When I first began learning Japanese I was excited. My first Japanese class was full of excited students who like me, were
anxious to begin learning how to read, speak, and write Japanese. I remember being proud of myself for the small battles-- like mastering hiragana and katakana. Indeed, it was exciting to finally learn how to write Ta-ka-ra in katakana, I thought it looked so cute on paper. (I'm so corny)
Maybe it was the mystery of it all that made me excited to complete my Japanese homework, or maybe it was fact that I had finally found a language that I was really interested in learning. Whatever it was I was hooked, and with every lesson learned I wanted to learn even more.
After the initial language newness or 'honeymoon phase" ended, an interesting relationship formed between me and Japanese, or I'll call it 'JJ'. Do you guys remember the cartoon movie Bebe's kids? (laughing) Occassionally, Japanese can become like them. It's kind of like that one cousin of yours that's just too cute, but is just BAD! (S)He's Always getting into something and working your last nerve, but is too cute and sometimes even an angel-- just like Japanese. Sometimes my Japanese will just come out so smooth and nice that I'll suprise myself. Yet at other times, a sista can't even ask for water... (okay, that's over-exagerrating-- but you get the point.) That's kind of how I view Japanese :)-- My cute and bad a$$ cousins-- JJ's Kids. (I know, I know. Sometimes my analogies are way out in left field, but they sure are a lot of fun to create!)
Anyway, if you're familiar with my archives, a few months ago, I was pissed off about my Japanese language classes. I found it hard to believe that my Japanese teacher did not practice actual conversation with me in class; instead leaving it up to the copied worksheets to teach me how to properly pronouce things. Heheheh- That post is so funny now (it may have been a deadly mixture of PMS and culture trippin' --no longer shock after a few months). At any rate, I still hate wasting my money on conversation-less Japanese classes, but I have finally come to peace about learning Japanese and me and JJ's kids are beginning to see eye-to-eye on a few things.
Sooo, today I would like to share with you a few thoughts on learning Japanese which have helped me to finally come to peace about my ever-evolving language ability. Below are 10 things to remember when learning Japanese, or dealing with 'JJ's Kids:
- BE PATIENT. You knew when you purchased your first Japanese book and started thumbing through the pages that learning Japanese wasn't going to be the easiest thing in the world. In the words of one of the best Japanese teacher's I've ever had, "You wanted exotic... You GOT IT!!" Take it one lesson at a time and one page at a time. It's not a sprint to the finish line. Instead, it's a jog, a walk, a skip, a cross-country race, and triathlon all wrapped into one. The good news is that two of the most important things required are a positive attitude and perseverance to endure the long journey. So, remember to be patient with yourself. You are not going to be fluent in one year. The truth of the matter is, it takes years for non-Native speakers to become fluent. Which leads me to #2...
- CREATE REALISTIC LANGUAGE GOALS FOR YOURSELF. We all want to master 500 kanji characters in 1 month. HA!! Laugh at yourself now. Yes, you can learn 500 Kanji characters but I'm willing to bet money that you won't learn them all in one month. As a Japanese learner, we all have good intentions and at times become anxious and excited that we want to gobble up everything in sight as quickly as possible. Chotto Matte Hungry Hippo! (Remember that game?) It's great to want to learn as much as possible but pace yourself. Set a goal to learn 10 new characters or more a week. At the end of the month, you will have learned 40+ new characters. The same goes for grammar. For instance, one of my language goals last month was to learn how to explain in detail, my research to those who asked. Mission accomplished (with the help of my tutor-- the FABULOUS Taka-san!) Now, I am just itching for someone to ask me what I'm researching :). For real!
- CELEBRATE THE LITTLE BATTLES. When I was little, my big brother and I used to complete our homework at the kitchen table. Every few minutes or so, my brother would stop what he was doing and would drum on his notebook using his pencil as a drumstick (laughing). I always thought it was so stupid. But one day I realized that his drumming was his weird to celebrate winning the little battles of his homework (ie. writing a paragraph of an essay, completing a Math problem, etc.)-- at least that's why I thought he did it. I really hope he doesn't read this because he will be so embarrassed. (Love you!) Anyway as I said, celebrate the little things such as finally learning the difference between sawatte and tsuwatte or kenkyu and kinkyu. It's like compound interest, it may not look like much right now. But give it a little time and you'll be amazed at how much you have! Which brings me to #4...
- LEARN SOMETHING NEW EVERYDAY. I'm not going to lie to you. Some days I wake up and I don't want to speak another word of Japanese-- then my phone rings. There will be extremely frustrating days when you just want to give up on learning Japanese and you'll find yourself saying, "Dayum... My Japanese really sucks." (heheheh) That was my mantra for about a month or so. Don't adopt that mantra! Instead keep trying. Try to learn something new everyday-- be it a new word, a new particle, a new phrase, etc.
- DO NOT COMPARE YOUR LANGUAGE SKILLS TO OTHERS. You see, doing this will have you constantly quoting my "Dayum.. My Japanese really sucks" mantra all of the time. This is not high school and everyone doesn't have to graduate at the same time to avoid embarrassment. (HA HA!!) Everyone starts learning Japanese at a different time and you never know how much time and money someone has spent just trying to get to their current level. If you're super competitive like me then this will probably be the hardest pill to swallow. But trust me, you will be a lot happier if you stop comparing your language skills to others. Just do you! Which leads me to #6...
- FIND OUT WHAT WORKS FOR YOU. The same pair of jeans won't fit everyone the same way. Likewise, the same style of learning Japanese won't work for everyone. If you're serious about learning Japanese, find a way to make it work. Figure out what you need more understanding of, determine your language goals, and find a partner to help you. If that doesn't work, try something else. Whatever you don't just give up...
- SCHEDULE WEEKLY TIME WITH A NATIVE SPEAKER. No matter how hard you try, it is my personal opinion that one cannot learn Japanese without listening to a native Japanese speaker-- preferably in-person. I don't care how many books someone has, you have to listen to a native speaker. Since living here for such a short period of time, I have learned that learning Japanese is soooo much more than grammar and vocabulary mechanics, body language and other contextual factors play a key role. Schedule time with a native speaker and just ask them to say stuff in Japanese over and over again and imitate them. If there's one thing that gets on my LAST nerve is when arrogant Americans "Americanize" Japanese. 'AR-RI-GAH-TOE'-- EW! Now I am by no means proclaiming to be an expert, I'm just sayin... Japanese isn't the language to try to be 'original' and 'put your own twist on a word. (That is unless I'm talking with Ms. Badu "What's Poppin ka?" (hehehehe). But seriously, the more Japanese you sound, the better your Japanese sounds.-- The last sentence sounds weird so please read it again :).
- LISTEN TO JAPANESEPOD101.COM I've said it before and will suggest it once more (and many more times to come. (Seriously, I should be a promoter or something for them! JapanesePod101.com-- If you're reading this-- e-mail me!)
- ADOPT SOMETHING ABOUT JAPAN THAT YOU ARE INTERESTED IN AND USE IT AS A LANGUAGE LEARNING TOOL. I live Hip-Hop, Reggae, Literature, and Shopping (great combination right?) A lot of the time my language learning revolves around those four topics. Granted, shopping has been out of the picture for quite some time now. Anyway, occasionally I will hang out with a few friends in the Hip-Hop DJing circle at my university and we'll go back an forth using English and Japanese. I'll learn a new phrase and they'll learn a new phrase. It works. As for literature, I purchased a "Breaking into Japanese Literature" book that includes both the Japanese and English translated version and I am really enjoying it. A few of the friends I made over the summer loved manga and anime. Whatever it is, find a hobby and try to build your language skills around it. It makes learning Japanese more enjoyable.
- CREATE A JAPANESE LEARNING MANTRA. "Dayum... My Japanese sucks" or anything remotely negative is NOT good. Try something like, "All I can do is keep speaking and trying--- and trying to speak."-- That's my current mantra and I say it every time someone gives me a funny look after I said something CRAZY!
- Finally... If you really need a booster or pick-me-up. CALL YOUR FRIENDS and/or family, and listen to them marvel at how amazing they think your Japanese is! That should hold you for about a week or so.
In conclusion, I know learning Japanese can be soooooooo frustrating at times! Really-- I know! But just keep trying. Eventually your efforts will pay off... Learning another language is serious business. Remember, anything worth having requires hard-work. So work hard and don't forget to enjoy yourself-- You're learning Japanese! It is considered to be one of the hardest languages to learn in the world.
--Sista in Tokyo
LOL. Wow! You're just like me. I remember when I first read the name "Ranma" of an anime character in hiragana, I was so happy because I could finally read hiragana. I had been having so much trouble reading Japanese, but when I figured out how to do it, I was so happy.
Posted by: Aisha | May 22, 2006 at 03:52 AM
Learning Mandarin was just as hard for me. I felt like it took years to learn to say it, then decades to learn the simplified characters, then centuries to learn the classical characters. It is so worth it in the end though!
Posted by: risingsunofnihon | June 11, 2006 at 06:05 AM
Very well put, good advise. I just made it on to your site so I have some catching up to do.
Posted by: Zen | July 28, 2006 at 10:53 AM
I've just started learning Japanese, and I'm happy that I can recognize some kana XD and not even all of it, but hey, you gotta start somewhere, right? And I work on pronunciation of romanji, especially through music.
Posted by: Alexandra | September 29, 2006 at 01:03 PM
This is an excellent post! My friends here in Okinawa (as well as total strangers) like to commend me on my abilities to read and speak Japanese, especially when it comes to pronunciation. They say my Japanese is umai but I can't help but realize that learning Japanese is a humbling experience and that I am nowhere near the level I'd like to be.
In the past, whenever I met someone who was at a higher level than I was, I tried to rationalize it in my mind with excuses such as: "It's because they work off base" or "They've lived here for 15 years" or "Because they're half." While all of these situations may be seemingly beneficial to those of us who study Japanese, they are not automatic and, as mentioned above, nothing more than excuses and direct violations of rule #5.
But, as you stated, "...you never know how much time and money someone has spent just trying to get to their current level." So this is encouragement that even though my formal study is currently on hold, I should always take advantage of the opportunities I have to practice speaking and reading Japanese. Just reading that others have similar thoughts/experiences has provided a little motivation in my never-ending quest for personal improvement.
Posted by: subajogu | December 06, 2006 at 09:56 PM
Hi!
I like your blog site!
Was wondering where do you learn Japanese?
I'm in Shibuya area and am wanting lessons, preferably private tutoring though
xoxo
Sophi
Posted by: Sophi | March 27, 2008 at 02:47 PM