In “the literature” (a lot of it very good literature, like Talent Is Overrated and The Talent Code), it’s often said that, you know, we need to do “deliberate practice”, meaning stuff that’s actually a little hard and painful for us. Through deliberate practice, we grow. The reason pros get good and amateurs don’t is…
But I Don’t Have Time For Immersion!: How To Immerse Even When Your Time Is Controlled By Others
by khatzumoto
The other day, a handsome young AJATTeer (and South Park fan) named MGV sent me this handsome email: On your site, which is awesome, you mention that you should spend 18-24 hours a day doing something/anything in Japanese. I’m in high school, grade 10. I have school Monday-Friday. I worked it out on a piece…
Managing Greed: How To Deal With Your Language Lust
by khatzumoto
This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series Language And SocietyThis is the third and probably final post in a multi-part series on Language and Society. Here is the first post. Languagelust. It is a disease. It is contagious. And you have it. People who learn a language other than their original “native”…
AJATT Twitter Tweets for Week Of 2009-10-17
by khatzumoto
Surusu: backup in progress 😀 # よく「日本のユーモアに皮肉は無い」と外人は言う。けれど、本当は日本語の理解力が、まだ皮肉に気付くレベルに達していないだけなんじゃないの？心の琴線が触れられるには、先ずは琴 # “language is about putting in the hours. If you want to learn it fast, you just put in more hours a day” bit.ly/rDXO8 # “reading is one of those things that recedes if it is not used” bit.ly/uciKy # 『一般的な「天才」の定義は大いに誤解を招きます。 「天才」とは、ある対象に優れた才能を持っている人ではありません。 「天才」とは、ある対象に異常な愛着を持っている人です。� # 複雑な練習は、練習じゃない。 退屈な練習も、練習じゃない。 単純で楽しい行為の繰り返し。 これこそ練習。…
Language As An Investment
by khatzumoto
This entry is part 2 of 4 in the series Language And SocietyThis entry is part 1 of 2 in the series Language As An InvestmentThis is the second post in a multi-part series on Language and Society. Here is the first post. Long ago, Sir Isaac Newton gave us three laws of motion… But…
How Do I Learn 500 Languages At Once?!
by khatzumoto
This entry is part 1 of 4 in the series Language And SocietyThis is the first post of a multi-part series on Language and Society (yes, I was deliberately looking for the dryest, most lifeless-sounding topic title ever 😀 ). The largest problem that would-be language learners have faced, especially with Asian languages (though not…