I haven’t been consistent with my daily blogs this week.
One reason was that it felt daunting. I’ve felt this way before with exercise too. When I fall out of a rhythm, it’s sometimes hard for me to get back into it. Can you relate? I imagine many of you can.
With that aside, let’s dive into today’s blog topic with the following question: Is it difficult to become fluent a language?
In short, probably yes.
The definition of “difficult” is needing much effort or skill to accomplish, deal with, or understand. Let’s break that down further:
Effort: Strenuous physical or mental exertion
Strenuous: Requiring or using great effort
Skill: The ability to do something well
Learning a language is definitely a skill and it does take great effort (i.e., mental exertion) to become fluent.
Mental exertion is tiring. No surprises there, right? Don’t let fatigue discourage you. Getting tired is normal. Rest to recharge when needed and then resume learning.
Perhaps the ideal way to learn is to maximize fun and effort.
I used to play soccer competitively. It was exhausting because of how much physical and mental effort required, but also fun. Many language learners I see optimize for ease and fun.
I don’t see many people try to maximize difficulty/effort and fun.
I find myself wondering today if maximizing effort and fun is a more meaningful, engaging, and effective pathway forward.
What do you think?
I totally agree with you, because there is no way that can accomplish a worthy goal without overcoming challenges.