Commit to your Italian success
First things first: learning a new language is fun, challenging and oh so rewarding. Yet, as you should already know – it doesn’t happen overnight. So, if you really want to learn Italian, you need to commit!
That doesn’t mean that you have to make serious sacrifices in your personal and professional life, it just means you need to have the desire, drive and self-discipline to stick to something new for more than a day or week. That doesn’t sound too hard, does it?
If Italian is the first foreign language that you are about to learn, it can seem scary and daunting at first. Never fear, however, as I’m going to arm you with the tools and know-how to set you on the right track to Italian fluency from day one. Luckily for us, we are all capable of learning a new language as we have already learned one….ENGLISH! (or whichever is your native language).
Sure, you might say, “…but babies and young children learn languages so much easier than adults!”, which is true to a certain extent. However, far too many adults – old and young – sell themselves short before giving something new a go!
YOU CAN DO IT!
Let’s use the example of learning a musical instrument – have you ever heard a musician perform an incredible and moving piece of music and thought to yourself, “I bet they got that good by practicing just an hour or so once a week”?… Probably not! Although talent may be a factor, learning a musical instrument, like learning a new language, is a skill that requires real commitment.
The purpose of this blog series is to help you manage your time effectively and get you started learning Italian with your best foot forward! So, being adults, unlike babies and small children, we have the ability to manage our time, to make informed decisions about how we run our lives, and most importantly – we have the ability to COMMIT to new tasks and challenges, if we set our minds to it.
Do this first: Commit to an Italian learning schedule
– How many hours per day, per week can you COMMIT to learning Italian?
– Be willing to make sacrifices, but also be realistic – learning Italian should be enjoyable and never become a time-consuming chore.
– Use a daily/weekly table or diary to plan your time dedicated to learning Italian, such as the example one laid out below:
How to find the time to study Italian
– Could I give up watching that TV show on Tuesday night?
– Could I perhaps wake up 30 minutes earlier every day?
– Could I commute by public transport instead of driving and use that time to study Italian?
– Could I make my coffee breaks shorter? Or be willing to study Italian on my coffee break?
What's Your Motivation for learning Italian?
Another important and crucial part of commitment is MOTIVATION. If you are going to commit to learning Italian, then you need to be motivated. And to stay motivated, you need to have a meaningful reason to learn Italian. This reason is completely personal to you and could be anything, but it is the driving force behind your commitment and will give you a strong sense of purpose as you progress on your journey of learning Italian.