14 Things That Helped Me Learn & Improve My Target Language

I wasn’t born in an English-speaking country, that’s why I had to learn the language myself, and to be honest it was a struggle at first. 

Why do we learn English?  

Well, English is by far the most powerful language in the world, it opens up tons and tons of opportunities. 

If you’re still thinking if you should take learning another language seriously, you should read my previous post about 9 Powerful Reasons To Start Learning Another Language ASAP

Here’s a list of 14 things that have helped me in learning and improving my English, and the good thing is that you can apply these methods to learning ANY language you want.

1. I set a goal  

Whenever it comes to learning or mastering your skill, you need to set up a goal. That’s what I did! Without having a specific goal, you cannot see the big picture. What are you moving towards?  

Firstly I recommend that you identify your goal and write it down.  

Then, you can create a roadmap/goal planner for how you are planning to achieve that goal, where you break it down into different actionable steps and assign due dates to each of them. 

Once you have your goal planner, you will visually see where you are and what next step you need to take toward your goal. It will also help you stop putting it off “until tomorrow” (that never comes, FACT!) 

Here you can see what I mean by saying MAKE IT VISUAL, oh and you can also get my template to help you visualize your goal and steps towards it. 

2. I translated words I didn’t know  

It didn’t matter if I was sitting and learning English grammar and vocabulary or was heading to my school. Whenever, wherever I saw a word in English that I didn’t know, I used to pull my phone out of my pocket and look it up.  

It’s even more effective when you don’t just translate the word into your native language, but instead, you search for the meaning, and explanation of that word in your target language.  

That’s how your vocabulary will grow much faster. 

3. I read and translated the lyrics of my favorite songs 

What can be better than being able to learn another language while listening to music?  

That’s what I used to do:  

1. The first time I play my favorite song, I open the lyrics and read along, trying to understand the meaning of it.  
2. I identify unfamiliar words. (You can even highlight them). 
3. Then I write down the words I don’t know and translate them. 
4. After, I replay the song and make sense of it.  

It’s that simple! The good thing about it is that you can do it anywhere, on your way to school, at home, at work (while having a break), on a subway train, and so on. 

4. I watched movies, series, YouTube videos in English 

Learning from movies and series… That’s where you learn new idioms, and phrasal verbs and get used to the sounds of English and the way people talk.  

You can even pause it and try to copy the sentence with the same intonation.  

To go deeper, you can even record yourself and compare it with the original sentence from the movie or video.  

5. I took English classes, but… 

I took English classes during my middle and high schools.  

To be honest they help only when you do want to learn and when you make time for it and practice.  

I started learning effectively only when I fell in love with the language. I was curious about the culture, and people and I did want to learn it. That’s when my brain started absorbing information and applying it practically.  

What you learn from your classes is different from when it comes to speaking with natives. 

Because mostly what we’re taught during the classes is grammar. I could have excellent grades on all my written tests, but when it came to speaking, my brain went blank! 

That’s why I highly recommend that if you take English (or another language) classes make sure you do it consciously and strategically. Only then you will benefit from them.  

6. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes 

Your fears and insecurities are holding you back when it comes to speaking. 

But the thing is you should not feel that way. Making mistakes is very natural when you learn another language! It’s even good as you can learn from them and say it correctly in the future.  

If you keep your mouth shut YES, you will definitely avoid making mistakes, but will you improve your speaking? No. 

Look for any opportunities to speak. 

You can even talk to yourself in the mirror.  

Sounds funny? But it’s one of the best ways to practice your speaking if you don’t have anybody to talk to in English.  

7. Download Apps  

You can also download apps to help you learn on the go. Here are some free apps you can try right now: 

Hello English – a free app that covers all the aspects of language learning such as vocabulary, grammar, translation, spelling, spoken, and reading skills.  

Duolingo – you can start learning from scratch up to 23 different languages using this app. If you’re a beginner, the app will help you focus on learning verbs, phrases, and sentences. If you’re an advanced user, you can also improve your language by completing the writing, speaking, and vocabulary lessons. 

Lingbe – it’s a new app that allows users to exchange conversations with native speakers instantly from their smartphones. 

Awabe – another app that helps you learn over 4000 common phrases and words. It works offline and offers translations, video and audio lessons, and a bunch of language learning games. 

8. Change the language on your phone to your Target Language

I changed the language on my phone to English a long time ago, when I was studying it back in my home country.  

Did it help me improve my English?  

Yes. I learned a lot of new words because I had to! I use my phone a lot during the day and who doesn’t?  

This small adjustment is one of the easiest ways to integrate learning a new language into your daily routine.  

If you opt out of Russian, English, German, etc – your native language on your smartphone, you’ll find yourself intuitively navigating your phone and engaging with useful new vocabulary to send texts, use your favorite apps, or make phone calls. 

9. Make foreign friends 

If you have a chance to make foreign friends, just do it! You will be able to get out of your comfort zone and practice the language while building friendships. 

10. Join Skillshare 

Skillshare is an online learning platform with thousands of classes offered daily in education, design, business, tech, photo and film, writing, cooking, and more. 

They have two plans: basic – where you can find 2,100 free classes and tutorials, and premium – more than 21,000 classes, no ads, and more. 

I want to say that I used and still use this platform for any topic I’m interested in and want to learn more about it.  

It has great free and paid courses for improving English and other languages. 

11. Write in a journal 

Write your journal, describing what you went through during the day, what you felt, and so on.  

It’s like your personal diary where you can write anything you want, your favorite recipes, phrases, letters to people, things that you need to do, and your goals.  

If you don’t know how to say something in English or another target language, then Google it and write it down.  

The good thing about it is that it’s not a written exam and nobody will review it, it’s your thoughts. But this practice will help you naturally use the language and make huge progress. 

12. Read books in English

I know reading books in another language can be tiring when you’re beginning to learn. 

I recommend that you pick one book and start reading it, BUT don’t force yourself to read 50 pages a day if you’re not advanced, simply because you will get tired, frustrated, and eventually give up. 

It’s better to be consistent by reading 3 pages every day, rather than reading 50 pages a year.  

You can even set reminders for yourself. As if you would set a reminder for an appointment or a meeting, do it for reading. 

 Try to make it a habit with no excuses. 

13. Talk and record yourself 

Maybe it sounds funny but it will help you realize how you can improve by repeating the recording several times till you feel happy with the results.  

You can talk about anything, about your day, about a specific topic you’re interested in, you can even debate! 

After you listen to your recordings, you will hear where you made mistakes, and where your pronunciation sounds wrong and you can fix it. 

Practice, practice, practice. 

14. Think in your Target Language 

I know in the beginning we all try to translate phrases from our first language into our target language (for me it was English and Korean).  

But once you feel that you know some grammar, you know enough vocabulary, stop translating into the target language. Instead, think in that language, it will help improve your fluency. 

Talk to yourself without trying to translate in your mind. 

Here I described 14 ways you can use just like I did to improve your target language. I hope you like it!

Do you think that learning another language can keep you more productive? What language are you learning?

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