Language learning. Method, enjoy, have patience.

I would just like to share the similarity in learning new languages that I found and one method I've learned that maybe can help us.

As I try to make progress with my language learning, I try to always find other ways how to learn it more effectively. I also like to converse with other people who are learning the language as I do and see their progress and ask what they're doing. I've continued watching Youtube videos about it and this time the similarities in language learning that I learned was through your own method that you can enjoy and have the patience to learn it. 

Learning a new language is not really easy since we start but not knowing anything about it at all. And although we are motivated to learn the language, the motivation seems to fade away as time goes by without any considerable amount of progress.

Lydia Machova is a polyglot who also said the same thing. That people who learns new languages do so by finding ways to enjoy it. They create their own system or method on how they're gonna do it on their own little ways. Going to language classes is a good thing but instead of just sticking to their courses, you too must have your own method on how your are going to learn it.

One of the most funny and smart way she shared that I really liked is what her friend did using a group chat. Her friend added several friends in Russian. Then chatted one friend with hello, in Russian where he received another reply in Russian that he didn't understand. After he used a translator and found out what it means, he copied the reply, and sent it to another friend in the group chat and did the same thing again having the two people chat with each other with you as the middleman sending each of their replies while researching what the words mean. This way he got genuine conversations with that language and learned how the phrases are being used and so on.

Smart I would say. They all know they're in the group to learn new languages so it was okay anyway.

This is what I plan to try this week for myself while in search of other methods I can use to love learning a new language even more.

Do you guys also find other ways to love learning new languages? What do you think of this method by exchanging conversations in chats?

I liked the method you described, but I think those people were really lucky to find one another, because it takes a lot of patience, and we're lacking it nowadays. 

To me there's a difference between enjoying and being satisfied with a method, and being satisfied is sufficient to learn a language. I see there are many who feel you must enjoy the process in order to succeed; there are many polyglots who bet their livelihood on this by pushing products that are little more than pep talks. But I learn languages just fine, and am completely unable to quickly/artificially manufacture motivation. Either I have enough motivation to learn the language, or I don't. Actually, I consider this to be an advantage - I can tell right away if it's worth my while to devote myself to a language. Others, apparently, can't tell, and so they look to said polyglots to find ways to boost their motivation only to eventually find out that it doesn't work that way. 

Valeria.Fontes wrote:

I liked the method you described, but I think those people were really lucky to find one another, because it takes a lot of patience, and we're lacking it nowadays.

Yes that's true, somehow I do find a lot of us lack patience nowadays specially me. But once I identified that as my problem, I try to be patient more.

leosmith wrote:

I see there are many who feel you must enjoy the process in order to succeed; there are many polyglots who bet their livelihood on this by pushing products that are little more than pep talks.

I do agree there's a difference between enjoying and being satisfied with a method. I lack motivation and patience at most times when I'm learning my new language and I'm just glad to see other people like who can find other ways to solve this through other means. Makes learning new languages a lot more interesting now. For me at least. 

Just wanted to say that I watched the same TED talk from Ms Machova, and while I don't think it's always that easy to just sit and watch Friends in German and not get frustrated about not understanding anything, I can see her point and I do think that the best methods for learning languages (and anything else, really) are those that are both useful and enjoyable. I'd just add that learning isn't always fun, but even the not fun parts can be really satisfying to use once you do learn them.

Here's the TED talk if someone is interested in watching it:

Well basically it seems you are all saying the same things but in different ways.

Let me try and sum up

The best way to learn a langage is to be exposed to authentic materials. friends from the target country , to watch movies , read books in the langage and may i dare say to hook up with a native langage teacher , 

Also whatever you enjoy doing in your own language try and do it in the foreign langage. If you like cooking and you want to learn Greek why do not get yourself a receipe written in Greek and try it out. It does not even have to be Greek food for those who like me think it is too fatty. Apologies if there are any Greek around.

If you like museums same idea etc

Another issue is to try to stimulate all your cognitive areas. In langage learning traditionnally those four are said to be the most important reading , writing , speaking and listening.  

If i may a fifth one is often overlooked. Whatever you are doing it must be pleasurable so that it triggers the right center in your mental equipment. So it is important to achieve th right balance between the different activities and different key skills so as to learn exponentially 

Serge