Quick'n'Easy Guide to Language Blogging

Let me just switch on my psychic super-skills for a minute and guess who you are. Are you a 

• language learner

• who spends an hour or two online every day

• and likes getting new tips and ideas for your language learning?

If that is you, then this article is for you more than ever.

I don't see enough of real people dedicating time to language learning along their normal lives. If you're learning a language in the evening, at the weekend, in your lunch break, make your voice heard because you will inspire so many others.

Well guys, here we are nearly half way through the year. It's time to talk to you about this blogging. Have you started yet? If not, here are some quick and easy tips to get you started. Leave a comment and share your blog. I can't wait to see it and hope to share the best of them right here on Fluent!

Where to Start Your Blog

There are many dedicated websites out there showing you how to start a blog, and in fact most website builders come with blog facilities are built in. The core message for your personal blog as a language learner won't be included though, because there's only one step to take: Get Started!

It doesn't matter if you sign up to Wordpress, Weebly or Squarespace, or what your domain name is. You could even blog on Instagram! All that tech stuff can be changed later, but getting started should not wait. So here are the steps:

1. Create an account on a blogging website

2. Write an article

3. Put a picture on it - and you can have lots of fun with your images using apps like Canva

4. Publish

What to Include In Your Blog

It is not easy to answer the question of what you should include, but I know how tough it is to be staring at the blank screen or page when you are first getting started. So here are five articles I would like to see on every language learner's blog. Link to them permanently if you can, for example from your homepage, so that all new visitors to your page can easily learn more about you.

1. Which language(s) are you learning - why those?

2. What do you find really annoying about language study?

3. What do you find really awesome about language learning?

4. Do you have a favourite place to study? It would be so interesting to see pictures.

5. What was the first time you spoke to a native speaker like?

These ideas are of course not a "must write" list, but if you are short of inspiration why not pick one and just get going? Even 500 words of writing could be the start of a truly excellent blog. For example, if you look all the way back to the start of Fluent you will find a pretty quick note - my commitment to grammar. Good job it hasn't damaged my business!

Inspiration is easy to find on the web, but don't feel as if you must hold yourself to the high standards of quality that an established blog produces. The really big names, even in language blogging, have a lot of help with planning, editing and producing great posts. That might be where you're headed, but right now it's just about getting something out there.

Which language is best for blogging?

You can write your blog in your native language or in the language that you are learning. Or why not combine both and create a multilingual blog? I have often done this with my multilingual podcasts, and they brought me

• a chance to practice the language I’m learning, AND

• the ease of processing my thoughts and expressing myself most confidently in English

So in a blog article, you could switch between languages too and make it bilingual!

If you want to attract a big readership from a specific area of the world, it will be helpful to use the local languages and even write about places in the region.

How to Start a Language Learning Podcast

Maybe writing and reading isn’t for you, but you love to talk? I started my podcast The Fluent Show in 2013 and it was one of the most brilliant projects I ever created.

Read more here about how you can even boost your language learning by creating your very own podcast.

Share Your Blog

It is no fun to be writing when no one sees your articles, so let me help you find new friends and readers. 

Here's what to do:

1. Write a comment in response to this blog article

2. Include a link to your blog and your own favourite article

3. Tell me in a few sentences why you started the blog

The best submissions will be featured on the Fluent blog in future and invited to submit a guest post too. Can't wait to hear from you.

Thanks for reading this article on Fluent - The Language Learning Blog. Don't forget - if you sign up to our newsletter, you will receive my best tips from 10 years of language blogging, podcasting and teaching in your inbox every Thursday.

5 Steps for Planning a Productive and Successful Language Learning Week

The weekend is a great time to spend an hour looking to the week ahead by mapping out goals and intentions.

Many people plan ahead for business goals, upcoming deadlines, events, meetings at work, fitness or meals. But did you know that making a language learning plan can actually help you learn a language faster?

When you plan, set goals, and know what’s coming up, it’s like winding up a little engine so you can hit “GO” and learn in the most effective, productive way.

To celebrate the brand new weekly language planner in the Language Habit Toolkit, here are some steps to help you get the ball rolling.

Step 1: Set Path Goals for your Language Learning Week

To start your plan, focus on what’s right in front of you and answer the question “What should I do next?”. Look for Path Goals: specific, achievable, relevant actions that will help you learn a language right now.

With Path Goals, smaller is better. It’s better to meet all your “not so difficult” goals than to aim high and miss the target.

For example, in a week my Language Learning Goals might include

• Completing 2 pages in my grammar book
• Watching an episode of a TV show in my new language
• Writing 10 texts or sentences in my target language

Don’t overload the week. Keep it simple and focus on your system. If you want to go deeper with goal setting, use the Language Goals and Vision Goals worksheets from the Language Habit Toolkit.

Step 2: Check Your Schedule

After you have set your initial goals, it’s helpful to look ahead at what’s on your schedule every day. Have you been realistic? Will you be able to fit in all the sessions you are hoping to complete?

Sometimes, you may find that your list of goals and tasks feels like it might give you a heart attack. Remember that it is okay to aim for what you know you can do, and move some goals to the “not this week” zone.

Productivity does not mean having to do everything all at once.

When I’m thinking about running, it can be hard to motivate myself because doing less than 5k feels lazy. But then I remember this line:

Even when you run 10 steps, you are still faster than everyone on the couch.

It is ABSOLUTELY OKAY to aim for the minimum, because everything you do builds on each other. In the next step, you’ll learn how to make progress even when you don’t have a massive goal in mind.

Step 3: Ensure Daily Contact with Your Target Language

In the Language Habit method, it is not critical to count how many minutes or hours you spend with your language learning materials each day. The first aim should be contact with your target language on a daily basis.

The Golden Rules of Daily Language Learning:

• Aim for contact with your target language on a daily basis
• You have to find a convenient way of finding contact - the easier, the better.
• You should prioritise fun and find something you enjoy in your target language

For example, here are a few easy ways that I incorporate Welsh language into my daily routine:

• Following Welsh language accounts on social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter, so all I need to do is scroll through my feed

• Watching a new TV series or subscribing to a podcast, so I always have a next episode queued up

• Downloading different language learning apps, so I can follow my mood and spend a few minutes doing Duolingo, Clozemaster, Memrise, etc

• Leaving a magazine or book open on my breakfast table or setting the Welsh news website as my browser homepage

None of these activities are designed to take many hours of study, but they all do their part and keep my brain engaged with what Welsh looks and sounds like.

Step 4: Choose a Reward

Try writing down how you will reward yourself at the end of the week.

No matter how many minutes or hours you study, you will be working hard (even procrastination is work, right?). For ideas and thoughts on the psychology of reviewing, check out my recent podcast episode.

Great rewards can be small and low-cost like borrowing a new book from the library, enjoying a drink with friends, or going to a concert. It’s your call whether you want to make these related to your target language. Just make sure it’s something you’ll enjoy, and that you know you earned it with a great week of study.

Step 5: Raise the Bar with Bigger Language Sessions

Every day, you have the opportunity to grow your language learning routine through bigger study sessions. These are focused, dedicated times when your focus shifts to improving your language skills.

Take speaking practice for example: These are usually around an hour long and challenge you to be 100% engaged, think on your feet, speak the language, understand native speakers, and get over the mistakes you’re making. A session like that is an intense learning experience, doing wonders for your level.

Sometimes you may not have a chance to practice speaking, but your big sessions might involve working through a textbook chapter or listening and summarising a piece of audio.

Remember: You are Building a Habit

Habits have to be built over time, little by little. Just like you don’t train for a marathon by running one marathon once a month, your brain will adjust to your new language learning practice and help you get better with time.

Try to banish perfectionism, especially when you are working with the perspective of setting a weekly goal. You don’t have to be the best in order to be good.

For me, it’s rare to find time and focus for more than three big sessions in an average week. When I’m in a phase where I work on more languages, I may vary the contact days or determine that Thursdays are for French, for example. You can read more about learning more than one language in this article.

Finally, remember that you can do this! Every day spent in contact with your target language is helping you learn it.

Want to learn more about creating a productive language learning plan for yourself? Don't miss my free video training! You can sign up to watch it right here