Make Today the Day You Say Something New

When you start to learn a foreign language it is a thrilling but kind of scary experience, isn’t it? When else in life do we stand in front of a stranger and say words which don’t really mean anything to us on an instinctive level? This means that it is easy to put off starting for another day. However, the quicker you start learning the sooner you will be speaking it well. So how can you say a new word in your second language today?

Talk to Someone

To put it simply, speaking to people is the best way of learning a second language. By doing this you get used to speaking and, of course, listening as well. The bravest and most interesting way of doing this is by going to a place where the language is spoken and use whatever vocabulary you already have in a normal situation such as buying from a shop or getting on the bus. Alternatively, if you are learning in a cosmopolitan city then you might even have the chance to speak to native speakers without going too far, as is the case when practising many of the world’s biggest languages in UK cities.

Increase Your Vocabulary without Fear

Some people learn a small part of a second language but choose not to progress from that starting point. This means that they can introduce themselves and carry out a simple conversation very well but start floundering if the conversation strays from the words they know. I reckon that this is often due to the fear of looking like a fool. Once you reach a certain level you might be tempted to stick with that instead of pushing on and learning more difficult words. However, you will definitely benefit in the long run from being bold and trying to learn as much as you can.

Take a Chance

I am a big fan of occasionally taking a chance and guessing a word. This is relatively easy in languages like French and Spanish which share a lot of words with English. A lot of the time I have been wrong and been met with puzzled looks but the Earth has never opened up and swallowed me and people have very rarely laughed at my attempt to guess a word in their language. It is a huge buzz to realise that you now know a word you didn’t a few minutes ago and you are unlikely to ever forget a word you learn in this way. You will love the feeling of getting it right and you will quickly forget any mistakes you make.

What are you waiting for? Lose your sense of fear and make today the day you enjoy the incredible sensation of saying something new in your new language.