Language & Travel Hacking

Latest Episodes:

#105 Fiel Sahir on Learning a Language Without “Studying” Jun 27, 2022

Show notes

Enthusiastic learner, New York resident, musician, and polyglot, Fiel Sahir, joins Benny Lewis and Shannon Kennedy to talk about finding mentors, learning heritage languages, studying Chinese with the Language Hacking Mandarin book, and using languages in a non-language-related field.

Fiel, in his own words, says one of his greatest strengths is his endless curiosity. It’s led to him making incredible connections, learning lots of languages, finding community, and a life of learning. If you’re interested in learning a heritage language, learning without strictly “studying” or how music influences your language learning, this is the episode for you.

Featured Resources

Patreon Extended Episode

Enjoy the podcast? Subscribe to our Patreon to get access to extended episodes and loads more content. Here’s what you’ll hear in the long-form episode:

How to learn languages without “studying”
The influence music has on language learning
How Benny and Shannon’s language learning philosophies have developed over years of learning
Fiel’s future language learning plans

Learn more and access this bonus content on Patreon.

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

How a long car ride led to Fiel’s passion for language learning
Finding mentors and the role a good mentor can play in your growth
The power of curiosity
Studying music at a German university
Learning a heritage language and connecting with culture
What it’s like living in one of the most multilingual cities in the world
The powerful influence of community in language learning

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

#104 Corentin on How to Reinvent Yourself as a Language Learner Jun 20, 2022

Show notes

Fluent in 3 Months Challenge participant and Dutch learner, Corentin, chats with Benny and Shannon about “redefining” yourself as a language learner and finding success in your new identity.

We guarantee that anyone who completes the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge will have a 15-minute conversation in their new language after 90 days of learning. You can find out more here.

Featured Resources

Fluent in 3 Months Challenge

Patreon Extended Episode

Enjoy the podcast? Subscribe to our Patreon to get access to bonus content and monthly exclusives.

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

Living in Brussels and needing to learn Dutch
How to help your production in a language catch up to your comprehension
When to focus on one language learning skill and when to focus on the four core skills
“Redefining” yourself as a language learner
Why the Challenge helped Corentin more than traditional language classes
Taking control of your own language learning for success
Using a to-do app to coordinate with a team while language learning

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

Ask Benny: Why Learn Esperanto? Jun 15, 2022

Show notes

Benny shares the reasons he learned Esperanto and why it's so useful, despite it not being an officially recognized language. The international Esperanto community is one that Benny loves being a part of, not least because they know how to throw a good party! And learning this as one of your first languages has been shown to have significant benefits for learning subsequent languages, giving you momentum, confidence, and skills that are highly transferable.

To ask Benny a question, leave a comment on Instagram (@languagehacking) or Twitter (@fi3m), or you can email ask@languagehacking.com

#103 Simon Ager on Creating an Encyclopedia of Languages Jun 13, 2022

Show notes

Linguistics expert and language enthusiast, Simon Ager, talks with Benny and Elizabeth about creating one of the internet’s biggest (and first) encyclopedias of languages and writing systems.

On his website, omniglot.com, Simon has cataloged over 340 writing systems and collated information about more than 1,600 languages. Simon has studied a wide range of languages including Chinese, Japanese, French, German, and he has a particular interest in Celtic languages.

Mentioned in this Episode

Patreon Extended Episode

Enjoy the podcast? Subscribe to our Patreon to get access to extended episodes and loads more content. Here’s what you’ll hear in the long-form episode:

Comparing learning music and languages
Singing as pronunciation practice
Metaskills: The skill of learning a new skill
Benny and Elizabeth’s best languages

Learn more and access this bonus content on Patreon.

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

Making the most of immersion experiences
Simon’s favourite resources, including Duolingo and Memrise
A typical day of language learning
First steps for using Omniglot.com
Using your languages to aid research on Wikipedia
Getting a Masters in Linguistics, and where it can take you
Celtic languages and their revival
Responding to “why bother?” criticism
Integrating the four pillars of language into daily life
People-watching in your target language

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

#102 Professor Argüelles on Learning a Language in 15 Minutes a Day Jun 06, 2022

Show notes

Professor, polyglot and all-round language expert, Alexander Argüelles, talks with Benny and Elizabeth about his routines, methods, favourite activities and language learning interests.

Professor Argüelles employs his vast experience to help people learn languages through a variety of methods, including reading circles and videos on his YouTube channel, and he shares a lot of advice and inspiration during this conversation.

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

What it’s like to be inside the brain of someone who speaks numerous languages
Learning a language in 15 minutes a day
Doing what you love in your language
Reading in target languages
A daily language learning routine
How to learn a language through reading circles
What shadowing is
The “scriptorium” method
Mythology, religion and language
Digital detox and screen-free time

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

Ask Benny: Two Big Announcements! Jun 01, 2022

Show notes

This week Benny shares some exciting news in a special Ask Benny episode. Benny is heading back out on the road, to live the nomadic life he loves. This means new language challenges and lots of interesting updates from his travels.

Things are also changing for the podcast, as this week we launch the option to support us on Patreon. The podcast is still continuing as normal on the usual channels, and if you sign up to Patreon at https://languagehacking.com/patreon you'll now get access to extended interviews, exclusive content from our hosts, discounts on Fi3M products and lots of other valuable language learning content.

To ask Benny a question, leave a comment on Instagram (@languagehacking) or Twitter (@fi3m), or you can email ask@languagehacking.com

#101 Scott Brills on World Travel & Language Survival Basics May 30, 2022

Show notes

World traveler, tour coordinator, and language learner, Scott Brills, joins Benny Lewis and Shannon Kennedy to chat about “faking” comprehension, deep-diving into cultural experiences, and cross-country adventures around the world.

Scott has an impressive travel résumé having taken part in the Mongol Rally, traversing India in a rickshaw, and building a business that provides travelers with rich cultural immersion experiences. If you’re interested in travel, living abroad, or multicultural entrepreneurship, this is the episode for you.

Mentioned in this Episode

Patreon Extended Episode

Enjoy the podcast? Subscribe to our Patreon to get access to extended episodes and loads more content. Here’s what you’ll hear in the long-form episode:

Dealing with the logistics of building work and making a living in other countries
Scott’s ideal language learning routine
Scott’s 3 Language Survival Resources
How to fit in language learning as a busy entrepreneur
What the hosts’ favorite languages are
What languages the hosts struggled with most
Memorable gaffs the hosts made in their languages

Learn more and access this bonus content on Patreon.

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

Living abroad at a young age in Japan
Combatting loneliness and fear of living alone in another country
How to get through the roadblocks along the path to fluency
Why you sometimes just need to be thrown into the deep end
Running culinary tours in Japan and safaris in Tanzania
Taking part in the Mongol Rally, driving through 16 countries for charity and learning to rely on the support of strangers
Traveling across India in a rickshaw on three different occasions
Learning a language by “faking” comprehension
Gaining the confidence to approach complete strangers in another language

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

#100 Celebrating 100 Episodes with Scott Young May 23, 2022

Show notes

Our first ever Language Hacking Podcast guest, author, and course creator, Scott Young, revisits the show to catch up with Benny and Shannon and share what’s changed for him over the last two years with his language learning and projects.

Scott is an expert on learning and how to work better. He’s a best-selling author who took on the MIT Challenge, A Year Without English, and many more intensive learning projects. In this episode, he shares many of his thoughts on momentum, confidence, and balancing life with other pursuits.

Featured Resources

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

How Scott’s life has changed over the past two years
Building a multilingual family and learning Macedonian
How to stay engaged in learning
Dealing with the long-term maintenance work of learning languages
How to get back into learning after losing momentum and confidence
Time and energy management for intensive learning projects
Setting concrete learning goals
Top 5 things Scott learned since our last discussion with him
How to prioritize personal projects

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

#99 Shannon and Elizabeth on Self-Compassion in Language Learning May 16, 2022

Show notes

Language Hacking Podcast co-hosts, Shannon Kennedy and Elizabeth Bruckner catch up and talk about how this last year has been a time of learning, and building self-compassion and resilience in both language learning and life.

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

Moving your body and language learning to help with anxiety and other negative emotions
Putting yourself out there with positive energy and being open to connection
The power of being quiet and observation before jumping in
The art of being interested in other people and being of service to others
Touch and tactile learning
Sneaking in language learning in unexpected situations
Keeping an index card with a list of tools and an action plan for difficult moments
Mindfulness practices and language learning
Re-reading your favorite books in another language
12-step meetings and using them for language learning
Art and music therapy

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

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Ask Benny: What are Language Islands? May 11, 2022

Show notes

This new episode is all about language islands. Benny explains how creating these specific areas of language knowledge, based on your personal needs or interests, is a solid way to build confidence and get speaking when you start learning a language. And using these topics as a focus will help you reach fluency quicker, as you're able to talk about your islands in depth, and with confidence.

To ask Benny a question, leave a comment on Instagram (@languagehacking) or Twitter (@fi3m), or you can email ask@languagehacking.com

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