Well, January is almost over…how are those New Year’s resolutions holding up?
If you’re already broken your resolution, don’t worry. You’re not alone, and it doesn’t mean you’re a horrible failure of a person. What it probably means is that you simply didn’t frame your resolution in a way that would enable you to succeed.
Most people make broad, sweeping resolutions that are very hard to measure, much less keep. When you can’t gauge your progress towards your goal, frustration sets in quickly, and it can be very tempting to give up altogether. However, if you make your resolutions more specific and include ways to measure your progress along the way, you will find yourself much more motivated and more apt to keep your resolution past January!
For example, setting the goal “learn Spanish in 2013” sounds great, but it is too broad to be achievable. You need to define what you mean by “learn Spanish.” Do you want to be able to hold basic conversations with natives, or read Pablo Neruda’s poems in their original language? In other words, how much fluency do you want to achieve, and how will you measure that fluency? You might decide that oral communication is most important to you, and therefore set out to master pronunciation and forget about spelling. If you need Spanish only for travel, you might decide to focus purely on a specific travel vocabulary–learn to buy a bus ticket, order lunch, and find a hostel and you’re set. The point is, make your language goals support what you’re passionate about!
Check out this Lifehacker article for more tips about successful language learning, plus some cool resources to both build your skills before studying Spanish abroad and keep them fresh afterwards.