The Seven Secrets of Successful Language Learning: #2 Do What You Like To Do

Hi. This is Steve Kaufman again talking about "The Seven Secrets of Successful Language Learning".

You remember the first secret was spending the time every day, if possible, and for a long enough period of time to achieve your goal. The second secret, in my opinion, is to do what you like doing. Errr... This is very important. You don't enjoy studying the language you won't put in the time. So it's important that you do the thing that you like doing.

Now I can tell you what I like doing but I can't tell you that you should do what I like doing because you may not like doing them. What I like doing, what I think extremely effective, is listening and reading. Okay? I think that when you are listening and reading you're relying entirely in your imagination to convert all these words into the meaning. And, to me, that's more intense learning environment than, say, watching videos. But there are other people who like to watch videos and who will watch videos over and over again. I can't do that. So it's not something that I should do because I don't like doing it. Similarly, someone who doesn't like listening or reading, to my mind, they're missing out on something. They probably feel the same with me about not watching videos but they should, then, do what they like to do.

Errr... I see advice, and I should continue a little bit about listening and reading and my strategy there. When I start up with the language, I will listen quite often to short base of content until I understand fifty, sixty, seventy, seventy percent then I move on the next item, but I'll listen quite often to a beginner content. I always want to read whatever I listen to and I want to listen to whatever I read at certainly in the beginning period. That's what I like doing. Uhmm... The other thing is I listen to things that I like. I listen to content what I like the voice. I listen to the things that I'm interested in. So I very much like to do what I like to do and that this be going. Uhmm... I know there are some people who like to speak right away. I don't like doing that. So I don't do it. Errr... There are some people who like to write, who like to answer questions. I hate answering questions, drills, you know, find the verb, redo this sentence or comprehension questions about what I have listened to or read. Some people like to translate. I know, look at, an excellent polyglot likes to translate what he has just listened to into his own language. I don't like doing that.

So, I think, to be a successful language learner you have to enjoy the process, you have to put in the time. So you have to decide what it is you like doing. Do you like listening and reading? Do you like watching videos? Do you like just going out and hanging out with people, if that opportunity is available to you? As I said, I, personally, I don't like doing a lot of speaking until I have enough of the language, enough words, enough familiarity with the language but others do. So it is important to do what you like to do. That's gonna be a major condition for success because if you like doing it then, all of a sudden, it's the process of language learning that becomes its own reward. And, as one of LinkQ members said when I met him in Osaka, Japan, he said, in language learning, there's no finish line. It's the process itself that is the reward if we do what we like to do. So that's my second secret in language learning: Do what you like to do but continue doing it.

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Robbie June 3, 2012 12:56

Thanks for the transcription you included here. This would be helpful to EC members who'll watch this video. : )
Chandra March 24, 2012 15:50

Hi. This is Steve Kaufman again talking about "The Seven Secrets of Successful Language Learning".

You remember the first secret was spending the time every day, if possible, and for a long enough period of time to achieve your goal. The second secret, in my opinion, is to do what you like doing. Errr... This is very important. You don't enjoy studying the language you won't put in the time. So it's important that you do the thing that you like doing.

Now I can tell you what I like doing but I can't tell you that you should do what I like doing because you may not like doing them. What I like doing, what I think extremely effective, is listening and reading. Okay? I think that when you are listening and reading you're relying entirely in your imagination to convert all these words into the meaning. And, to me, that's more intense learning environment than, say, watching videos. But there are other people who like to watch videos and who will watch videos over and over again. I can't do that. So it's not something that I should do because I don't like doing it. Similarly, someone who doesn't like listening or reading, to my mind, they're missing out on something. They probably feel the same with me about not watching videos but they should, then, do what they like to do.

Errr... I see advice, and I should continue a little bit about listening and reading and my strategy there. When I start up with the language, I will listen quite often to short base of content until I understand fifty, sixty, seventy, seventy percent then I move on the next item, but I'll listen quite often to a beginner content. I always want to read whatever I listen to and I want to listen to whatever I read at certainly in the beginning period. That's what I like doing. Uhmm... The other thing is I listen to things that I like. I listen to content what I like the voice. I listen to the things that I'm interested in. So I very much like to do what I like to do and that this be going. Uhmm... I know there are some people who like to speak right away. I don't like doing that. So I don't do it. Errr... There are some people who like to write, who like to answer questions. I hate answering questions, drills, you know, find the verb, redo this sentence or comprehension questions about what I have listened to or read. Some people like to translate. I know, look at, an excellent polyglot likes to translate what he has just listened to into his own language. I don't like doing that.

So, I think, to be a successful language learner you have to enjoy the process, you have to put in the time. So you have to decide what it is you like doing. Do you like listening and reading? Do you like watching videos? Do you like just going out and hanging out with people, if that opportunity is available to you? As I said, I, personally, I don't like doing a lot of speaking until I have enough of the language, enough words, enough familiarity with the language but others do. So it is important to do what you like to do. That's gonna be a major condition for success because if you like doing it then, all of a sudden, it's the process of language learning that becomes its own reward. And, as one of LinkQ members said when I met him in Osaka, Japan, he said, in language learning, there's no finish line. It's the process itself that is the reward if we do what we like to do. So that's my second secret in language learning: Do what you like to do but continue doing it.
Chandra March 19, 2012 5:42

Hello Irina and Bassem. Thanks for liking this video. And thanks too to you who have watched this. I hope we all will get the benefit from this polyglot's advice.

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