minimalist lifestyle & travel
Being productive can be hard when you are constantly on the move and you don’t have a particular direction for growth. Maybe you feel stagnant, or maybe you just want to mix things up and do something new for a while.
Either way, this is just a quick post to share a few of the things that I’ve been learning lately—things that you might find beneficial as well (that are also free!). If this list isn’t extensive enough for you, pop over here to see a similar list I created a while back.
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The trick to learning any language is to find a way to immerse yourself in it–really consuming as much as you can all the time. That means that, rather than designating an hour here and there for study, you should be trying to incorporate the language into your everyday life and hobbies.
If Spanish speaking is your current language goal, you’ll find that it’s incredibly easy to find ways to fill your life with the language. With that said, here are a few ways to immerse yourself this weekend.
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When I arrived in Iceland, I really had no idea how the naming structure worked. Sure, I’d noticed the plethora of names that ended in “sson,” but I assumed it was just a trend without thinking about the true meaning.
It wasn’t until an Icelandic woman gave me a little lesson on naming that I really began to understand the unique methods and pride in names that exists on this island of Vikings.
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I grew up in Canada, meaning I learned French for around 10 years during my schooling. However, it wasn’t until I was well into my university years that I actually developed a real interest in learning languages. Since then, I’ve dabbled in a few, but I always came back to Spanish.
I did take two intro Spanish courses in university, but took a year-long break from learning while I lived in South Korea. When I came back, I began to meet with a private tutor once a week to practice and learn.
Aside from my weekly meetings, I’ve tried out a looottt of different learning resources. These are the ones that have stuck with me:
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Here’s the truth: if you want to become fluent in a second language, 10 minutes of practice a day is going to take you a verrrrry long time (is it even possible?). However, once you get past that initial burst of motivation that comes with starting something new, it can get tough to keep up the progression.
Ten minutes a day is better than no minutes a day, and knowing that you have an easy daily goal can make it a lot easier to get started.
Here are a few suggestions to get you started:
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I recently played To the Moon, an indie adventure RPG. What does this have to do with language learning specifically? Very little.
But, not to get too much into the story, there is something relevant to it. The game is based on the idea that if we always felt the initial motivation that we had when we first came up with an idea, we would almost certainly achieve it. Motivation fades over time as the newness of an idea wears off.
For instance, imagine that one day you decided that you wanted to learn oil painting. On the day of the first lesson, you would be very enthusiastic about the idea. Over time this level of excitement would dwindle. You might never learn because the idea never really stuck. It takes work to change or learn something new. This is what really sucks motivation away. If you could alter your mind so that the same level of motivation on the first day was what you felt every day, no problem.
Unfortunately, you can’t do that (to my knowledge). However, you can make efforts to revive your motivation throughout the process.
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As a Canadian, I’ve grown up learning French since I was around 9 years old. Back then it was just another school subject that we had to do, a benefit if you were looking for a certain type of job in Canada….
