As a working professional, whose job has nothing to do with acquiring a new language, it can be a challenge to schedule in language-learning time. In order for me to balance working, having a social life, being in a relationship, volunteering, learning a new language, and writing a blog – I had to get creative with my schedule.  Below are some simple tips that have helped me to successfully include language-learning into my life.

Make Sure You Have the Time

Before I seriously decided to become a polyglot, I had to take a long, hard look at my schedule to see if taking on this endeavor was feasible for my current lifestyle.  When this awesome idea popped into my head, I wanted to start doing it immediately. Thankfully, I took a moment to think about if I were able to give this new activity the attention, time, and dedication it requires.  After doing what I call a “calendar audit,” I was happy to find that my pursuit of polyglotism wouldn’t greatly interfere with the other activities that are important to my survival and fulfillment in life.  However, I knew that my path toward this goal would be unique.

I read about a polyglot that is able to dedicate at least 10-15 hours of studying a week to the language he/she is learning.  I would love to dedicate that much time to my studies each week, but that is just not humanly possible for me at the moment, unless I severely cut down on sleeping! It was important for me to come to terms with the fact that the amount of study time is going to vary for each person.  I also try to keep in mind that being consistent with studying and valuing quality over quantity have and will continue to serve me well.

Create a Physical Schedule

It is one thing to say or think that you want to set aside time for studying a language, but actions speak louder than words. It is important to designate a certain time in your schedule that is dedicated to your study time. Technological advances have allowed for us to have digital calendars, notes, and emails that remind us when an event that we have scheduled is coming up.  Whether you have a paper or digital calendar is up to you, but it is imperative that you have one that it is visible and easily accessible.  With all of the distractions in our daily lives, this simple action is a healthy reminder that studying a new language is important enough for you to carve out time for it in your schedule.

I encourage you to go a step further when it comes to holding yourself accountable to your studies. Ask a friend or relative that you trust to check in to see if you are sticking to your schedule.  This person isn’t meant to nag or give you an unreasonably hard time, but it is good to have an outside source that is invested in your success occasionally ask if you have been keeping your commitment to studying. There will be times when your schedule changes unexpectedly but is it worth it to start out with a set plan.   

Be Flexible

The often insightful John Lennon once sang, “Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans.” I really enjoy organizing my schedule and I used to have a hard time when unexpected events occurred that would throw everything off track.  Over the years, life has taught me to loosen my rigid mindset and be more open to being flexible. This has saved me from feeling unnecessarily frustrated and has kept me feeling sane when I suddenly have to switch direction mid-stream.

In the last five months of my journey, I have experienced several occasions, ranging from personal to professional, that interfered with my study time. There has not been one week that has looked the same, but that is ok.  Embracing flexibility has allowed me to deal with unexpected circumstances that come up and then reassess my schedule to see how I can get back on track.

These three tips have not only helped me organize myself to fit learning a language into my life in a realistic way, they have also assisted me in keeping track of my progress.  Five months have passed by so quickly. However, because I have my schedule to look back on, I can also use it as a reference for future scheduling to maximize my learning time.

I hope you found this information helpful and I would love to hear how you juggle scheduling language-learning time with all your other responsibilities in life.

Þakka þér fyrir að lesa og sjáumst fljótlega (Thank you for reading and see you soon)!

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net