The Fluent Show

Latest Episodes:

Could Language Make You Money? Jun 05, 2016

Show notes

Today's episode returns to the topic of making money with languages. We ask if that's something you should be doing and how it can work.

In this episode, you get a look behind the scenes of our own careers, the jobs we've had and those that may be yet to come. All I'm saying is "flower lab!" 🌷

Three Reasons You Should Work With Languages

1) If you love it and you're passionate, it's a great way to bring excitement to your work
2) Working with languages will make you better at languages
3) You get to make great new connections with other speakers of your language

Our sponsor for this episode is Lindsay's new course, the Online Teaching Starter Kit. It's a complete guide to becoming an online teacher in five different parts. Check it out at www.fluentlanguage.co.uk/otsk.

Modern Languages students often look at the list of "related jobs" for their degree and ask "Is that all?!"

What you will hear:

What does it really mean to have a passion for something?
You're not meant to be good enough (not perfect) at languages when you go for a job interview
The disappointing list of "jobs related to a Modern Languages degree" on a leading careers website
The weird and wonderful list of "jobs where your Modern Languages degree would be useful" on the same website
How to bring languages into your career without applying for a new job
Our stories from applying for and working in the following jobs: translator, tutor, interpreter, teaching assistant, video game tester, export sales assistant, international recruitment manager
Why we work online and for ourselves, but we're not digital nomads
How to get started as an online tutor in particular, and the fantastic concept of timeboxing

"Self employment is self improvement." (Lindsay does soundbites)

Links From This Episode

Snapchat - add ldlanguages and fluentlanguage and hear us practice Korean, Japanese, German, Welsh..and whatever else we want to speak
What can I do with a degree in Modern Languages? - Prospects Website
Online Teaching Starter Kit
Fluent's "Behind The Scenes" Blog about self-employment and marketing as a teacher
Get started as an online teacher on italki
The Tutor Pages Reviewed on Fluent
Quit Podcast

You can get in touch with us and tell us what you thought by
1) leaving us an iTunes review by visiting our itunes page and clicking "Ratings and Reviews"
2) using hashtag #cllp on Twitter (I am @kerstinhammes and Lindsay is @ldlanguages).

How to Rock Language Learning For Travel May 22, 2016

Show notes

This episode brings you the best mindset tips for learning a language for your next trip - even if you're completely busy and scared of talking to native speakers.

In this episode you'll hear

Awesome listener feedback, including my top tip for what to do when people keep asking you to perform and "say something in" your target language
Is it rude not to know the language of the country you are visiting?
How I didn't do prep for my Iceland trip in the ideal way - and why a phrasebook would've been better
What's different when you are learning languages for travel, and not "for life"
What we learnt from reading the word "pizza" in lots of languages
What to do immediately after you return home

Catch it all by following us on Snapchat - I am fluentlanguage and Lindsay is ldlanguages.

Links Mentioned In This Episode

HelloTalk - Language Exchange App, where you can find speakers of any language at all
Kerstin's First Vlog in Welsh
Lonely Planet Phrasebooks
Langenscheidt Phrasebooks
Lindsay's Learning X in X Video Series
Delicious Lavtian Cili Pica
Helga's shrine to Arnold on Hey Arnold
Calendars of Longing - a new postcard every week, these are so beautiful

Reviews

Your feedback is extremely important to the show. It gives us inspiration, topics, ideas, and it makes us happy.

You can help our show by going on itunes and leaving us a review yourself - we do read them all.

**Live from the Polyglot Gathering in Berlin** May 09, 2016
Show notes

This episode comes with a bit of a difference, as Lindsay and I were reporting live from the Polyglot Gathering in Berlin.

We bring you reports and impressions from what's going on at the event.

There are opportunities to listen in to the fabulous language introductions. We had the opportunity to learn about all kinds of languages, from Indonesian to Greek.

It’s about people coming together and accepting each other for who they are. It’s a life philosophy, in a way. - Jordan

I also brought my microphone to several new people - hear the personal language learning stories of Tristan, Jordan and Stephen who are all **English native speakers learning over 5 foreign languages. It's possible!**

The Polyglot Gathering is sponsored by our own podcast sponsors, so this time there's a **double** shout out for italki - you can get started learning languages with native speakers on there. Get started with a "Buy 1 Get 1 Free" Offer at www.fluentlanguage.co.uk/italki

Strange Items That Were Part of The "Qu'est-ce que c'est??" Game

Pretty easy

Che cosa è?

What the ...

Was ist das hier?

The Kafka referenced after I heard Lindsay's story is "Die Verwandlung" (metamorphosis).

Languages heard on this show: German, Esperanto, Spanish, French, Indonesian, Greek, English...I think that's it!

Catch up with Lindsay's video blog from the Polyglot Gathering.

How Did You Like This Episode?

The live reporting format was great fun, but of course we want to hear if it worked for you! Would you like more episodes like this in the future?

You can **get in touch with us** and tell us what you thought by

leaving us an iTunes review by visiting our itunes page and clicking "Ratings and Reviews"

using hashtag #cllp on Twitter (I am @kerstinhammes and Lindsay is @ldlanguages).

And once again, thanks so much to our sponsors Italki - please support our show by visiting that link today.

**Live from the Polyglot Gathering in Berlin** May 09, 2016
Show notes

This episode comes with a bit of a difference, as Lindsay and I were reporting live from the Polyglot Gathering in Berlin.

We bring you reports and impressions from what's going on at the event.

There are opportunities to listen in to the fabulous language introductions. We had the opportunity to learn about all kinds of languages, from Indonesian to Greek.

It’s about people coming together and accepting each other for who they are. It’s a life philosophy, in a way. - Jordan

I also brought my microphone to several new people - hear the personal language learning stories of Tristan, Jordan and Stephen who are all **English native speakers learning over 5 foreign languages. It's possible!**

The Polyglot Gathering is sponsored by our own podcast sponsors, so this time there's a **double** shout out for italki - you can get started learning languages with native speakers on there. Get started with a "Buy 1 Get 1 Free" Offer at www.fluentlanguage.co.uk/italki

Strange Items That Were Part of The "Qu'est-ce que c'est??" Game

Pretty easy

Che cosa è?

What the ...

Was ist das hier?

The Kafka referenced after I heard Lindsay's story is "Die Verwandlung" (metamorphosis).

Languages heard on this show: German, Esperanto, Spanish, French, Indonesian, Greek, English...I think that's it!

Catch up with Lindsay's video blog from the Polyglot Gathering.

How Did You Like This Episode?

The live reporting format was great fun, but of course we want to hear if it worked for you! Would you like more episodes like this in the future?

You can **get in touch with us** and tell us what you thought by

leaving us an iTunes review by visiting our itunes page and clicking "Ratings and Reviews"

using hashtag #cllp on Twitter (I am @kerstinhammes and Lindsay is @ldlanguages).

And once again, thanks so much to our sponsors Italki - please support our show by visiting that link today.

Polyglot Gathering Preview (Mini Episode) Apr 28, 2016

Show notes

We're getting excited about the Polyglot Gathering in Berlin! Here is a preview of the talks we are not going to miss.

Look out for the very special "live from the floor" reports in episode 40.

Episode 38 is brought to you with friendly support from italki. Do visit their site and check out the awesome Buy 1 Get 1 Free offer to learn from native speakers today.

We Want To Meet You At The Gathering!

Are you a podcast listener on the way to the Polyglot Gathering?

Then don't hesitate and come to see Lindsay and me! We'll be reporting from the conference floor for episode 40 so your voice could even be on the show.

Send us a message on Twitter! We are @ldlanguages for Lindsay and @kerstinhammes for Kerstin, and on the hashtag #cllp

Links From This Episode:

The Best Tools for Language Learning in Spring/Summer 2016 Apr 18, 2016

Show notes

Topic: The Best Tools for Language Learning in Spring/Summer 2016

Episode 38 is brought to you with friendly support from italki. Do visit their site and check out the awesome Buy 1 Get 1 Free offer to learn from native speakers today.

Kerstin and Lindsay bring you the ultimate Spring/Summer collection of language learning tools. We each nominated three things we regularly use for learning languages and discussed how to make them teach you a language.

"I'm not as good as I think I am - but that's a good thing because it motivates me to work harder."

Lindsay

And if that's not enough, we then went ahead and created our own language learning chart for you. Listen to the show to find out our absolute top recommendation.

Do You Agree With Our Language Chart?

You can get in touch with us and tell us what you thought by

1) leaving us an iTunes review by visiting our itunes page and clicking "Ratings and Reviews"

2) using hashtag #cllp (or #kerstinyouold) on Twitter (I am @kerstinhammes and Lindsay is @ldlanguages).

And once again, thanks so much to our sponsors Italki - please support our show by visiting them today.

The Secret Languages of Great Britain (with expert voice Simon Ager) Apr 10, 2016

Show notes

Episode 37 is brought to you by italki, where you can find a language partner for any language. We tested it with rare languages like Icelandic, and it totally delivered. Get an awesome free lesson deal at italki.

Today's Topic: Multilingual Britain

Britain is not monolingual at all, but in fact it is teeming with languages. In this episode, we present you the real landscape of languages spoken in the British Isles.

Can you guess how many languages are indigenous to this country?

We discovered some amazing things, not lastly you'll NEVER guess what Irish and Spanish bears have in common!

You'll be surprised to find that more than 2 million people in the UK speak British languages other than English. Here is a quick summary of the bigger groups of languages spoken in the UK - not just British languages, but also the immigrant languages most popular in the UK today, for example Polish, Gujarati and Urdu.

Listen to our podcast episode to get a wonderful tour of the British languages, including:

What does it take to keep a minority language alive?
Did you know there was a Scots dictionary - and how it's influenced the English language?
Our pondering of the true official languages of Great Britain
Turns out children really are the future when it comes to reviving languages that don't have native speakers anymore, for example Cornish

Lindsay does some amazing demonstrations of the Scottish language and accent. And Kerstin says her first "goodbye" in Welsh!

Links and Tips from This Episode

Don't Neglect the UK's Indigenous Languages in the UK Guardian
Blood of the Irish documentary series
Speak Irish To Me, a podcast episode of "The World in Words"
Irish PM refuses to speak English in parliament
Language Death by David Crystal, a book covering endangerment and death of many minority languages across the world
Ffasiwn Bildar "Fashion Builder", Welsh Language reality tv
Omniglot, Simon Ager's absolutely amazing language encyclopedia on the internet - for example check out the Cornish language
The British Term "chav"
Why There Are Two Ways To Pronounce "Celtic"
Hugo Scottish Gaelic in 3 Months - this is a link to Lindsay's old version
Collins Gem Scots Dictionary

Which British Languages Did You Know?

You can get in touch with us and tell us what you thought by

1) leaving us an iTunes review by visiting our itunes page and clicking "Ratings and Reviews"

2) using hashtag #cllp on Twitter (I am @kerstinhammes and Lindsay is @ldlanguages.

And once again, thanks so much to our sponsors Italki - please support our show by visiting that link today.

Special Guest: Simon Ager.

But WHY!!!! Are You Learning A Language? Mar 28, 2016

Show notes

A feedback question from James led us to discussing why we chose the languages we are learning right now.

We don't need them for our working lives, or our everyday lives.

We don't have Welsh or Korean family.

We're not travelling there.

There isn't even a big Welsh or Korean community in our towns.

So..what gives?

A lot of you guys might be experiencing the same thing when you're learning a language. It's not the kind of activity that everyone gets up to every morning, so friends and family get curious. We get into the dangers of the "why" question.

We also strayed into discussing the identity of what is "British", and how Britain interacts with language learning. You'll also find out how polyglots are made.

Takeaway from This Episode

Should you be asked why you are learning a foreign language (or two...or three), you are not obliged to go looking for a reason that satisfies the other person.

Links from this Episode

How to Study Korean Website

Dear Listener, if you would like to send us a question to discuss on the show, you can simply do so by tweeting with the hashtag #cllp

Polyglot Club Certificates Available Now Mar 14, 2016

Show notes

Episode 35 of the Creative Language Learning Podcast is brought to you with support from HelloTalk. Go visit them now, because you're totally missing out.

Do you remember when you first heard the word "polyglot"?

And what does this word mean to you?

##Show Topic: What Is a "Polyglot" and Should You Be One?

In this episode, Lindsay and I went deeper into what's changed in the emerging community of internet polyglots. A few years ago, the YouTube landscape in particular was a nasty place. But things are looking up!

What does the word mean, and is being polyglot desirable?

Far from being entirely opposed to polyglots as a barrage of braggards and internet trolls, we are able to bring you many positive thoughts and perspectives.

##Polyglot Guest: Alex Rawlings

In this episode, we have a special guest who is a famous fancy polyglot and known for winning the prestigious Harper-Collins award of being [Britain's Most Multilingual Student]. It's Alex Rawlings, co-founder of the [Polyglot Conference] and "full-time language guru dude".

Polyglots have existed a lot longer than YouTube.

Alex did an amazing job of describing how the polyglot community has changed and also why it wasn't a great place to start out in. It's fascinating how much YouTube comes up in this discussion. He shares the story of bringing a bit of offline magic into the online world, and we agree that the internet is now a nicer place for language learners, and thank God for that.

##Takeaway of the Week

"It is what you make it."

There is still a personal challenge to readers, but also a real sense of permission to make the word mean what it means to you. Polyglots might be online, offline, nice, nasty, multilingual or just really curious.

For me, the biggest update to the polyglot label was the idea of it being all about the intention of learning languages, and the interest, and the passion. I love that!

##Links and Tips from This Episode

Alex Rawlings writes at Rawlangs
Lindsay on Youtube: What's a Polyglot?
Kerstin speaks (reads!!!!) 25 European languages - the best part of making this video was finding native speakers of 25 languages in one week. I even rang the Icelandic and Luxembourgish tourist offices. __
My Blog Article from May 2014, summing up all the polyglot negatives
Polyglot Conference - this year in Greece and the Polyglot Workshops or just search for any of these things on Facebook
Polyglot Gathering in Berlin
HelloTalk

Are you going to claim the polyglot title this year? Or still not convinced?

Special Guest: Alex Rawlings.

Language Learning is Too Hard and Inconvenient (That's NO EXCUSE) Feb 28, 2016

Show notes

The first 20 minutes of this episodes are a lot of feedback and catch-up and shout outs to our readers, including:

Progress reports of how Lindsay and I have both been using our sponsor app HelloTalk. It's a free app for all smartphones and puts you in touch with speakers of 130 different languages, so go ahead and download it. Thank you HelloTalk for making our show possible.
Important questions about how to pronounce the words of the Messiah by Händel (the KANYE of his day), leading to the question of identity and why learning a language will never stop you from being the foreigner. Super interesting conversation about how languages can expand who you are, but they don't change it.

Language Learning is Too Hard and Inconvenient

After feedback and wonderful reviews from you listeners, Lindsay and I went hardcore on all the many reasons why people tell us they can't learn a language. Listen to the show to find out all about how to respond to the following arguments: