Should you accept a Language Challenge? Here are 7 Things to Know before you Decide

Challenge is a big word in today's world, and challenges have started being all around us. There are the language challenges like the italki Language Challenge and the Add 1 Challenge. Then your local gym might challenge you to swim a few miles or do 500 squats. And of course we were all challenging ourselves to drown in ice buckets last year.

What is that makes a challenge rewarding and great? How do you know you're ready? Here are a few thoughts and insides to show you what makes a good challenge work.

Why do we like challenges?

language challenges

1. Pride

Accepting a challenge means proving something - not just to yourself but also to the world. No one would put themselves through something difficult if they don't believe that the result will be positive. So when you're in a challenge, you choose to commit to improving yourself and your skills in public. You can stand proud knowing that you have represented no matter how far you get.

2. Community

Group challenges are a wonderful opportunity to overcome your fears and push yourself to try out new things. I remember last year's abseiling adventure and how terrified it made me feel. If there had not been so many other people to encourage me and show me that this is possible, I would have never done it.

Here is how Brian, founder of the Add 1 Challenge, talks about his experience attempting to learn a new language in just 3 months and following a fellow student on the Fluent in 3 Months forum:

Even though he was half way around the world, I get inspired and energized every time just because I know someone was going through the same thing as I am, sharing the same struggles and having our small wins.

So if you are feeling isolated as an online learner, don't despair and seek out a community of people who share your goal.

3. Excitement

As part of my participation in the Small Product Lab (see below) I’m feeling like I’m on an invigorating sprint, and I can already see the end in sight. So here is one reason we love a challenge: Excitement!

It can be very motivating to put a specific goal and a time limit on our activities. You can feel buoyed by the community, inspired by everyone else's ideas and optimistic about the finish line.

How do you know you're ready for a challenge?

Of course, there is no such thing as a free lunch out there and so even the most valuable challenge comes with its own risks. Before you dive in, it's important to be sure that you're ready right now.

Will you have time and energy?

Since many language learners and aspiring polyglots are such high achievers, there's a risk in any good challenge. It can feel disappointing when you overcommit and set your expectations too high. So before challenging yourself to achieve something unrealistic, check how you are feeling.

Katey Nixon is taking the Add 1 Challenge right now and warns that "all or nothing" thinking can sabotage your great efforts.

So far three days this week I have skipped practice and I think it is all or nothing thinking, because I think - well I don’t have a full hour to practice - so I don’t even start and let other things get in the way.

Katey

Awareness is always the first step to solving a problem, so remember to accept a challenge only if it feels like you will have fun and not added stress.

You must feel that the goal works for you

The biggest risk in accepting any challenge is doing it for the wrong reason. If you are participating in a difficult endeavour just to prove your own skills or strengths, you're in murky territory. First of all, ask yourself who you want to prove yourself to. If your activity is based on the desire to impress someone else, forget it.

A good personal success does not come from other people's approval. Your challenge should be about what's meaningful to you, and what gets you fired up.

And what if you fail?

The other elephant in the room is fear of failure, and this is something that haunts every language learner out there. For example, the Add 1 Challenge proposes that you "hold a 15 minute conversation with a native speaker after 90 days". Personally, I think this is a super vague goal. You could speak to them in your language and have it be a success. You could speak to them for 10 minutes and have it be a failure.

I don't know exactly who said the following thing, maybe it was Yoda or maybe it was George Clooney. But in language learning and in business, I believe these words are powerful:

There is no such thing as failure. There is just trying.

Be flexible and forgive yourself for missing a day every now and then. A well-organised challenge will also take this into account. For example, Lindsay Dow's structure for the Instagram Language Challenge allows some extra days for catching up. If you're ready to try something, you're ready for a challenge.

Before you start, ask yourself these three questions

  1. Are you ready to commit the time and resources required?
  2. Is the goal your goal?
  3. Are you excited?

If you get three "yes" answers, I think it's time to sign up! If one of the answers is a no, leave it for another day. Those good ideas and challenges won't go anywhere.

Here is my own challenge story

And here is a secret revealed: I finally signed up to one.

The thing I’m challenging right now is not my language learning skill but my creativity. Small Product Lab challenges creative people to build a small and helpful product in just 10 days. And because I've not got much time, here is my promotion for you:

I am putting together an Email Set to save any online or private teacher time when they book new and existing students. It will include helpful email templates and also a guide to email signatures. And right now it's not launched yet, so you can get it at half price for a few days only. Click here for more information and to watch my product grow.

Podcast Episode 17: Discover a Travel-Loving Lifestyle with Gabby Wallace

In this episode, I giggle my way through a football reporter’s discovery that German is a useful language - live! You will also hear my interview with Gabby Wallace, a friendly and experienced teacher who has made the whole world her office.

gabby wallace

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Where in the USA they still had a queen in the 1950s

  • Why Discipline and Sharing are the two most important techniques in language learning

  • How to combine the best of Japanese learning traditions with the best of the American classroom

  • How real language learners improve through videos

  • And best of all: How to become location independent, and how to have an immersion trip

  • How I flounder when I’m actually asked to explain Memrise

“The bottom line: It always comes down to motivation.”

— Gabby

Article of the week

Tips of the Week

As our video girl, Gabby didn’t hesitate to choose tip 3 for this episode, so go ahead and try it out.

1) Try some gist reading: Skim through an article quickly and try to get the gist

2) Bulk add your excel or word lists to Memrise

3) Get smarter about video with Yabla

Tips and Links from this Podcast

Support the Creative Language Learning Podcast on Patreon and I’ll send you a nice card.

Gabby Wallace

Laptop Teacher

Go Natural English

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt on Netflix - they have subtitles and audio in German, French, Spanish and Portuguese

Jeremy Ginsburg teaching Vietnamese on Youtube

Please don't forget to head over to the Flashsticks Sponsor Page to support this podcast.

Podcast Episode 16: Discover languages, dialects and scripts with Lindsay Dow

In Episode 16, I'm introducing our new co-host: Lindsay Dow from Lindsay Does Languages. I’m bringing Lindsay in for more Creative Language Learning Podcast because she's just been so much fun for you to listen to. The episode is supported by Flashsticks (use code KERSTIN10 on www.flashsticks.com for a 10% discount).

podcast languages

In Episode 16, you’ll hear:

  • A discussion of the world’s many different scripts and writing systems, with Lindsay’s recent forays into Amharic and how I worked in Korea for 2 days

  • What makes a dialect different from a language, and where is the line?

  • What travelling to Europe and getting your Health Insurance card can do for your world perspectives

  • A live recording of my first ever #iglc Instagram Language Challenge video

Tips of the Week

In this episode the tables were turned and Lindsay allowed me to choose the tip of the week from three awesome creative tips she had researched. I loved it! My favourite tip ended up being tip 3, using a language in order to learn a language.

1) Open your ears and get into the exercises at listeningpractice.org

2) Learn a language with Pinterest. Both Lindsay and I love this social network and we have about how you can enhance your lessons and learning adventures with it. Here they are:

3) Learn a new language via a language that you already know

Links for Episode 16 of the Creative Language Learning Podcast

Thanks for reading this article on Fluent, the Language Learning Blog. If you are feeling able to give $1 to keep the podcast and the blog going strong, please head over to Patreon and become a supporter!

Podcast Episode 15: From marrying a soldier to writing a German language blog, with Angelika Davey

My guest this month is Angelika Davey, owner of the blog angelikasgerman.co.uk. Angelika has been teaching German independently for many years.

angelika davey

Listen to our interview to find out more about

  • Keeping your mind agile, and whether it really matters to anyone under 50

  • The ultimate showdown: Age vs. Attitude! Which one makes you a better learner?

  • Why learning German is your best choice for business

  • What it’s like to date someone from a different country

  • A new and innovative approach that makes even the best private teacher affordable and accessible to yo

Article of the Week

Multilingual Families: Even our Dog uses 3 Languages

Tips of the Week

Angelika chose Tip 1 as her Tip of the Week.

Tip 1: Read cereal packets, clothing labels and anything you can get (see Language Surfer blog)

Tip 2: Discover foreign culture at home

Tip 3: Use Eurovision to learn your Target Language (see Koko the Polyglot)

Tips and Links from this Podcast

Don't forget to take advantage of the special $10 German Course offer!

If I’m selling to you, then I speak your language. If you’re buying from me, dann müssen Sie Deutsch sprechen.
— Willy Brand

Links to Amazon and Udemy are affiliate links so they cost you nothing more but they support Fluent Language and this podcast. Thanks for your clicks. If you are feeling able to give $1 to keep the podcast and the blog going strong, please head over to Patreon and become a supporter!

 

How to enjoy Language Learning more by being lousy at it

If you are a long-term follower of the Fluent blog, you might already be familiar with my love of Pinterest. I spend the odd free minute over on that website, admiring pictures, getting inspiration and using it to learn about education and teaching..

The Growth Mindset

Today I came across a really great graphic illustrating the growth mindset (previously discussed in episode 9 of the podcast), which is such a helpful way for language learners and strivers of any kind to treat perfectionism and become ongoing learners. Adopting a growth mindset has been proven to contribute to both learning success and happiness in scientific studies. In fact, it is absolutely invaluable for adult learners because it does away with this nonsensical myth of talent.

Here's the amazing core message:

Learn to enjoy being lousy.

That is all. Mind blown? Let's move on to this graphic showing how you can do it.

Thank you, Ryan Thomas

Thank you, Ryan Thomas

Online Perfection

When you admire people's well-prepared Youtube videos and considered posts that outline their study routines, it is all too easy to feel inferior. A fixed mindset keeps you trapped in those situations, it forces you to feel that the situation is unfair and you are lagging way behind. But the growth mindset would look at another person's success, then look at what you are accomplishing and say "I don't need approval, I want to gain more knowledge!". In fact, I cannot say this any better than Edudemic already has, so please head over and read the following article on the Growth Mindset. Inspiring, fantastic stuff.

Use Growth for Everything

If you are struggling with adopting this mindset for your language learning, think of other learning situations you have been in during your life. Driving, cooking, sewing, musical instruments. We all started out pretty terrible at those, and the more you do it, the better you get. Yes, that's all of us. German and Arabic and Tagalog are no different.

If you want to read more about using Pinterest in your language learning routine, you can read my step-by-step guide on this blog.