Learning a new language requires several habits. Without the right mindset, learning a language may seem dreadful.
The good news is the following habits will help to make the language learning experience more fun and stress-free.
1. Desire to learn.
Without desire, it is impossible to succeed in anything. Therefore we need an internal push to direct our focus on what we are trying to accomplish.
The same strategy applies to learn a new language.
How can we have a desire?
Think about what are you trying to accomplish by learning a new language. Usually, dreams are what fuel desires.
So, thinks about your dreams often to be in the right mindset.
2. Always build your foundation.
This means starting from the beginning. If you do not know the basics of a language, you won’t be able to master it.
Think about a house. If you do not build a concrete slab to build a house on, or if you have missing bricks, you won’t be able to build a permanent house.
That’s why learning from the bottom to the top is effective means to learn any language.
If we understand the language from the beginning, the learning process becomes easy and enjoyable.
3. Learn, do not memorize.
It was my first mistake. In the beginning, I thought that I needed to memorize as many words as I can to master the language.
I set myself a goal to learn 25 words each day. However, those memorized words did not settle in my mind that well. In another, I forget them soon.
Then, one of my teachers suggested me to learn the words instead of memorizing them.
What is the difference?
For me, memorizing refers to repeating information, in this case, a word, several times so it may stick to our mind.
Learning refers to getting a greater understanding of specific information or word, and be able to use it in real life.
Concisely, using new words inside the sentences or conversations make them settle into our mind more effectively.
4. Be consistent
Do not put long periods between each lesson. Repeat what you are learning and add new vocabulary daily.
Consistency is key to success in everything we do. Giving up because of difficulty is not an option if you are truly trying to learn a new language.
Consistency also helps not forget what we have already learned.
5. Watch movies
Watching a movie in a language you are learning produces better results.
By watching a movie, you may learn the following:
- Usage of words
- Pronunciation words
- The conversational tone of sentences and statements
- And sentence structures
Additionally, you may find common words that are being used quite often by native speakers.
You may make a list of those words and learn them later.
6. Read books and texts
There is no need to tell the benefits of reading. Reading improves our train of thought and improves our vocabulary.
Also, submerging our thought into the books creates curiosity in our mind. In turn, that curiosity creates a desire in us to understand the book’s content.
7. Try to have dialogue in a new language
Dialogues can be done in two forms: written and spoken.
Both of these forms are effective as they give us a chance to use what we have learned in practice.
You can have dialogues by networking with others in the local community (spoken) or social media (written).
8. Test your knowledge regularly.
To track your progress, we need to test ourselves regularly.
This can be done by taking an online test. There are so many free tests you can take for each level.
Consider the test scores as your progress in the new language. It will help you detect your strengths and weaknesses.
And weaknesses always needs to be improved to progress forward.
9. Keep a dictionary with you.
Curious questions are usually ones that stick to our minds.
By saying curious questions, I mean the instances where we meet certain objects and we are curious to know their translation in a new language.
For those reasons, a dictionary is an effective tool to indulge our curiosity.
We are currently living in a technological era. We no longer need to carry around thick dictionaries. Instead, we can install dictionary apps on our mobile phones.
10. Ask questions
It is one of the best behaviors to have in the language journey. Asking questions about the things we do not understand helps us to stay on track during the learning process.
Ask questions from your teacher, tutor, or your fellow coursemates if you do not understand something.
Being shy to give questions is not an option because it misses our chances of learning important information.
