Category: Languages

There are some obvious benefits to bilingualism. You can make more friends, study at overseas schools, and get your foot in the door for a wider range of jobs all around the world. However, there are also several benefits you might not expect. Knowing a second language changes the way you think and interact with the world. (Note: […]

Learning a foreign language is difficult in general. But while reading, listening, and writing have their own challenges, speaking is by the far the most difficult skill to master. When I was in language school, we had to take a proficiency test before graduation. Almost everyone scored lower on the speaking portion than on the […]

Transcription is simply the act of writing down what you hear. You’re not providing any analysis or interpretation, and you’re definitely not translating anything. All you’re doing is putting spoken words down on paper. It’s pretty straightforward, sure. But just because it’s simple doesn’t mean it’s easy. If you’re trying to learn a foreign language, […]

This morning I had a much needed break from work and discovered a truth about life in general and language learning specifically. Even though I live in Germany, I work for an American company that follows the American holiday schedule. Today is the American holiday of Labor Day, so I got to stay home while […]

I’ve heard people say that Americans smile too much, and that it feels phony. For sure, here in Europe, I’ve discovered that people are generally more reserved. I live in the Swabian region of Germany, and the Swabians in particular have a reputation for being gruff. At my local supermarket (Edeka),  for example, going shopping […]

A couple months ago I stumbled across a new website called italki, which describes itself as a “language learning social network.” On italki, you can meet strangers from all over the world and practice your language via one of three arrangements: Language exchange – Meet someone who speaks the language you’re learning, who also is […]

With languages, I definitely tend to use a lot of what I call “organic” learning methods. Actually using the language–reading, listening, speaking, and writing it–is vital in the language acquisition process. That doesn’t mean, though, that I never study. Almost every successful language learner I’ve ever met sits down and studies. Specifically, they study vocabulary […]

Well, it’s probably not the best thing in the short term. But if you “fail forward”–that is, improve from the experience–then it’s one of the best things you can do to succeed in the long term. My friend John from Leith Literary recently linked to a great article in the New York Times titled “Why […]

Three weeks ago, I admitted I was losing steam with German. But instead of giving up and saying auf wiedersehen to German forever, I went on a 21-day project to find my lost motivation. No, this isn’t phoney baloney blog hype. I’m not just trying to tell you a good story. I was seriously getting […]

Everyone knows the massive benefits bilingualism has on brain function, making it easier to learn a third language and even staving off dementia. But what about a second language’s effect on personality? More and more studies are showing that second languages can affect a person’s perception, resulting in changed actions and personality than when speaking […]