Language & Travel Hacking

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Ask Benny: Mental Health and Language Learning Dec 22, 2021

Show notes

Benny is getting stuck back into some language projects, which have recently included Irish, Spanish, Chinese, and Catalan. As he's doing this, he's taken the opportunity to reflect on how difficult life events and mental health challenges have impacted his language learning. It has been challenging, with some very hard times leading to Benny making his mental health recovery a priority.

To ask Benny a question, please email ask@languagehacking.com

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#79 Lina Vasquez on Holistic Language Coaching Dec 20, 2021

Show notes

Holistic language coach, Lina Vasquez, talks to Benny Lewis and Shannon Kennedy about growing up multilingual, holistic language learning, and how personal development impacts how you learn languages.

Lina really understands herself as a learner, and knows how to play to her strengths. She uses her knowledge of psychotherapy and positive psychology to help people understand themselves better, so they can approach learning in a way that will be both effective and enjoyable.

Featured Resources

Lina’s Coaching

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

Growing up bilingual
Deciding when to dabble and when to deep dive with a language
What holistic learning is and what holistic language coaching looks like
Incorporating meditation into language learning
Quick tips for implementing a more holistic language learning approach
Mindfulness practices for language learners
Using your strengths and personality to design your language learning routine
Building your self-esteem and confidence by getting to know yourself
Indirect ways personal development impacts your language learning
Mental blocks that get in our way of our overall development and how to break through them
Lina’s personal strategies for learning languages

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

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Ask Benny: Reactivating My Catalan After 15 Years Dec 15, 2021

Show notes

This week Benny gives an update about his own language learning progress and shares his method for jump-starting a dormant language. In 2006 Benny spent the summer intensively learning Catalan, but hasn't maintained it since. After 15 years of letting this language lie dormant, it's time to get it back ahead of his upcoming trip to Mallorca.

To ask Benny a question, please email ask@languagehacking.com

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#78 Christmas Special: Top Gifts for Language Learners Dec 13, 2021

Show notes

Benny, Elizabeth, and team members from Fluent in 3 Months share their favourite gifts for language learners. Use this to get ideas for your festive shopping this year, or pass this wishlist on to your friends, family, and Santa Claus!

Whether you’re thinking about what to buy or what you’d like to receive, this episode is packed with ideas that will help make this a perfect polyglot Christmas. We’ve got suggestions for all budgets, all language levels, and all ages, so you’re bound to find something that will put a smile on a language learner’s face this festive season.

Featured Gifts

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the gift ideas mentioned during the episode are:

A bullet journal, colourful pens, and sticky notes
A ringbinder, plastic pockets, paper, and hole puncher
Books, and graphic novels
The Harry Potter series, Marc Levy, and Edward Rutherford books
Recipe books, and cooking a traditional Christmas dish
A magazine subscription
Making a playlist of target language songs
Giving someone the gift of time so they can study
A board game, and children’s activity books
Gift cards for books or online lessons, and coupons for tech support
Keyboard cover/skin, and wireless or waterproof headphones

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

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#77 Gabriel Silva on Learning Two Languages at the Same Time Dec 06, 2021

Show notes

Polyglot and language coach, Gabriel Silva, talks with Benny Lewis and Elizabeth Bruckner about his method for learning two languages at the same time, and the joy of random interactions in your target language.

Gabriel is very active on YouTube and Instagram, and his popular #1SentenceChallenge inspires learners around the world to share videos of their progress. Gabriel helps his students to manage their expectations when it comes to learning, and is very transparent about how long it has taken him to reach milestones in his languages.

Featured Resources

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

Fluctuations in motivation and how to “ride the wave”
The pitfalls of grammar-based languages courses
Finding the fun and pleasure in language learning
The joy of interactions with random people in your target language
Matching your learning activities to your energy levels
An 80/20 approach to learning two languages at once
Managing frustration and not giving up
The benefit of walking away from a problem for a while, and adding variety to your learning
Gabriel’s #1SentenceChallenge
Consistency as the key to progress
How recording yourself speaking, even just for yourself, can be so helpful
How to manage expectations, and how being part of a community can really help

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

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Ask Benny: What if I Can't Prepare Before a Lesson? Dec 01, 2021

Show notes

Benny shares how he manages lessons when he is particularly busy. We all have weeks that are busier than usual. Benny recommends that you resist the temptation to cancel your lessons! It's not ideal to skip the prep, but the lesson can still be really valuable if you follow Benny's advice.

To ask Benny a question, please email ask@languagehacking.com

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#76 Ben Phillips on How to Live and Study Abroad for Free Nov 29, 2021

Show notes

19-year-old student, Ben Phillips, talks to Benny Lewis and Elizabeth Bruckner about his experience of doing a highschool German exchange programme, and how he stayed focussed and motivated enough to reach C1 level after just a year.

Ben explains how, after unsuccessfully dabbling in Japanese, Greek and Mandarin, he was able to excel at German in such a short period of time, how and why reading is so integral to his learning, and the ways he has been able to travel and live abroad more or less for free.

Featured Resources

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

High school language exchanges and language camp with the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange
Attending a German school and the joy of finally being able to participate in a class discussion
Taking and passing the C1 test in German after only a year of learning
How to make the most of opportunities to learn a language while living abroad
The importance of keeping your goal in mind
How speaking with people and learning about a culture in your target language is its own reward
Overcoming the temptation to slip back into English while living abroad
How to set monthly goals and why they’re useful
How to find time to study and still do the things you enjoy in your free time
Tracking your accomplishments, like finishing a book in your target language
Reading as a key part of your language practice - novels, Twitter, and using LingQ
Finding motivation to study when you don’t have the pressure of being in the country
Scholarships and work exchanges as ways to travel and have enriching experiences abroad for free

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

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#75 Doree Huneven on Worldwide Travel, Reward Systems and Sleeping Languages Nov 15, 2021

Show notes

Polyglot and avid traveller, Doree Huneven, joins Benny Lewis and Elizabeth Bruckner to talk about her experience learning multiple languages, travelling the world, and how the violin has made her a better learner.

Doree shares why she thinks discipline is the key to being a successful language learner and having fun, and why the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge is so appealing, even to an experienced language learner. We actually 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

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

How a family camping trip to Mexico sparked her love of languages
Teaching English in Egypt and learning Arabic
How studying and teaching the violin help with language learning
Why discipline is an invaluable asset
The value of being active in the Fi3M Challenge community
Why, as an experienced language learner, she still joined the Fi3M Challenge
Developing communities as you travel
The desire to connect with people as a driving force for learning
How language resources have changed over the last 50 years
Mimicking phrases, copying body language, and blending in with locals when you travel
Saving money, cutting costs, and making travel more financially accessible
The “Doree Huneven Reward System”
What Doree does with her “sleeping” languages

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

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Ask Benny: What's the Best Way to Prep for a Language Class? Nov 08, 2021

Show notes

Benny shares his advice about how to prepare for a 1-1 language lesson, and his method for note taking before, during, and after lessons.

To ask Benny a question, please email ask@languagehacking.com

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#74 Stephen Krashen on the Comprehensible Input Method Nov 01, 2021

Show notes

Linguist and professional researcher joins Benny Lewis and Shannon Kennedy to discuss comprehensible input, compelling input, and language acquisition.

Stephen Krashen is a professor emeritus who is well-known for his work and research into comprehensible input. He has hundreds of publications to his name and has greatly contributed to the field of language acquisition.

Featured Resources

Stephen Krashen

Mentioned in this Episode

Episode Overview

Some of the topics brought up during the interview are:

How a trip to Ethiopia led to Stephen Krashen’s career in linguistics
How adults go through a predictable language acquisition pattern
Why we know grammar but struggle to use it correctly, and how to bridge this gap
What comprehensible input is and why it works
How comprehensible input differs from compelling input
Why graded readers are effective resources for language learners
The power of reading fiction
How the speaking approach is still a mostly input approach
Making the shift from input to output
Accents, and how we’re better at them than we think
Managing your time with multiple languages
Romanization and its role in language acquisition

Podcast theme: “A New Beginning” by Shannon Kennedy

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