The Right Mentality For Learning Foreign Languages

Before we talk about learning foreign languages, here's a fact of life for you.

People rarely do what they "should" do, e.g. should lose weight, should finish a project... but they almost always do what they "must".

You see... We ALL get what we MUST have.

And the fact is, when most people tell others "I must...", they don't actually mean it.

Are you one of them? I hope not.

I could tell you the dictionary definitions of the words "should" and "must" but you don't really need those right?

The word "should" refers to the "right" thing to do; the word "must", however, allows no compromises... In other words, it's a prerequisite or an obligation.

People do what they really consider "must"s, while they may or may not "try their best" to work on their "should"s.

Is mastering a new foreign language is a "must" or a "should" for you?

A MUST.

Repeat this to yourself three times.

You see, motivated individuals are the kind that give themselves no other choice but to achieve their goals. They would not settle for anything less than the best they can do, while the vast majority just hope for the best.

Don't just "hope" for the best. Stop just "wanting" to achieve the language goal that you have set for yourself, and I want you to stop saying things to yourself like "I'd very much like to achieve my language goal", "It would be good if I can achieve my language goal" or "I'd rather achieve my language goals".

Instead, imagine the following scenarios in your mind:

- I smile to you and tell you, "I would be really happy for you if you can achieve your own language goal." - I look at you encouragingly and tell you, "If you achieve your goal, you'll get a great gift from me." - I threaten you with a gun pointing to your head, "You don't have a choice. If you don't achieve you language goal, I'll kill you."

Don't take the above as a joke.

Let your imagination run wild. Imagine that's really happening... Which scenario would cause you to take decisive action?

You know it's the third one!

Now say the following out loud

"I must achieve my language goal. It is not just a hope. It is not just a wish. It is a must for me, because I have no choice."

Say it out loud. I am serious. Don't just say it in your head!

Feel it.

Really feel it. Take a break after reading this paragraph and see yourself, in your mind, talking with absolute fluency the foreign language you've always wanted to master. Notice the look on the face of the person you are talking to. Notice your own posture, breathing. Notice every little detail around you. Do it now. Perhaps you want to close your eyes.

You must eliminate the possibility of failure that might be lurking in your mind.

You don't need to be a Star Wars fan to remember that famous line Jedi master Yoda mentioned.

"Do. Or do not. There is no try."

For a little green guy, he sure knew what he was talking about. He was not giving Luke a choice of failure.

Once you have decided to learn a foreign language, do it; master it. Don't just try. Don't even think about the remote possibility of you not achieving your language goal.

Do not even consider failure as an option when learning foreign languages. The only end result that you should think about is mastering the language... and nothing else.

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