Love, Joy, and Languages Heidi Lovejoy

In today's episode I'm chatting with my dear friend, Kuba, a polyglot and passionate language learner who has a fascinating history with languages. As a native Polish speaker, Kuba learned Spanish and English in school, Hungarian at University and through immersion, and Catalan through immersion before diving into a world of self-study. After becoming a polyglot in this way then dabbling in many languages for several years, Kuba started learning Turkish and realized that it wasn't as easy as his previous languages. He knew he could learn it because he'd learned so many languages before, but he struggled in a very unexpected way.


Join Kuba and me today as we explore language curiosity, frustrations, and expectations. We dive into beliefs and doubts, avoiding and changing focus languages, goals versus projects, immersion and the weight of learning a language. Kuba brings so much experience and depth to conversations about languages, and what he brings is so much more than simple, cursory tips and tricks of what's worked for him. His openness about his struggles, especially while already being a polyglot and already having multiple fluent languages, is insightful, inspiring, and something from which I think each one of us can learn.


Connect with Kuba here: Instagram: @langatu_
X (Twitter): @kubacki__


Other content mentioned in this episode:
Kenny from Something Polyglot
Turkish Short Stories by Olly Richards
Ultralearning by Scott Young
Episode 14: Navigating Language Learning Abroad - Interview with Sarah Knight; Love, Joy, and Languages
Episode 49: Good Advice Gone Wrong: Move to a Country of Your TL; Love, Joy, and Languages


Where to find me:
Love, Joy, and Languages Blog
All podcast episodes can be found here.
Instagram: @love.joyandlanguages
X (Twitter): @LoveJoy_Lang

Probably all of us have, at one point or another, had a goal of being fluent in our target language(s). When we think of being fluent, we often think of easily speaking the language, not having to think about what we're going to say, and just being able to spontaneously use the words and grammar we've acquired. There's this weird place I've found myself in with German where I can use the language in all the spontaneous situations I find myself in living in a German-speaking country, and yet I'm not fluent. I am very functional in the language, and I do use it with ease in most situations. But I'm far from fluent.


This is a place on my language journey that's both exciting and frustrating. I'm excited to feel comfortable living in the country using the language. I'm frustrated because I can't fully express myself and be me in the language. I can function, but I don't feel like myself. I can't really showcase my personality, exhibit my intelligence, or converse about deep and meaningful things. Being functional but not fluent comes with a lot of complex thoughts and feelings, so in today's episode I start getting some of those thoughts out and guide a conversation that you can use as a starting point for your own unraveling of thoughts.


Being functional in a language is a huge milestone. Be proud of that, and don't lose sight of it when you focus on getting to fluency.


Links from this episode:
Episode 25: What Is Fluency, Anyway?
Episode 68: Planning, Confidence, and Reflection w/Bront'e Singleton of The Polyglot Fox
The Language Confident Project, by Emily Richardson


Where to find me:
Love, Joy, and Languages Blog
All podcast episodes can be found here.
Instagram: @love.joyandlanguages
X (Twitter): @LoveJoy_Lang

Today's episode is one you won't want to miss! I recently sat down with Bront’e Singleton, the incredible woman behind The Polyglot Fox, to chat about her experiences learning languages and coaching others, guiding them to finding the right language path for themselves. Bront’e has a long list of languages she speaks and learns, and she is so inspiring. Bront’e shares some of the struggles she faced over the years trying to learn multiple and very diverse languages often at the same time, and she’s built her coaching program, The Polyglot Fox, out of the lessons she learned along the way.


The best part, I think, is that she demonstrates amazing openness and flexibility in how she guides language learners to reaching their goals at every single level. She understands that each one of us is different, and how we succeed will look different and fluctuate as we go along. Bront’e shares so much wisdom with us in this chat, especially when it comes to language study planning, building confidence, and allowing time for reflection to discover where we are and be honest with ourselves in order to choose the best next step.


Speaking with Bront’e was an absolute delight, and I have no doubt you all will get something out of this conversation, as well!


Connect with Bront'e here:
The Polyglot Fox website
The Polyglot Fox blog
The Polyglot Fox YouTube
The Polyglot Fox on Facebook
Instagram: @thepolyglotfox
TikTok: @thepolyglotfox


Where to find me:
Love, Joy, and Languages Blog
All podcast episodes can be found here.
Instagram: @love.joyandlanguages
X (Twitter): @LoveJoy_Lang

We've probably all used flashcards at one time or another to memorize vocabulary in our new languages, and I'm sure we've all hated them or at least been bored by them. Many, many language learners, coaches, and teachers bluntly tell us to stop using flashcards because they don't work. But that's simply false. It's a narrative built on the assumption that everyone uses flashcards in one very basic and prescriptive way, namely, a single word on one side in your target language, and that word translated to your native language on the other side. This isn't the only way to use flashcards, though. It's just the way we've all learned somwhere in our educational journeys. Most of the criticisms against flashcards that I find in language learning spaces only address the limitations of this basic flashcard method. They don't apply to more dynamic ways of creating and using flashcards.


So that's what I'm talking about today. Flashcards can be used very effectively as a complement to your language routine and study time. They can be one tool in your toolbox that helps you make great progress and jump forward into new levels. This goes for other methods we use for language learning, as well. Being flexible and creative in how we use various language learning methods can counteract many of the limitations to the prescriptive ways we've learned. Also, we have to consider the expectations that we place on language learning tools. If we expect one single resource or method to teach us a language to high levels, then we're probably going to be very disappointed. Using multiple tools in conjunction with one another, as I share today, will bring about great progress. Flashcards can absolutely be one of those tools that really boosts your language skills.


In this episode I share some of the most frequently stated criticisms of flashcards for learning a foreign language, the reasons people boldly claim that everyone should stop using flashcards, and I give recommendations based on my own experience for how to better use flashcards to counteract these claims. I'm not presenting anything new here. All the thoughts I give are recommendations I received from language learners before me, but now that I've used them to effectively progress both of my main target languages, even at an upper-intermediate level, I can say without a doubt that effective use of flashcards has been an integral piece to the best season of my language journey so far.


Resources mentioned in this episode:
Anki flashcard app
Lingua for reading practice at all levels
Reverso translation site for context
Linguee translation site for context
Forvo for pronunciation
iTalki to find a teacher or tutor for conversation practice


Where to find me:
Love, Joy, and Languages Blog
All podcast episodes can be found here.
Instagram: @love.joyandlanguages
X (Twitter): @LoveJoy_Lang

Manifesting. Some people love it. Some people believe it's hogwash. Wherever you stand, the truth remains that our actions lead to consequences. When our actions are in line with our goals (something that takes conscious awareness and intention), then the consequences will be in line with our desires. So it makes sense that our actions that are aligned with our language goals will lead to the language results we want.


This is exactly what we're talking about today. I am delighted to share this conversation I had with French language coach Angel Pretot of French Fluency. I first learned of Angel’s work in an interview he had with Lindsay Williams of Lindsay Does Languages (linked below), and this led me to Angel’s work guiding French learners to fluency with manifestation. While there are many, many different explanations and thoughts about what manifesting is and how it works, there are also many misconceptions about it, as well, especially when it comes to language learning. Because, really, I don’t hear a lot of people in language learning spaces talking about manifesting and how we can use the power of our brains to bring the language to us and to align ourselves better with our language goals.


Despite what some people think, manifesting in language learning is not simply thinking your language into existence. I need to say this because I know it's a very common misconception. And that’s why I wanted to bring Angel onto the show to break this all down for us, talk about what manifesting is and how we can harness it to take inspired action in our language lives that leads to the language outcomes we desire. Angel shares some very practical tips for how you can strengthen your language learning by implementing manifesting techniques to unlock the power of your brain to consciously work for you and lead you to your language learning goals faster and more enjoyably.


Connect with Angel:
Angel's website: French Fluency
Manifesting French Fluency
Angel's Podcast: Cultural Fluency
Angel's YouTube: Angel Pretot - The French Coach


Other content mentioned in this episode:
4 Step Progess to Learn Any Language with Angel Pretot, Lindsay Does Languages
Simone Pols, Language Coach and host of Simple Italian Podcast
Denise Duffield-Thomas, Manifesting YouTube Channel
Burt Goldman and Quantum Jumping


More interviews with Angel:
Conversation with Angel Pretot, Chandra Gore Consulting
Use Spiritual Practices to Quantum Leap to Fluency, Laid-Back Languages
Meditations that Help You Learn Languages, Speakingpodcast
Interview with Angel Pretot, Dr. Wayne Pernell - The Exceptional Success Coach


Where to find me:
Love, Joy, and Languages Blog
All podcast episodes can be found here.
Instagram: @love.joyandlanguages
X (Twitter): @LoveJoy_Lang

As language learners, we always want progress, right? We all want to move forward, learning new words and taking in the grammar. Yet, many times in my language journey, I've found myself making some progress just to look back and realize that the progress I made was actually the opposite of helpful. Instead, it was holding me back from reaching my goals faster and in a more enjoyable way. And it really comes down to hanging on to tools, methods, or resources that just aren't right for you and your goals. I'm talking here about ignoring red flags.


We all want to make progress in our languages, but if we’re making progress in a resource just for the sake of finishing the resource or just because someone else said it’s good or because we’re afraid of change, then that progress isn’t the type of language advancement that we want. I've forced myself, several times, to keep using a resource just because I was seeing some results. I was learning new words. I was remembering a few things. I did learn some of the language. But, I hated opening the program. I dreaded coming back to it. But I was afraid that ditching it would be worse because I was making some progress. Looking back, it's easy to see that I would have been better off leaving the thing behind and seeking out language tools that were more effective for my needs and that would lead to greater progress. Looking back, it's easy to see that those negative feelings of dread and loathing were huge red flags screaming at me to change things up. But instead, I let my fear of failure get in the way, and I stuck it out far longer than was helpful...because there was some progress.


It doesn’t help anyone to stick with something that just isn’t working. If there are red flags, do not stay. Move on to a new method, a new resource, a new tool. Sometimes "progress" is actually an illusion. Sometimes progress is slower than it needs to be. Sometimes we keep progressing, but we're simultaneously forging a negative bond with our languages because of the negative feelings we have for a resource. So today I share some of my experiences making unhelpful progress and provide some questions you can ask yourself if you find yourself in the same situation with your language.


Related Episodes:
Episode 16: Forging A Joyful Bond With Your Languages
Episode 29: Sunk Costs in Language Learning


Where to find me:
Love, Joy, and Languages Blog
All podcast episodes can be found here.
Instagram: @love.joyandlanguages
X (Twitter): @LoveJoy_Lang