how to learn languages in a LAZY way (advice from a polyglot)

Summary

In this video, the speaker shares their 'lazy' daily routine for learning languages, emphasizing the importance of enjoyment over strict schedules and memorization. They discuss their fluency in Mandarin, Hakka, English, French, and Japanese, and their current focus on Arabic and Spanish. The routine includes watching French YouTube videos during breakfast, listening to podcasts while doing chores, and practicing speaking aloud. The speaker also uses Duolingo for Arabic and reads French books, even engaging with French social media to immerse themselves in the language.

Takeaways

• 😀 The speaker advocates for a 'lazy' approach to language learning, emphasizing enjoyment over strict schedules and rote memorization.
• 🌐 The speaker is fluent in five languages: Mandarin, Hakka, English, French, and Japanese.
• 📚 Consistency is highlighted as the key to mastering a language, rather than the intensity of study.
• 🍳 The speaker incorporates language learning into daily activities, such as watching YouTube videos in French while having breakfast.
• 🎥 A preference for videos with clear speech, interesting topics, and active speaking is noted for language learning.
• 📱 The use of technology, like Duolingo for Arabic learning, is mentioned as a helpful tool for grasping basics.
• 📖 Reading books in the target language, even if challenging, is part of the speaker's routine.
• 🎧 Listening to podcasts in the target language during mundane tasks is recommended for immersive practice.
• 🗣️ Speaking to oneself in the target language is suggested as a method to practice speaking without a partner.
• 🌐 The speaker suggests creating a social media environment in the target language to surround oneself with the language casually.

Q & A

How many languages does the speaker claim to speak fluently?

The speaker claims to speak five languages fluently, which include Mandarin, Hakka, English, French, and Japanese.

What is the speaker's opinion on setting goals and making plans for language learning?

The speaker believes that while setting goals and making plans are often recommended for language learning, the most important aspect is to enjoy the learning process, as enjoyment can lead to better consistency.

How does the speaker prioritize languages when learning multiple languages?

When learning multiple languages, the speaker prioritizes one language at a time, dedicating more time to it, and allocates a minimum of 10 minutes to the other languages.

What is the speaker's strategy for choosing YouTube videos to watch while learning French?

The speaker chooses YouTube videos based on three characteristics: the topic must interest them, the YouTuber speaks clearly, and the video has substantial dialogue to practice listening.

Why does the speaker prefer watching videos with female YouTubers?

The speaker prefers watching videos with female YouTubers because they usually have a higher pitch, which makes it easier for the speaker to distinguish different vocabularies and sounds.

How does the speaker feel about taking notes while watching language learning videos?

The speaker rarely takes notes, only looking up words when they repeatedly appear and are crucial for understanding the key idea, or when the speaker is genuinely interested in a particular phrase.

What does the speaker do while performing mundane tasks like washing dishes?

While performing mundane tasks like washing dishes, the speaker listens to podcasts to practice their listening skills.

How does the speaker practice speaking French when there is no one to talk to?

The speaker practices speaking French by talking to themselves, which they find to be a useful practice despite it being embarrassing.

What is the speaker's approach to learning Arabic?

The speaker uses Duolingo to learn Arabic, focusing on grasping the basic language elements due to the difficulty of the Arabic alphabet and the language's complexity.

What does the speaker do to immerse themselves in the language while scrolling social media?

The speaker has a social media account dedicated to French, following French influencers and accounts to immerse themselves in the language and improve their French skills while scrolling.

How does the speaker feel about the difficulty of reading a French version of 'Harry Potter'?

The speaker finds reading the French version of 'Harry Potter' challenging, admitting to understanding only about 20 percent of it, but still finds the experience valuable.

Outlines

00:00

🌞 Daily Lazy Language Learning Routines

The speaker begins by introducing their daily routines for learning languages in a relaxed and enjoyable manner. They mention being fluent in Mandarin, Hakka, English, French, and Japanese and emphasize the importance of enjoying the learning process for consistency. They share their dislike for traditional methods like setting goals, making plans, or memorizing vocabularies and grammar, opting for a more personalized approach. The speaker invites the audience to join their daily routine, which starts with working out and preparing breakfast while focusing on French and also learning Arabic and Spanish. They prioritize French by dedicating 1.5 to 2 hours daily, with 10 minutes for the other two languages, potentially extending to 30 minutes if time allows.

05:04

🎥 Enjoyable Language Learning Through Videos

The speaker describes their method of learning French by watching YouTube videos during breakfast. They choose videos based on three criteria: interest in the topic, clear enunciation by the speaker, and the speaker's talkativeness to practice listening. They prefer female YouTubers due to their higher pitch, which aids in distinguishing vocabulary and sounds. The speaker enjoys watching these videos so much that it doesn't feel like a chore but rather a form of entertainment. They rarely take notes, only looking up words that frequently appear and are crucial for understanding. The speaker also mentions that understanding around 70% of the content is acceptable as it doesn't interrupt the enjoyment of watching.

10:11

🗣️ Practicing Languages in Daily Activities

The speaker continues with their language learning routine by listening to podcasts during mundane tasks like washing dishes or running errands. They mention a favorite podcast and how relistening to episodes helps in better comprehension. The speaker also talks about practicing speaking French by talking to themselves, which, although embarrassing, is a useful exercise. They briefly touch on studying Arabic using Duolingo due to its challenging script and different language structure. The routine concludes with reading a French version of 'Harry Potter,' which is difficult but helps in improving language skills. Lastly, the speaker discusses using social media as a tool for language learning by following French influencers and accounts, turning an everyday activity into a language practice session.

Keywords

💡Language Learning

Language learning refers to the acquisition of new languages and the development of proficiency in them. In the video, the speaker emphasizes the importance of enjoying the learning process rather than focusing solely on traditional methods like setting goals or memorizing vocabulary. The video showcases the speaker's personal language learning journey, which includes learning Mandarin, Hakka, English, French, Japanese, Arabic, and Spanish.

💡Consistency

Consistency is the practice of engaging in an activity regularly over time. The video highlights that consistency is key to mastering a language, as it helps in maintaining progress and improving skills. The speaker's daily routines, such as watching videos and listening to podcasts, demonstrate how they maintain consistency in their language learning.

💡Enjoyment

Enjoyment is the feeling of pleasure or satisfaction derived from an activity. The video underscores the significance of enjoying the language learning process, as it motivates the learner to be consistent and engaged. The speaker shares their dislike for traditional learning methods and instead follows their own methods that bring them happiness, such as watching YouTube videos and reading books in the target language.

💡YouTubers

YouTubers are content creators who publish videos on the YouTube platform. In the context of the video, the speaker watches French YouTubers' videos during breakfast to practice listening and learn new vocabulary in a context that interests them. This method aligns with the speaker's preference for enjoyable learning experiences.

💡Vocabulary

Vocabulary refers to the words and phrases that make up a language. The speaker mentions their dislike for memorizing vocabulary through traditional means but acknowledges the importance of understanding recurring words. They may look up words in a dictionary if they frequently appear and are crucial for understanding the content.

💡Listening Practice

Listening practice involves actively engaging with spoken language to improve comprehension skills. The video describes how the speaker practices listening by watching YouTube videos and listening to podcasts during mundane tasks like washing dishes. This method allows the speaker to immerse themselves in the language without formal study.

💡Podcasts

Podcasts are digital audio files that can be downloaded or streamed and are often episodic in nature. In the video, the speaker listens to French podcasts as a way to practice listening comprehension and learn new language structures in a more casual and enjoyable manner.

💡Social Media

Social media refers to websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or participate in social networking. The speaker uses social media as a tool for language learning by following French influencers and accounts, which exposes them to the language in a familiar and engaging context.

💡Reading

Reading in the context of language learning involves engaging with written text in the target language to improve comprehension and vocabulary. The speaker reads a French version of 'Harry Potter' as part of their routine, which challenges them and helps in expanding their language skills.

💡Self-talk

Self-talk is the act of talking to oneself, often used as a method for practicing language skills. The video mentions how the speaker talks to themselves in French during breaks, which is an unconventional but effective way to practice speaking without the need for a conversation partner.

💡Duolingo

Duolingo is a language-learning platform that offers gamified lessons and exercises. The speaker uses Duolingo to study Arabic, highlighting its utility for learning the basics and building a foundation in a new language, especially for languages with complex writing systems like Arabic.

Highlights

The speaker emphasizes the importance of enjoying the language learning process for consistency and success.

The speaker is fluent in Mandarin, Hakka, English, French, and Japanese.

The speaker dislikes setting goals, making plans, and memorizing for language learning.

The speaker's language learning method prioritizes happiness and enjoyment.

The speaker has reached an advanced level in Japanese and French using their own methods.

The speaker invites viewers to join their daily lazy language learning routine.

The speaker is learning Arabic and Spanish while prioritizing French.

The speaker watches French YouTubers' videos during breakfast for language practice.

The speaker looks for videos with interesting topics, clear speech, and lots of talking for language learning.

The speaker rarely takes notes, only looking up words that are repeatedly encountered or crucial to understanding.

The speaker listens to podcasts in French while doing chores to practice listening skills.

The speaker talks to themselves in French during breaks to practice speaking.

The speaker uses Duolingo to learn Arabic due to its challenging script.

The speaker reads a French version of Harry Potter to practice reading and pronunciation.

The speaker scrolls social media with a French-focused account to immerse themselves in the language.

The speaker's routine involves listening to podcasts, watching videos, reading books, and talking to themselves without taking notes.

The speaker concludes by summarizing their lazy language learning routine and thanking viewers.

Transcripts

good morning guys today I'm gonna show you my secret daily lazy routines of learning

languages

[Music]

five languages the first one is Mandarin and the second one is hakka which is the dialect

um here in Taiwan and I also speak English French and Japanese more or less um fluently

so um I think sometimes we are so obsessed with you know um setting goals making plans

building schedules um studying textbook memorizing grammar memorizing vocabularies and things

like that because we are told there are so many articles so many people teaching us inviting

us that you know if you are learning languages you need to do this and do that and Etc you

just have to follow all these things so as to master a language but sometimes we forgot

that the most important thing when it comes to learning languages is just to make sure

that you enjoy yourself in the whole learning process if you are not enjoying yourself it's

I feel like it's it's gonna be much more difficult to be consistent in doing it and we all know

that consistency is the key to master a language right it's basically a key to to be successful

in many other things for me for example I'm still learning languages learning languages

I really don't like to like set goals or like make plans or even like write on my schedules

I hate memorizing vocabularies I really don't like I've tried all these advices before and

obviously I just don't like them and I just decided to just quit and sort of like follow

my own methods that actually am making me happy in the whole process you know like I

try my best to prioritize my happiness in the whole language learning process and I

have been following my own methods this past years and helped me to reach an advanced level

in Japanese and French so I I think it's yeah at least um very useful for me and maybe it's

gonna be useful for you as well so we'll we'll see we'll see anyway I'm gonna invite you

to join my um daily lazy language learning routine today so it's currently 9 20 in the

morning I just finished working out and now I'm gonna go prepare my breakfast thank you

so actually now I'm working on my French and I'm learning two new languages which is Arabic

and Spanish so when I'm learning multiple languages I always prioritize one and now

I'm prioritizing my French and I make sure that I at least spend one and a half hours

or two hours uh in French and then for the other two languages I spend at least 10 minutes

if I have more time I will spend around 30 minutes in each of them but if I don't then

10 minutes respectively for Spanish and Arabic is enough for me so when I'm having my breakfast

I always watch French YouTubers videos I either watch a news type of video or more like a

vlog type of video it really depends on my mood that day and today I'm gonna watch a

new type of YouTube videos let me show you I really like to watch um his equipped videos

because while it's news related videos so there are gonna be lots of difficult vocabularies

so it has lots of pictures and it isn't uh too long like videos are usually around 10

minutes even if I don't understand a certain word I can try to infer the meaning of the

word out of the context or out of the pictures it shows so I really like it and a tip that

I use when I pick which videos to watch and make sure that videos has three characteristics

first obviously that it has a topic that really interests me otherwise I'm not gonna watch

it and second the YouTuber talks in a very clear manner not in terms of what they say

but more like how they say it like not like how to say but like the way they speak you

know so for example I prefer to watch female YouTubers videos because usually women have

a higher pitch so it's just easier for me as a language learner to distinguish different

vocabularies and sounds and so on and the third point that I would make sure is that

they talk a lot because I want to practice my listening more so I prefer to watch those

videos that you know talks a lot because the videos that I picked that always has the topics

that interests me with the YouTubers that I like so it's never like oh it's it's French

starting time again I need to watch this video in order to practice my listening but it's

more like yeah another video to watch I'm so looking forward to it you know that's the

point that's the point that's really the point if you found out that you are learning a way

that kind of like someone is like forcing you or you're like trying to discipline yourself

to do it then probably that's not a good method for you a better method is that you don't

even need to discipline yourself to do a certain thing you just do that actively you know because

you are genuinely enjoy doing it like me watching the YouTube videos I just love doing it I

love watching it even if I it's not like my French studying time I still watch it because

it's so entertaining and so interesting to watch that's very important

foreign [Music] as you can see I rarely take notes sometimes I do if I found that you know

a certain vocabulary it just keeps showing up and I just couldn't understand it and I

really need to understand that in order to kind of understand the key idea then in that

case I will look it up or in the other case if I'm just like can't like also can't infer

that Avoca the meaning of that words from the context but I just like so want to understand

that phrase and it's just like I know it's talking about something important and I want

to know it then I will look it up only in that two case I would look up a dictionaries

otherwise I'm just gonna like watch it and even if I don't understand them 100 like it

usually in those like news related videos I only most of the time I understand like

only like 70 of it but it's okay because I don't want to keep you know interrupting myself

in watching it otherwise I'm not gonna enjoy it

finished finished I'm gonna watch another Vlog types of videos

[Music] as more videos as you watch you become better at a foreign

videos I can sort of just infer like I know I don't necessarily understand the meaning

of that word but I can't understand that you know it's positive or it's negative or you

know it's just I get the sense of that [Music]

yeah I finished my breakfast and also I finished watching my videos now I'm gonna go wash dishes

so when I'm washing dishes or like drying clothes folding clothes or like pooping yes

things like that or like just walking running errands I always listen to podcasts so today

I'm gonna listen to this this is one of my favorite podcasts lately and they just published

a new episode has spoken French is so hard to understand so I usually listen to more

than one time like they're they're previous episode I think I already listened to them

like 10 times or something like that because I love it so much I enjoy listening to it

plus each time I understand more and more it's a great way to practice your listening

and to to you don't need to live in that country in order to immerse yourself into that environment

you know you just you can't create that environment yourself

hi guys I'm back it's currently around 11 30. I finished my other work and now I'm going

to take a break while taking a break I talk to myself in French yeah it's so weird and

so embarrassing but it's actually a pretty useful practice when you have no one to talk

to um

[Music]

[Music] hey guys I'm back with language now I'm gonna study 10 to 15 minutes of Arabic

and Arabic is a pretty tricky language to learn because it's so different with a very

difficult to memorize alphabets so the best way that I found studying Arabic is to first

start with Duolingo and to try just grab the very basic foreign hey guys so I usually finish

my day um of language learning by reading a book I'm currently reading French version

of Harry Potter

guys it's so hard like I'm reading uh page 140 and like I think I only understand maybe

20 percent of it

[Music]

and sometimes you know what I'm reading like I read out loud it's more like I can also

practice my my pronunciation sort of like to just move around like just um train your

uh Sun wait oh my God

[Music]

sometimes I just can't help but scrolling social media but I found a good way of even

um by improving my French even while scrolling social media like having an account specifically

just for French so in that account I follow all this French and influencers um French

account like just everything is French I can't help but to start squirreling um social medias

all I see is French you know but like it's not boring though it's actually fun because

um because all the accounts that follows are the influencer that I like so basically that's

a Miley lazy language learning routine as you can see during the whole day I didn't

even take a note I just listen to podcasts watch videos and read books and then talk

to myself uh scrolling through social media and that's that's basically all I did so that's

it thanks for watching and I hope you enjoyed it [Music]