Beyond Bounds Blog

The first part of deciding whether or not you should learn a new language was based on your motivation. Motivation could be broken down into practicality and interest. In order to have proper practical motivation, the new language must have visual benefits to your life now or in the short-term. Language is a tool, and we don’t need to obtain that tool before we need it, as we could use the time somewhere else that will benefit our life sooner, and if we learn it too soon it will start to “rust” before we need it. We will burn out quick learning to use a tool we aren’t ready to use. However, there is more to the story…

Interest:

Part of motivation is interest. Interest stems from curiosity. Not everyone is curious about the same things, but if you are considering learning a new language then you are already curious about other cultures. This is a spark. That first spark is actually the hardest part in developing strong interest in learning a new language, and most people do not have that spark. If everyone had that spark then learning a new language wouldn’t help us so much in our career as the market would be full of multi-lingual people; however, the world would be much better off.

Congratulations on having the spark. If you don’t, then promptly turn away. If you are a super disciplined individual that needs no motivation in life to achieve, then you are probably a robot. Go find your real passions and spend your time there, not doing things that you have no interest in. Now, for everyone else that does have the spark, do you fan the spark into a flame, or do you deprive it of the oxygen needed to grow? This is where courage comes in.

Courage

Courage is the deciding factor for motivation - the fan for the flame. There are countless people wandering around China that had the spark and took steps toward making it practical to learn the language, but are missing the courage it takes to take language learning to the next level.

Why Courage and what is it? A new language means a new way of thinking; this is pretty much the definition. New ways of thinking scare people, because their comfortable lifestyles, morality, and conventional wisdoms get challenged on the most fundamental level. You don’t have to accept other ways of thinking, but facing the challenges has benefits; this is where courage comes in. Every time you read new material in a new language or socialize with people from another country or culture, you will find yourself face to face with things that will probably make you feel uncomfortable in some way. It takes someone with the courage to be able to face this day in and day out openly to be successful in learning a new language. Courage allows you to step out of your comfort zone.

When I first came to China I was set on 6 months of pure Chinese. I promised myself that I wouldn’t speak a world of English and would force myself to speak in Chinese, and if I couldn’t express myself I would be silent. I didn’t anticipate that I was the ONLY foreign student who wanted to do this. I loved the challenge and struggle to use a new language to express myself. The other students were intimidated by this and labeled me “la la,” which means “spicy” in Chinese - because I was the most intense student there. Really, I was the most courageous one and savored the challenges. They wanted to keep thinking and speaking in English, then continue to learn in the traditional classroom method lead by a teacher: the safe way. Coming to China certainly does increase your chances of learning as some things are learned due to absolute necessity and others by osmosis, but this only works to a certain point, and that point is not very high.

Most of the foreign students quickly settled into routines that involved American TV shows, McDonalds runs, and bars. I ate in the local cafeteria eating the local food and trying to converse with locals. I remember the first time I talked to a local. The conversation went something like this:
Me: Hi, What’s your name?
Her: sdkjflksdfjkldsfjldsf (I couldn’t understand a word)
Me: I’m Jason. What are you eating?
Her: hahaha, LKjksjfkljsdlfkjsdklfjsdlkfj (I didn’t understand anything)
Me: Nice to meet you!
Her: kjsldkfjskdfjksldjfklsdf
There were 3 people with her, all listening intently. Actually, half of the room was staring at me. If you go to Asia you get a lot of attention, whether or not you speak the language. This can make people very uncomfortable. Even though I had already been learning Chinese for a year, I still couldn’t understand simple things when locals talked to me casually. This person didn’t slow down for me, which I thank her for now. Imagine learning Chinese for 4 years and then realizing that you still can’t keep up in a conversation in a real situation. I’ve seen this happen too many times.

Learning a new language and connecting with people of other countries and cultures doesn’t have to be hard, but if you lack courage it will be an uphill battle and you will feel very discouraged. Look at the way you interact with the world - do you like the safety of a classroom setting where you and your friends can laugh at all of the crazy customs you hear about, or do you like to go out and talk to strangers and try the crazy customs because, heck, maybe you’ll like them better than your customs? If you are the first kind, then I say pass on learning a new language - it’s not for you. You can try, but after 4 years in the classroom at home, or 10 years teaching English and “tutoring” and you are still struggling to talk to someone about the current world political situation in your new language don’t blame me. If you succeed, I’ll be very surprised. Good luck.

Are you strong headed in your opinions? Do you have a tough time listening to people who have a different opinion than you? Does the idea of moving to another country scare you? These are all questions that will tell you if you can be successful in learning another language or not. You know the answers.

It’s hard to determine exactly how much courage it takes to learn a new language, but definitely the more the better. Language is a communication tool, so the more barriers you place in the way of your ability to communicate will exponentially decrease your ability to learn a new language. When we were first born we had no fears and thus didn’t need courage. We accepted everything we saw and heard. As we get older we get more set in our ways; your ego and attachment to the comfort you’ve already gained keeps you from reaching the best results.

Make the right decision

I love learning language and my long term goal is to learn at least 5 languages. Just a few months ago I picked up Korean materials and wanted to learn. I didn’t have the proper motivation and it was a struggle to keep it up, and that’s when I realized the truth. Interest isn’t enough on its own - it just wasn’t practical for me to learn because there are no Koreans around me and I don’t plan on going to Korea this year. On the other hand, practicality isn’t enough either, as I’ve seen with so many foreigners in China. I decided that learning a new language isn’t right for me right now, but I will eventually learn, when the time is right, or I can create practicality for myself. Is it time for you to learn?

If you can gain the courage to set your ego aside, pour your heart into language and have the proper motivations to learn, you will be successful. Of course it takes a little more than that, but now all of the hard work you put into learning the language will be of use. Learning language for everyone else feels like an impossible task - it’s because they shouldn’t be learning it in the first place. Decide if learning language is right for you at this moment, then proceed.