3 things successful Spanish learners do differently – Episode 51

3 things successful Spanish learners do differently

Podcast episode 51 – SEE ALL EPISODES

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

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Today I’m going to give you a great Spanish learning tip.

Today’s question comes from David, one of my Twitter followers. David asked me: “People who become fluent in Spanish, what do they do that the rest of us don’t? What’s the secret to their success?”

What a fantastic question.

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

Spanish tips for success: intro

As you know, becoming fluent in a language isn’t easy. But it’s also not impossible. In my experience both as a teacher and a language learner, there are three crucial habits you need to develop if you want to become fluent in Spanish. If you develop those three habits, your odds of mastering Spanish, are much much higher. Let’s see those three habits:

Spanish tips for success: tip #1

Number 1. Not wasting your time creating your own course

Have you ever calculated how much time you’ve spent surfing the web looking for Spanish videos, free courses, lessons here and there, free Kindle books, etc., etc. Now imagine how much you’d have learned if instead of all that surfing you had focused on one course. On one course only. With no procrastinating, no endless bookmarking and downloading. Just learning Spanish.

When I first started learning English, I became a course collector. I had an entire library with English grammar books, recordings, lesson handouts, videos, printouts, you name it. It was so overwhelming, I spent most of my time deciding what to study next, rather than learning anything.

I only started making real progress with the language when I focused on just one course. I selected one course from all the material I had. It was a comprehensive course with conversations, everyday vocabulary, essential grammar lessons, and plenty of drills. Not only did I make amazing progress, I also enjoyed it a lot more.

A few years later, when I started learning French, I didn’t make the mistake of collecting courses and lessons. Instead, I completed the one course I’d chosen, and I became fluent a lot faster.

If you want to master Spanish quickly, find a course you like, and focus on it. It really pays off.

Spanish tips for success: tip #2

The second habit you need to develop to become fluent in Spanish is to learn only from native speakers.

A native teacher will help you develop a great accent. And having a great accent is incredibly motivating. But it’s not just that. When you know how to pronounce words correctly, you will also understand Spanish speakers more easily, because you know what sounds to expect.

When you choose a Spanish course, you need to be careful. There’s an astonishing number of Spanish courses nowadays that have not been recorded by native speakers. Please, don’t make the mistake of studying with them. You deserve a lot better than that!

Spanish tips for success: tip #3

And the third habit you need to develop to become fluent is to start speaking Spanish from today.

The only way you can improve your conversation skills is by speaking the language.

It’s easy to watch Spanish videos, listen to audio lessons, read about grammar… I remember that the English course I had called all those activities: ‘passive learning’. But to become fluent, passive learning is not enough. You need to focus on what’s called ‘active learning’. Basically, speaking out loud, producing your own sentences, building your confidence in the language. And to do it on a regular basis.

The best time to start speaking Spanish is today.

That’s why, throughout this podcast, I’ll help you develop your conversation skills with some easy lessons.

Spanish tips for success: recap

To recap, these are the three habits you need to develop to become fluent in Spanish:

Number 1. Not wasting your time creating your own course
Number 2. Learning only from native speakers
And number 3. Speaking Spanish from today

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

Find out more about my Spanish courses.