❌ mistakes i made as an intermediate learner // self-sabotage, bad resources, etc

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Hi, friends! Today I'll be sharing some of the mistakes I made as an intermediate learner in Korean so that you can avoid them~ I hope you find this video helpful in your studies!
f e a t u r e d v i d e o s
❌ mistakes i made when starting to learn korean // bad habits, self-sabotage, etc
↳ • ❌ mistakes i made when...
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안녕하세,유~! 안녕하세요~! Hey, you! It's Natalia and I'm here to encourage you to believe in your ability to learn Korean~!
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☀️ f a q
Where do you live?
↳ Seoul, South Korea
How old are you?
↳ 27 years old
When did you start learning Korean?
↳ January 2016
When did you study abroad in Korea?
↳ Spring and fall semesters of 2016 (exchange student)
↳ Fall 2021 - Summer 2022 (korean language student)
Where did you study in Korea?
↳ Soonchunhyang University ( 2016 exchange/internship program)
↳ Korea University (2021-2022 korean language school)
What level are you in at KLC?
↳ Fall Semester 2021 - Level 5
↳ Winter Semester 2021/2022 - Level 6
↳ Spring/Summer Semesters 2022 - Research Class
Can you teach me Korean?
↳ No, I don't teach or tutor Korean.
//
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[@NataliaGarza]

Learn languages with quality native-speaking teachers on italki 🎉 Buy $20 get $5 for free on your first purchase using my code NATALIA2023 Web: go.italki.com/nataliagarza2023 App: italki.app.link/nataliagarza2023

[@deckcadetmiles]

Sad that it's far from my 1st purchase, but these tips were helpful! I think I will find an extra tutor to level up my Korean. I was wondering what was holding me back in reaching advanced level in both Korean and Japanese, but it makes sense. Even my sensei said "you need more vocab, we should tackle children's books" which are the bane of my existence...Plus, I didn't insist on writing practise with Korean...

[@nicoleannponies]

For ayone trying to integrate more native content - I watch the lifestyle vlogger '규진' and I absolutely love her content because its so easily digestable and they are centered around things like school or travel. If anyone else has found any Korean KZbinrs they watch and like to study with please let me know:)

[@SherryOsborne]

Thank you for sharing this! I follow a lot of Korean vloggers with lovely videos but they seem to usually have minimal dialog and only have captions. It's good for reading but not for improving listening skills, which I really want to work on. This channel for 규진 looks really helpful!

[@carolday3381]

@nicoleann2290. KZbinr solmee also does vlogs of her life, she exercises, hangs with friends does her fitness, her business which i believe to be a fashion line goofs off with friends , cooks and she talks a mile a minute. Might be in line with what you want. I think she’s in busman for some reason, i am probably wrong since i cant understand her but she talks a lot about all kinds of things and i am sure it’s directed towards her korean native fans so not dumbed down for foreigners.

[@carolday3381]

Oops queen solmee is her channel name

[@SomedayKorean]

I think it's pretty normal for speaking and writing skills (productive skills) to lag a bit behind receptive skills (listening/reading), just because it's way easier to recognize things than to actively recall and use them. But I agree that I waited wayyy too long to practice speaking intensively. For a long time my friends and I would have bilingual conversations - they would speak to me in Korean and I would respond back in English. We were all too lazy to actively try and speak in our target language, but because of that my listening skills skyrocketed from intermediate to advanced and my speaking skills....barely improved lol. I still don't practice enough but that's one of my goals for this year 😊

[@nicoleannponies]

Do you think improving your speaking skills will be easier now that your listening skills are better? Or is it still equally as difficult? I thought that it would be easier since you understand the structures and patterns better but as I learn more its still so difficult for me to improve my speaking skills.

[@SomedayKorean]

@@nicoleannponies I'm sure it's much easier, because I have a wider base of knowledge to draw from, and I can devote less brain time to listening comprehension/breaking down grammar/etc while having a conversation. That being said, it's one thing to completely understand a wide variety of grammatical structures and vocabulary, and quite another to actually put them together into cohesive thoughts yourself while in the midst of a conversation 😅 Honestly, the only way to get advanced at speaking...is spending hours and hours and hours speaking.

[@deckcadetmiles]

@@nicoleannponies Personally, I don't think it's easier. Input and output are different beasts. While your brain might understand what it heard or read, formulating a response requires different skills. Sometimes my tutors asks me a questions I don't think about in English, or uses words that in English, I'm familiar with passively (such as adroit, I know what it means but never use it). Unfortunately, I've met a lot of people in Korea who can't speak Korean, but can understand it well (even after many years of living there). It's a matter of practising output as much as input. I'm visiting Japan now and my friend who I went to uni with has okay input, but her output is poor because she focused more on the prior than latter. I got tutors last year for both Japanese & Korean because I had the same problem and my input drastically improved, but Natalia is right, native materials a definitely a must. I've plateaued and am stuck in intermediate level, esp for Korean even though I live in Korea, yet my output in Japanese is still far better.

[@nicoleannponies]

@@deckcadetmiles oh this is super interesting, thank you!!

[@zellaidawn7404]

What's great about these tips is that they can be used for any language you're learning!! I love these informational videos that you do!!

[@mo.mwasongwe]

Imaginary arguments with bts 😂🤣😂🤣

[@NataliaGarza]

No questions allowed 🤣🤣🤣

[@kdramalover183]

@@NataliaGarza yet I have so many 😹😹😹😹😹😹

[@ericabraga3365]

I would love to watch a video on how you used native content to improve and like what type of content, what you did with different native resources as well as how to find them

[@NataliaGarza]

I’ll add it to my last of content ideas~ ❤

[@mo.mwasongwe]

This is the year I integrate more native content and not just dramas and youtube videos. It's really intimidating but I'll try. Thanks for the tips!

[@kenna.-_]

04:48 the notes here are so relatable 💀 but i’m trying to get more organized. i’m glad i’m not the only one 😅

[@morningrain13]

Thank you for being real and talking about the struggles of trying to improve a language you are learning. I needed this. Some people are like " learning korean language and advancing in your level is not hard" and it made me feel like maybe I am not a smart person if I struggle. I got a lot of books in the past years specific for studying and i was wondering why I cant manage to express myself well with all the words and expressions i learned. I felt so ashamed that i was not one of those people that after few months they were so good at talking in korean while i can only make shorter sentences because i overthink and I am not confident with whatever I learned. I feel stuck and not having the energy to do self studying for quite some time. My goal for this year is actually to be more realistic and save up some money to enroll to the only classes available of studying korean language with a native teacher provided by a university in the city i live in. Please keep doing these videos. Best wishes!

[@sujinahh]

i would really appreciate if you made a video for those of us stuck at elementary korean and trying to get to intermediate 😊😊thanks in advance

[@sm00re2]

we have opposite experiences lol i actually find textbooks more intimidating/discouraging than native content because my expectations are different (for native content i should know nothing, but for textbook content i should know everything) im reading 불편한 편의점 and despite not knowing 10+ words on several pages (some pages its only like 3-5 words, but most are 10+) i can understand the gist. so this is motivating and makes me content with my level despite it being more difficult than the textbook i just started (서울대 한국어 4A), which is a textbook that makes me feel bad about my level despite it being easy (because i feel like i should know everything, so for every unknown word, i wonder what i am doing with my life and feel like i should just give up haha.... but with 불편한 편의점, i feel like i shouldnt understand it at all, so for everything i do understand, it just motivates me to keep going... even though theres still SO much that idk lol) you think itd be opposite... the difficulty and not understanding should make me wanna give up, but thats what pushes me. yet having just ONE unknown word on a page of content i should know in a textbook... thats what makes me feel defeated.... like ive wasted my time and should just give up🤣 (which sounds silly and is why ill probably ditch the textbook lol) its so interesting to see everyones different points of view. we all have different ideas of what is difficult and what makes us wanna throw in the towel. but i hope everyone pushes through and keeps at it 💕 cause if we do, then one day we'll be at your level and eventually even higher than that~ its all about the consistency ^^ (its late for me so i feel like i went off topic from the original point i wanted to make related to your video and ended up rambling lol)

[@sayuri_lyssa_channie]

I didn’t finish the video yet! I’m still watching and of course it’s amazing, useful and beautiful like all the videos you already made!❤ they help us so so much… but! Actually I’m shocked because I didn’t know we have the same 선생님! 6:37 , thank you again for all this amazing videos 🥺❤ 안녕~ ( I really learned a lot in those years watching your videos…)

[@jeremiahykim]

i feel like it'd be a good business idea to turn native speaking/audio content into some kind of study materials where they provide transcripts/maybe some kind of lesson afterwards that breaks down the content and teaches some sort of applicable grammar lessons using it. just a thought though ahaha

[@deckcadetmiles]

I would love to see this! I know some stuff exists out in the ether (my tutor showed me some channels on KZbin that kind of do this), but it's not all emcompassing.

[@Xia-hu]

TTMIK (talk to me in Korean) has books around that.

[@melwithluv5941]

Thanks Natalia these videos I will cherish for a while! I love Italki as well! It has been a really game changer. You can see what mistakes you make with the help of a teacher or a native and learn so much. Anyone who is serious about improving your Korean PLEASE use it!

[@ashley_smith]

On the vocab thing- a jack of all trades, and a master of none.

[@Vy2GO]

Thank you for this! I discovered you a few days ago and I can't stop watching :D I've only been learning for a few months, so this is a big help!!

[@tobid.247]

May I ask you a question: You mentioned that you started using native content at some point and your teacher was pointing out all the grammar and words you didn't know at this point. I did the same with my teacher (reading Harry Potter) but for the grammar it has been really demotivating for me cause sure I knew before I had (and still have) a long way to go to reach my goal but it was just overwheñming and I didn't have the feeling that it helped me that much. Did you enjoy reading stuff which was really above your level? How you kept motivated regarding this specific point? Would be interesting to know Thanks for the video :)

[@NataliaGarza]

I only know what you’ve just told me, so I may say something that doesn’t match your situation or fluency well and I apologize for that in advance. In my opinion, if you are noticing that there is an extensive amount of unknown grammar in your native content, then you are not ready to be working with that particular content or potentially native content as a whole. When I mentioned that my teacher helped me with unknown grammar, I meant the few times it happened. Out of all the articles we studied together, there were maybe 3 or 4 grammar structure that she had to teach me because they were formal writing-specific ones that don’t appear in most textbooks until the advanced levels. Again, I don’t have a good idea of your level or what you consider a demotivating amount of unknown grammar, but I can say the time I tried to use HP as a study resource back as intermediate learner, I read the first chapter without noting more than maybe 1 or 2 unknown structures. My main issue was the HP-specific vocab and descriptive adjectives. After reading what I had, I decided against using it as a study resource because my goal was to prepare for graduate school in Korea not to be able to read fantasy novels. You didn’t ask for my advice on this, but, if your are open to suggestions, I think you could try: 1. Taking some general Korean classes to learn more grammar before diving back into HP 2. Taking some general Korean classes and HP-centered classes simultaneously so you can study with your desired native content while also learning more grammar 3. Use a resource that is closer to your level and go back to HP once it better matches your fluency As for the question you actually asked me LOL No. I did not study with content that I found to be extremely above my level. I used content that I found appropriately challenging because I felt that using something that was too advanced not only caused me to feel the exact way you’ve described but also offered me little in terms of improving. It felt like I was jumping from algebra straight to AP calculus.. Didn’t make much sense unless my goal was to make myself feel awful

[@NataliaGarza]

Also I just realized you sent me a “thanks.” Thank you!! I appreciate it~ ❤❤

[@tobid.247]

@@NataliaGarza Wow, thank you so, so much for your detailed answer. I appreciate it a lot. Sure, you cannot know my level and I know it is very difficult then to give some kind of advice. But now I understand better what you have meant and just got it wrong what you wanted to say in the video. If I read texts that are slightly above my level I am also completely fine with it. Reading HP was also not my main goal. I just thought about it as a fun resource and was then overwhelmed. I could hardly understand and if you have to look up something every 2-3 sentences it is not a "reading" practice anymore and enjoy that but rather studying grammar and vocab again and doing research about it :) I also liked the first book you showed in the video (which was for intermediate learners) if you read enough to do a review on that I would be happy about a video :) In case you read this answer one other question which comes to my mind: How you go about vocab? I learn them with flashcards on a daily basis (a lot) but had (during my years of studying) also 1-2 times where I just felt kind of overwhelmed if they piled up too much. I saw in one of your beginner videos that you used Memrise for that. Did you or do you do that on a daily basis? Did you have other "methods" as well learning vocab? The reason I ask in general is that you reached a much higher level than my level currently. So sometimes it just interesting to know how another person cope a specific problem or field in language learning (in my opinion) Thank you again so much taking the time writing such a long comment. That's cool :)

[@gabyiskewl7678]

I’m just a beginner right now, but this is really helpful to keep in mind as I go further in my language learning process! And maybe I’ll steal that imaginary arguments with BTS for my own studying purposes…

[@NataliaGarza]

LOL yell at hobi for me~ and then tell him i love him afterwards 😂😂

[@imaginary-yl2cw]

I started off using books for studying korean but after a month of doing that I realized that I hate studying with books. After I started learning Korean through native’s KZbin videos and making some korean friends I finally started to enjoy learning korean. I not saying that learning through native content is easy though… and my writing/ reading skill probably suck but at least I’m learning in the way I love. I’ve wanted to use italki for the longest time but I’m not sure how to find a topik test prep teacher that suites me.

[@newjeansfan238]

i'm on intermediate level now but my speaking isn't as good as my listening skill, not beginner but not intermediate lol. But i improve a lot my speaking skill with a teacher on italki too. I have watched kdrama since 10-15 years ago so i have watched kdrama since a long time, at first i started to learn korean alone with a book, learn hangul alphabet but then i didn't understand korean grammar specially korean pronunciation rules for final consonnants and i gave up and i started to learn korean again 2 years ago with a teacher and i improve more and faster

[@JamesTermy]

Thanks for sharing your mistakes as I'm a beginner, I will try to learn from this. The thing that I am not certain about is what exercises were (or were not done) to think in Korean when mentioning the first mistake (i.e. where the writing and speaking were behind)? How does thinking factor in to these categories, thinking for example in everything that you do from day to day and making a habit to think of the Korean words as if you could tell someone you were doing that. For example: I am walking, I am listening, I am studying (simple things) etc.

[@shawncherubin5616]

The video I needed cuz I don’t know what to do nowas a intermediate lvl

[@annabelle_620]

I've made all of these mistakes before, it's good to know I wasn't alone🤣

[@hannahk.3607]

Ohh, this sounds like a great topic! 🙏🏻

[@ajrt_2118]

Ha funny thing is my everything is a level or more higher than my listening skills. But like only when I listen to people speak at near native speeds. Slow teacher or exercise recordings? I understood most of that. It's the longer sentences at native speeds that just lose me. And once I get lost, I can't catch back up to the conversation. lol And forget it if there are a group of people talking at once. 😅 It's ok. I'll be fine. I'm being thrown into the deep end soon enough. LOL I finally started watching variety shows and reality shows a few months ago and it def has helped me learn new phrases and most importantly the abundance of 줄임말 used in everyday Korean. I usually choose topics I'm into which are music, food, and traveling. lol And watch the shows with actors and musicians that I really like and have gotten used to they way they speak. I'm still confused like 80% of the time and have to rely on English subs, but I can def tell there is an improvement in my listening skills!

[@myuniyt]

Your first mistake is exactly where I am right now. Though I feel like I am improving a bit, My speaking skills is super behind my listening and these two are super behind my reading and writing. When I write and read, I can do so with ease but speaking??? Oh no. listening is so much better but still, I have trouble sometimes picking up words. Even when I know the word 😅 Thank you for sharing your experience with us

[@madisonmarie0613]

not the bts arguments in korean ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ same tho ㅋㅋㅋ

[@bluecandies]

Omgggggg the first mistake I feel that DEEPLY, I can’t find a way around it 😩 and the second one as well, studying with native content can be very discouraging but you’ve definitely inspired me because I’ve done it with other languages, so I’ll do it with Korean 💪🏽 Can I ask a question? I’ve tried italki multiple times but i keep encountering the same issue; as I self-study, I truly don’t need to pay $20 to have someone explain a grammar point and give me a list of vocabulary. But no matter how much I explain that I need to practice speaking and writing (ie active output) no teacher seems to fit the bill 😔 I’m so tired of writing endlessly explaining that to new teachers. I wholeheartedly trust that they’re good teachers but that methodology just has never worked for me. Idk if you’ve had that issue and if you’ve found a way around it.

[@NataliaGarza]

Hmmm that’s interesting 🤔 I’ve studied with multiple teachers and never had that issue. I know most teachers have different lesson types, usually structured/general and free talk/conversational. I assume you we booking the later?? If none of the teachers you’ve tried seem to fit what you need, I suggest trying a community tutor~ Since they aren’t professional teachers, they’re less likely to push grammar lessons on you. I’ve used several community tutors just to practice speaking because they’re more affordable than the professional teachers. Especially when it comes to just practicing your speaking

[@bluecandies]

@@NataliaGarza thank you for that perspective 💖 also I’m loving these kind of videos!!

[@arawisarchenlandzka3779]

I saw the video earlier so I don't remember which point was that but I'd like to add something about learning categorized vocabulary. It's a great idea. And in my opinion it is also important not to ignore more specific vocabulary. I had that tendency in high school (and still have it because it's difficult). I used to tell myself that certain words are too advanced and too complicated and I will only use them when I'll become an adult. Surprise, surprise, I am an adult now ^_^ Tendency to skip certain words is not good, at least to my mind and especially in school because as a teenager you don't really have the knowledge to know which words are more important and which are less important (but still important).

[@paulwalther5237]

I love the honesty in your videos. I just got dumped by my iTalki conversation tutor so I’m putting off getting a new one for a bit 😭. I might try posting updates in Korean on HelloTalk for a bit.

[@NataliaGarza]

Aha that has happened to me before~ She told me she had too many students and was cutting her newer students :(

[@paulwalther5237]

@@NataliaGarza I feel better. Thanks lol.

[@lisamaxwell5876]

what do you do when you feel like you hit a wall ? What helps you to jump over it? I feel like I am hitting a wall. I understand a lot but I feel like I've lost speaking skills and that I never grow in that way even after taking italki classes and in-person classes etc. Like same old vocab and same old grammar and content. I do live in Korea and am exposed to native content all the time...I watch the news and I see articles in Korean and do everything from shopping to scheduling appointments and vaccines and all the 주민센터 stuff just fine but my speaking never improves. I even negotiated a real estate contract with the landlord and no 부동산 just fine but I feel so low in my speaking.

[@Ihaveintellect2025]

At what level where you able to understand dramas w/o subtitles

[@Godbepraise]

"Well yes, I was having imaginary arguments with BTS - don't ask questions-" I laughed so hard I started crying 😂 A n y w a y s - another helpful video Natalia 🥰

[@NataliaGarza]

💜💜💜💜

[@Xia-hu]

I'm intrigued by the tablet (with the digital pen) you are using, could you share what it is? :)

[@NataliaGarza]

It’s an Apple’s 12.9” iPad Pro and 2nd gen Apple Pencil! You don’t need the iPad Pro for the notes though, you can get one of the cheaper models if you’re looking to spend less 🤍

[@Xia-hu]

@@NataliaGarza thanks. It's not really the price, mostly that you'd need a complete apple system to run that well. There are not many android alternatives though with a pen function. Thanks for the recommendation. :)

[@雨緑-q4t]

Can I just take a moment and say how cute and beautiful you are? :))) Indeed, I try to start reading books and consuming native materials as soon as possible, since after you start immersing yourself (even though it's extremely hard at first, up to the point of having to translate every word and grammar used in the sentence..), your learning speed boosts multiple times

[@Referee006]

Natalia, you may have done this before but could you demonstrate your speaking ability in Korean by talking with a native Korean speaker? Thanks.

[@haleyb6027]

Thank you for your insightful tips! I definitely feel like I can apply this to my current study method. Sorry if this has alredy been asked, but what is the tablet you are using and what app(?) is letting you write on the pages? Are the pages websites or ebooks? I tried to look around on your channel to see if I could find you explaining about it, but I can't find something that looks correct.

[@Korr18]

I find I have a hard time finding a teacher on italki (so many options!) Did you find your teachers all via free trials, or did you message them first with that you were looking for...any other tips to help narrow down the selection? I'm currently self studying 이화 1-2 and want to find a tutor to help me

[@Tinyy-Bubbles]

I don't dare to do Italki in KR yet, but I've been doing it for another language and: It takes some time to find your teachers/ tutors (I usually have 2 tutors + 1 teacher, and finding my second tutor since my favorite one quit Italki took me at least 10 tutors (it's still practice, so I don't mind)). Make sure to read their description and listen to their video introduction to narrow it down and make a list of what is important to you. (personality, accent, background, student-to-lesson-comparison, etc)

[@SherryOsborne]

I really need to increase my native content now that I'm allegedly intermediate. Do you have any good suggestions for variety shows or vlogs that you enjoy that might be helpful?

[@steveroberts3512]

Hiya - I'm only just starting on my journey in learning Korean but am enjoying it so far and have some of your recommended books and am using Memrise. My main aim is to become competent in reading and writing. Your touchpad looks very useful, especially for reading. What type is it??

[@NataliaGarza]

I’m using a 2020 12.9” iPad Pro with the Apple Pencil!

[@nu_breed73]

this is such a random question but is that an apple pencil you're using to highlight? or a different sort :)

[@NataliaGarza]

Apple Pencil!!

[@nu_breed73]

@@NataliaGarza thank youuu!

[@diya5249]

Hello sis Currently I am a 12 th grade student(bio science) Iam intersted in studying foreign language course .so can you tell is it a good course? What is the job opportunities of this course Do the university provide course like foreign language (Germen ,Spanish,French...etc) If yes do i have to write the entrance exam in that specific language ? Like a begginar can study ? Plz reply

[@shrutiii]

Hey, just wanted to let you know that the promocode does not work (says there a minimum amount or something)

[@NataliaGarza]

Hmmm you need to buy $20 worth of italki credits using the promo code in order to receive the extra $5. Did you already buy the $20 credits? 👀 If so and the the additional $5 didn’t should up in your account please let me know!

[@shrutiii]

@@NataliaGarza yes, I tried to apply the code for a purchase of $40 credits and it showed an error in applying the code. Just to clarify, I did not proceed with the checkout since it said the code wouldn't be applicable

[@NataliaGarza]

@@shrutiii hmm interesting. Okay I will contact italki about it today, but it’s the middle of the night in China so it may take a few hours to get a response!

[@shrutiii]

@@NataliaGarza haha yes, thank you :)

[@NataliaGarza]

Okay, so italki told me that other viewers have been able to use the promo code so it’s definitely working. Is there a chance that you’ve used italki before? I ask because the promo is only for new users so that would explain why it may not be working on your account~