Lesson Transcript

Intro

Yuriy: Listeners, what’s the best language learning advice you've ever gotten?
Chigusa: Do you remember?
Yuriy: In today’s Sunday News, we’re going to reveal 8 pieces of advice that will help you...
Chigusa: ...stay motivated with learning languages...
Yuriy: ...speak the language and improve faster...
Chigusa: ...improve your memory and retention...
Yuriy: ...and we’re giving away a free PDF cheat sheet with bonus learning tactics at the end.
Chigusa: Welcome to Innovative Language Learning Sunday News! I'm Chigusa and I'll be hosting today's Sunday News with my co-host, Yuriy, from InnovativeLanguage.com.
Yuriy: Hi everyone! Yuriy here.
Body
Chigusa: We’ll get into it all in just a second, but first listen up!
Yuriy: If you want to start speaking the language with our complete learning program...
Chigusa: Here’s your last chance! Get 28% OFF all Premium or Premium PLUS plans...
Yuriy: ...with the Ready, Set, Speak Sale. We extended it until tomorrow.
Chigusa: Join now and start speaking from your very first lesson.
Yuriy: You learn conversations with our bite-sized audio/video lessons...
Chigusa: Our teachers explain every word, and get you speaking in minutes.
Yuriy: We guide you from lesson to lesson with our Progress Tools...
Chigusa: You can learn anywhere - even at home - and on any device - on your smartphone or computer.
Yuriy: You get powerful Study Tools to master words, grammar and conversations fast...
Chigusa: And with Premium PLUS, you can even get your own teacher.
Yuriy: So, get 28% OFF Premium or Premium PLUS right now.
Chigusa: But hurry because this sale ends tomorrow, Monday, April 27th, 2020.
Yuriy: Click the link in the comments section to get 28% OFF right now.
Chigusa: So, listeners, what’s the best language learning advice you've ever gotten?
Yuriy: If you’re on the site, leave us a comment and tell us.
Chigusa: What about you, Yuriy? You’ve been learning languages for... how many years?
Yuriy: I guess 5 years now?
Chigusa: So, based on your years of experience, Yuriy... What's your best language learning advice?
Yuriy: Chigusa, are you sure you want to hear it? Because some people like listening to advice but not taking it.
Chigusa: I am sure. I’m listening and I am ready to take action.
Yuriy: Best advice... number one has to be: Language learning is a marathon, not a race.
Chigusa: So, instead of running at full speed, studying for 2 hours on your first day...
Yuriy: Instead, you have to accept that 1) it’s a long term project 2) it’s okay to go slow, at your own pace, and 3) you have to keep at it.
Chigusa: So, do it every day. Even if it’s just 5 or 10 minutes?
Yuriy: Even if it's just 5 or 10 minutes, as long as you’re consistent. Because if you try to go for 1 or 2 hours...?
Chigusa: ...Yeah, you’ll only tire yourself out and quit.
Yuriy: But by doing it for 5 or 10 minutes consistently, you get used to it...
Chigusa: You’ll be able to stick with it and stay motivated.
Yuriy: Exactly. With marathons, it’s not about finishing first...but sticking with it and finishing.
Chigusa: Yeah, running at full speed is the fastest way to fail. You’ll get tired after 2 or 3 minutes and drop out. You have to pace yourself. And the same goes for language.
Yuriy: Well said. Number two: Make use of your spare time.
Chigusa: So, if you’re at home and have 5 or 10 minutes to spare...
Yuriy: You can put that time to productive use, and learn a new conversation.
Chigusa: And our lessons are around 3-15 minutes long so you can easily finish a lesson.
Yuriy: Listeners, here’s a tip. Open up the clock app on your phone, set a timer to 5 or 10 minutes, and start learning. Once the time is up, walk away.
Chigusa: Yuriy, one thing that helps me is, I like to ask “How much language can I learn in the next 10 minutes”. And then I try really hard to make that time as productive as possible. I don’t focus on anything else.
Yuriy: That’s a great tip Chigusa. You’d be surprised at what you can accomplish if you give yourself a short time frame.
Chigusa: So, what’s number three?
Yuriy: Number three is a simple one, but it’s super powerful: You have to commit.
Chigusa: What do you mean by that?
Yuriy: Well, a lot of us, myself included, when we first started learning a language... we just thought it’d be interesting to try out. Just for fun.
Chigusa: That’s so true.
Yuriy: There’s nothing wrong with that. But at some point, you have to make a decision: on a scale of 0 to 100, how much do you want this goal? Or, are you going to just play around with it, without making progress?
Chigusa: How did you commit?
Yuriy: Well, you answer the question: on a scale of 0 to 100, how much do you want this goal? Many learners make the commitment by investing in a textbook or a program. And in my case, it was that very same question. I had a teacher that noticed I was making progress but I kept making grammar mistakes, and at one point, she was like “listen, you’re quite good at this but you need to perfect your politeness skills because you’re switching.” In Japanese, there are many politeness forms. And she said, you have to make a decision, you have to perfect the politeness, you have to stop switching around, and at that point, she put me on the spot and I said yes. So, alright, I have to do it. And at that point is where I committed.
Chigusa: Wow, that explains your progress. Ok, what’s number 3?
Yuriy: Well, I’m still working on that progress, but number four is: Start speaking from day 1 by Shadowing.
Chigusa: I think when most people start learning, they start reading first. Why do you say speaking?
Yuriy: Well, the fact is... ALL learners, myself included, want to speak fluently, right?
Chigusa: Yes.
Yuriy: So, why delay that? The sooner you start, the better you get it.
Chigusa: That makes sense. And by shadowing, you mean: repeat what you hear?
Yuriy: Exactly. So, if you’re listening to our audio lessons: in the first minute, you hear a basic conversation. Then, our teachers slow down and translate every word. Once you’ve gotten familiar with the dialogue, you’ll hear it again. So, repeat what you hear.
Chigusa: Or use the dialogue section on the lesson to practice each line one at a time.
Yuriy: Number five: Do 50% input and 50% output.
Chigusa: And, input is where you take the language in: by listening or reading.
Yuriy: And output is using the language:
Chigusa: Speaking or writing.
Yuriy: Exactly. So, for every minute you spend listening or reading, you’ll want to spend an equal amount of time practicing the language.
Chigusa: So, this is so you get to practice.
Yuriy: You need to practice. Taking the language in is not enough. You want to speak the language, right?
Chigusa: Right.
Yuriy: ...for that you need to practice speaking. So, shadow the conversation, as we just talked about. Okay, Number six. Read along as you take our audio and video lessons.
Chigusa: Listeners, this helps you understand the language...
Yuriy: ...because you have something visual to follow along with. You have the transcript, the translations, and the romanization.
Chigusa: Right, sometimes it’s hard to understand what you hear in another language... especially in real life situations.
Yuriy: ...but if you have a transcript of what’s being said, it makes life easier.
Chigusa: Listeners, you can do this with every one of our lessons.
Yuriy: Listen to an audio lesson or watch a video lesson...
Chigusa: And at the same time, read along with the lesson notes and transcript.
Yuriy: Plus, reading along also makes it easy to shadow the conversation, or practice speaking.
Chigusa: Yes, you can read out loud.
Yuriy: Number seven: If you’ve been with us for a while, then you’ll recognize this piece of advice. Chigusa, can guess what it is? It’s about goals.
Chigusa: Hmm, Set small, measurable goals?
Yuriy: Exactly. For example: Speak 1 minute of conversation by the end of this month.
Chigusa: Or, learn 100 words by the end of this month
Yuriy: Or learn the alphabet by the end of this week. The point here is, instead of overwhelming yourself with a huge goal like “I want to be fluent some day”
Chigusa: ...you give yourself small, achievable steps. It's a lot easier to learn 100 words in one month...
Yuriy: ...than become fluent in one month. Okay, Advice number eight: Trust the process.
Chigusa: Can you explain that?
Yuriy: So, one of the secrets to staying consistent... is you have to trust in what you’re doing. Most beginners try learning for a little bit. Then they start wondering if they’ll ever reach their goal... and they quit. But, if you just trust the process - that what you’re doing will help you...
Chigusa: ...you will keep at it, instead of worrying about results or this will work....
Yuriy: Exactly. The point is, even if you’re learning with JUST a dictionary...
Chigusa: Yeah, dictionary? Probably not the best way to learn a language...
Yuriy: It’s not. The point is — if you trust the process and stick with it, you WILL walk away with knowing more words. You will walk away with results. Even with a dictionary.
Chigusa: That’s very true. By the way, listeners, we’re giving away a PDF cheat-sheet called...
Yuriy: ...“The Mindstate of a Successful Language Learner”...
Chigusa: Where you get even more tips on how to approach language learning.
Yuriy: So, if you want it, take action. Leave us a comment and we’ll reply with the link.
Chigusa: Exactly. If you want something, go after it. So, leave a comment. And remember...
Yuriy: If you want to start speaking the language with our complete learning program...
Chigusa: Here’s your last chance! Get 28% OFF all Premium or Premium PLUS plans...
Yuriy: ...with the Ready, Set, Speak Sale. We extended it until tomorrow.
Chigusa: Join now and start speaking from your very first lesson.
Yuriy: You learn conversations with our bite-sized audio/video lessons.
Chigusa: Our teachers explain every word, and get you speaking in minutes.
Yuriy: We guide you from lesson to lesson with our Progress Tools.
Chigusa: You can learn anywhere - even at home - and on any device - on your smartphone or computer.
Yuriy: You get powerful Study Tools to master words, grammar and conversations fast...
Chigusa: And with Premium PLUS, you can even get your own teacher.
Yuriy: So, get 28% OFF Premium or Premium PLUS right now.
Chigusa: But hurry because this sale ends tomorrow, Monday, April 27th, 2020.
Yuriy: Click the link in the comments section to get 28% OFF right now.

Outro

Chigusa: Okay, well that’s going to do it for this edition of Innovative Language Learning Sunday news!*
Yuriy: Bye everyone!*
Chigusa: Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you all next time.

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