The Road to Language Mastery

"You need more training, Daniel-san."

The road to mastery is never easy, but at least it exists. In the heart of many is the desire to master a craft, a skill, a song, a hobby, a profession, a direction. How does one move from a hopeless starting point to an excellent path? More than anything, believe that you can do it. Whether your desire is to be a prolific writer, outstanding speaker, the best educator - all you have to do is to believe that you can be that. And then start.

Harv Eker is indeed accurate when he immortalized the line "every master was once a disaster." No one starts at the point of excellence. Everything that is worth mastering has first been learned painfully. Despite the desire to be the best in a certain endeavor, regardless of the motivation one has, or even the confidence he gets from supportive individuals, he will usually struggle in the beginning. 

But then, with the right mindset and passion to succeed, anyone can keep pushing and will finally realize that it is not that difficult after all. What is ideal is to find himself stretching to the point of mastering that which he initially struggled to learn.This is the beautiful cycle of language learning. English, or any language for that matter, requires one to stretch constantly and keep practicing. In mastering any aspect of a language, the heart and the mind support each other. Every step up is a reason to keep going. The problem with some language learners is the tendency to take it easy when the point of interlanguage happens. This is when, upon reaching 50% of his U-curve of learning, the learner decides to stay longer than needed in the mid-lane. He gets stuck. Language errors fossilize and the learner loses motivation. The challenge is to keep pushing and reach the second 50% towards the end point of mastery. This last move is a challenge because once we know a little about the field or endeavor we want to master, there is usually a strong urge to relax.

There are simple steps to counter the tendency to stagnate and always be on track towards mastering a language. Get your pen and remember these pointers on your laziest days:

1. Set goals on a daily or weekly basis. Setting a target for yourself makes it easier to keep going.

2. Enjoy the learning journey. Your mind should be set on enjoying any activity that will make you more learned and your life more meaningful.

3. Remember that as without, so within. Be motivated by your surroundings. Engage in enriching hobbies. Communicate with positive individuals. And by all means avoid time-wasters in any form.

4. Celebrate your accomplishments. Make sure to commend yourself when you reach any learning objectives.

5. Guard your mind from getting sidetracked. Only you can decide how soon you will master this one.

For language coaching and training need evaluation, call your TalkShop consultant at (632) 894 5588 or log on to www.talkshop.ph