Tips and Reasons

Learning a new language is difficult for many and easy for few. It is easier learning a language that has the same root words with similar characters to your native language, compared to learning one with a completely different history and background. To learn Japanese is harder compared to Latin, for a native English speaker. Currently, I am learning Arabic which has many similar words to my mother tongue Urdu. This makes it a little easier for me to grasp the meanings and usage of words.

The tips that I have compiled here will help people create a road map to achieve language proficiency.

1.) Get Disciplined and Committed

This is the step where most people fail. Take the Arabic classes I attend for an example. We started out with around 15 students on the first day. All of them displayed enthusiasm to learn the language, when the introductory class began. During the introduction, the instructors charted out how our course will progress over the next year. Their claim was to make us proficient in Arabic within one year, if the course structure was followed. This demanded 2 hours of homework everyday, apart from the class hours. As you might have guessed by now, only 6 students showed up on the second day.

Learning a language requires a great amount of discipline and commitment. There will be occasions where you feel like quitting. No one forces you to learn a language. Most likely, your livelihood may not depend on it either. However, if you are determined enough to finish what you start, then keep going and just ignore the thoughts that keeping telling you to quit. Keep thinking about the reason why you started it in the first place. In other words, think about the end result. Keep yourself motivated.

2.) Set Realistic Targets and Expectations

When starting off, set achievable short and long term targets. Look at how long it usually takes for a person of reasonable intelligence to learn the language you are trying to learn. Avoid sandbagging or setting highly ambitious and stretchy goals. You are learning something new, so you need to relax. Again, having the right expectations is closely linked to the first tip. Almost all of the people who decided to quit the first day expected the learning process to be different (read easy).

3.) Get a Good Teacher

This is the most important tip that I can give you. A good teacher or trainer is vital to learning a language. All those books out there that claim they will teach you a particular language in just 30 days never give results. They may only give you a brief idea of what the language is about. On the other hand, a good teacher is someone who knows the language well. They have experience teaching and trying different techniques and course structures. A teacher gives you direction and instills in you the discipline required to meet your goal. A teacher can answer almost any question you may have while learning, which a book may or may not address. Also, listening to your teacher teach improves your listening skills for that language, and helps you learn consciously and subconsciously.

4.) Focus on the Basics

The first major step in mastering any language is to be thorough in its basics. Know the grammatical concepts well with focus on sentence structuring. Once you get this right, its just adding vocabulary from here. The best thing is to attend professional language classes or training in your local area. Find a good teacher or institute which has consistently showed results.

5.) Read Stuff Other than your Text Books

Another way to improve your language skills is to read well written literature in that language. While reading your language text books is necessary, reading other stuff improves your vocabulary. When you read, make sure you make a note of the new words you come across. Find out what they mean. If you consistently do this, you are well on your way to having a vast vocabulary.

6.) Choose the Right Company

As mentioned in one of my previous posts, hanging out with the right kind of people helps in improving your language skills. Make friends with people who speak the language really well. I personally know people who learned Urdu, Malay, Arabic, Malayalam, etc. just by hanging out with native speakers.

Also, if its possible for you, move to a place where that language is widely spoken. I have seen people who have moved to an Arab country just to learn Arabic. Its just like how an infant learns a language by mere observation.

7.) Practice What you Learn

Finally, practicing what you learn is essential to make that language second nature. Keep repeating those new words you learn and try to use them in different sentences. This ensures that you commit them to your long-term memory. I’ve seen my nephew repeat new words that he just learned. I guess its a pretty natural way to build your vocabulary and sentence structuring.

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Whenever you plan to start learning a language, keep these tips in mind. If you are already learning one, measure yourself against these suggestions and see where you can improve.

All the best!

YHK