Hacking language learning: Benny Lewis at TEDxWarsaw

"Some people just don't have the language learning gene." To prove that this statement is patently untrue is Benny Lewis's life mission. A monoglot till after leaving university, Benny now runs the World's most popular language learning blog and is learning Egyptian Arabic which will be language number twelve, or maybe thirteen. But who's counting?

[@deelishussdee]

"There are 7 days in a week and someday isn't one of them." Lovely video.

[@xzy23jfeuwffb64]

Loved that line

[@user-xu4og3sh3l]

ثذبةچً

[@xarsheda]

thank you for helping me finish my assignment LMAOO

[@pixelzebra8440]

I’m currently reading the book and I thought the things he said sounded familiar and realized I heard it in this Ted talk!

[@irishpolyglot]

The t-shirt I wore in my other TEDx talk was even more distracting :P I promise I'll wear something plane in my 3rd talk! :D Glad you enjoyed it!

[@Sheetal-bn1td]

Hey i went to the website fluentin3months , is that free?

[@topenda574]

I have no idea if you'll ever actually see this lol. But, at the start when you were talking about finding a good motivation for learning, I was thinking "Oh, the only motivation I have is that I want to be able to talk to native speakers in this language, and that I suppose I enjoy music from that language." I may have teared up a little.

[@cpt4168]

Something plain would be even better! (Something plane would be super-distracting.)

[@pixelzebra8440]

Homophones

[@WORKFROMHOMEHACKER]

this ted talk has nothing to do with 'hacking languages' is more of a motivational speech as to why you shouldn't give up learning a language

[@WORKFROMHOMEHACKER]

***** The entire thing

[@tholaalw8647]

+Kenny J how about image visulation part he mentioned? Caber bear or something where bear is in a cab. I think that is kinda language hacking.

[@WORKFROMHOMEHACKER]

15 mins for one tidbit, that's a ton of fluff....

[@dbb2347]

You're right about how it is more of a motivational speech of language learning. At the same time, he is also telling us the mindset when it comes to learning languages.

[@popprincess3601]

It's kind of like how a successful business man can give you a talk about his struggle and his mindset in becoming successful and that, in turn, helped you to become successful but he can't list for you the legal steps in of opening a business or a proven theory. they're not scientists or carrer coaches, just successful people.

[@OktoPutsch]

(In France, people will correct your bad french, it's not to annoy you, contrary to what most shy foreigners tends to think, but to help you speaking better, simply. Just basic charity act)

[@tomrose2644]

+Okto Putsch When I went to France and I was ordering some food, after numerous 'pardons' from me, the guy seemed to get frustrated and started speaking in English

[@harounben342]

+Okto Putsch because their time is more precious than other human beings.

[@eddietemple2302]

+Haroun Ben Well... to be fair, a waiter doesn't have the time to stand around teaching a foreigner their language

[@harounben342]

Eddie Marais it's not about a waiter but french people in general.

[@michael2560]

+Haroun Ben I have no time to answer you, but you're wrong! (I'm joking ;-) )

[@charlottemund684]

don't be intimidated by speaking the language wrong to people, when i meet someone who knows little English, but is trying to communicate, i don't get annoyed, do you?

[@yothertother2244]

Well said!

[@seigeengine]

Actually a lot of people do.

[@CissneiSiri]

CharLotte Mund a lot of people makes fun of me online when i speak english, it's not my native tongue ^_^so yeah you are wrong.

[@seigeengine]

***** Yeah. I have some friends who aren't native English speakers and have quirks. I sometimes poke minor fun, but we're friends, and they understand that I don';t mean to insult them on their English, but am just being playful.

[@levitatedcat]

I'm a native english speaker born & raised in America, but my parents' first language is North African Arabic and some people are sometimes condescending to them for their strong accents & the occassional error. I think some native English speakers that have never attempted to learn another language tend to be the most judgmental about people messing up English. They simply don't understand just how difficult it is, and especially considering how English is the standard language of the modern Western world, they kind of expect proficiency and may get frustrated when someone struggles with it. Not everyone is like that though, I grew up hearing & learning Arabic, French, and English and I'm n the best at the first two because they're quite difficult, so I would never dare to become impatient with someone trying to converse with me in English. It's a beautiful and humbling thing trying communicate with you when it's clearly difficult for them.

[@brenofranco4187]

I'm a Brazilian learning English and I'm so proud of myself cause I watched this whole video without any subtitle and e got everything. I'm seeing myself getting better in my English skills every day and it's one of the best seasons I had tried in my whole life. Thank you for this awesome video. I would never have access to this content if I hadn't decided to learn a new idiom. So if you want to learn a new idiom. Go ahead. It's easier than you think.

[@Liamfulful]

As a Brit, we are the rudest as we "EXPECT" everyone to know English, no matter where we are in the world, then we get frustrated with the natives in their won country, when can't talk back to us in English! Then we wounder why everyone hates us lol I'm currently learning Spanish, I can't wait to have a second language. Great video, I will use this for motivation.

[@tainadelcaribe]

It is the same with Americans expecting others to assimilate to the country when they come and going everywhere abroad and expecting others to know English and getting frustrated when they don't.

[@amvfrank4433]

im spanish mother language, i can teach you, and you can teach me english

[@Jazzellio]

Mr B True. I'm Brit as well and it's quite common to hear foreigners wanting to learn and speak English, even sometimes mixing English with their native language. So most English speakers have an extremely high expection of non-Anglophones to speak it which can be a shame. I hope things goes well with your Spanish learnings.

[@aidanmccabe5920]

as an american i'm upset if i cannot find a McDonalds

[@jovanalazic9678]

here's a few tips for how to learn Spanish Decide exactly why you want to learn it Try to use Spanish in your everyday life Decide which process works for you best. (I learned about these and more from Alijha Language Course site )

[@cappuccino2345]

I started to study English by watching and memorizing videos like this. It was 8 years ago, I watched this video with subtitles in the military base where I served. Back then, I was not able to understand at all without subtitles. But I did not give up because I wanted it so bad. I remember that I tried to memorize everything he says and speak out loud. I repeated over and over again until I feel it's perfect. I came here today because this video was saved in the history. Now I don't need captions. I understand 100%. Whoever struggle to learn other language. Don't give up. Consistency is the key.

[@paulapranda]

Spanish 1, I could never remember "buscar" - to look for. So I told myself "you look for things in a bus-car" which doesn't even make sense but now it's the most familiar verb I know

[@navneetdhaker9095]

And i remember it because of a spanish song buescando huelas😁 j balvin

[@TileWonder]

@Char Char Binks There's nothing wrong with mnemonics though. They are great for getting it to stick in your memory in the beginning of learning vocab. After a while of reinforcing the vocab in anki/some other SRS system, the mnemonic fades away with time and you just remember the vocab by itself. At least that's been my experience with it. Maybe you didn't stick with mnemonics long enough or you never tried them if that's your thoughts on them?

[@thomaskember4628]

I was reminded of when I was working in Italy, one day an Italian colliege was looking more nervous than usual. I asked him, What's the matter Antonio?" He answered, "I have an exam in English today. I am not sure I will pass it." The next day, he was even more unhappy looking. I said, "How did the exam go?". He said, "I didn't pass." After a little thought, I said to him, "Antonio, you pass the only exam that matters every time I talk to you."

[@LordMontystink]

I had a similar experience. The difference is that, rather than speak encouraging words as you did when the chap told me he failed , I became enraged and stabbed the guy in the face about fifty times. I'm in prison now, which I think is a little bit harsh.

[@robertlaquey]

Why do you think that harsh?

[@linh5813]

@@LordMontystink what did I just read?

[@lemonywater2979]

LordMontystink it's a crime that they put YOU in prison

[@andym28]

@@LordMontystink you might be in a physical prison, but spiritually you are free.

[@mdtaylor2274]

If 21 is old, I'm a dinosaur.

[@xXDoubleBounceXx]

Scientist must have come after you every now and then huh?

[@educaravaggio]

"When I was 21 years old"

[@irishpolyglot]

RAWR RAWR KNARL GRR RAWR (I hope you understand - my T-Rexese is rusty)

[@kairimartinez2373]

Benny Lewis sir you didn't have to curse....

[@mdtaylor2274]

foda-se a minha vida lol

[@dawidmisiak7752]

I have already watched this at least 7 times and I still get back to it when I lose motivation for learning languages. I already told you, but I'm going repeat myself, Benny is truly amazing, and every polyglot for as well for that matter.

[@Kupcsi]

The reason I was always good at language learning, is because no one told me it was supposed to be difficult. It's as simple as that.

[@Kyle-xk2rb]

this comment is gold

[@sunshine_km]

Your conference was so motivated to me, I'm Mexican so I'm a spanish speaking. And I started to comment videos in english and now I don't matter if I get some mistakes, I just practice and have fun sharing my thoughts with people in other language. Your conference was helpful to me ty so much

[@tiffanywaldon4875]

As soon as I finished watching this video, a coworker who speaks very little English walks in, and I just started practicing my Spanish with him. So much fun and he was very patient. You're so right, you just need to SPEAK! Thanks, Benny!

[@ReenCR]

"There are seven days in a week, and 'some day' is not one of them!" - LEWIS, Benny GREAT! I'll never forget this advice.

[@sarahmaragan-spiller6705]

yeah, learning new languages is amazing. And the proud you feel when you start being able to catch some words; to decipher a new writing system; to have a first simple conversation is just indescribable! Another encouraging fact to go for it is that the more languages you already speak, the easier it becomes to add a new one.

[@blmacdo]

I agree. I'm learning Cantonese from Pimsleur in HK and was very proud recently when I asked someone the time (because my watch was broken, not just to practice), understood a merchant telling me a price and telling someone why I was at their workplace, I used to live in Korea and ordering pizza in Korean for the first time was awesome.

[@rogedacosta]

Nice and great speech! Benny pointed out exactly what I think are the most problematic topics while learning a foreign language. As a Portuguese native speaker and looking forward to improve my English, I can say that you are most of the times mocked by your countrymen who already speak that language, and it's very common to feel kinda of 'fear' or shyness to talk with other people in a foreign language, and the topics related to "'I'm too old for that" or "I don't have that special ability" is such an extreme common thing that happens in Brazil's culture. It's such an awesome and hopeful feeling seeing videos like this and feel that the difficulties you have are the same for everyone at the learning stage. This video is a must-sharing. Well done and many thanks!

[@irishpolyglot]

Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for sharing :)

[@lucasramos5954]

Rogério Costa as you said, here in Brazil everyone is waiting you make only one mistake in order to laugh at you.

[@NinuRenee]

"There are seven days in a week and someday isn't one of them" i think i'm going to start saying this to myself everyday from now on

[@shugataimu21]

I don't know where is he from but I understood the most of what he said, I'm a non native English speaker, and I still learning English, but his English es easier than American o British English, I've been watching videos like this about how to improve in languages but I always put on the CC because I don't get anything what they are saying. my dream is to become polyglot and travel around the world :D, I'm learning languages with babbel, books, and KZbin, and as he said, I studied Italian for a month and I just remember a 20% of what I learned at the moment, now I'm learning Portuguese and I hope can be able of speak 4 languages at my 17 years old, good luck to everyone in this quest of new cultures and languages

[@Jazzellio]

Hentai San I believe the guy is Irish. I hope things goes well for you with your language studies and turn your dream into reality.

[@irishpolyglot]

Appreciate it!! :)

[@gagangaggy9672]

l lll. .ll p0...00.mm0 .09..

[@darker_house]

Benny is a great guy and many are jealous of him only because he is the demonstration that anyone can be a polyglot and you have no reason to make excuses! Awesome video Benny, keep up with the good work!

[@nicoantonescu4773]

Alex Bedino The idolisation and defending some do for people like Benny is both amusing and a little sad. Maybe people hate him because he charges like $250 for an hour's skype lesson? Or maybe because he only language exchanges one-way and any 'lesson' with him is never free like he gets from others? Or maybe it's because he's selling a bunk idea that anyone could have figured out for themselves? To speak a language you need to speak the language? No shit.

[@jeffpolyglot1338]

Nico Antonescu Why would people hate him for charging 250? Certainly not the people who feel his lessons are worth the price and thus pay for it. Are there people who want lessons from Benny, but hate him because he won't bring the price down to their level? I agree that he's selling something anyone should be able to figure out for themselves - but why begrudge the guy for making money off it?

[@nicoantonescu4773]

Jeff Polyglot he expects people to language exchange his target language for free, but charges the other way round. Sorry youre not bright enough to see the problem there.

[@jeffpolyglot1338]

It's no problem for me...anyone paying 250 should research the product before purchasing.

[@nicoantonescu4773]

Jeff Polyglot obviously you dont mind because youre an idiot. Only in your world is it ok for someone who has no teaching qualifications in language and even sometimes only basic cnversational fluency to charge ten times what real teachers do, but its not ok for someone to point out that that person is a charlatan.

[@learn_french]

Nice video, thank you for sharing. And remember the main thing about learning a new language... it should be fun! If you put yourself into it... you will achieve your goals and you can do miracles. Just believe in yourself and work on your goal... the teacher can do the rest!

[@sunnyside287]

I love Benny so much, I became a polyglot thanks to his book and I’m not stopping! His tip to speak from day one is the basis of my approach to learning languages.

[@kosmopolitanna]

Nice one Benny! This is about correct attitude, you will learn any language if you want it strong enough and with a passion. Instrumental motivation won't work on the long run, money is illusion and all you need is people, embracing people and their culture in order to be able to connect, that what's called integrative motivation.

[@irishpolyglot]

+Anna Hejnar Well said!

[@meganfright7704]

+Benny Lewis would you recommend for my first new language learning it on its own or can i try and learn two at the same time?

[@ojk3863]

you can increase your memory learning capacity through mental training each day, eating healthy, 7 hours sleep each night and then simply reading, or doing activities such as math without a calculator or reading a book and so on

[@asdfghjkl900321]

I've seen this video 8 years ago and to this day I still remember that "caber" (or however it is written) means "to fit". Creating mental pictures to memorise words is mighty powerful.

[@berfintuzun1056]

Great video, I'm an English teacher as a second language and you gave great info and research on the subject, it was one of the best ted x talks ever! Thank you so much for preparing and sharing this talk Benny! As for the t-shirt, I agree with others :D

[@jeffreyd508]

13:44 I was given a Native Indian name at the Casino because I went so often. They called me "Leaves, with no chips"

[@ehcanadianguy27cod31]

Lmao!!! Yesss!!

[@mirabaipeart6710]

Thank you Benny! I am just embarking upon learning a language and I'm so glad I saw this now.

[@irishpolyglot]

Great to hear that Mirabai! Best of luck to you on this great adventure 👊

[@msfanatic5]

Benny is such a role model. From reading all his blog posts and seeing his videos, I realized where I was going wrong in language learning and I have greatly improved. Awesome talk!

[@dmarti47]

Fantastic talk by Benny, hits the nail on the head with the need for passion for learning languages and specifically the culture associated with the target language... However, I think openness will get you very far as well.

[@awzsdrcfgybhjimklp]

Estudié español por 3 años en escuela publico y afuera de escuela y solo estudiaría oraciones de practica, frases, vocabulario, gramática, y conjugación. Tuve conversación con nadie por todo mi estudios, cuando finalmente tuve conversación con alguien fui sorprendido que ella me entendió perfectamente y tuvimos conversación fácilmente, pero había solo un problema que ella había que se repetir si misma a menudo, porque me fallé para entender qué he oído. Necesité para formar mi oído, porque me faltaba la conversación. Como Benny ha dicho se podría aprender por prematura conversación embarazosa, sino aprendí por el libro y hablar bien, sin incluir que mi oído necesita para entrenar por conversación.

[@jessicapaolaaguilarparedes2232]

Me alegra que sigas aprendiendo y esforzándote para conocer nuevas personas y el lenguaje. Sigue así tu español es muy bueno ;)

[@jehadjojo7521]

That was so helpful ..you know I am Egyptian and as you know my language is Arabic.. but in last years I started to learn more about languages specially English and I found it very easy so now I'm looking forward to learn more languages and improve my knowledge ..so my message for everyone who want to make different in their life. .. just try to learn any different language just listen and speak to the people and don't be afraid to make any mistakes don't be afraid never

[@mariali4281]

ماشاء الله تبارك الله يعطيك العافية على هذا الكلام الجميل اللذي يدل على قوة ثقافتك ولغتك الممتازة.

[@user-qy6xb1ux2r]

كلام جميل انا هنا لتعلم الانكليزية

[@MrHmoob17]

Inspirational. Motivational. Great speech! I've been waitng forever for a TED talk about language learning and now there finally is one.

[@gitcheegitcheegoo630]

I'm a 14 years old spanish speaker boy, I've got a medium-high level of english, and I am learning esperanto. I recognize that before of this video, my goal was be able to say "Look at me!, I can speak in three languages, I am so cool!", but, this video change my whole perception about the language learning and its meaning. Now I know that I want to learn another languages to watch videos, read books , and listen to what wonderful people like you have to say. I want that the language of these things doesn't be a barrier that prevents me to get them. Thank you a lot for share that. I wish you the best. Thanks. Gracias. Dankon.

[@vjekoslavoskera2164]

He is telling the truth.But motivation is an emotion bus discipline and consistency will reakky help you

[@commoncola]

Love this TED Talk!

[@TheDmytro1998]

hi where are you from? I want to find a English speaker for improving my English level

[@linungchiao5891]

I'm encouraged by this video , thank you ,Benny!!

[@msalicat1]

His voice is shaking. Benny, we appreciate you so very much. Everyone loves what you're doing.

[@warawutmaneesuwun8963]

เป็นวิดีโอที่ให้แรงกระตุ้นดีครับ ผมคิดจะลองฝึกพูดญี่ปุ่นกับอังกฤษครับ Such a inspiring video!! Now I'm trying to learn English&Japanese.

[@Tinatina1380]

Same here

[@noor37130]

Well, Self determination is the key, until 21 I was fluent in two languages (english and hindustani (urdu/hindi) but now I know six languages (+persian, spanish, dari and arabic)

[@pankajvishkarma7608]

I want to learn spanish ,do you have skype we can talk on skype to improve.As i read that you speak spanish.So can you add me in ur skype id.Here's my skype id [e-mail]

[@noor37130]

PANKAJ VSHWAKARMA more convenient would be --- try this webrsite doulingo Spanish ..great website and free

[@xxLexyLewxx]

i want to learn arabic so bad, thast what i plan to do :)

[@noor37130]

osob musa okky....osob musa... try this website transparency www.transparent.com/language-resources/languages.html?_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_UVzlbN-UOoEkUFB3hN3MoQdghyVfyEfNVPd7KpZv67k2ZljOnXBMDE_xMSDCXZI1N57S9N05S-bfTQpDvt1JhWtGNwg&_hsmi=10230728#.Uh-cyGTXQkg -and you get a trail for first week.... ma salama

[@xxLexyLewxx]

yh for sure, i i know how to read and write just need to work on speaking, and i think immersing yourself into the culture helps too, Thanks for the link ill check it out.

[@buugiaannam]

Thank for this video and Benny. I'm definitely interested in your video. I'm a English learner and I have learnt English more 8 years, but what I have got now is just a little bit of listening and speaking. Just a few days ago, I have found that I'm really impressed by Japanese exchange students in my university and now I actually want to learn Japanese, even I know it is a hard work, but at the end of this video, I found it is not a big deal if I give it a try and work harder. These all reasons that you figured out in this video is definitely useful for all the people learning languages and at least it's especially for me. It inspired me so much to make more of an effort to learn English and Japanese. After all I wanna thank you again.

[@francescasannazzaro1310]

This speech was really motivating, fun, and he said true things. I think motivation does not apply just to language learning, but to all kinds of learning. It is the basis for everything, not everyone succeeds but if you find the right key then you'll have more chances to improve. Happy learning to all of you :)

[@RaffaellaIT]

I COMPLETELY agree.....and I am supposed to have a language talent,( I studied 10 languages) and personally never believed that!!!!

[@missbelizagi54]

"When I work harder, I can catch up with the naturally talented and even overtake them."

[@sniffrat3646]

This is a great talk, really inspiring. Benny I hope you do more of this kind of thing. You're really good at it

[@Naturmuslima]

Always nice to see one of my first Inspirations three years ago. Thank all of them sooo much

[@user-jz4wi9hd3x]

I totally agree with him in terms of motivation. Motivation is the strongerst way to lead somebody be passionate about learning language. I am korean, and have been living in australia for six moths. and I couldn't understand or talk at all at my first time here. But I have struggled to be good at english just becuz I wanted to talk with foreign people. Not becuz speaking english looks cool or is good chance to get a decent job. I just wanted to talk with foreign people and whenever I couldn't say or hear totally I got a lot of frustration and motivation at the same time. I still have too many ways to go, anyway I don't feel like learning english is painful. It is fun itself. Motivation is really important method. :) (If I watched this video 6months ago, maybe I couldn't understand what this guy is talking. Now I can hear and understand well) I wish all the people studying language good luck!

[@jimporter4799]

"There are seven days in the week and 'some day' is not one of them" (-;

[@Kamehamekaa]

This speech is wonderful and it really motivates me. Thank you so much if you ever read it.

[@FunnyAsian00]

I have been watching TEd Talks esp with learning new language. I am native Korean living in Canada, so English and Korean and now I am trying to learn Espanol. Definitely not easy, but he is right. Motivation !!! I love the culture food people !!! you sir gave me motivation !!

[@gjori4704]

Thank you for this!

[@irishpolyglot]

You're welcome! (It's TEDx's video, but I'm the speaker) ;)

[@irishpolyglot]

Best of luck Jack, and thanks for the kind words!

[@MrQwerty2524]

I was like'' It would be cool to impress people by speaking many languages'' And then this bastard took my motivation away! D:

[@LapeVideos]

I had a very similar idea a year ago when I decided to learn Portuguese. I tried, and easily gave up as it was too hard. Then tried again with Norwegian... and failed within a week for the same reason. Then again with a few other languages and still failed. but then, just a few weeks ago I thought to myself " who gives a damn what languages I speak?" And I realized it was true, the main reason I was failing was because I was doing it just to impress people. I have been learning french in school for the past 4 years. for the last 3 years I was horrible. had many teachers and always blamed it on them. and I hated the language, I put no effort in it. but I live in a french speaking country, and after getting older, I started having simple basic conversations with others around town. The feeling you get after you realize "hey, you're actually talking to someone in a new language! and they understand me!" even if you use wrong tenses, wrong words or whatever, the feeling you get after is incredible. This is what has given me motivation to give French another go. I've gotten much much better at in in the last year. and I've resumed Portuguese since December and have learnt a lot compared to my first tries! Give it a shot. learn for yourself!

[@MrQwerty2524]

LapeVideos Hi there, I'm currently learning Chinese and Spanish the same time. Spanish is LOTS easier because its easy to apply the memory hack to it (other TED vid) wich basically means you change the words to your liking. Me llamo becomes My Limo or something. Chinese is an COMPLETELY different story. The way youre saying things is different in general so translating your tought process doesn't work. You have to first learn how to speak in Chinese in your primary language. (Tai Hao Le translates into Very Good Excess wich is Excess of Very Good wich then translates into Wonderful!) Then you have to stop using tones as emotions (wich we do in most european languages) but use them as words. Finally you need to learn the vocabulary which is ridiculously hard. Just taught i'd reply with my current experiences after a month learning. You too, keep it up ;)

[@LapeVideos]

Well best of luck to ya, I thought about learning Chinese, but I felt a bigger pull towards some other languages. Chinese is very hard to learn indeed! My brother was learning it for a year, which I heard around the house from time to time when he was practicing. It indeed is very complicated!

[@oisociety]

MrQwerty2524 spanish from where?

[@MrQwerty2524]

oisociety try to find ''spanish dict'' on youtube. Also google ''fluencia''. It's a geat way to practice writing and vocabulary :)

[@LeviWritesBooks]

안녕하세요! I was really encouraged by your talk. Being a native English speaker from the USA, I've thought many of the things you mentioned in your talk, being too old, not having enough talent, etc. I've lived in South Korea for over two years now, but am only starting to get serious about learning Korean. I dream of learning Arabic, other languages as I live and travel the world. Hearing your testimony has really encouraged me, because now I know it's possible. Thank you for your help!

[@vlv8855]

Excellent. I am 73 and have just started learning Spanish. Your video was inspiring.

[@faithrichardson5223]

Am I the only person on here that people have gotten a little upset because I speak Russian because they are old and think that Soviet Russia is still trying to take over the world? Wake up. It's 2015 and Russia is becoming increasingly popular along with the language. Don't let anyone judge you for speaking a language that you love!

[@swand1383]

Unfortunately the only thing we see about Russian in the media is the homophobic, baleful country (primarily because of Putin)

[@faithrichardson5223]

Can't deny that. But of course the media always makes everything worse. Really, while you're sitting on the couch, is any of that affecting you? No! Let's just hope Russia calms downs along with the rest of the world.

[@mhacker84]

Во дни сомнений, во дни тягостных раздумий... )

[@user-uu4iv4ku2u]

Да ладно, рассказываешь. Думаешь, что Россия не хочет быть страной #1 в мире? Пффф, конечно да. И кому русский вообще нужен? Только странам СНГ и всё. Даже французский и то более нужнее, чем русский.

[@thetruthalwaysscary]

lol...so many people so many bad comments. He did a very good, very positive video. He enjoys learning languages and even if he is not proficient, he has the ability to communicate. If you enjoy learning then do it. Stop criticizing others and focus on your own growth. ...lol...basically just get a f-ing life....

[@EddyTh01]

Great video. I'm inspired to work harder on my language skills after watching this and reading some of his of blog posts!

[@DJYoue]

Benny, you are great! Every time I am getting frustrated with my language learning this really helps me to progress. 我很喜欢学汉语！谢谢 ！

[@pavementfireworks8597]

This is the guy who writes that 'fluent in 3 months' blog, right? Great stuff- I also learnt Brazilian Portuguese in about that same amount of time when I was out there =D

[@wypimentel]

Yeah it's him... I'm in his land now for while, that's very nice! Cool you've learnt Brazilian Portuguese, that's my language \o/

[@pavementfireworks8597]

Wesley Pimentel You mean you're in Ireland now? :) Lol even though I was in Brazil to teach English, I made the effort to learn Portuguese anyway- it really enriched my experience, since I got to go places & meet people whom I wouldn't have met otherwise (if I had only been able to speak English). I managed to do everything from replacing my lost bus card, to attending a concert with just Portuguese speakers & sorting out matters at the bank :) And this was all without any formal education in Portuguese (either before I went, or during my trip)- So it really is possible! :D

[@wypimentel]

***** Cool that's great, as in Brazil little people speaks English, you probably had a great environment to learn Portuguese haha (not funny, the fact that there are too little people who speaks English) Yep, I will be here for a academic year, two semesters, getting used to the Irish accent, and Benny's accent is not too strong. Believe or not they recorded a video and put subtitles in an Irish speaking for Americans haha :P I believe you, and languages are cool, meet people and talk and laugh with them, it's an amazing experience.

[@pavementfireworks8597]

Haha yes, that's why I learnt fast =P Well boa sorte (good luck) with your studies (& language learning) then! =]

[@KaterinaTalantliva]

where d'you take those money for trips like that??

[@redcandy4778]

*Ótima apresentação.*

[@irishpolyglot]

+Dalmnolk Ukans Obrigado! :)

[@coolbrotherf127]

Motivation is really key. In my school I was forced to learn Latin, but never really learned much since I never really cared. Now I'm self-learning Japanese and I've gotten farther from my motivation than I ever got from years of forced language learning.

[@hudazeta]

Wooooooow GREAT. Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful talk with us.

[@irishpolyglot]

Used MT for Chinese, and found it a bit slow, but he didn't record that version himself. Duolingo was too faulty when I tried it in beta version, but it has greatly improved in the last year. No matter what you use though, these are materials you should ideally be used between real spoken sessions. No course can ever replace this.

[@sylviohache3467]

People shouldnt be afraid of having problem speaking another language....sorry but only English speaking people complain on internet all day long about ponctuation and grammar of words...they dont seem to understand English isnt the first language of everyone. I love when people try to speak french to me even if we dont always understand each other perfectly and samething apply when I am online and my friends try to write to me in french and actualy try or is interested in learning it!. I did try to learn some basic word or sentences while I was traveling but most of the time people made me say curse words or funny stuff so I never realy learned anything important lol...I should put more effort in learning another language tho...

[@PolyglotConference]

So proud to have you speaking at the Polyglot Conference this weekend, Benny! You are a true inspiration to many - thank you for your contribution to the language community! :)

[@kamranshomal]

Thank you for these helpful pieces of advice.

[@alak3073]

Thank you Vielen Dank شكرا Merci

[@AseemKukkar]

That guy, who can speak twenty languages, spoke "Hindi" wrong.

[@iamdancingg]

please, show me your video of you speaking 20 different languages.

[@AseemKukkar]

iamdancingg When did I say that I have that video? I just said, "He spoke Hindi wrong", and I figured it out because I'm a native speaker of "Hindi".

[@iamdancingg]

Aseem Kukkar i also can speak hindi. but you should not criticise him as he is a prodigy. when a 16 year old can speak over 20 languages, im sure we can care less about the anomalies in his speaking. but i understand why you said this.

[@AseemKukkar]

There are two kinds of criticisms, healthy and unhealthy, and that was healthy. Reason Why That Was Healthy Not Unhealthy: My criticism was intended towards helping him not discouraging him to speak the language. I just wanted him to correct his mistake and move on to a higher level.

[@KaterinaTalantliva]

and also he's damn ugly - he had no other way to succed other then have some "thing"...

[@Geotrismegistos]

You are very inspirational Benny. Great talk.

[@ksacha77]

I love your positive attitude, Benny. Thanks!

[@thrashaolin]

Whenever I hear people talking about languages and travels I feel I'm wasting my life behind this desk.

[@JaySlay69]

Those shoes... My God.

[@JavierVegaPerry]

He needs to learn some other skills...like...what to wear to do a presentation...i don't mean a suit, but...please...my eyes hurt ):

[@avedic]

You guys need to relax. :P I hope you're not as uptight with your own wardrobe and fashion choices. Have fun and relax...

[@rolandoenriquebrandarizvel9777]

Hola Benny, vi todo tu video y aunque estoy al 15 % de entrenamiento en el ingles, me gusto mucho como abordaste el tema. gracias porque ha sido muy motivador para mi, pensé que debia "tirar la toalla", pero voy a continuar aunque me cueste. graciasUrsula Pinto

[@emstephable]

This is a great speech! Thank you for this! It's true that I thought I was too old to learn a language and that I can't travel to the country right now.

[@JosephRobert82]

I have on a pair of language jeans right now and they work just fine for me. He has on a tux tee so we're even.

[@edi9892]

Some accents appear cute to us (latin languages), while others can be tiring to downright annoying (Mandarin, Japanese, Tamil...). Speakers of the latter category have it particularly hard to learn our language, as we tend to keep discussions short. Thus these speakers tend to stay among themselves. In my first semester in the university (in Germany), we had to work in teams of two. As we had 7 Chinese, one of them worked with me. I tried to explain as much as possible, or translated it to English. I also ensured that she did not miss any oral announcement. At the end of the semester, it was no longer tiresome to listen to her, not because I got used to the accent, but because she learned that much. I got in turn the respect of "Chinatown" and could ask for favors and got authentic chinese food. So, please Natives have some patience! -and try not to laugh if we accidently make sexual innuendos...

[@Amodia]

What do you think about the accent of Scandinavian people speaking Spanish?

[@edi9892]

***** 1) I am not familia to the scandinavian languages 2) It is not a personal opinion. The language pattern of some asian languages is very different from ours, which makes it hard to learn (in both directions) or to follow someone speaking with such an accent. PS: As a rule of thumb: if something is completly different from our expectations (=unpredictable) it causes confusion and an uneasy fealing. If something differs slightly from expectation, it causes interest. This is also true for story-telling, music (why do we find a melody creepy?) and probably many other aspects in life.

[@inunkag4ever]

Honestly I think that Japanese is one of the most beautiful languages that I have ever heard.

[@Nikosi9]

Julia York Japanese vowels have the same pronunciation as Spanish vowels, which, I think, gives it a melodious ring. The consonants are another thing. though. :-)

[@edi9892]

Julia York Having watched some English subbed Anime, I came to see the beauty. They really got some good voice actors too. Some may say that watching anime is childish, but they got more elaborate characters than most Hollywood productions.

[@irishpolyglot]

Thanks for having me on the TEDx stage again! Glad to have brought in some cameos of other well known language learners this time :) If anyone has any questions, feel free to head over to my channel and click on my blog for many many articles that will encourage you to learn your language! If you liked this video, I'd appreciate it if you shared it on your Facebook wall to encourage your friends/family to give language learning a try!

[@PureTokyoPho]

Thank you Benny, good job on the video. I cried. I've been trying to learn Japanese for years with no success. I will try again from today. I will go out and enjoy the language, talk to people... ありがとうございます, cám ơn thật nhiều bạn.

[@jeanp.5929]

Même sûr Rosetta Stone je vois les apprennants ont des problèmes avec apprendre une langue. Je pense que c'est parce que, comme il a dit, les apprenents perdent la 'confiance pour apprendre et pour parler parce le premier moment les apprenants rencontrent un mot ils ne comprennent pas, ils arrètent. Nous, comme apprenant, avons besoin un l'esprit comme un bébé. Pas le pensé pour apprendre une langue dans un jour mais pour apprendre peu par peu chaque jour. C'est ça:

[@jeanp.5929]

Learn the language little by little everyday. That the key.

[@passive_annihilation]

D'accord avec vous sur ce. Je suis apprendre le Français!

[@passive_annihilation]

Thanks, ***** !

[@memoy1]

Cool he learned the Egyptian Arabic from Brasil

[@ruinima3563]

This is so inspirational! Now I really do have more motivation to speak a language now that i know that it can be done and that I'm not to old!

[@johnptracy]

Lovely and profound. At heart, he's become a child again, in all the best senses of the word.

[@mysticalcatnip221]

It's not a gene, I think it's easier for some people, like math, etc- but anyone can do anything with hard work, positive thinking, and skill.

[@sinceresphere]

Most of this is based on communication with the natives - what if some people have social anxiety etc.?

[@efisgpr]

Very clear, interesting, exciting and, dare I say, important presentation, Benny. You are a true inspiration. I will share it on Facebook right now. Best of luck to you, sir.

[@stephaniet9596]

Great video, I’m an American living in Algeria. I struggle on a daily basis. I notice myself finding way to avoid people and speaking at all cost. Thanks for the tips!

[@jnyerere]

Lugha yangu ya kwanza ni Kiswahili. Lugha yangu ya pili ni Kingereza. Lakini ninataka kujifunza kuongea Ureno. Kama una uwezo wakunifundisha hii lugha, naomba uniambiye. Na mimi pia nitakufundisha kuongea Kiswahili au Kingereza kama ungependa. My first language is Swahili. My second language is English. But I really want to learn how to speak Portuguese. If you are capable of teaching me this language, I would like for you to let me know. And I will also be able to teach you either Swahili or English if you would like that.

[@denysmartins3394]

hello, czarjulius, i am brazilian,have you found a portuguese teacher? feel free to email me:[e-mail]

[@MikeStillUK]

SO inTeresting tHanks BennY

[@irishpolyglot]

Thank you!

[@Ruan_Wanvi]

The best motivating talk I've seen so far

[@user-wq5jb4jx4r]

good guy with passion who makes ppl feel excited abt giving a go on learning lgs

[@TheShaleco]

I am trying to learn german, My main problem is that I am afraid of speaking the language in front of natives... I am worried that I will make a fool out of myself. I need to just get over that fear because I really do need practise speaking.

[@chaserbaamalch757]

TheShaleco No problem, they can help you to correct when you make mistakes, and that's the point, if you don't try, nobody knows your mistakes, it means nobody will correct your mistakes. So, making mistakes is the key to now the correct one. When foreigners try to speak my language (Indonesian) to me, and make mistakes, I don't consider them as fools, but I help them to correct. I had Japanese class when I was at high school, but my Korean is better than my Japanese, while I learn Korean by myself. It's because in learning Korean, I try to speak to the natives and I made mistakes in this process.

[@TheShaleco]

Khaliq Ma Thank you for the advice I appreciate it. I have connected with a couple native speakers over Conversation Exchange so I am going to practice skyping them and having real conversations.

[@nixzusagen96]

I'm a native speaker in German and honestly I really appreciate foreign accents :) German is such a harsh language and does not sound melodic in its clearest form, but if you add an accent it is able to sound so charming (at least to my ears). Don't ever be afraid of talking to a German in this language - we'll be impressed that you have the courage to learn our language.

[@sunriselg]

TheShaleco Hallo, es freut mich, dass du Deutsch lernen möchtest.

[@TheShaleco]

Judith L Ich liebe lernen deutsch! Es ist sehr Schwierig aber es ist spaß!

[@nermineabbassi2729]

Haifa is in palestine Not Israil :) People have such a short memory and also such tendency to take things as they are instead of digging deeper in it ..

[@thesearethesuns]

Nice advice. I agree with your methods from my own second language learning experience.

[@hussainaziz9646]

Gave me chills. Great talk!!

[@eosmusashi]

try Duolingo.com and memrise.com if you're up to learning a new language! I'm using those two for my German (I'm Mexican and it took me all my life to learn English and German has been a 3 very quick month journey thanks to them!)

[@sabreean]

I have played around with Duolingo and many of my fellow Irish learners swear by it. I've been using Memrise for many months and I love it, although I've had to create the modules I use myself.

[@TVstudio]

I use duolingo but never tried memrise, thanks for the tip!

[@EndindaKrista]

I use duolingo and started learning italian last week! It is a very recommended app

[@firebreathingmoonbeam3961]

Hellotalk and hinative is great

[@barryirlandi4217]

only English native speakers are arrogant and unhelpful... the rest are happy to help..

[@t.0fu.]

I use a few sites to help people correct and improve their English! And they help me with the languages I am learning as well, and it is fantastic. So at least not the entirety of English speakers heh

[@Nikosi9]

I think you are confusing us with the French... :-)

[@barryirlandi4217]

Nikosi9 I mean relatively and of course there will be exceptions

[@liammaxsmama]

Barry, there are millions of native English speakers and you’ve spoken to all of us to discover that we’re arrogant and unhelpful? Wow! I’m very impressed at your efforts and observations. 🙄 Anybody that comes to the US wanting to learn English and giving their best effort is impressive.

[@chantelbarcomb1766]

Ouch! Barry that's rather rude of you. I've never met you, nor have I been rude to you or anyone that dosen't speak English. If anything, it makes me feel bad that I have no way of talking to them and that's on me but I'm not mean or rude to them. So no not all Native English speakers are rude.

[@johanjurie]

Thanks for the inspirational video. I'm Afrikaans and currently learning French - it definitely gave me a different perspective on how to approach a new language. Baie dankie!

[@berocks2]

this should definitely worth being shared to students who're learning any second languages ....the 5 excuses part are just awesome！