speaking Spanish and Japanese has opened doors in my career and helped me bridge cultural differences, both in my personal and business life. […] During my football career I realised quickly what difference language skills can make.”

In Conclusion: Languages Can Advance Your Career
I grew up with a strong interest in languages. And as CEO of a translation company, I continued my language learning. Now, as a speaker of six languages, I’m able to easily communicate with co-workers, partners, and clients in more than 30 countries, without the help of our interpreters. This has made it possible for me to create invaluable business relationships and play a key role in establishing my company’s reputation internationally.

What about you? Do you speak a second language? Has that had an impact on your professional life? If so, how? Let me know in the comments below.

The post Do Multilingual People Earn More Money? appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

Language Mentors #6: Michelle Dale (6-Figure Digital Nomad, Speaks 4 Languages)

“Lose the perfectionism. The locals will be super-impressed that you’re actually trying.” - Michelle Dale

Travel is one of my absolute favorite things to do. That’s why I couldn’t wait to interview, Michelle Dale for our new Language Mentors series.

Michelle left the United Kingdom at the age of 23 to pursue a dream of real freedom, and she now lives and works abroad full time on her business Virtual Miss Friday. Through her business she supports people around the world in building an online business that they love -- so they can spend their lives travelling if they want to!.

This fun video gives a delightful peek into the digital nomad lifestyle that Michelle leads:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6iBp4DKEYc

Michelle speaks English, French, Arabic and Greek. Her children are multilingual as well. She covers a lot of ground in this interview. From living and working abroad to learning languages. It’s all here. So, let’s get started!
Language Mentors: Learn a New Language in 90 Days
Language Mentors is our new feature where we interview polyglots, language teachers, language learners and even folks from outside the field of language learning. We’re getting straight to the point, asking for their top tips on language acquisition, steadfast motivation, and rapid learning.

We want to give you the inside scoop on what it takes to learn a new language, fast (in as little as 90 days).

We’ve actually seen hundreds of people learn a new language to a conversational level in just 90 days. You can do it too by putting what you learn from our Language Mentors into practice.

And if you need extra support, then join us in Add1 -- where you’ll make lots of new friends who share your goal of learning a new language fast (plus you’ll have a 15 minute conversation in your new language after 90 days -- we guarantee it).

Read on to learn some of Michelle’s language learning secrets. And get to know some fun facts about the globetrotting polyglot at the same time.

[caption id="attachment_26241" align="aligncenter" width="384"] India: Enjoying family time during a business trip.[/caption]
What Are the Top Three Activities You Would Advise to Have a 15 Minute Conversation in a New Language after 90 Days??

Hang out with the locals. Ideally those who don’t speak much of your language. Cobble together a conversation using whatever words you know. Fill in the blanks with hand gestures. Don’t worry about making mistakes.
Use associations wherever possible. Anchor words in using smells, people, objects, places, sounds. For instance learn “what’s the time?” and every time you look at your watch, say it.
Have fun! Treat it like a game. How many words can you learn in a day and remember at the end? Write them all down. And aim for at least 5-10 per day. Try to use the ones you remember from the previous days in the following day.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Places for Studying a New Language?

It’s always the country where they speak the language It’s the quickest way to learn.
I like audio lessons as well. I go to a beautiful location, order a cocktail and chill out. I put my audio lessons on and relax into the learning experience.
With friends! I go out and do various activities with native speakers. I ask a lot of questions about how to say things during the activity. It could be as simple as ordering a drink. Or taking a boat trip.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Memories of a Language Win?

Learning some phrases that only the locals would know. And saying them randomly in conversations. It really makes people laugh and is a brilliant ice breaker.
Ordering my first taxi ride where I was directing him to where I needed to go without saying a word in English.
Haggling to get the local prices and not the tourist prices. Who’d of thought a language could save you money?

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Activities to Do in One of Your Target Languages?

Listening to music and singing in Arabic. There are some incredible lyrics that occur in foreign songs that you don’t often get in English. Songs tell you a lot about the culture, traditions. How people live and love.
Enjoying local family dinners and having conversations over good food. I love sitting down with people of all ages. Discussing what we’re eating. How it was cooked. Where the recipe came from. Where the ingredients came from. Food is a universal topic in any language.
Listening to stories. It’s so beautiful to be able to understand people's life experiences. We can learn so much about life from different cultures. We open up to new ideas and ways of thinking. We can take away life lessons of gratitude and get perspective.

[caption id="attachment_26242" align="aligncenter" width="384"] Paris, France: Michelle was pregnant with her first child. Now she has three.[/caption]
What Are the Top Three Roadblocks You See Learners Face?

Trying to be perfect all the time before you speak. It will never happen and slows down the whole process.
Trying to learn a language you don’t really enjoy. It can be much slower. I loved Arabic from the first word. I wanted to speak it, learn it and live it. I would always try through simply responding in Arabic when someone spoke to me in English. When I didn’t understand I would say so. Really wanting to learn because you have fallen in love with the language is what matters.
Boring methods of language learning. If you feel bored from the style of teaching, you will find it difficult to retain the words. Find the style of learning that suits you. If it’s textbooks, great! If it’s audios, super. Or if it is simply flying to the country and throwing yourself in the deep end, go for it.

What Are Your Top Three Keys for Dealing with Those Roadblocks?

Lose the perfectionism. Rome wasn’t built in a day and a language isn’t learnt in a day either, so it’s going to take time. Don’t feel embarrassed when making mistakes. The locals will be super-impressed that you’re actually trying.
Fall in love. Immerse yourself in listening first of all. Listen to music, listen to the TV, listen to people talking. If you love the sound of the language you know it’s the right one for you.
Try different styles of learning. Stick to the ones that engage you the most. Everyone can learn. It’s not about the language it’s about the interest.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Places to Practice Speaking a Target Language?

Coffee shops, restaurants and bars. Anywhere where there are lots of different people from all different walks of life.
Local friends and family homes. Travel is such a unique and social experience. Many places will welcome you with open arms.
Work! Take a job even if it voluntary or pays very little. It’s a great way to learn for a few hours a week or more. Pick grapes. Go to a children’s hospital. Whatever you fancy.

What Are Your Top Three Relaxing Study Habits for Laid Back Days?

Audios! Beach. Margarita. Audio language lessons.
Hanging out with friends and practising the language. It could be contributing to cheering on a football team, playing crazy golf or dancing. These aren't ‘heavy conversation’ activities. It’s a lighter way of speaking
Watching my favourite TV shows or movies. If you’re in the early stages of learning you might want to watch very familiar ones that are dubbed. Or choose ones with your native language subtitles. If you’re feeling brave skip the subtitles and see how much you can follow.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Cities?

El Gouna, Egypt. It’s the place I’ve chosen to keep as my base. It’s in my absolute favourite country. But it has many comforts and qualities of European life. It’s like having the best of both worlds. My kids go to British school here with a variety of children from all nationalities. This makes for a real multicultural upbringing. And it’s on the beautiful Red Sea with pretty much 365 days a year of sunshine!
Barcelona, Spain. It’s a city full of vibrant colours, history, culture and fun! I love watching the street entertainers. Eating the incredible food. And enjoying the beautiful walks down the old streets of the city. It’s a place that has something for everybody.
Tbilisi in Georgia. For me, this was a big surprise. In the spring and summer, Tbilisi has a lot to offer. It’s a mix of old and new. A melting pot of Eastern European and Arab cultures. Great cafes, food and nightlife. You can lose yourself in the incredible wine bars in the old town. It’s fairly cheap to stay and economical to eat with plenty of things to do.

[caption id="attachment_26243" align="aligncenter" width="384"] Michelle in Sahl Hasheesh, Egypt[/caption]
What Are Your Top Three Pearls of Wisdom for Language Learners?

Live it. You have to try to do ordinary day-to-day things in the language as much as possible. Shop at the supermarket and ask where the cheese counter is.
Love it. Immerse yourself. Enjoy the language so you don’t get that frustration when you can’t quite seem to remember that one word or phrase.
Use it. Don’t be lazy or shy. Whenever you have the chance to use the language, do it!

If You Were Going to Try the Add1, What Language Would Attempt to Learn?
Arabic. Because I love it and want to get better at it!
What Are Your Top Three Favorite Places for Working?

I absolutely love working from the beach. Be warned! If you want to record videos, don’t go on a windy day because the audio is terrible.
Cafes and bars, for sure. I sometimes (ahem) indulge in a glass of wine while running my business from my laptop.
Co-working spaces are usually a great way to meet like-minded people. And also get that feeling of being part of a group. Sometimes working online can get a bit lonely. Co-working spaces are a brilliant way to have the best of both worlds.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Digital Entrepreneur Tools?

My laptop and mobile phone. I would be completely lost without them!
Apps! I use apps for lists, for habits, for communication.. I love having everything organised and running smoothly. With so much to think about, apps are a huge help.
Something to take video and pictures. Being a digital nomad means you get to see so many awesome sights. You can work from amazing locations. It’s wonderful to be able to share that with the world and inspire others to live their dreams.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Memories of a Digital Entrepreneur Win?

I remember packing my life into two suitcases and thinking what the hell more do I need? Minimalism! I literally can pack up and move my life in a couple of days, it’s complete freedom when you don’t have a lot of stuff.
The moment I landed and got off the plane from my first one way ticket after leaving my country. I won’t lie. It was a scary thing for a 24 year old girl to start travelling alone. But the moment I landed I knew this was the life for me.
Being home with my kids. What more could any mother wish for? To have the freedom to work from anywhere. And the ability to be full time with your children. It’s something I will always have total gratitude for.

[caption id="attachment_26244" align="aligncenter" width="512"] Crete, Greece: Michelle and two of her little ones in their home[/caption]
What Are the Top Three Ways You Keep Yourself Motivated During an Intensive Work Period?

Take breaks. Nobody ever won a prize for making themselves ill with overwork. Take care of yourself so you can perform your work at optimal levels of productivity and focus.
Focus on the prize at the end. How you’ll feel once that project is complete. Or how happy you’ll be when your clients have their requests fulfilled. Or what you’re going to spend the money on. Give yourself a treat and something to look forward to.
Change locations. They say a change is as good as a rest. If you’ve been working out of the coworking space for a few days, switch to a nice little cafe. Or head to the beach bar. It will help change the mood. And give you a fresh perspective when things feel overwhelming or stale.

What Are Your Top Three Favorite Workday Rituals?

Journalling! The first thing I do every day is write in my gratitude journal. What was I grateful for the day before? Small wins are everything. I also review my goals and get clear on what I want to accomplish that day.
Visualisation. You have to live the dream in your head before you can make it a reality. I spend 10 minutes a day just seeing myself where I want to be in my mind. Living my life as if I’d already achieved my goals.
Do something for your own business. It’s all too easy to get caught up in working on client projects. Don’t neglect marketing and building on your own business. Or projects that really matter to you. It could be learning a new skill. Doing a business building activity. Working on self-development. Or networking.

What Top Three People Have Greatly Influenced Your Lifestyle?

Paul Scheele from Learning Strategies. He creates Paraliminals which help train your brain to shift old belief patterns. You can then easily focus on health, success and abundance. His work has really helped me maintain a positive attitude and stay focussed.
Carl Harvey who used to do the podcast called The Big Life for Mindvalley. He went on to start teaching his methods for business development. I took a course of his once to polish my webinar strategy. I ended up doing my first six figure gross sales launch using my experience and the things I’d learnt from his course. It was awesome.
The Nature of Personal Reality by Jane Roberts is a must read book. It's perfect for anyone wanting to explore spiritual growth. I applied a lot of what the book suggests into my own life. It is similar to The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles. Both are brilliant books that are well worth a read if you’re into creative self-development.

What about You?
Which of Michelle’s tips resonates most with you? We’d love to hear about it in the comments section. And to our Add1 participants, best of luck on your language adventure!

Want to learn a new language in 90 days? Come join us in Add1.

A big thank you for Michelle for sharing her language learning tips and winning travel strategies with us. To learn more about Michelle, you can visit her Facebook page or her website.

The post Language Mentors #6: Michelle Dale (6-Figure Digital Nomad, Speaks 4 Languages) appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

How to Learn Something New: An In-Depth Review of “Ultralearning” by Scott H. Young

Do you enjoy learning something new?

I do — yet until recently I'd never really asked the question of how to learn. What are the best learning methods?

Maybe you're like me. I like to push myself and learn new things. If that's you too, then read on.

In my 20s and 30s I've taken on learning projects around:

Drawing:

[caption id="attachment_27771" align="aligncenter" width="640"] A drawing I made following an online tutorial.[/caption]
Copywriting
Creative Writing
Crochet animals (amigurumi):

[caption id="attachment_27772" align="aligncenter" width="224"] This was my first amigurumi project.[/caption]

Basic html coding
Blogging
Dog training:

[caption id="attachment_27773" align="aligncenter" width="252"] My dog.[/caption]

Languages
Storytelling

Some of these projects have been a success — others I dropped without much progress. Some I keep returning to, others were one time projects that moved me forward in a particular skill.

The point is, I'm a serial learner. I've done plenty of self-directed learning projects.

So when I found out about Scott H. Young's book Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition and Accelerate Your Career  I was curious to read it.

But I was also skeptical.

On the one hand, I was aware of Scott's achievements (more on those in a moment) and I felt that Scott has learning superpowers that he couldn't possibly teach me.

On the other hand, I felt I knew a lot about learning new things. What could a book about DIY learning possibly teach me?

As it turns out, a lot.

Here's the story of how I became a better learner.
Meet Scott H. Young — He Learned 4 Languages in One Year


 

I should start by saying that Scott H. Young is someone I've long admired.

I first discovered Scott's writing back when I was obsessively reading blogs in 2007, and he's been on my radar ever since then. I was excited to meet him in person a couple of years ago through my work here at Fluent in 3 Months. Benny Lewis, the founder of this blog, is good friends with Scott and I met Scott in Ireland where we were both visiting Benny.

What impresses me about Scott is that he gets results.

He started blogging in his teens. He built up a successful blog through his clear, engaging writing style, and his ability to network with other bloggers.

But it was Scott's learning missions that really impressed me. In his ultralearning missions, Scott has:

Taught himself the entire four-year MIT computer science curriculum in just 12 months.
Learned four languages in one year (Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese and Korean) to a solid conversational level, spending just 3 months on each language.
Taught himself to draw realistic portraits in just 30 days.

[caption id="attachment_27774" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Scott's 30 Day Portrait Challenge[/caption]

I admire Scott's ability to learn. Yet even though I read his blog posts where he shared how he completed these projects, I still felt like he had a learning superpower that was out of my grasp.

Scott asked if I'd review his new book called Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition and Accelerate Your Career. Of course I said yes. I wanted to find the secret of his superpower!

I receiveda bound manuscript received from Scott's publisher so I could read it before publication.

I felt a buzz of excitement as I opened the first page.

[caption id="attachment_27776" align="aligncenter" width="300"] This is what a bound manuscript looks like.[/caption]
Ultralearning is All About How to Learn New Things Faster
Let's start with what Scott means by ultralearning.

Scott says that ultralearning is:

A strategy for acquiring skills and knowledge that is both self-directed and intense.

In other words, ultralearning is not about dabbling in new things here and there. That's what I've typically done when I want to learn something new.

Ultralearning means:

Choosing a specific thing you want to learn.
Coming up with a strategy for learning that thing.
Putting your strategy into practice. Often in an intense way — such as how Scott learned four new languages in a year.

According to Scott, ultralearning is a skill you can acquire. Once you have this skill, you'll be able to develop smart and fast strategies for learning anything. You'll also have more confidence in your ability to pick up new skills

To put it another way, once you have this skill — you're set for life.

Scott says that ultralearning can help you:

Accelerate the career you have
Transition to a new career
Cultivate a hidden advantage in a competitive world
Find new confidence
Change how you see yourself. You become aware that you might be able to do things that you couldn't do before

With all those big promises, I was excited to find out what new skills I could learn if I put ultralearning into practice.
What New Skills Can You Ultralearn?
Here are a few skills or areas of knowledge that are mentioned in Scott's book:

A new musical instrument
How to cook a specific style of food (Mexican, Indian, Italian)
Photography
Creative writing
A new language
Computer programming
Public speaking
Medicine
Design
Building a blog or website
Yoga
Military history
Chess
Drawing
Quiz Trivia / General Knowledge

You can use ultra learning to learn almost any skill or area of knowledge. You can use it for self-directed learning, or alongside a structured course at a university or college.

And Scott actually gets super specific with his examples.
This Guy Won $77,000 in a Single Day on the Quiz Show Jeopardy Was an Ultralearner:


What pulled me through the book is Scott's skill as a storyteller. Ultralearning is not a dry summary of learning techniques. Scott follows the fortunes of ultra learners as they take on huge learning feats.

These are ultralearners such as:

Tristan de Montebello — who was coached by Scott using the techniques Scott shares in his book. In 7 months, Tristan went from no public speaking experience to the finals of the World Championship of Public Speaking.
Benny Lewis (founder of this blog!) — who went from beginner German speaker to fluent German speaker in just 3 months.
Roger Alan Craig — who holds the record for the highest single day winnings on the quiz show Jeopardy — $77,000. Craig actually ended up wining over $200,000 during his first week on the show. This was after he followed a specific strategy to memorise quiz trivia.
Nigel Richards — who won the World Scrabble Championships in French despite not speaking the language, and spending only nine weeks preparing.

Here's what makes the book shine:

Scott doesn't just share what these (and many other) ultralearners achieved. He shares how they achieved it — the specific strategies and tactics they used to achieve their learning goal.

Scott had to dig deep to find these. He writes:

My research efforts frequently involved scouring a five-hundred-page biography for the several paragraphs in which concrete details about learning methods were mentioned in passing.

Scott not only shares these strategies and tactics -- he breaks them down into actionable steps, so they can be applied to other learning goals.

You're probably wondering "how does ultralearning work?"

I'll share how I applied it so you can see for yourself.
How I Learned to Mix Lofi Music in Just 2 Weeks
To put Scott's strategies into action, I decided to take on a new ultra learning project. I enjoy lofi hip hip — I find it helps me focus when I'm working — and I wanted to create my own lofi hip hop track.

I once tried music production as a teenager. After one song I gave up, because I wasn't completely happy with the results. This time I wanted to dig deeper. I knew I couldn't create the perfect song, but I wanted to create one I felt good about.

In his book, Scott shares nine principles of ultra learning. There were three I found particularly helpful in my music project — metalearning, directness and drilling.
Metalearning — Learning How to Learn
Metalearning is about discovering effective ways to reach your learning goal. You can do this by reading online forums, books, or asking other learners. Scott recommends spending 10% of the time you've dedicated to your learning project to metalearning.

As part of this, and through the learning process, Scott encourages you to have the courage to ask "dumb" questions. The idea is that by asking seemingly obvious questions, you'll discover things you weren't even aware you should be considering. Scott drew inspiration for this "dumb questions" technique from Nobel Prize Winning physicist Richard Feynman, who said:

"Some people think in the beginning that I'm kind of slow and I don't understand the problem, because I ask a lot of these 'dumb' questions."

For my own metalearning, I read a ton of online articles and forums. I tried out different tools and apps for making music. And I asked a friend who's an experienced musician and music producer about the process he uses to make music. This was especially helpful, as it opened my eyes to aspects of music production I wasn't even aware of.

Through metalearning I discovered the:

Best music production tool for me, that I could learn quickly. Plus the essentials of how to use it.
Basic structure of a lofi song.
Elements and layers that make up a lofi song.
Techniques for sampling to build a track of music.
Production techniques that give a lofi sound.

Once I knew this, I was ready to start making music.
Directness — Learn by Doing
Directness is about learning by doing, rather than learning by studying or reading. Once you've done your metalearning then you just get on and practice the skill you want to learn.

Do you want to speak Spanish in Latin America? Then speak Spanish, with Latin Americans. Do you want to learn how to draw in charcoal? The start drawing, in charcoal. Do you want to understand ancient history? Then start writing articles — or even a book — about ancient history. As far as possible, practice your new skill in a real world environment that's as close as possible to your learning goal.

Once I'd decided the best music production software for me, and read about how to create lofi songs, I just got started with making music.

Yes, some of what I did to start with was bad. Really bad. But that made me determined to work out where I'd made mistakes. As I discovered and analysed mistakes, I learned how to improve.
Drill — Focus on Your Weak Points
In previous learning projects, when I've had a weak point, I tend to ignore it or work around it, rather than work to improve it.

Making sure I focus on my weak points is the biggest change I'm going to make as a result of reading Ultralearning.

Scott calls this approach drilling. To drill, you break down the skill you want to learn into specific components. Then you create drills to work on the areas where you're weakest, the bottlenecks that are holding you back.

In my project to create lofi music, I quickly discovered a number of weak points.

One weak point was creating drum loops. To begin with, I followed my usual approach. I ignored it and focused on other aspects of music production. I used ready-made drum loops.

But I wanted to find a way to address this. So I have started "drilling" drum loops by downloading a drum machine to my phone. This means I can play around creating drum loops whenever I have a few spare moments.

For each of the nine ultralearning princples, Scott provides specific tactics you can apply to your own learning project.

One drilling tactic I found particularly useful in making music is the Copycat Method, which Scott learned from Benjamin Franklin.

To improve his writing skills, Benjamin Franklin would break down articles from his favourite magazine into an outline. Then he'd attempt to write the article himself from that outline. After he'd finished, he compared his attempt with the original. That way he could see the areas of his writing he needed to improve.

In my lofi music project, I've found it helpful to break down songs I like into their component parts -- drum loops, bass line, melody, chords, extra effects, overall arrangement. I've used what I found to build my own music.
Yes, I Really Made a Song
I was actually pretty happy with my results. It's not perfect, and I've still got a lot to learn. But here's a lofi song I mixed after less than two weeks of learning using Scott's ultralearning tactics:



There are dozens of tactics provided in Ultralearning. Depending on what you want to learn, some will be more useful than others.

That's one of the things I really liked about Ultralearning — you can build your own learning method using the tools Scott provides.
In Summary: Here's What I Learned from Ultralearning
Ultralearning is a skill you can develop. Anyone can get smarter at learning new things when they apply this skill.

From reading Ultralearning, I've addressed some of my own learning weaknesses and plan to use the following strategies in future learning projects.

Work towards a specific goal. For example, rather than saying "I want to learn to draw" I'd get more specific and say "I want to learn how to draw faces."
Investigate how others learn. To give structure to my learning projects, I plan to spend time discovering how other people have learned the skill I want to learn. That means I'll have a roadmap for my learning.
Push myself to go deep. Rather than working around my weak points, I want to identify them and address them.

Would I recommend Ultralearning? For anyone who is interested in learning new things, I recommend it. It's a book I'm planning to return to again and again — and it's one of my favourite works of non-fiction.

Do yourself a favour and pick up a copy of Ultralearning today.

 

The post How to Learn Something New: An In-Depth Review of “Ultralearning” by Scott H. Young appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.