How to Learn a Language On Your Own

[@Thelinguist]

Language learning is an activity we do on our own and our success depends on our willingness to be independent. This is true whether we are at school or not. Where I Learn Languages ⇢ www.lingq.com/ --- FREE Language Learning Resources 10 Secrets of Language Learning ⇢ www.thelinguist.com LingQ Grammar Guides ⇢ www.lingq.com/en/grammar-resource/ My blog ⇢ blog.thelinguist.com/ The LingQ blog ⇢ www.lingq.com/blog/ --- Social Media Instagram ⇢ instagram.com/lingosteve_/ TikTok ⇢ www.tiktok.com/@lingosteve Facebook ⇢ facebook.com/lingosteve Twitter ⇢ twitter.com/lingosteve LingQ Discord ⇢ discord.gg/ShPTjyhwTN

[@EasyFinnish]

Salut Steven! Merci beaucoup pour votre vidéo. C'est très intéressant et agréable. Bonne journée!

[@thinkandcreate9755]

If you like history you can read about history of Iran.

[@jonasarnesen6825]

Today I'm finishing my 1000 distinctive Japanese words in 2 weeks challenge. Around 100 words to go.

[@jonasarnesen6825]

Done studying 1000 distinctive Japanese words. 2 week challenge complete. Now to studying a little bit Mandarin Chinese, Korean and the Ainu language to free my mind.

[@mahmoud-quran]

@@jonasarnesen6825 nice. Keep it up

[@jillaroo1986]

Steve is the kind of person you would be lucky to have as a grandpa, father, son, husband, brother or friend. Not only does his passion for language learning make him special, but his variety of interests have made him this incredibly awesome person. We are all very lucky to have him share his experiences with us. I can't count how many times this man motivated me to continue learning languages but also to stay interested for many other things in life.

[@AfroLinguo]

For real. When I grow up, I wanna be like steve.

[@moonlight-mr4qc]

Oh,God bless him 🙏 and you, the same feelings!

[@tokyopolyglot7478]

A great source of knowledge for us polyglots as well!

[@bioniclegoblin6495]

I am now imagining an entire family consisting of nothing but Steve Kaufmanns. Thank you.

[@garrysmith1029]

I have the same feeling but not because of the language but his attitude and his well manner speech he and his voice

[@ariamysore]

I'm learning German on my own! Everyone says it's a hell of a language to learn but everytime I go on my independent sessions I just enjoy learning it !

[@traduciendoconroger.7494]

Hallo, wie kommst du klar? Ich heiße Roger. Willkommen auf meinem Kanal! kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJmupICufp2SmMU kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJmupICufp2SmMU

[@DanieleCruciani]

Hi! I am just looking for a german version of Essential Dutch Grammar, I know it exists something like that, in german, full of schemas and graph to explain sentence construction and all kind of rules (a friend of mine, german, shown it some year ago). Have you something like that? I need it in paper, no more than 30/40 pages

[@pradocristian2898]

me,too i recently started to study German it's a little bit complicated but it's an awesome language

[@ThatWhatIs393]

Es freut mich, dass es Dir gefällt! Ich schätze es wirklich wert, wenn Nicht-Deutsche sich ernsthaft bemühen deutsch zu lernen :). Deutsch ist für viele Menschen schwer, aber es kann einem eine völlig neue Welt der Literatur, Poesie und Philosophie eröffnen, wenn man sich denn für diese Dinge interessiert.. Glad you are liking it! As a native German speaker, I really appreciate the effort of any non-native speaker to try to learn the German language :). German is hard for a lot of people but it can open up a whole new world of literature, poetry and philosophy if you are interested in that kind of stuff..

[@traduciendoconroger.7494]

Hallo, wie geht's? Wo ein Wille ist, ist auch ein Weg. I'm learning German on my own, as well. How about creating a whatsapp group in order to keep practicing? Here's my number just in case: [phone]

[@LOL-BrainRot]

Hello Steve. I have been studying English for about 2 years and 6 months. Before that I was approximately in level A2 and now I’m in level B2. I studied on my own. In my opinion everyone can learn a new language on their own, especially with internet’s help. All they need to have is willingness and patience. Now I speak 3 languages Greek, Albanian and English and I’m learning German and a bit Japanese.

[@proper_hokage8259]

You are good. I from Russian and i want to learn English, my Level A2. English grammar i learned a bit, I think that Enough for me. Just i need learn words more than 3000. I think now for me difficult Prounonce and Listening

[@mrobscurity3521]

@@proper_hokage8259If only this person hadn’t been a bot, who simply copies peoples’ comments. But, besides, goodluck in your journey! I am also from Russia and have been studying English for a year and a half. And, from my experience, I’d say that the key to successful language learning is your mindset (то, как Вы подходите к изучению, Ваше восприятие) At least that’s what’s helped me a lot (A2-Fluency)

[@kadya1712]

​@@proper_hokage8259You should definitely learn much more grammar first, because all your sentences are structured way too wrong and there are also tons of basic mistakes. Don't mean to offend, just don't neglect grammar.

[@v0r0byov]

​@@proper_hokage8259do not forget that in English the verb to be is not omitted

[@ADAMSIVES]

people like you are an inspiration to me. I speak 1.00000000001 languages (English and a VERY small amount of French).

[@youssefelmrabet7033]

there will be periods as an independent language learner where you're doubting yourself, doubting your ability, feeling a sense of frustration, and you just have to persevere.. I'm in this state of mind, you always upload your videos the time that I need them. Thank you

[@maalikserebryakov]

I never get this feeling j think u just dont know how to study a language shall i teach u

[@footballfan283]

Hello Steve. I have been studying English for about 2 years and 6 months. Before that I was approximately in level A2 and now I’m in level B2. I studied on my own. In my opinion everyone can learn a new language on their own, especially with internet’s help. All they need to have is willingness and patience. Now I speak 3 languages Greek, Albanian and English and I’m learning German and a bit Japanese. I really enjoy watching your videos and I like the fact that you encourage people to learn other languages!

[@changeluhia]

Te lumte! une kam nje vit qe studioj gjuhen shqipe. Eshte shume e veshtire, por do te vazhdoj.

[@footballfan283]

@@changeluhia Gjuha Shqipe është një nga gjuhët me të vështira në botë. Me morri 4 vjet ta mësoja mirë

[@footballfan283]

@Nora Gad yes

[@elietrinidad6633]

I love Greek but i think there's not many material out there like other languages

[@gianna9717]

your english is great!

[@selahstudies1650]

i totally agree with you that learning languages on your own is much more rewarding than in school!

[@BugattiLo_]

One of my goals in life is to have a book shelf as full as yours if not larger

[@买了明天d]

Don’t try to ace anything or master anything,or remember anything, just keep letting the language wash over you . This is impressive.

[@matildawolfram4687]

Good video! My brother studied languages at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center in California. The pace of study was intense. Students had to master the language course in 36-64 weeks. Psychologically it was very difficult, but fortunately he was helped by Yuriy Ivantsiv's book "Polyglot Notes. Practical tips for learning foreign languages”. The book " Polyglot Notes" became a desk book for my brother, because it has answers to all the problems that any student of a foreign language has to face. Thanks to the author of the channel for this interesting video! Good luck to everyone who studies a foreign language and wants to realize their full potential!

[@self-toughstudy6635]

English is so pleasunt for my ears. I spend much time for listening different youtube channels, and I can see progress that helps me not to give up. It's really necesary to get input from many different origins. Especially if you really interesting in that content. Thanks for your job. Greeatings from Ukraine.

[@wminerva252]

My motivation has been waning recently but this video has given me the push I needed to give it my all again. Thanks for these videos Steve!

[@moonlight-mr4qc]

Me too,I didn't read anything for almost 7 months the languages that I learned along time ago English ,Russian ,German and I'm a native Arabic speaker. I will try learning the French language despite of its difficulty in pronunciation.

[@wminerva252]

@@moonlight-mr4qc What was your experience like learning those languages? I'm currently learning Japanese, and now that I've started listening and reading more, I finally feel like it's starting to come together despite how different it is from English. Seeing people that have learned several foreign languages, like yourself, is another huge motivation

[@josephsaff]

Yeh Steve Kauffman is the best for motivation

[@ayi3455]

@@wminerva252 I understand 6 foreign languages : English, German, French, Arabic, Russian, and Mandarin with different levels of abilities. I'm a 50 year-old Indonesian. I speak German pretty well, and been to Munich to learn German. It was long time ago that I reached B2 level, nearly C1. But it seems that my German deteriorates. I also learned French and Russian, but I don't speak those languages very well like my German, and of course, my fluent English. Now I'm learning Mandarin, and I believe my Mandarin reached A2 or B1 level, because I got Hsk-3 in October 2019. The problem is maintaining the ability. Once you get the B level, you start to be fed up with the language you have learned, unless you have a very high motivation and specific purpose to learn the language. And after that the next question is whether you can maintain the level that has been attained. I reached B2 or even almost C1 in German long time ago, but now it seems that I can only answer relatively correct the B1 level. My German deteriorates. Language is a matter of habits and habitation....

[@ayi3455]

@@moonlight-mr4qc I learned Russian 2000 - 2002 in the Russian cultural center in Jakarta. I tried to read Dostoyevski and Chekov in their original language with a dictionary next to me. I give up.... I didn't finish Chekov novel though I had made a photocopy of it. Russian is such a difficult language. 1. the cases / padzesh 2. the verbal aspects : perfective-inperfective 3. the verb conjugation. I like to learn foreign languages. I speak German and got Mittelstuffe-1 Zertifikat, which is equal to B2. But now I can only answer B1 questions satisfactorily. My German deteriorates. Now I'm learning Chinese. I got Hsk-3 in October 2019. However, I still speak German better than Chinese and Russian though I don't use it anymore.... My Chinese and Russian are more or less the same. I read Russian articles better than Chinese, but I listen to Chinese conversations better than Russian. It's easier to read Russian compared to Chinese.

[@simenrudsengen2370]

I started learning a third language about two years ago, and when I started, I was very much dependent on someone or something to teach me the language (classes, duolingo, programs). As I have watched your videos and other polyglots, I have realised just how important it is to take initiative in your own learning. Especially how important listening and reading is. Learning how to learn is not always obvious, and I feel like a much better learner after listening to you, and discovering good reading/listening content, like Piotr's polish stories. Dziękuję za radę!

[@TheNongrandma.grandma]

This is wonderful, its like you have to own your own language learning journey and learning in general.

[@thecrazycretanGR]

Σας ευχαριστώ πολύ για τα βίντεο σας κύριε! Μου έχετε δημιουργήσει το ερέθισμα να επιθυμώ να μάθω ξένες γλώσσες καθώς, έτσι εκτός από ξένες γλώσσες θα κατανοήσω καλύτερα την ξένη κουλτούρα.

[@jamestays8416]

I just started learning Japanese about 34 days ago. I've felt exactly as you described "feeling like you're not getting anywhere" because the grammar doesn't want to click. Learned a lot of words, but I couldn't string the simplest sentence together to save my life. Its nice to hear that you just have to preserver through those moments and that they do pass.

[@rasibn]

Good luck bro. Don't forget to listen a lot of interesting stuff. There are so many subtitled resources available for japanese.

[@brendon2462]

34 days can't expect to speak basically yet. You need a few years of listening input. Thousands of hours of input.

[@lolozo214]

I've been learning Japanese for a year, and it slowly gets easier. Japanese is difficult, so it's going to be a while before you start feeling like you're making progress, but with consistent effort you *will* get somewhere. I'm still nowhere near fluent, but I can string simple sentences together, and have brief conversations. The important part is that you show up every day.

[@sasharama5485]

Don't worry. Japanese is satisfying but it can be a pain in the *** sometimes 😆. Just keep going, listen a lot, and you will see progress.

[@DanneoYT]

Check out cure dolly for grammar

[@OnlyTruth2023]

I love this channel Love from Iraq اتمنى ان نشاهدك في يوم من الايام وانت تتحدث العربية الفصحة بلسان طليق لا تشوبه أي شائبة فانت أنسان طيب وتستحق كل خير تحياتي لك من العراق _ الموصل

[@Thelinguist]

Thank you. I hope to put up more videos with me speaking Arabic, maybe some Egyptian Arabic. It would be great to visit Mosul one day and hear the locals speak Iraqi Arabic. My Arabic journey is just beginning.اشكرك

[@OnlyTruth2023]

@@Thelinguist ❤

[@AMadd3RHatt3R]

Oh my goodness this is SOOO true!! I love the honesty about the frustration and the slumps. People NEED to know these REALISTIC parts of the journey! I use to watch these videos of people bragging about how they went from native English, to FLUENT Japanese in 6 months or less and had me feeling like a lost cause and a dummy. Here I am going on 7 years of learning this language and I don't consider myself any where NEAR FLUENT. I started being more selective about the videos here on KZbin that I watch as my journey continues. がんばりますよみんなさん!!

[@thenaturalyogi5934]

Whenever I feel like I've had enough of the languages I'm learning I always watch 1 video of Steve then I get motivated to get back into the languages

[@gemmacuevas1676]

Oh my God! Im here enjoying the way you talk.🥰 I love English language💗 I'm taking KZbin classes and practicing the best I can. I can understand everything English native people say, but when it's my turn; my mind goes blank!😱 and I end up saying..yes,no, I now! Thats all.😣 Oh my God! I hate myself for not being able to do it right.😡

[@luolive2938]

You're inspiring a lot of people all around the world! So do I... Thank you so very much!

[@d.2542]

-Make the decision that you are an individual learner, and it doesn't matter wether you are learning with a class or on your own. -3 things Matters in Language learning Theory *Your Attitude *The time you spent into learning the language *Your acknowledge -Content//books Try to go for a one where they give a quick review of the Grammer Essentials,preferably a short one with no exercises/tests/quizzes. Just the grammer essential that you can flip through. -then Start by listening and letting language wash over you at first. Dont fight with the language. Just get used to how it sounds with podcasts or short relatively less authentic stories -Then move on to listening things where you are more interested into, more authentic listens.

[@21void77]

Thanks buddy 😊

[@bluntforcetrauma8192]

Good Advice!

[@TalktoJanetAdedeji]

Thank you sir! I am learning French and Japanese language. I'm enjoying the progress. Greetings from Abuja, Nigeria.

[@danieleliassalgadomiranda224]

I really feel happy, because I've been developing my own way to learn and acquire languages without any translations, I'm really really blissful!!

[@waynewestlake5924]

So awesome to realize the self-doubt, "doldrums", discoragement are all a natural part of the process. Key is to continue forward, maybe ease up a little but don't make the mistake of completely stopping (which I've done - more than once). Thanks so much Steve!

[@landriknansong7381]

Although I come from a country (Cameroon) where French and English get both official statuses. And I spent over 13 years learning English at school. But I couldn’t speak English fluently when I left school unfortunately. I must admire that I was studying from the French system then. So my main courses were in French. Then I left my country and went abroad. And I realize how important English was in fact. That’s how I decided 3 months ago to start learning English on my own this time. Things went completely different from what it was before. It only depends on the methods you adopt to study the language you want. I hope my experience will help...

[@aldemarquinguirejo4853]

Lots of wisdom in just a ten - minute video. I feel so thankful for having found Steve on youtube. As so many people have written before me, keep it up Steven. Lots of people feel incredibly encouraged by your words🙂👏👏👏👏

[@mzsonsie]

I'm so happy to find your channel. I only speak 2 languages well now biub my father was fluent and read books in 6 languages. I'm now starting to learn a third language and my goal is to honor my Father's memory and legacy by following in his footsteps. I'm excited to find good role models like you. 👍

[@NaravaneAdwaitBipinchandra]

True, progress is more important than perfectionism.

[@craigyoung5696]

Powerful simplicity...find a simple and effective way to get things done.

[@ohwaititsbait]

Lingq's word count is incredibly motivational. I had no idea where my Japanese was before using it. Lovely to be able to quantify it and then work towards bigger numbers.

[@kungfuman82]

It sneaks up on you too. I barely glance up at the part of the screen but one day I did and saw I had over 1500 words (Italian). It was a great “holy shit” moment.

[@gu3sswh075]

@@kungfuman82 I don’t think it counts different words but just total words. If the word “the” is repeated 12 times, I’m pretty that’s considered 12 words, which it obviously isnt

[@reynaestrella3918]

I've been listening podcast everyday for the last 4 months my English has improved a lot!

[@lauracecilianet]

I am from Brazil and you are my immersion. Now i think i am fluent but i have to keep consuming content to maintain what i had learned.

[@dylanlovett4081]

Thanks for the motivation, Steve. I’ve been learning Brazilian Português with LingQ and it’s just the best!

[@innw2303]

Do you Wanna help? I'm brazillian, give me your facebook, we could talk :)

[@cookkies_]

For me, this video had a really confortable classroom like feel. I caught myself nodding sometimes as if I was nodding at a teacher. I was a nice break from youtube's usual fast paced videos

[@kurtthecat3995]

Having studied German in school and on my own for many years, I do think when starting out from scratch, taking a beginning class would be more efficient. To me a beginning language class provides a foundation in pronunciation, basic grammar, answers to a lot of questions when starting off and importantly, avoiding early frustrations. From there the language learner can continue on with comprehensible input, etc.

[@Nancy-sj7yg]

I agree. I actually attended German classes through C1 and am now learning on my own, with the help of italki, and several KZbin channels. The classes were fun and really gave me a basis for self-study. I also enjoyed connecting with other students, and kind of miss the classes now (although they were expensive). However, from an early stage I began seeking out other materials - series, soap operas, children's books.

[@think_kimberly7555]

I studied Mandarin a couple years ago and we focused so much on textbook dialogue memorization so we could cover two chapters a class. We never built up the fundamentals the children learned naturally growing up... but I am slowly taking up studying Mandarin on my own. It gives me time to try to read the Disney easy reader books I got abroad, my other easy readers, reviewing grammar (prepositions and measure words mainly), and listening more. I feel like I am making progress.

[@planetary-rendez-vous]

How do you suggest learning it at the beginning?

[@Quela64]

👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@rahasiadapuribu1373]

Before I got this video and knew this channel, I thought, being a language learner have to joint on formal courses to improve our ability. But now, I get the new knowledge that learning language is about willingness and depend on ourselves. The best lesson that I get today..thank you so much

[@sergeialekseenko3545]

When I have found A.J.Hoge in the I-net it is the point from which my English started to grow! His mini- stories are awesome!Yes,there was a time when I thought that I was not improving, some frustration and anxiety,but in 3 years my speaking abilities has become much higher than intermediate))English has become my life style,I can't live even a day without audio lessons)) Thank you for such interesting content!

[@alobo_78]

It is a long way but i really love to be an independent learner. Thanks for sharing !

[@iarthghevariya6084]

interest + challenges = a memorable journey (an exploration worth having throughout lifetime.)

[@judzarintocomak9330]

I'm from Philippines and I'm here in Taiwan working as a caregiver I can speak 3 languages (tagalog /english/mandarin chinese) I can also speak some Spanish words and now since I'm planning to move to canada I'm now excited Learning French.. based on my experience I learned new language through singing songs since I really love to sing 😇😇 its quite fun and enjoyable

[@damianloder6080]

I have just started this too. I’m doing the Manny Pacquio song, then I’m planning on learning the national anthem, then dadalhinkin by regime Velazquez.

[@michaelrespicio5683]

Mabuhay sa mga pinoy! Ako rin pinoy.

[@judzarintocomak9330]

@@michaelrespicio5683 kamusta po?

[@ashleygordon8740]

Wow! That is so cool! Good for you and good luck on your move! Au revoir!

[@Rupopulert]

Needed this video today. Ive been studying Vietnamese for around three months now and Found myself feeling very disheartened after a bad lesson. Glad to have come across this video.

[@ernestorevollar3632]

As I've always been saying, Steve Kaufmann is a wise man, a legendary polyglot and a wonderful person, sure thing. He still provides me a great deal of useful advice for starting to learn languages aside from English and Spanish. I'm still planning to take up learning languages such as French, German, Italian, Russian and so on. Once I've got a highlighted level on each of those ones, I want to start learning others like Portuguese, Turkish, Ukrainian and Romanian to get a good progress as well. He encourages me a lot. My English journey is ongoing so far, I'm not a confident English speaker yet but I still believe that I will achieve the cherished fluency sooner or later. Guess what? A slow progress is better than no progress. Besides, I still hold on to the conviction of becoming a polyglot one day, little by little and being so down-to-earth. It isn't done overnight. It's important to get used to language learning, especially in the middle of our learning process because we have to continue increasing our language learning journey in order to not lose the motivation and to avoid falling into frustration when something that didn't come out as you expected. It could be unavoidable, though. The key is being aware when we study our target languages constantly. Being a self-taught person with no pressure when it comes to doing things you're so passionate about adds up of course. That's the main point. Just keep going. ❤

[@prismovalentino]

I love what you said about finding authentic material in the target language that you actually find interesting, but is not too difficult. It is true that is hard to find, but once you find it, that is the sweet spot. It really is fun as you say to learn the language *because you are pursuing your interests* rather than just focusing on "I've got to learn the language." Thanks for your videos.

[@ngocmy6279]

Independent mindset, invest and just go through, immerse in your aim language and will be better. Thanks, Steve. ❤❤

[@NelsonStJames]

Definitely among one of the more positive outlooks for self-learners studying a second language. Many sites seem only focused on what won't work to the point that it becomes discouraging to even try without shelling out loads of cash.

[@schoo9256]

The attitude of independence is one I struggle to maintain in life, but I'm learning. Thanks for the reminder to prioritise that attitude no matter what I'm doing.

[@learnurduwithsara1068]

Consistency is the key. Thank you, been watching your channel for a long time.

[@Aiworld2025]

Thank You so much for making this video, I needed this! (This video should be required to watch at least 3x). If you want progress in your language learning, immediately write down this advice and read everyday before studying. Steve is the GOAT of language learning!

[@kevinlai4793]

Compared to those surrounding people expressing their negative emotion or questioning my ability to learn a new language, to know the guy with internet really made my day and cheered me up while struggling with the hurdles about language learning. So far I am still learning English right now and keeping moving on my Japanese, may all the language learners successfully make their dreams come true (:

[@AfroLinguo]

So true what you said about not trying to ACE or remember anything. Just showering yourself with the language. I do that all the time and it is really cool. I just expose myself as often as possible to the language and then with time, I notice that I start understanding stuff without trying hard to understand them.

[@egreeneyez8725]

This video was insightful in so many ways. Especially having an independent mindset when it comes to language learning, and through life.

[@rioriggs3568]

Steve, is great. I've been learning languages for years and this is the best advice ever.

[@allygarska]

Cannot wait to purchase every single book on your shelf! :') I love you, man. You're a great one! I want to be like you when I grow up.

[@gloom8439]

I love your background. That's what I call richness 📚📚📚📖📙

[@devjanichakraborty6204]

Thanks,Mr.Steve Kaufmann,for your precious guidance regarding learning any language on our own ! While learning any language on our own,we feel less pressurised and certainly without any tension of scoring well in our examination.I feel,at first,we should try to learn any language on our own and only enroll and attend the classes when we are confident and well equipped to understand whatever is being taught there.Your tips are quite helpful for learning any language of our choice. Thanks 😃

[@leo34or61]

I'm learning English with classes and on my own. I lost much time before know this... 6 months :(. Currently I watch videos in English and content in the same language. Your content Is of much help for me, thx so much.

[@vickygraham2444]

Listening to great music with slower tempo is a good way to get interested. I've been listening to the Tribalistas, reading lyrics while listening to how they're pronounced. So the goal is to memorize the meaning of the Portuguese lyrics

[@67ClayTones]

This was just great, Mr. Kaufmann. I am learning German and French on my own since last February (I'm almost at the one-year mark). I have found for myself that I can't learn both at the same time as effectively if I take them on equally on a daily basis. I started with German, then started French in May. It was too much, so I gave German a break. Now I'm back to German, but it's still too much to do both equally (good news is that French is not as daunting any more; I my French skills surpassed my German). Well, this is a lot to discuss. I do want to say thank you, AND, I think I will join LingQ in the future, but for now, DuoLingo, Easy French, Easy German (KZbin), and a KZbin German course I'm putting myself through with a certain Herr Antrim are keeping me quite busy. Oh, and the Ouino apps I downloaded (for a one-time price) for both languages too. AND, I took your advice from this video, so I ordered the Dover series Essential Grammar for both my target languages.

[@Mactakun]

It seems very challenging to learn more than one language at the same time! Impressive

[@sabahedayat2546]

Hi Steve. I discovered you by Accurate English. I just subscribed on your site. I really like you and enjoy your teaching. You are an amazing teacher.

[@mvwww]

Am learning German A2 level currently. I have had countless moments of doubt and feeling like am making zero progress especially because I don't practise the "sprechen" much but this video reminds me am still on the right track. Thanks.

[@gmcenroe]

I took German in college because it was required for chemistry majors at UC Berkeley in the late 70s, I never liked the way it was taught and the instructors were not very friendly. I also did not have time to study German with the heavy science and math classes. Now I am a retired chemist and I am motivated to learn independently. Currently I am using Duolingo, but I have other tools such as Anki, and I keep a spreadsheet of the vocabulary as I learn it. I do have one book Modern German Grammar as a reference. In addition I am watching the German TV series "Dark" with German audio and English subtitles. I think I spend about 2 hours each day.

[@StalkAlexHere]

The best advice I ever received about language learning is this: First - JUST LISTEN. Listen to the melody. Listen to the sounds. Once you can feel the sounds and the melodic tunes of a language, move on to learning.

[@tiffanimilburn8885]

I recently found your channel and I enjoy the content. I’ve been learning German for a few years and I’ve recently started listening to more German music during the day when I’m not actively studying. I usually like to listen to music while I work anyway.

[@خالدبانافع-م7ف]

Actually that's what I'm doing , to be Independent in learning . and also I love to study without stress , so I agree with you Mr Steve Thank you so much , that was a useful lesson

[@mehdieng4481]

I started to learn english for one week ago. I hop improve my languages faster and thank you so mush for videos

[@bludiamond1414]

good luck!

[@dualia-s74m]

I kinda corrected it for you, I don't intend to be rude I "learned" this way after all. "I started to learn english one week ago. I hope (I can) improve my languages faster and thank you so much for (the) videos"

[@mehdieng4481]

@@dualia-s74m Thank you so much my brother

[@jjcalehan9944]

You gave me an excellent insight on how the language learning process should go in personal learning. Thank you.

[@alejandronato25]

Thank you so much I'm gooing to tried learn english this year, I want to be able to speak and understand like a native spekear. Again thanks

[@firsnamelasname6629]

May I recommend you some KZbin channels? Rachel’s English is the best channel I’ve seen for pronunciation. English with Lucy is great if you’re wanting a British accent. English with JES is a very new channel I just discovered that makes short English lessons. And I also make English lessons based around clips from shows like the Simpsons and Futurama. Good luck with your learning 👍

[@moonlight-mr4qc]

@@firsnamelasname6629 Excellent, thanks alot!

[@IKEMENOsakaman]

Yeah, when learning language alone, keeping motivated is the biggest challenge

[@squaretriangle9208]

I totally agree, independence and motivation is the key, I was so miserably in school learning foreign languages but I prefer fiction to non-fiction because you learn about the culture and the world view, the beauty of a language😊

[@ChenCenter]

Steve, this is one of your best videos yet! I even saved it so that I can watch it again later.

[@carmengeorgeweddings3906]

Spot on! Super important to hear it is normal to feel frustrated.

[@kungfuman82]

We all have to go through that Han Solo phase where we understand another language but can’t speak it. 😂

[@AfroLinguo]

For real. This is so true. It is quite frustrating not being able to speak it, but also quite exciting, to be able to understand it lol.

[@jeanp.5929]

I would love to be at that stage right now cuz I've been struggling to understand native Spanish speakers for a while now.

[@evepm01]

@@jeanp.5929 you're struggling to understand Spanish while i'm struggling with English lol Debemos estudiar más, seamos perseverantes 😉

[@moonlight-mr4qc]

@@evepm01 hahaha 😆 you will be fluent one day and understand what is said,Don't bother 😉 your self. We all in same boat 🚢 😢. Speak either you have got mistakes it would be corrected by listening and repeating.

[@scottp8461]

wow, thats so cool, I am in the middle of Russian and that is where I am at, readings great, speaking sucks, hearings mediocre. I thought I was alone in that phase.

[@yenhuynh8746]

I highly recommend that we should learn by our own, it means we taugh ourselves everything, espescially, languages. Besides, first and foremost, this is the Listening, like he said, listen to the language all the time. I did with English, now French and Japanese, that's awsome honestly. Listening always, guys!

[@Geo_Babe]

Thank you Steve for your wisdom and guidance aiding those on a solo language acquisition! You’ve been so inspiring to me!

[@قطرةندى-ز1ظ]

Thanks for this beautiful video.. I'm not an English women and I here to improve more my English, you gave me power and motivation to keep going

[@vivianewaz2247]

Thank you Mr. Steve. I agree with your way of thinking outside the box and by learning on our own, being independent , more disciplined, willingness and to use our other principles in order to continue our journey in language learning. I'm from Syria and I've been enjoying learning English by doing that, then later doing the same with German as well.

[@travis3077]

Thanks coach Steve. Whenever I feel discouraged always watch these videos. 😂

[@ahlemla6016]

This is the most greatest advises that i have heard ever , grateful to you

[@ssww3494]

Keep your health up steve!!! Much respect Sir.

[@NaturalzMuah]

Thanks for reminding me that I'm learning even if I think I'm not. I'll persevere.

[@LidiaArreazaSantos]

Thank you for you advice, to be honest i sometimes feel frustrated because, when i try to speak English i can't remember anything, 😂🤣 i can understand when someone talk to me but i cannot response it, but i won't give up , if i study hard, i will have a better job, that is my goal. 💪

[@themasterapproachtolanguag6678]

You are definitely one of the Greats, sir! Love watching your videos, always motivate me to keep going :)

[@mellowasahorse]

Thanks Steve. Despite not being a beginner anymore, you do sometimes need to be reminded of these things. Great video.

[@libriazonzo]

Dear Steve, you are such a positive person! After watching your videos I feel extreamly motivated in keepIng on studiing. Thank you for your kind help

[@johannaespitia5315]

Thank you so much. You don't know, How we appreciate every single word you say !

[@intolarong]

Thank you for sharing your precious learning experiences from your life!!

[@peteryau2037]

Steve, your videos are very useful,thanks very much !

[@douyalee2993]

你真的好強的語言能力，我真的太佩服了

[@TheKarthhh]

Thanks Steve for making these videos it has helped me to improve my language learning journey

[@monicamora3004]

Thank you Steve!!! Your tips are really really good. I’m on my way to be fluent in German. And I completely agree that the first step is the attitude. Learning German in a school could be very frustrating, and my process change completely when I changed my attitude with the classes. 💪🏼 I didn’t need to change the teacher, the school or the method. It was me. I was feeling frustrated and having problems to enjoy the learning process. I am also beginning with the LingQ app and I am learning how to use it better. And I really enjoyed also. Thanks thanks thanks.

[@larimfa3245]

I am so thankful for you Steve,.. because by your teaching that you have explained I try to study English..

[@m17434]

THANK YOU Steve. Yes, tackle Dutch! It is a great language and my mother tongue. The best way to master Dutch is by visiting the country. Avoid Amsterdam like the plague (my birthplace!) ... visit cities like Rotterdam, Delft, and Groningen. There you have a huge student community who would only be too eager to learn from your ability to learn languages. Btw, my parents were both polyglots; they spoke fluent English, French, German as well as Dutch. This is considered normal in the Netherlands. Peace

[@manosz216]

The dutch are very snobbish when it comes to a foreigner learning their language. If you aren't on the level of a native dutch, they won't even entertain the thought of speaking dutch with you in order to help you, they'll instantly switch to english . If you are not paying for classes, you are stuck in a loop where u wanna improve your conversation skills, but nobody wants to converse with you.

[@ErnieV76]

This video has been popping up as an ad on KZbin...and I watch all of it, always when it comes up. 😆😁 These are the ads ive been waiting for. 😁👍🏼

[@polishmadeeasy]

Motivation is the key! Setting small, achievable goals, will support you moving forward :-)

[@patternsmashing]

Great Video! Great information! One of those rare insights that shaves years off in effort and frustration. I learned Russian many, many years ago in an intensive program, and the intuitions I had from that are supported, concluded, and expanded on dramatically here. I taught software development for a while, and I can't help wondering if everything these people know about language learning isn't directly applicable to all learning in general. In 5+ years of teaching, I came to theorize that what we call most knowledge is just a habit of thoughts. We don't "retrieve" knowledge when we need it. It flows. Very much like walking, talking, or eating. There are some concepts that require other concepts as scaffolding, but even then, accessing the concept, and diving into the connected concepts, still feels like the habit of thought to me. I look forward to seeing how fast I can learn with Lingq. Thanks for this video.

[@julio-kr7mu]

In days that I'm not fine to study, yours videos have a bright in my motivation. Thanks Steve!

[@ossamagamer1810]

You are right by these ways we can get fluency or in simple put be an independent learner

[@yasminyassin9653]

Thank you for English subtitling, it helps me to understand the content well

[@marjankrebelj4007]

In my experience, nothing beats being genuinely interested in your target language and its culture. Secondly, you must find source materials that match your other interests (professional or hobbies). Find materials that you would read or listen to in ANY language. It could be anything, from cooking to chess or geology; totally up to you.