10 tips to start learning a new language

When you have decided to tackle a new language, there’s a lot to think about. With all these resources and options these days, it can be difficult to map out a study method that works for you. Especially if you’re a busy person and don’t have all the time in the world, you want to start on the right foot. 

Below, I want to give you some tips on how to start learning a new language. I hope these tips will save you time, bring more joy in your language learning journey and give you that extra push into the right direction. 

1. Don’t use an overload of resources.

For some languages, there are many resources to be found, but it’s practically impossible to fit all of these into your schedule. Stick with a few that seem most interesting and fun to you. You will find out soon enough if you actually (want to) keep using these resources or not. The more websites and books you use, the more chaotic your study schedule will get and the more you have to divide your time and focus. 

2. Pick your study manner: group or private lessons.

What kind of student are you? Do you prefer studying in a group, with a course book and a set structure, or would you rather take private lessons so you’ll have more freedom and say in your study method. In private lessons you’ll likely also have more speaking practice as the full lesson time will be yours and won’t have to be shared with other students.

3. Find a teacher that you vibe with and that motivates you.

When wanting to take private lessons, always first book a trial lesson with the teacher to see if it’s a good match. It’s not only important that the teacher can teach you the language, you should also have a good feeling with that teacher. Do you have similar interests or do your personalities match? If not, they’re probably not the teacher for you. 

When taking a course, it might not always be possible to have a trial lesson first, but I advise you to ask the language school to provide you with some information about the person that will be teaching your course. Maybe you can also find some information or a video about them on LinkedIn or social media. 

4. Make mistakes.

It’s impossible to learn a language without making mistakes. I can tell from experience that it’s not smart to “wait putting the language into practice until you have studied more”. It will never be perfect and there will always be more to learn, so when would be the best time to start using your language? The answer is: from day one! 

No matter how little you know, put it into practice whenever you can. If you’re learning Dutch and only know one word for the sentence you want to say, just say that one word in Dutch and the rest in English or another language you’re using to communicate. And you will often notice soon enough if you make a mistake. It might sound odd, but making mistakes will speed up your study process. Saying things out loud and writing things down helps you to evaluate, correct and remember your mistakes. It’s much more productive than keeping it all inside until you feel “ready” to try it out. 

5. Interact.

I’ve heard numerous times from my students that whenever they try to interact with people in Dutch, they often get an English reply. I understand that that can be incredibly annoying and demotivating. This is something many of the Dutch do unknowingly. Don’t let it bother you too much. Even if people talk back to you in English, if you speak Dutch and you get a logical answer in English, that means they understood you. Take it as a win! 

Also, don’t be afraid to ask the other person if they can speak in their native language, because it’s the only way you can learn.

6. Find topics that interest you.

Apart from learning the basic vocabulary, you will want to expand your lexicon at some point. By starting with topics that you enjoy reading or talking about, you will increase your motivation. And the more knowledge you have, the easier it’ll get to learn vocabulary of other topics in the future. 

Sometimes, I also use this method with grammar. In some cases, the order in which you learn certain grammar points, doesn't really matter. For example, in Dutch, it doesn’t really matter if you learn past tense, present continuous or adjective rules first. I always ask my students what they would like to study first and advise students who get demotivated by complex grammar to start with present continuous and/or adjectives, because for some that’s more fun and will take less time to learn. You will have a broader knowledge and therefore probably more self-confidence once you start learning past tense.

7. Don’t compare yourself to others, however tempting it may be.

You cannot compare the emotion, the joy that you feel, when you are learning a language. You cannot compare the little victories and the jubilance it gives you. I, as a native Dutch speaker, feel more pleasure talking to someone who speaks with enthusiasm and motivation than to someone who speaks perfect Dutch but is a boring conversational partner. Attitude matters more than knowledge in most situations. 

You can look at someone as a role model, but NEVER set a goal like: “I want to become as fluent as she is.” or “I want to be able to talk with people like he does.” Those goals are meaningless, because they’re not about you. Someone else can inspire you, but you need to map out your own journey and your own goals in comparison to no one else.

8. Focus on your strong points and use those to learn more on your weak points.

If you’re, for example, very good with vocabulary but not with grammar, use your vocabulary knowledge to study and incorporate grammar. Find similar words and figure out why they are written or pronounced the way they are, and then match it with the grammar behind it. Don’t try to focus only on your weak points because that will cost you and will only frustrate you and make the study journey dull and demotivating. It should not feel like a task, but like a fun challenge. 

Let me give you an example. If you know the words “gezellig” and “moe”, have a look at the following words: “gezelligheid”, “gezelliger”, “vermoeid”, “vermoeidheid”. Can you spot some connections? Now you’re combining vocabulary with grammar! 😉

9. Learn at least one word a day of something you encounter.

This could be something you see in the house or in your garden, anything really. Start your day learning this one word and then think about it and speak it aloud several times throughout the day. If you have a study day, try to incorporate it in your lesson and make a new sentence with this word. Otherwise, just walk by the object a couple of times a day and say something like “Hoi autosleutels.” or “Dat is een kast.”. It's a fun and not at all time consuming way of increasing your vocabulary, even when life gets busy.

10. Instead of talking about learning the language, start doing it! 

We can dream all we want and make plenty of to-do lists, but only daydreaming about it won’t get us there. For every time you tell someone that you are learning this new language, add 10 minutes of studying to your day to put your words into action. 🙂