It’s easy to lose motivation when trying to learn any new skill, but consistency is often your best friend while you’re learning a new language, so it’s completely essential that you find ways to re-motivate yourself when the going gets tough.
Sometimes it can be as simple as reminding yourself why you’re learning Chinese, but on other days, that won’t be enough and you’ll need a dose of excitement or inspiration to get you going again.
Here are 13 ways to do just that.
— Watch any of Insect Island videos. Her Mandarin is ridiculously good and will remind you that foreigners can indeed learn Chinese to a high level. Go to her channel here.
— Go to whatever Chinese restaurant you like in your area, and try ordering your food in Chinese. Of course, do this if they speak Chinese, and if you don’t look Chinese at all, you can preface the order by asking if it’s okay if you practice your Chinese.
— Read this article on the day in a life of an expat in Taiwan.
— Go on SugoIdeas or DramaFever and find just ONE drama to start watching with captions on. My personal favorites are In Time With You () and Dear Mom ().
— If you’re feeling ambitious while the English captions are on, turn them off and see how much you understand for 5-10 minutes.
— Find a friend to be your study partner. It’s best if this friend is a native English speaker, too. Then you can compare notes, practice talking together, and generally keep each other accountable to making progress
— Watch this video from FungBros on Taiwanese snacks.
— And then go pick up a few from your local Chinese grocery store!
— Make a Taiwanese friend who speaks as little English as possible. Nothing motivates you faster than absolutely needing the language to communicate. You can find someone like this on HelloTalk, Italki, or SharedTalk.
— Sit in awe while you watch this time-lapse video of Taiwan (https://vimeo.com/53902363).
— Take a break. Sometimes you just need a few days to clear your head and get some rest from all of the intense studying you’ve been doing. Just remember to come back. ;]
— Promise yourself a small amount of time to study each day. It can be 5 minutes, or it can be 30 minutes. Just make sure it’s realistic and achievable. If it helps, keep a spreadsheet of your efforts so you have somewhere to record your study sessions.
— Read this quote. It really is a series of small steps. Remember that before you get frustrated or feel like the goal is too far away.
What’s one thing you do when you need to re-motivate yourself? Let me know in the comments below!
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