you probably already have language
learning goals but the real key to
success is to make the right goals in
this video i'll show you how with five
tips to stop wasting your time and start
learning
[Music]
hi everyone alicia here in this video
i'll teach you five tips to stop
procrastinating and keep your motivation
for learning a new language
some of these are study methods and some
will be general ways that you can keep
your study motivation up while these
tips are for studying a language some of
them are good for other things in your
life too such as new challenges or other
types of goals but before we start don't
forget to click the link in the
description to get your bundle of pdf
cheat sheets including survival phrases
romantic lines learning tips absolutely
free
now you probably already have some goals
you're trying to achieve when it comes
to your language learning progress
while achieving these goals is important
making sure you make the right goals is
the real key to success
the very first tip is to set smart goals
smart is an acronym meaning each letter
in the word stands for another word the
earliest known reference to smart goals
was in an article written by george t
doran for a 1981 issue of the management
review academic journal the acronym
varies depending on its use but each
letter generally stands for some
criterion that helps with effective goal
setting for our purposes let's define
smart goals as follows
the s stands for specific
your goals should target a specific area
for improvement our natural tendency is
to have a goal that's very general if
your goal isn't specific enough you'll
lack the focus and proper direction you
need to achieve your goals so s is for
specific
m stands for measurable your goals
should be quantifiable they should be
able to indicate progress in some way
you have to be able to track your
progress otherwise you won't know if
you're getting any closer to your goal
as you see yourself getting closer and
closer to your goal your motivation will
go up so your goals need to be
measurable
a stands for achievable your goals have
to be achievable
many people want to become fluent in
their target language immediately
however this goal is unrealistic your
goals have to be achievable
if your goal is too challenging for your
current level it will only demotivate
you when you aren't where you think you
should be
instead think about what results can
realistically be achieved given your
level your resources and any constraints
such as time so make sure that your goal
is actually achievable
r stands for relevant
your goals may be specific they may be
measurable and they may be achievable
but are they actually relevant to what
you want to achieve don't just do a lot
of things
if you're focused on improving your
speaking skills in your target language
make sure that you spend your time
having conversations with others
make sure you're doing the right things
so that your efforts actually bring you
closer to your goal instead of just
giving you more work
[Music]
t stands for timely you need to set a
deadline for your goals if you don't
specify when you plan to achieve the
result you've set for yourself it's very
easy to put off the task you can delay
it until tomorrow the next week or the
next month and at this rate you'll never
get things done so your goal must have
an end date so remember tip number one
is to set smart goals specific
measurable achievable relevant and
timely
so for example a goal you could make is
registering for a challenging test a
test that's a little bit beyond your
current level i hate failing so if i
register for a challenging test i'm
motivated to study because i don't want
to fail
this is a good example of a smart goal
because tests are
specific there are tons of different
tests focused on speaking grammar and
comprehension pick a test that can
measure the specific area in which you'd
like to grow
measurable tests are measurable every
test measures your performance to some
degree
whether it's a total count of right and
wrong answers or a simple pass or fail
every test measures your performance
tests are achievable there's an
important detail to remember here though
find a test that is achievable for you
if you're a beginner then the most
advanced test is probably not right for
you find one that's meant for beginners
then after that one work your way up to
more advanced tests in the future
tests are relevant most if not all
language tests are designed to ensure
that you're capable of performing to a
set standard in your target language
lower level tests are designed to ensure
that you can handle the most essential
aspects of your target language but
there are tests for all levels including
higher education entry exams that could
be difficult even for native speakers
pick the one that's right for you and
finally tests are timely if your test is
completed in a physical location then
this one is obvious you have to be at
that spot at the set time ready to take
the test there's no wiggle room but even
online tests will most likely have a
deadline for you to complete them
[Music]
the second tip to help you stop
procrastinating and to keep your
motivation up is to create a diary or
social media account that you can update
every day
this may seem simple or even unrelated
to language learning but by creating a
diary in your target language you have
the chance to actually create in the
language itself creating a diary is also
a great way to practice writing in your
target language
another method is to create a social
media account which gives you the chance
to connect with other people who are
working toward the same goals as you
maybe they can even give you feedback on
your writing
if you're following people online who
regularly share good resources those can
be really helpful for you too it lets
you find new tools that can encourage
and motivate you especially if they
relate to some of your other interests
such as music or books in other
languages
this is a really good way to take a few
minutes every day to work towards your
goal without it even seeming like work
the third tip is to focus on
understanding a specific tv show or
movie try to watch a movie in your
target language without any subtitles or
try to understand your favorite tv show
that's in your target language if you
don't already have a goal like this it
can be a fun way to practice
if your friends often talk about a
particular tv show it could be a good
way to study and a fun way to keep your
motivation up together plus tv shows and
movies often use the language in a way
that's vastly different from the
conversations provided in traditional
textbooks so you often get to hear
different vocabulary choices it's a very
powerful way to learn a language and end
up sounding more like a native speaker
tip number four is to enroll in a
regular language course register for
something you have to go to or you have
to participate in regularly meaning
every week or two times a week or maybe
even every day
the point of this is it's something that
gives you a pattern to follow
forming a study habit will help you
progress very quickly it will make it
easier for you to achieve your language
learning goals once you form the habit
you won't even have to think about
starting each time it'll just be natural
have something that you must take
responsibility for you'll be more
motivated to continue if there are
others especially classmates or a
teacher watching you progress
look for resources inside your community
and if there are no opportunities there
look for things digitally you can find
many of our videos on youtube on
facebook and of course our entire video
and audio lesson library on our website
the lessons on our website also come
with assignment courses so you can test
your knowledge
[Music]
the last tip is to make your goal public
share your goal tell people about your
goal for example if you want to give a
business presentation in your target
language this year then tell your
colleagues or your boss about it some
people may find what you're doing
interesting and they can support you
this kind of pressure can help push
people forward who have trouble
motivating themselves alone by telling
others about your goal you'll feel more
accountable because you told somebody
that you were planning on doing
something there's an underlying sense of
guilt if you don't accomplish the task
you may feel that you have failed your
peers in some way even if there's no
direct pressure from them
using this technique you can push
yourself into moving forward towards
your goal especially at times when you
feel the least motivated
and that brings us to the end of our
five tips to stop wasting time and start
learning a language
we've talked a lot about how to set
goals for yourself and think about new
challenges
first i told you about creating smart
goals remember smart goals are specific
measurable achievable relevant and
timely
registering for a test is a great
example of a smart goal
next we talked about keeping a diary or
social media account in your target
language start doing it right now even
if you're still a beginner
then i suggested that you focus on
understanding a specific tv show or
movie
pick something in your target language
that you really love because you may
need to watch it over and over again
until it all makes sense to you
and next we talked about enrolling in a
regular language course this will give
you something concrete that you must
take responsibility for
finally make your goal public tell
someone about your learning goals to
keep you accountable for them you're
much less likely to abandon your studies
if you have friends asking you about
your progress
i hope that these are useful tips that
you can use to reach your language
learning goals
and before we go let me remind you to
download tons of free pdf lessons to
learn the language the fast fun and easy
way just click the link in the
description if you like this video give
us a thumbs up and share it with anyone
who may find it useful do you have any
good tips that you've used to help you
reach your goals share them in the
comments thanks very much for watching
and see you next time