Today I'm gonna tell you a story about someone who was not good with languages
and for years struggled to learn his first foreign language.
Then something unexpected happened,
and that very same person went from zero to six foreign languages.
I'm talking about myself, my story, and my language learning journey.
And today I'm sharing with you the most valuable lessons I learned while becoming multilingual.
My relationship with languages did not start off very well.
I have always been fascinated by people able to speak two or more languages,
so for many years I tried really hard to learn English.
Even though I had studied English for 12 years, until my early twenties I was incapable of speaking it.
Then something unexpected happened:
I got an Erasmus grant to study for one year in France.
I spoke zero French at the time.
It was April, and I had to move to France in September.
For five months, I studied French on my own like crazy.
During those months, I discovered that learning a language can be fun and effective.
But the real turning point for me was when I eventually arrived in France
and I realized that I was able to understand people speaking French
and to express my thoughts in this beautiful language.
Of course, I still had a lot to improve but the progress I had made in five months
proved to myself that I was capable of learning a foreign language.
And that made all the difference from that moment on.
So let's start with the first lesson I learned: Motivation is key.
Motivation is key
If I was able to learn so much French in just five months, it's because I was extremely motivated.
I thought I was motivated enough to learn English, but the truth is I was not.
Fear of not being able to attend classes in French or get by in my everyday life
pushed me to study every single day for many hours over a period of 5 months.
These are strong sources of motivation.
The second lesson I learned is all about self-confidence.
Self-confidence is vitally important
For many years I was convinced that I was not good at languages
and that those who speak 2 or more languages have a sort of special gift.
But when I proved to myself that I could learn a foreign language,
it was like smashing a wall which opened up a world of possibilities.
That's why after learning French, I decided to eventually master English.
And when I succeeded, I continued and learned Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, and German.
One of the things I was lacking was self-confidence.
This is one of the most important messages I want to share with you today:
you and anyone else out there can learn a foreign language.
Even if you have been struggling for years, you can do it.
You need to believe in yourself and trust me:
if i was able to do it, you can do it.
This is the reason why here at MosaLingua we focus a lot on the psychological barriers
that any language learner must overcome.
If you do not get rid of them, you cannot succeed.
The third lesson is that you need to choose learning material that you like.
Pick learning material that you like
Learning a language can be a long process,
so better to choose learning material that you actually enjoy.
This is one of the secrets of many polyglots.
They also succeed because they enjoy the process of learning a language.
That makes me think of a line I found in a book I'm reading right now: Happier, by Tal Ben-Shahar.
At one point he says: "Happiness is not about making it to the peak of the mountain,
nor is it about climbing aimlessly around the mountain;
happiness is the experience of climbing toward the peak."
And I do think this can be applied to learning a language:
if you want to succeed, you need to enjoy the process of climbing toward the peak of the mountain.
The fourth lesson is that you need to choose an effective method.
Choose an effective method
A method that works is one that gives you results quickly,
because if you get quick results, then you'll be more motivated and have more self-confidence,
which, as I said, are vitally important to your success.
There are many methods which work.
You only need to find the one that suits your learning style.
On this channel and on our blog, you'll find everything you need
to use the very same method I used to learn 6 foreign languages.
It's one possibility, but I can assure you that it's really enjoyable,
and most importantly, it's very effective.
The fifth and final lesson is that you need to be patient.
Be patient
As I said, learning a language can take time, because it's a skill that you acquire little by little.
It's a lifelong process which never ends because you can always improve,
even in your native language.
But if you're patient and progress step by step,
you'll discover how incredibly rewarding the whole process is
and you reap the incredible benefits of speaking two or more languages.
At the beginning of the video, I told you that I went from 0 to 6 foreign languages.
It can seem impossible for many people.
Honestly, the hardest part was going from 0 to 1 language.
Going from 1 to 2 was still tricky, even if I had already proved to myself that I could do it.
After learning French and English, it was rather easy to learn the other languages I speak.
And the reason for that is that I had learned the 5 lessons I'm sharing today:
You need strong motivation to succeed,
you have to believe in yourself,
you should pick learning material that you enjoy,
you need to use a method which gives quick results,
and you need to be patient.
I really hope you found this video useful
and that you will use these lessons to learn one or more languages.
As for me and my team, it will be our pleasure to help you succeed if you need a hand.
Happy learning and best of luck!
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