How to find the motivation to study Spanish – Episode 43

How to find the motivation to study Spanish

Podcast episode 43 – SEE ALL EPISODES

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

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Hi, welcome back to Speak Spanish with Maria Fernandez. I’m Maria Fernandez, a native Spanish teacher and course author.

Today we’ve got another great Spanish learning tip.

See also: Maria’s step-by-step Spanish courses.

Today’s question comes from Melinda, one of my Facebook followers. She says: “I started studying Spanish on my own two months ago. In the beginning I was learning a bit every day, but now I seem to have lost my motivation. I’m not sure why, because I really want to learn. How can I get into the habit of studying every day?”

Motivation to study Spanish: intro

As a language learner myself, this is one of my favorite topics. And Melinda’s experience is all too familiar. You finally decide to study the language, you’re super motivated, you’re really looking forward to your lessons and, suddenly, it all disappears into thin air. Your motivation is nowhere to be seen, and every day you find a convincing excuse for not learning anything.

But the things is, you really, really want to speak the language. So, what’s going on?

Motivation to study Spanish: tip 1

In my experience, both as a language learner and a teacher, the main problem is the course you’ve chosen.

To learn Spanish, you need to find a course that YOU love. It may be an online course, a private teacher, a book with recordings, a video course, software. Your course can have any format you want, as long as you like it.

Never choose a Spanish course because of its price, whether it’s the most expensive one you can find or a free one. Or because a friend recommended it to you. Or because it’s the new fashion. The Spanish course you choose must suit YOU, and your personal taste.

For instance, I simply HATE apps. I couldn’t stick to learning a language if what I had was an app. But give me a good book, or an online course, and I’ll hardly ever miss a day.

Have a look at
Maria’s step-by-step Spanish courses

Motivation to study Spanish: tip 2

Another reason why we often lose our motivation to study a language, is because our goals are too big. You need to set yourself small goals. The smaller your goals, the more likely you are to continue learning. For instance, aim at studying for ten minutes in the morning, or for five minutes during your lunch break. Aim at studying two new pages five days a week. Or doing short drills three times a day.

When you don’t feel overwhelmed by the language, you don’t need to find excuses to procrastinate. Because you love learning.

Setting small goals is a great way of learning something new every day. And when you see yourself making steady progress, it’s much easier to continue.

Motivation to study Spanish: tip 3

Another thing that helps you stay motivated is to set a regular time for your lessons. For instance, put aside ten or twenty minutes in the evening for your Spanish course. Or make it a habit to go through your lessons during your commute, or your lunch hour. Allow your Spanish course to become part of your life.

Motivation to study Spanish: tip 4

Changing your environment is also a great way to stay motivated. Take your Spanish course to the park, or the beach. Take it to your favorite cafe, sit with it in the garden, study at a friend’s.

Have a look at
Maria’s step-by-step Spanish courses

Motivation to study Spanish: tip 5

Finally, don’t aim at perfection. Allow yourself to make mistakes. Don’t force yourself to get all the drills right, or to learn full sentences by heart. Instead, review your lessons frequently. Listen to the recordings in your course often and regularly. It’s a much more natural way of learning Spanish.

To recap, these are the tips we’ve seen in this lesson:

Number 1. Study with a course that YOU like
Number 2. Set yourself small goals
Number 3. Set a regular time for your lessons
Number 4. Change your environment
Number 5. Don’t aim at perfection

If you follow these tips, you’ll never feel demotivated again. They’ve helped me a lot over the years, and my students love them.

Do you have other tips to get motivated? Let me know!

Have a look at
Maria’s step-by-step Spanish courses

Find out more about my Spanish courses.