1 Getting support from others

In the following two videos, you’ll hear about my experiences of learning Brazilian Portuguese in the UK and learning Japanese in Japan.

Which of the two do you think was more conducive to learning the language, and why?

You’ve just heard about two distinct experiences:

1. Learning Brazilian Portuguese in the UK
2. Learning Japanese in Japan

One was fairly smooth, efficient, and a lot of fun. The other was turbulent, drawn out, and at times tortuous!

Chances are when I asked you to think which experience was easier, you will have suspected that learning Japanese in Japan, would have proven to be a big advantage for me.

In reality, it was quite different.

While it might be a mistake to read too much into these two particular experiences, it is nevertheless true that your environment has the power to make the difference between success and failure.

It doesn’t matter how good your teacher is, what country you live in, or how motivated you (think you) are.

Learning a language takes time. There are bumps along the road, and the more support you have from outside, the more likely you are to succeed.