Overcome The Biggest Motivation Killers For English Learners

Learning a language is no easy task. In fact, it is proper difficult. This means that if you want to succeed and be able to speak English like in your dreams, you are going to have to put some serious effort into it.

This sounds all well and good, but you are going to need a huge amount of motivation to keep you moving forward on your English journey. It’s gonna get hard along the way!

Today, I want to show you some of the biggest motivation killers for language learners that will derail your progress quicker than the rain showing up when you try to have a BBQ in the UK. Not only that, I am going to tell you how to avoid them and make sure you reach your fluency goals!

For a lot of us, when we start learning a new language, it is usually because we want to do something in life and that new language is the key that will open the door for us. I know this was true for me when it came to learning Japanese.

At first, you are desperate to make progress and start being able to use the language as you are marching full speed to the end goal. Maybe it is so you can study in the UK, or maybe you are eyeing up a new job over in England. Maybe you just want to impress your new British girlfriend with your perfect British accent…

However, what happens if you are not accepted to the university that you applied for. Or if the job you were hoping for is given to someone else. Maybe the girl you are trying to impress has decided to call it a day and move on.

All of that motivation that you were using to desperately reach your goal has disappeared. Sure, you still enjoy the language and you like the culture, but the main driving force is not there for you anymore. Maybe learning English just reminds you of the one that got away.

It is pretty normal for this to be a big hit to your English learning motivation. So what can you do about it?

One thing about most language learners is that they are pretty creative, so you should use this skill to your advantage and always be thinking of new reasons why learning English is essential for you. They don’t have to be huge, serious reasons. They just need to be reasons.

Maybe you really want to watch Harry Potter without subtitles. Perhaps you want to be able to ask for directions on the streets of London. Maybe you really enjoy listening to Ed Sheeran and you just want to understand what he is going on about.

These are all important reasons to learn a new language and they can be as equally motivating as some grand goal that you had in mind. Try to make the reasons be about things that you want, rather than things that are dependent on things you can’t control.

“I’m just not good at learning languages. My brain doesn’t work that way” They have bought some textbooks and they have tried to learn a new language over the last few months, but it hasn’t been going to plan for them. They see the progress that other people can make in the same time frame and the obvious conclusion is that learning a new language is not for them.

I hear this one all the time and I have just one thing to say about it… Bollocks! If that was true, you wouldn’t have ever learned your native language.

Language learning is for everyone and if I can do it, so can you! The biggest thing that causes people to feel this way is that they have tried and failed before using a method that doesn’t work for them.

Maybe you have heard the expression “There is more than one way to skin a cat”?

There are loads of different ways to learn a language and they are all perfectly viable. Different learners approach language learning in different ways. For example, I need to approach things logically and go through a lot of repetition before things stick for me. However, for my wife, she likes to just get stuck in and experiment with what she already knows.

Is one way better than the other? Not at all. Is one way better than the other for me? Absolutely.

When it comes to language learning there are loads of different methods, so if you think language learning is not for you – you need to try a new method.

Before you fall victim to this motivation killer, think about all the different ways you can interact with the language you are learning. New methods, new materials, new mentors, new experiences, new apps and even new teachers.

Where there is a will, there is a way and you just need to find the way that works for you.

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Stop me if this sounds familiar. You have been learning English for a while and at first you made a lot of progress. Every day you were learning new words and phrases and it feels like it is going to be a walk in the park.

This same pattern goes on for a while, maybe even a few months.

Then suddenly, everything comes to a screeching halt. It’s like you have hit a wall and all the progress you had been making seems to have stopped. You’re not really sure what happened.

You are still studying regularly, but now it feels like nothing is happening. Every new grammar point you learn seems confusing and all the new words you are learning seem pretty useless in your daily life. You are still putting in the same effort, but the results are not the same… What the hell man?

Well, this feeling is something that all language learners run into feeling sooner or later. It even has a name “The intermediate plateau” and it is a rite of passage when it comes to mastering a new language. If you haven’t felt this way yet, you have been warned.

There are a few things that you can do to get back on track but the first one is to accept that this is normal and not to give up. You just need to keep going.

Keep watching that video.

Keep listening to that podcast.

Keep doing those grammar drills.

Keep using that app.

The next wave of progress will come if you wait for it long enough. Maybe you feel like you are not making progress, but you are, it just might not be at the same pace it was before. You got this!

I get it. I feel the same way too. Learning a new language would be a piece of cake if you didn’t have all that other stuff going on in your life, right?

When life gets hectic, and you are starting to feel overwhelmed, it is all too easy to put your studies on the back burner for a while. You will get back to it soon, right? Just as soon as these bills are paid and this project is finished… I promise!

Next thing you know, it has been months since you even thought about learning English. You haven’t learned any new words in ages and even worse, you seem to have forgotten most of the stuff you learned.

It’s a case of use it or lose it when it comes to learning English.

Now, I am not suggesting that you should drop everything and only focus on English if you want to become fluent. That is not even an option for most of us. However, what I am suggesting is finding ways to keep in touch with English when the going gets tough.

Take a look at your daily life. Look at all the things you need to get done every day and see if you can trim the fat. Maybe a couple of times a week, you can practice some vocabulary rather than playing another game of Candy Crush on your phone.

You can also look at chances where you can double up and kill two birds with one stone. If you are commuting to work, listen to a podcast on your journey. If you have a few minutes at lunch time, why not try and learn a couple of new words. Hell, you could even make use of your toilet time when nature calls.

Just remember a little everyday goes a long way. It goes a million miles further than doing nothing.

The more you learn, the less you feel you understand. It’s a strange statement but it kinda makes sense, right?

At first, you can learn anything and it feels like you are making a lot of progress. You focus on the things you have learned so far and how much progress you have made.

However, eventually, you stop focussing on what you do know and you start to notice all the stuff you don’t know yet. Then you realise how much stuff you have still got to learn. The more you learn, the more you notice that you don’t know.

There will come a point where you get overwhelmed by this and you don’t know what you should learn next in order to improve. Should I focus on vocabulary? Maybe I need to learn more advanced grammar first. How about if I spend more time listening?

It can be proper confusing and feeling lost is a sure fire way to lose your motivation for learning. However, there is a cure for this.

Sometimes you just need a bit of feedback and guidance on your journey, kinda like a gandalf, or Obi-Wan kind of deal. That is where I can come in.

Private lessons with me are a great way to overcome these motivation killers and get you on the fast track to language fluency. Each lesson is custom made to fit your needs and my personalised feedback will help you identify your problem points and fix them as quickly as possible.

If you feel like you are ready to take the jump to the next level and work with me, check out the details below: